Good gawd, y'all !!!!!
You want the TRUTH from those Wilson Alexia's, maybe you can't handle the TRUTH
56 bi-polar outputs, current till the cows come home, massive supply, multiple small power supply caps for fast release, 2000w into 2ohms that’s 2hp!!!!!
http://www.stereophile.com/content/sae-2hp-d-power-amplifier#DY4MYZKcUUSS8LeR.97
Cheers George
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That’s fine if 10 watts is enough which means speakers are efficient and will be asked to do more rather than the amp or if one just does not ever plan to listen very loud with certain kinds of music. Otherwise even the best amp under ideal conditions will suffer considerably when the ante is upped by speakers, listener, or both because now your amp is clipping and distorting. It helps to take note of the profession of those who make statements like NPs. Amp builders focus on optimizing their amps but put the burden on the speaker maker and vice versa more often than not. Who is right depends on whose rules you choose to follow. |
@mapman No, I didn't say 10 watts was enough. What I meant was that too often reviewers focus on things like S/N at maximum output. If you have a 700 Watt amplifier, it may have a better S/N than a 100 watt amp, but in my house could be 4 times noisier. These are just examples. I am not a small amp guy. I just meant, these big ass amps seem impressive just because of the output power. I'm more interested in an amplifier that plays exceedingly well with vanishingly low noise within the power envelope I use. Best, Erik |
I wonder is there any room left to squeeze a supercharger? Sure I get it, but since the energy it makes wasn’t designed to turn gears putting a horsepower rating on an amplifier seems a bit too gimmicky to me.Try driving a pair of Wilson Alexia’s < .9ohm or XLF’s and others, then you’ll need something like this, to get the best out of them. And lets face it, if you buy these >$50k speakers you want to hear the TRUTH and not compromise them with weaker amps that can’t pump out that kind of current. Cheers George |
@ivanj Electrical panels are rated by amps, not watts, but I get your point. :) Fortunately most audio equipment is reasonably efficient at idle. Unless you plan to run those amps near peak power, I suspect most audiophiles will have no trouble at all even in an apartment. I've gone to Class D and am just fine there thank you. The latest generation of high efficiency amps hits my sweet spot of power, affordability, sound quality and live-ability (i.e. small, easy to hide) but I do wish they had super cool output meters. :) Best, Erik |
You know, I just thought of something. SAE gained fame around the time of Halfer and before Sumo, sort of. I mean, these brands were all around and had some sort of a following. Amber and Adcom I believe were also gaining some fame too around the same period. James Bonjiorno (1923-2013) worked first for SAE and later for Sumo, but the Sumo amps always sounded to my ears fuller, sweeter and more powerful than SAE and Hafler. I wonder if there was some shared design flaws and later, improvements? I understand Hafler in later amplifiers gained some intestinal fortitude. Maybe power supply caps were getting better? It's just fun to think of these things. Best, Erik |
georgelofi OP1,739 postsTry driving a pair of Wilson Alexia’s < .9ohm or XLF’s and others, then you’ll need something like this, to get the best out of them. And lets face it, if you buy these >$50k speakers you want to hear the TRUTH and not compromise them with weaker amps that can’t pump out that kind of current. Cheers George I understand. But its not the only big kid on the block. Two Bryston 28 BSST3 mono blocks come in at less than the SAE at $19,200 The Bryston’s numbers are more impressive. I’ve never seen a Bryston bench sheet test at an amps published output ratings, always a percentage higher. Not a few watts, numbers worth mentioning. I can’t say which would fair better with the Wilson’s, just putting it out there. I know which one(s) I would bet on though. |
So George, have you actually heard the Amp? No, I’m just putting it out there, I like what I see in the bench test measurements and aim for similar measurements when I have built the odd powerhouse, except mine were much higher biased into class A and water cooled. And think it good value for the money and you guys in the US should have a listen to it. As I’m in Australia, if it ever came here it would be $6K+ Cheers George |
Hmm, find that a bit strange George, you've never heard the Amp, yet you say it delivers the "Truth"! I don't understand that. After many,many years I only trust what my ears, my mind and my body to tell me how good something sounds. Heard too many "well specced" components that sound ordinary to trust what's on a piece of paper! My advice is you should always "experience" music, "feel" it, that way you will get a greater grasp of it. Thousands of live music gigs over (too) many years have taught me this. Don't get bamboozled by "specs". |
A bit anal/argumentative there sunshine, the "You can’t handle the Truth" (A Few Good Men reference) "is tongue in cheek". The technical here know what I’m on about, as the Wilson Alexia’s are such a savage hard load there are only a few amps that will drive them flat from 20hz to 20khz with the current that’s needed, and not act as the dreaded tone control. And this amp maybe one of them that can do that. Cheers George |
The truth is sure getting expensive these days.Yes they are a rich, the Parasound JC1 Mono-blocks can control the Alexia's at 6k a pair, I've heard them on them, and they were very good and could sound even better especially in their higher class A mode. But the Gryphon Antillion Evo was even better but that was 60k!!! Cheers George |
meerzistar I can address your Bryston comment. I have a pair of 28BSST2 driving Wilson Watt Puppy 7's It is a wonderful combination, and I could not be happier(famous last words) Bryston modestly rates them at 900w, into 8ohm, both of my test sheets for the 28's have clipping values at 1247w, and 1249w respectively. |
Anal/ argumentative, "sunshine"? Hardly George. Sadly it's your "fragile" ego that can't handle the truth. Still can't believe how anyone can say an Amplifier delivers the truth when they have never heard it. Very weird. Keep believing that "specs" are the be all and end all while I keep enjoying the music. Cheerio. |
Thanks Erik_squires about amps. My bad. I have had trouble with one brand of mono tube amps that drew over 12 amps each during robust payback. In a modern home that did have 20 amp outlets, etc. they sounded wonderful. I reckon the SAEs and the like draw similar. The problem was in an 1818 house that had inadequate amperage and thoughtless wiring. The tube amps sucked. When the service was upgraded and wiring correctly replaced and routed, the problem went away. The computers were happier, too. |
