Filter capacitance-how does it relate to amplifier performance?

Thanks George!  I really think a lot of people have really missed the boat with Matrix 801s, myself included for a long time....the oft repeated 'need for big solid state amplification' just isn't so in my experience...and in fact, is contraindicated for best sound in my experience.

Still puzzled by the total of 94mF capacitance in the power supply of these killer amps...

 

Filter capacitance is instrumental for speed and the quality of the performance capacitors do count Nichicon super through, are excellent as well as Nippon ,Rubicon .I have owned highly modified electronics and speakers for years, coupling capsif circuit uses them also as well as 1% resistors and very noise regulators like top ofthe line Bellison ,even Solder like WBT , or Cardas 
effect how natural  it sounds as well as quality wiring ,
pin oututs get rid of the brass connectors on electronics and speakers,over 85% are gold Copper 3 x better conductor much more natural sounding from a purist perspective.

Lets say you are a tailor and s costumer enters your shop and wants a tailored suit . He decides on some specific cloth then he leaves to return in two weeks to do final adjustments on the client. 

The power supply in a amplifier is the responsible to give you the size and type of clothing to be used as a blueprint for the signal that is coming threw the input cercuit . Then the signal modulates ( cuts and forms the suit )
 what it receives from the power supply ( the cloth elected by the client ) 
You can easily understand the great important of a properly design power supply .
Any distortion ( aberration in the cloth rinkles or whatever) or ripples in the converted dc to ac will create problems when the input signal uses that cloth to cut the suit.

Now that you have an idea how an amplfier works lets see what does capacitance fit in all of this . Now remember the signal that modulates the product of the power supply to create a exact copy of the signal that is coming in but at higher levels this signal is not static , it constanly changed in level . It could reach a level higher then what the power supply can acomodate without distorting . The needed energy is warehoused in the capacitors and when needed they comei in , do their job and are recharged again for when needed 

This is a very important aspect of an amplifier the capacity to give extra current when needed and is expressed in amps or current .
One more thing is the type of capacitor as they give amplifiers a particular sound and how they are used in the circuit . Do they discharge fast and do they charge fast enought for the next burst . Hope this helps , take care and be safe .

First, I STRONGLY recommend you read this:

https://sound-au.com/power-supplies.htm

Here is the summary:

Filter capacitance has roughly 2 functions:

- It smooths the waveform from a jagged form to a smoother one.  This is called the ripple voltage.  The higher the capacitance, the lower the ripple which IS what you want, up to a certain point.  Above a certain value, you do not get much improvement.

- It supplies instantaneous burst current (energy) when needed.

Bottom line is:

- Get the highest capacitance you can afford which fits into your physical space.

- Its voltage rating should be at least about 20 % higher than your amplifier rail voltage measured when the amplifier is powered on but NOT producing any output.

- Get the longest lasting one which are typically around 20,000 hrs at 85 degrees C.

I'm no engineer but, transformer size, filter capacitance, output devices, rail voltage, etc. all play a huge roll in amplifier power. 

You can have an amp with a larger transformer, medium capacitance, and more output devices that will "perform" the "same" as an amp with a smaller transformer, large capacitance, and medium output devices.

Bill