Power Amplifier - Maximum Resolution & Detail!


I am assuming some of you have experienced the following.... All else being the same in the chain, you replaced a power amplifier and started hearing more resolution and detail, perhaps a lil more in a track that you have heard a thousand times.

Ime, the higher you go up in price doesn't necessarily guarantee that you could experience the above mentioned. It seems to come down to the nitty gritty of the circuits under consideration, i.e., the black art of power delivery and analog circuit design.

What is a power amp you may have experimented with that provided the maximum detail and resolution at any price? (Not just perceived changes in tonal balance, etc).

I am hoping to shortlist a power amp based on some suggestions here for a future purchase.

 

P.S. If you are an ASR type of guy who thinks all power amps sound the same, this may not the right thread for you, I suppose...

deep_333

You did not mention $$ budget , there are many great amplifiers if money is 

no  object ,being into Audio for decades ,owning a Audiostore  for a decade 

and semi retired now travel  to many audio get togethers and have heard most equipment that's brought into the U.S and many shoot outs between components of all types. Having owned 6 figure audio systems in the past, Now I seek out the best sounding products for the least amount of monies ,that is much harder to achieve  and have found a bunch of equipment for all types of taste .System, synergies  is the most important part in building a solid audio system . You are only as strong as your weakest link in the chain. Many people over look more things then they think is Relevant .1 qiuick examples from your-router- modem combo any wall wart  in the audio chain is destroying the quality of your music- pure garbage , I put a Linear Tube Audio LPS power supply to the router  a Substantial improvement to the incoming signal $700 on Audiogon  nice and clean . I also use a decent Ethernet hub  current  LHY sw8  hub , decent  but could be much better $600, Ethernet cables atleast a few hundred $$ from router ,end point Ethernet cable most important . I use also a Denafrips reclocker  I have a Hermes , in my wife’s the Iris 12th  for little $$ 550, if on a budget totally cleans the incoming signal before going to your dac I use I2S cable which is the best  for sonics , this is just for digital your source maybe the most important part of your music chain ,for you cannot make it better once the signal is compromised.

The Burmester family sound seems like it will satisfy your desire for clarity, detail, and resolution while maintaining a liquid, sweet midrange and treble and realistic timbre.  Professional reviewers state it has the speed and bass of a solid state with the liquidity, imaging, and staging of tubes.  I find it excels at leading edge transient response and decay as well as micro and macro dynamics, along with a low noise floor to produce excellent ambiance retrieval.  Imaging is three dimensional with each instrument or performer in a defined space.  Staging is wide and deep.  Transformative change from the old Krell sound.  I went with the 032 integrated.  You should look at the 911 Mk 3 amp.  The mono-blocks are over your $30k limit.  

Maximum resolution and detail should NOT impair musicality. When it does, IME, it is because resolution and detail are confused with distortion.

IMO, to maximize resolution and detail without increasing distortion requires components of the highest quality. Naturally, manufacturers don't want to spend big bucks on 50 resistors at $10 each, and air gap capacitors at $100, so they only use these at the most critical points of the topology, if at all. So if you want that quality, be prepared to spend big big bucks or build it yourself.

DIY forever!

You'll laugh, but here it goes: I recently picked up a pair of Fosi V3 Monos and after adding the Sparkos opamp, I heard some subtle things on some my test tracks that I'd not heard before.  Or maybe hadn't noticed before. 

Some amps I've had or still have:  VTL monos, Cary 805s, Aleph 3, Aleph 2, AES SixPacs, Inspire triode, James Burges 2A3/45 and many more.

IMO, some of the newer, inexpensive gear are killin' it.