All Amps Sound the Same....


A guy posted this on another forum:

"This is my other expensive hobby and while I agree with you about low end receivers, once you get to mid-priced (~$600-1000 street price) multichannel receivers you're into pretty good gear...Keep in mind that an amplifier sounds like an amplifier and changing brands should add or subtract nothing to/from the sound and that going up the food chain just adds power output or snob appeal to a separate amplifier...These days most audiophiles either use a good quality multichannel receiver alone or use a mid-priced multichannel receiver to drive their amps even for 2-channel."

Wow, where do they come up with this? Lack of experience?
128x128russ69
Dogmatic? Talk about the lightbulb calling the tweeter bright! ;-)

All kidding aside Mrtennis, you might find this article interesting reading; particularly the fourth paragraph.

http://www.lafolia.com/archive/mrichter/mrichter200004wtc.html
I was about to say that of course they all sound the same -- right up until the moment you plug them in and start trying to reproduce recorded software with them -- but then it occurred to me that even at might not be entirely correct.....
hi frogman:

thanks for the link. people are different in their reactions to music. i find the well tempered clavier very helpful when solving mathematical problems.

the intricate harmony has an affinity to mathematics.

granted, i may have an idiosyncratic response and be in a minority of listeners.

Measurements vs. senses is a false dichotomy. True audio reproduction art sensibly merges the two drawing upon the respective strengths of each area. Your physical senses cannot tell you that the earth is rotating on its axis and circling the sun at speed greater than 1,000 miles/hr. You have to trust measurements to understand those facts. At the same time all the math and measurements in the world won't help you consistently hit a curve ball. If you want to listen to music, your senses should dominate, but if you want to electronically reproduce music, then the measurements should be the dominate method of understanding.
"but if you want to electronically reproduce music, then the measurements should be the dominate method of understanding."

Onhwy61 - In order to get pleasant sound from SS amplifier you need to elimnate TIM (transient intermodulation) distortion that enhances odd harmonics and cannot be easily measured. This TIM is created by negative feedback - same feedback that makes wide bandwidth, low output impedance, low THD and IMD. If you see extremely good measurements - run away.