Why monoblocks?

I'd have to say Kevin Hayes is one of the good guys in this business and is always a pleasure to deal with. I have enjoyed my VAC amps greatly and they have worked extremely well with my Audiokinesis Jazz Module and Tonian Labs TL-D1 speakers. The Golden Dragon tubes that I received from VAC have been just fine and I run the amps a good 5 hours a day on average since I listen to KUNV on my FM tuner while working. I have enough experience to know that not every manufacturer is perfect (including Audio Research), and I'm sure VAC has its share of unhappy customers, but I'm not one of them.

You can make the argument that monoblocks as a rule will be better than stereo amps, but in this hobby I have quite surprisingly found a number of exceptions to the standards. One of which is that stereo amps can sound every bit as good as monoblocks. If that makes me inexperienced then I can accept that because the end result is I'm enjoying whatever experience I do have.

People seem to be presenting their opinions as facts. Not unusual, but somewhat suspect, IMO.

Well, that's settled:)

My comment was not negative toward VAC or Mr. Hayes. I was commenting on the market regarding specific products. I have no personal interest in any product at this time.

What was I thinking? I thought we were comparing apples to apples. I'm not talking about comparing $800 monos to an $8,000 stereo amplifier. I am referring to comparing like products.

Most audiophiles buy stereo amps because they are less expensive and manufacturers reserve their best for mono amplifier designs which dramatically increases the price.

I understand there are exceptions to every rule, but I believe today's audiophile would rather spend money on a dozen expensive power cords and power conditioners than a pair of high quality mono amplifiers in an effort to improve the sound.

If this was not considered an advantage why do we have dual mono designs in amplifiers and preamps? I realize there is such a thing as personal taste, but when a system sounds good everybody agrees.

Mono block amps vs stereo amps? Well, this subject has been addressed before on this site and I have added my responses. However, here are some issues. Do mono block amp operate and ultimately sound better than stereo amps? Depends on the amps, period. It is always (electrically) better to have the amps situated such that the speaker cables are as short as possible. I x I x R (I sqared R, or power losses) in wires dictate that the longer the wires, the more power is lost due before the signal reaches the speakers. this is why power transmission lines are of significantly higher voltage than local distribution lines. Less power losses. Basically, the signal will degrade and have losses if the wires are long. It is better to have short speaker wires and longer interconnect wires. Also, if you are comparing mono vs. stereo. You have to compare apples to apples. You can't compare using a speaker that really is a difficult load and say go to amps that really can't drive the load. what mono amps do is to take the burden of driving both amps away and splits it within two separate amps. Most (not all) stereo amps use a single power power cable and power supply to drive both channels. Take away the fact that you eliminate crosstalk between channels, you also relieve the amp's power supply of the burden also. And, if you have separate power outlets that run back to your panels on opposite sides of the incoming power (different phase), then the power supply in the panel doesn't get overly burdened. Get matching specs amps, one is a stereo amp and two mono amps that have the same specs and the mono amps will definitely produce a better sound. but, use a massive stereo amp vs two very small mono amps that probably couldn't handle the speaker load by themselves anyway and the sound would suffer. This is not the haves vs the have nots at all. It is the same logic as why you use separates in the first place. Just step back and ask why you use separates and you answer your own questions.

enjoy