which is better? Stereo Amp or Monoblocks?

@blindjim 

Topology isn’t always the big deal with some amps, say tube amps for example. There are tube monos running sE only. Very nice ones.

There is a very good argument which paralelles this thread…. Fully differentially balanced or single ended designs, which is best?

Cost no object (C.N.O.) builds of either SE or XLR amps should have the balanced amps doubling the costs of the SE amps provided both amps were made . of identical parts as the XLR amps use effectively a twin SE arrangement or twice the parts list essentially..

I can point to a number of issues that belie this comment:

Topology is actually a huge deal with many amps, especially tube amps. I've been trying to see how I might have misinterpreted your comment but I don't see how.

A cost no object (or even on a budget) balanced amp does not cost twice that of single-ended circuitry nor does it have twice the parts- that is a very common myth! I don't have to look very far to prove that out- most of our amps cost **less** than single-ended amps despite having greater power and performance (and yes they are full balanced and differential). Part of the reason for that is we don't have to pay for an output transformer, but even if we did, output transformers for push-pull amps are easier to build and thus less expensive.

So you can see that topology is huge.

@ mr_m

What are the advantages of a loudspeaker system with a 16 ohm nominal rating???

All amps have less distortion driving 16 ohms as opposed to 8 or 4. Tube amps in particular will not only have less distortion, but (if transformer-coupled) will play with wider bandwidth and slightly more power because the output transformer is more efficient. 

With our amps (which have no output transformer), there is less heat and power draw from the wall; the smaller amps we make (M-60 and S-30) also make more power.

Finally, the speaker cables have far less impact on the sound and you can run them longer lengths.

+1 for stringreen.

The thing is you have to qualify any answers with 'all other things being equal'.

If you do that then monoblocks are the clear winner. One advantage is you can place them by the speakers and keep your speaker cables short. This can really help with definition and impact, particularly if you have 4 ohm speakers. But my speakers are 16 ohms and I find that short speaker cables help them out too.