Class "D" amp? I do not have a clue. Do you?

Ckoffend,

Very well written and interesting post.

I'm wondering if you heard the same issues with Spectron?

I've found the Class D's in my rig to be phenominal for modern pop/rock music, the best by far I have ever owned.

Only big, expensive, heavy, hot running, power gulping monster amps can compete with this kind of music IMHO.

I was listening to "Amputechture" by The Mars Volta last night, LOUD!

This record contains visceral, muscular prog metal that can rip you apart (in a good way) if well delivered, and also has some delicate, beautifully recorded parts. The BC ref amps deliver it all beautifully and you can listen to the whole album loud as intended without being chased from room (assuming this kind of music is your cu of tea to start with, which it may not be for many). Of course you also need speakers that can play the game as well.

Lower your refined audiophile/musical standards a bit and play Boom Boom Pow by the Black Eyed Peas. The electronic percussion should be both viscerally powerful but clean crisp and dynamic. That's what I hear with my Class D amps running either pair of my OHM Walsh speakers.

"Thrak" by the venerable "King Crimson" is a similar kind of listen that will either hold you enthralled if things are clicking or chase you out of the room if not.

They do similarly well on most any kind of music you throw at them.

So when someone proposes that modern Class D amps just cannot cut it, I have to take that with a major grain of salt. In the right system, they are exactly what the doctor ordered IMHO.

"So when someone proposes that modern Class D amps just cannot cut it, I have to take that with a major grain of salt. In the right system, they are exactly what the doctor ordered IMHO."

I would whole heartedly agree with you on the first part of this statement on the simple premise that each individual's tastes and goals are addressed differently and would not discourage one from auditioning such amplifiers.

I know what I like! I know that does not correspond with what everybody else likes or that what I like is either best or right. Afterall, one of my favorite combos is Krell/Wilson - two companies that elicit pretty extreme positions.

Mapman, I have a lot of respect for your comments and recommendations and believe your statements are rarely made on emotions, but more on personal experiences - as they should be.

That being said, King Crimson typically chases me out of the room ;)

"King Crimson typically chases me out of the room"

Well, they certainly are not everyone's cup of tea. Most people either love them or hate them.

What I like about the act is that they have a well deserved reputation for musical innovation, perhaps more so and over a longer period of time (practically the whole duration of modern rock music) than almost any other widely known rock music act. They practically invested art rock back in teh late sixties and have managed to keep up with and often ahead of the pack in almost every decade since.

I don't know if many here address the electricity going to their gear as much as I do, but what I have found is that the D amps that I own need the best power you can give them to sound their best.

That means the less you do to clean up the power to your amps(and whole system)the worse they will sound.

I recently did some more upgrades(I am firmly in the Shunyata camp)and the improvement to the sound of my system only let the clarity of my D amps(Red Dragaon Leviathans)shine thru.
I was pleased before, but really impressed afterwards.

The Red's will sound nasty if you feed them nasty power and sources, they are revealing, and if other D amps have the same traits, then perhaps those who do nothing to clean their power(dedicated lines, power conditioning,power cords)have heard the nastiness and attribute it to the D amp .Thus a myth about the poor sound of D amps is taken as part and parcel of all D amps in all systems.

It would be interesting to hear from others who own D amps of their stories and findings concerning the power being fed to their amps.

And I am curious if those who have found D amps not to their liking use any type of power conditioning , dedicated lines or upgraded power cords.

My Reds use Shunyata Annaconda Helix into a Hydra 2, ,the hydra 2 is connected to a 20 amp wattgate which is wired at the panel with 10 guage Romex of about 10 feet in total length.
Front end gear is on another 20 amp line, into a Venom plug, then 20 amp Annaconda Helix to the Hydra 8.

As I mentioned, before I went this route I was happy with the sound of my gear/amps.
Now I am very pleased.