Will new Class D trump a vintage Class A/AB?


After 6 years on a shelf, I finally got a 1986 VSP Labs TransMOS 150 power amp fixed. Back in its heydey, the Gold Edition of this amp was one of J. Gordon Holt's favorite amps for neturality and musicality. It's fairly heavily biased into Class A, as the VSPs run on the warm side. They weigh a ton--50-60 lbs depending on whether you have the 150wpc or 200wpc version. They are stable all the way down to 0 ohms, have a really high damping factor, and have deep, extended, tightly controlled bass. It's one of the first MOSFET transconductance amps--it's a solid state implementation of tube amp topology. I remember it being fairly fast, but especially liquid.

Now, I haven't heard a VSP in years (even though I have 4 of 'em--most needed recaps or something).

Anyway, in a fit of impulse-buying, I ordered an Onkyo A-9555 class D integrated amp, which has been enthusiastically reviewed and recommended by both Absolute Sound and Stereophile.

So whaddaya all think? Has amplifier development come far enough in the past 22 years that a high quality MIJ class D integrated could give a handmade boutique old school AB amp from the '80s a run for the money? I know I'll find out in a couple of weeks, but which way do you think it'll go?
johnnyb53
Hmm, why didn't you stay with boutique? The very best in Class D is from the boutique makers, like Rowland and Spectral.

Get the Rowland Continuum 500 and your days of tracking down hum will be over. Also, you'll be able to sit back and play music.

Dave
08-23-08: Dcstep
Hmm, why didn't you stay with boutique? The very best in Class D is from the boutique makers, like Rowland and Spectral.
Because I'm a cheap bottom-feeder. :) Actually, I had to quit working a couple years ago due to health reasons, so I try to satisfy my audiophile ears by buying legendary gear on the used market, closeouts, and supplement it by selling the gear I'm replacing.
Get the Rowland Continuum 500 and your days of tracking down hum will be over. Also, you'll be able to sit back and play music.
Good advice if I wanted to dip into my home equity. But for now I'm going to give this Onkyo a try. Word is that this unit is freaky-quiet. I think the Stereophile reviewer uses really sensitive Avant Garde Duos or Trios that reveal any electronic noise in the system, and the A-9555 made no noise at all.

The other thing that owners and pro reviewers consistently say of the Onkyo is that you have to spend *a lot* more (like 4x the list price) to get a significant improvement.

Here's hopin'.