2. amps-preamps
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Class D is just Dandy!

I thought it was time we had a pro- Class D thread. There's plenty of threads about comparisons, or detractors of Class D.

That's fine, you don't have to like Class D amps, and if you don't please go participate on one of those threads.

For those of us who are very happy and excited about having musical, capable amps that we can afford to keep on 24/7 and don't require large spaces to put them in, this thread is for you.

Please share your experiences with class D amps!
erik_squires
mdeblanc's avatar
mdeblanc
62 posts
 
Anyone running the PS Audio DirectStream DAC directly into their Class D amp? If so, are you using the filter on the DAC? Any idle noise when the display is lit on the DAC?
atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,793 posts
 
@erik_squires - worth a shot, class D modules are cheap...
autre
63 posts
 
This is a brief tangent from the current topic but I wanted to give an update to those that helped me in selecting a class D amp. I was fortunate enough to pick up a Red Dragon S500 power amplifier from a fellow Audiogoner and I could not be happier!  The amplifier is truly all that it has been touted to be. Effortless delivery of power, clean, smooth, extremely detailed with excellent separation but without harshness. I could go on and on, but the end message is: class D is the real deal. Even to my untrained ears there is a noticeable difference in the "feel" of the music (please excuse the lack of the usual audiophile adjectives). I think one of the most amazing things is how good it sounds even though the rest of my system (other than my ls50s) can be considered low-budget components!  Thanks again to all of you that gave input to guide me along this class D odyssey! 
erik_squires OP
16,049 posts
 
hi @autre 

Glad you found this thread useful and that you bought something you like.

Remind me please, what are you comparing the Red Dragon to? 

Best,

E
autre
63 posts
 
Hi Erik,

i had home demoed a Peachtree Audio Nova 125 SE and a Rogue Audio Sphinx v2. Although I wasn't able to do a side by side comparison, from what I recalled, the Red Dragon sounded the best. I also had my old Qinpu A1.0x integrated that I had in my system immediately prior to inserting the Red Dragon and it was definitely the better of the two.  Of the 4 amplifiers, the Red Dragon had the best overall sound and the most enjoyable sound.

At some point (perhaps Black Friday deals?) I would like to upgrade my DAC, and the preamplifier since both are low budget (but decent)  components. But I figured I could build the system piece by piece as the budget allowed. I'm just very grateful that I was able to obtain the amplifier that had won so many accolades!
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