Excellent post as usual Guido.
I'm another who has been in and out of class D for the past 7 or 8 years. My first foray was with the inexpensive PS Audio Trio A-100. This little amp blew me away with it's small size, no heat, and most of all relaxed and engaging sound. How much of this positive impression was based on the excitement of the new product is a question I still ask myself.
I liked the amp so much I bought another and used them to bi-amp. After a few months though, I couldn't say I preferred bi-amping to a single amp.
Without going into the different types of modules used in the different amps, I'll just say the Trio A-100 did not use what were considered "audiophile" quality modules. As that was the case I went searching for better class D.
There were several attempts at bettering the little PS Audio amp without success until I bought a Bel Canto Ref 500S amp. This amp seemed like the absolute "straight wire with gain" amp, in other words, perfect sound. Should'a quit then? Not on your life.
As like most of us, I had several amps to switch in and out just for the heck of it and to keep audio boredom at bay. Mostly standard class A/B amps; none of which were better than the Ref S500, only different. One day, on a whim I placed $100 ebay bid on an old Harman Kardon PA2200 amp. As luck would have it, I won the bud and a few days later I hooked this amp in to my system. Was it better than 20 times more expensive Bel Canto? No. But there was something about this amp I really liked. It stayed in my system for about a month and I couldn't find reason to remove it.
I did remove it to recap the amp and do some rewiring. I also adjusted the DC balance and bias on the amp. After all my fiddling the amp still sounded wonderful. I sold the Bel Canto.
A few years and many amps later, (including a few tube trials) I wanted something very compact for my system. I ended up with a Wyred4Sound mAMP mono blocks. This amp uses the same module as the Bel Canto I found perfect so I figured it would be perfect for me. I found a good deal an a pair and hooked them up. Clean, quiet, perfect(?), but somehow lifeless. Unfortunate as they really fit my space perfectly.
I'm now using an Aura Vita integrated amp as it also fits (barely) my space. I think I'm done trying the class D thing. Although I understand the allure, I also understand, it's not to my taste. And that's really what it's about.
I'm another who has been in and out of class D for the past 7 or 8 years. My first foray was with the inexpensive PS Audio Trio A-100. This little amp blew me away with it's small size, no heat, and most of all relaxed and engaging sound. How much of this positive impression was based on the excitement of the new product is a question I still ask myself.
I liked the amp so much I bought another and used them to bi-amp. After a few months though, I couldn't say I preferred bi-amping to a single amp.
Without going into the different types of modules used in the different amps, I'll just say the Trio A-100 did not use what were considered "audiophile" quality modules. As that was the case I went searching for better class D.
There were several attempts at bettering the little PS Audio amp without success until I bought a Bel Canto Ref 500S amp. This amp seemed like the absolute "straight wire with gain" amp, in other words, perfect sound. Should'a quit then? Not on your life.
As like most of us, I had several amps to switch in and out just for the heck of it and to keep audio boredom at bay. Mostly standard class A/B amps; none of which were better than the Ref S500, only different. One day, on a whim I placed $100 ebay bid on an old Harman Kardon PA2200 amp. As luck would have it, I won the bud and a few days later I hooked this amp in to my system. Was it better than 20 times more expensive Bel Canto? No. But there was something about this amp I really liked. It stayed in my system for about a month and I couldn't find reason to remove it.
I did remove it to recap the amp and do some rewiring. I also adjusted the DC balance and bias on the amp. After all my fiddling the amp still sounded wonderful. I sold the Bel Canto.
A few years and many amps later, (including a few tube trials) I wanted something very compact for my system. I ended up with a Wyred4Sound mAMP mono blocks. This amp uses the same module as the Bel Canto I found perfect so I figured it would be perfect for me. I found a good deal an a pair and hooked them up. Clean, quiet, perfect(?), but somehow lifeless. Unfortunate as they really fit my space perfectly.
I'm now using an Aura Vita integrated amp as it also fits (barely) my space. I think I'm done trying the class D thing. Although I understand the allure, I also understand, it's not to my taste. And that's really what it's about.