Hi YYZSantabarbara, a comparison of Veritas and Prometheus would make interesting reading....
But it is more likely that you will continue to find reviews that are targeting one product at a time.... You might need to continue drawing your own comparisons by unscientifically reading between the lines... Particularly tricky if the two articles are written by two different reviewers.
G. |
Hi Santabarbara, I have not heard the Theta Prometheus yet, but I own and love the Rowland M925 NCore NC1200 monoblocks ($56K/pair), and have reviewed the lovely Merrill Veritas NCore NC1200 monos ($12K/pair) for Positive Feedback:
http://positive-feedback.com/Issue68/merrill_audio.htm
With the premise that I love the underlying NCore sound, for the very reasons of balanced musicality, power resolution, and lack of grain and distortion discussed in the Greenhill article, I suspect that Prometheus are probably capable of making wonderful music.
Prometheus appears to be different from other NCore NC1200 implementation targeting the $12K pricepoint in at least 2 major aspects...
Merrill Veritas utilize the Hypex NCore NC1200/700 switch mode power supply (SMPS). Conversely, David Reich at Theta has designed a custom linear power supply for Prometheus... Which one is "better"? I will make no assumption that a linear power supply is ineherently better than an SMPS, or viceversa. Thus... I have no idea, but they are likely to yield subtly different results from each other.
Furthermore, Merrill Veritas declare a power of 400W/8 and 800W/4, while Prometheus declares 250W/8 and 500W/4. This difference might reflect some internal design peculiarity, or perhaps simply a more conservative power rating philosophy by Theta.
Either way, if you have the opportunity, it might be worth while to evaluate both amps in your system. Merrill might be able to arrange an in home audition... Buzz him at (415) 562-4434. Perhaps Theta or one of its dealers can do a similar thing for the intriguing Prometheus.
Regards, Guido |
I concur with Bill, Bel Canto has a superb track record with class D amps. Their older REF1000 Mk.2 was an absolute sonic jewel at an attractive price.
REF600 is not based on NCore NC1200 like Veritas and Prometheus, but on a yet unnamed NCore trickle-down module.... Sorry, I am still trying to find out some details....
REF600 utilizes an apparently standard Hypex NC1200/700 SMPS in each chassis. One thing unique about REF600 is that John Stronczer -- the designer -- has implemented a custom differentially balanced input stage to lower noise floor, raise common mode rejection ratio, and raise input impedance to 200KOhms.... I have not heard this amp yet, but outwardly it does look intriguing.
http://www.belcantodesign.com/eOne/products/amplifiers/ref600m-amplifier/
G.
|
Hi Statman, which dealer did you work with during your successful Prometheous quest?
Saluti, GUido |
"I do not think class D has come of age yet, as the switching frequency technology is not yet high enough"
George, which amps have you experienced which are the audible cause of your pessimism?
G. |
Hi YYZ, the Bel Canto Ref500 monos are based on the somewhat less powerful NC500 module, instead of the NC1200 used in Veritas and Prometheus. As a result, the peak current of Ref600 is 27A instead of 38A. I suspect you might find REF600 to have less authority than Veritas or Prometheus, and perhaps a little bit less resolution.
Keep us posted on your listening experiences!
Regards, G. |
Hey Al, things are good.... Absolutely adore my big rig with Rowland Aeris DAC and M925 monos....
Yet, at its uber-attractive pricepoint, the little Taranis stereo with gain raised to 29dB was a real treat on my Vienna Die Muzik speakers.
For the rest, believe it or not... I am having immense fun fiddling with high brass instruments and mouthpieces.... Adams A4 Heavy trumpet, Kanstul 1525 copper flugelhorn, and very recently Carolbrass CCR-7772R 3-crooks Bb cornet and CCR-7775 Eb soprano cornet... Nuts am I? For sure!
G. |
George, are you saying that you audition graphs, and faithfully follow those pundits who seem to suffer from Princess And The Class-D Pea syndrome?
Your implicit trust in the press is admirable... It spares you from the unavoidable surprises of audible reality
G. |
Right on Jon, my old hearing is clearly impaired *grins!*
Actually, I examine amps one brand at a time, and one model at a time.
Currently, my favorite uber amps sound comes from Acoustic Research, Brmester, Solution, and yes... Rowland. Any of these brands have some machines that make enchanting music to my ears.
Class D has the same potential for good and bad sound as any other base topology... It all depends on componentry, goals, design, and implementation. All other things being equal, The common advantage of Class D over other topologies remains energy efficiency, hence minimum cost of operation.
Is class D inherently great? Heck no! I have heard certain current class D amps sounding positively acrid... Best used in attics.... They chase Roaches and other critters away for pennies a day. But so do some much vaunted class A/B devices, and more than a handful of tube amps... At a higher operating cost, that is *grins!*
Bottom line... Generalizations are a slippery business.
G. |
Hmmm... I was really thinking about the miniscule AC bill... The initial capital investment remains... Uhrn... Audiophrenic madness *grins!* |
