Bel Canto Ref 1000 vs. Spectron Musician III Mk 2

Getting back on topic - for the past 6 months I have owned a Bel Canto Ref 500m (which has been getting a lot of good reviews - and is the next generation higher bandwidth ICE module compared to the 1000m).

I have tried these on Triad Gold Monitor speakers (which are 4-ohm speakers) , and on another system using B&W N804's.

In both cases, I was getting a similar sound with the Bel Canto - it was smooth and noise free - but smooth to the point that is was slightly artificial sounding. Over the 6 month period I tried with my various interconnects, power cables, preamp, etc. to optimize it - but it just never sounded as good as my old Simaudio Class A/AB amp. Not having the same bass drive strength as the Simaudio was something I could live with, but the plasticky sound just started driving me nuts over the 6 months I had them. Supposedly they take that long to break in, and they did admittedly get better bass and treble during that time, but the plasticky sound never really changed.

The only reason I switched to Class D in the first place was for heat reasons -my new house had a semi-enclosed cabinet so I had no choice. I should also mention that I had tried some other Class D amps - including the Wyred, the Pioneer Receiver, etc. - all with similar issues (Bel Canto sounded the best among these though).

This December, I decided to give Class D one final last try with the Spectron - I grilled them about their return policy - - I really had enough with the whole Class D thing and if this thing didn't sound just right I was planning on shipping it back immediately, and going back to Class A or AB - regardless of heat!

Well to my pleasant surprise - as soon as I plugged in the Spectron - it sounded "normal". It actually had many of the characteristics of the Simaudio - a strong sound - like it was totally in control of the speakers. Strong bass, full midrange, good treble, with nothing weak nor nothing strongly accentuated. Very neutral sounding. Also, fast transient attacks / high speed (similar to a zero global feedback Class A amp), But most important it lacked the "plasticky" sound that was driving me nuts with the Bel Canto.

But a friendly warning - I made the mistake of trying out the amplifier in monoblock mode. The sound really opened up and I could hear backgrounds in recordings that I had never heard before with the Simaudio. At this point it was outperforming my Class A/AB amp in every regard - I really had not expected this! The only reason I don't recommend you try out the monoblock mode - is you may find yourself having to go out and buy another Spectron amp as I had to do! :)

So in a nutshell, if you are going to go Class D, I think there is no contest between any of the ICE amps vs the Spectron - the Spectron is clearly to me a much better amp.

DAn,

I would like to hear a good Spectron someday for comparison to my BEl Canto ref1000m mononblocks, which have been a home run for me to-date (I picked them up second hand over a year ago now).

My experience with the ref1000m's was that when I first hooked them up, the sound was so different from what I had just prior with a Class A Musical Fidelity A3CR that I did not know what to make of it. So it was definitely different. In my case however, once my ears adjusted I determined the sound was miles ahead and more in line with reference systems I have heard using very high end gear only.

I will say that the amps seem to benefit my larger full range, current hungry OHM Walsh speakers more than they did my small Dynaudio monitors, so I think the benefits of Class D over other amps in general may be determined somewhat by the particular speakers used.

Dan, thank you very kindly for your thoughts and comments. I had tried class D in the past, initially liking the positive side of what they delivered, but within just a few months, ultimately determined that they lacked too many attributes that I was seeking.

The fact that you have tried other Class D amps and had been disappointed with their overall performance more closely mimics my experience with this "design". Your comments about the Spectron's uncharacteristic Class D performance is encouraging. Thank you for taking the time to comment.

Mapman, your comments about speaker specifics, while necessary to point out, should go without saying. We have communicated via other threads in the past, I hold a level of trust in your comments - typically well thought out and not hastily posted or with too much pride getting in the way of reality. I had also read a lot of positive Bel Canto comments and communicated directly with several owners. In the end, I determined that they did not do it for me/my speakers in a way that I require, but are good amps nonetheless. Finding that synergy is so important, it sounds like you are there.

Any others having tried and sold or tried and kept the spectrons (especially in stereo)? I'd love to hear from you and I am sure others would also like to expand the list of people posting on the performance of these amps (based on prior or current ownership).

FWIW, I have not compared the BC ref1000m's to any other Class D amps, low or high end in any sort of meaningful test.

All I can state is that yes I find them hard to fault and they fit the bill perfectly for me.

I suspect I would like the Spectron's as well if I heard them though I would not expect the two to sound exactly the same.

There are lots of flavors of home sound (they are all just different flavors after all) out there that I like a lot and could live with if I had to, especially since I run multiple speakers in multiple rooms to provide some variety, which is of course the spice of life!