Higher-End Class A/B vs. Class A Integrateds
I’ve been thinking about downsizing from separates to an integrated amp. I’ve noticed that some companies have both class A and class A/B amps that are both pretty expensive such as Luxman for example. Hegel seems to be well received and they’re not true class A as far as I know.
I was kind of under the impression that class A was better than class A/B due to lower distortion yet again, there are some well reviewed class A/B amps that are as pricey as some class A amps.
To be clear, it’s really not the price I’m concerned about. It’s the fact that some integrated amps $5000 and up are still only Class AB.
How do these higher priced class AB amps sound in comparison to true class A amps?
I just put my Black Ice Audio 3502P tube amp in with EL34 tubes. After listening with the McCormack DNA 0.5 solid state amp all summer, it sounded warmer but sluggish(?) especially with rock music. Small Jazz ensembles, acoustic music and vocals sound fine. I'm going to try the Gold Lion KT88's in to see if they make much of a difference. I'm trying to determine if I need a higher powered integrated than most Class A amps provide.
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@dman777 - A lot of what you describe is what I hear with my 507ux. I wonder how much of the character of our integrateds is in the preamp and not the amp section instead? Also, speaking of bass extension, I highly recommend the Mogami quad speaker cables with the Luxmans. |
@erik_squires for the Yamahas, the 2000 greatly influences the as 3200. With the AS-3200 by itself I do not like it. It has to be with the 2000. They go really good together.
I have not messed with any preamps for the Luxman. I figure for the price, if it's not good enough standalone then I don't want it. I am on the fence on selling my Luxman 595. I will eventually buy the MacIntosh 12000. I might sell it down the road if I find I do not use the Luxman enough. It's hard to give it up... it does sound better than other amps for Jazz music. |
@dman777 Sorry, I was not at all clear. I meant, when listening to say a Luxman 509 or 590 or 507, I wonder how much of the tonal character is actually the preamp section, as opposed to the A or A/B output stages? |
