Well Paul I can tell you an amp being heavy has nothing to do with slam..more dependent on the speakers.I'am using a 60 wpc Dynaco st120 modified more than 10 yrs ago by Van Alstine.It weighs roughly 18 lbs.Has more slam than a 300 wpc Mac I used to own.Me and a friend just refurbed the binding post,input jacks and changed the aluminum wire from the inputs to the pcbs with solid copper 18 awg wire.All for less than $20.00.The sound is weighty with clarity.Not a hint of grain or hardness.Very open and precise without fatigue.Have had to go back and listen to all my cds over again!For $120.00 investment not even my beloved and now parted Music Reference RM9 MK2 could go there! This one I will have for years to come.Price per performance I haven't owned a better amp!
Weight vs Wattage vs Current vs Slam vs Value
Although I have no expertise in contrast to others, in regards to what is the best amp, be it SS or Tube especially considering the cost of the amp, used or not...I wonder what is in your opinion the best indicator of value. The definition of value here would be in all term the perception of the listener of the sound that he/she is likely to hear with the amp in the proper set up....
Some of the strangest things I have heard perceived while reading through audio ads and other post are things like
Odyssey amps.....comparing their amps and the their value in terms of watts vs cost...being very affordable in comparison to other manufacturer's amps....I am very skeptical about their line.....continue reading the other ideas I have come out with...
I had a pair of Carvers, they were light and yet it seems as if they produced some impressive Watts....my M 4.0 t produced 375 watts per channel and weighted about 25 lbs or something like that....but knowing by experience, these were the most ANEMIC watts I have ever had the pleasure of producing. Very weak when attempting to run tough loads.
Class A output SS amps....tend to be heavy, but their wattage seems to be low. I am curious about Clayton and their famous S-40? That produces 40 watts, but are tauted to have a lot of power in the perception of sound....Does this mean that a Clayton S-40 has more slam, soundwise as my DNA 225? If this is the case, what about Clayton S-40s versus my BC 2 monoblocks? Each having 75 watts of class A power+ being 75 lbs each? I do not remember my BC-2 having that much sense of SLAM.
The monster amps have a lot of weight, but then, they cost nearly as much and at least, perception wise (especially Krell/Levinson) have a lot of slam in their sound
Some SET amps, being low wattage, I have read somewhere that even THEY can have a sense of slam if properly set up...I.E: context of how they are being sonically displayed, perhaps with a huge folded horn set up.
And this question goes on and on....
Would like to have a list of amps, be it classic or contemporary with a small comment on their WATTAGE, WEIGHT and their sound characteristic...be it neutral, soft, dark, SLAMMY? etc... and your rationale about why each one of them are either excellent in value or very poor.
PAUL
Some of the strangest things I have heard perceived while reading through audio ads and other post are things like
Odyssey amps.....comparing their amps and the their value in terms of watts vs cost...being very affordable in comparison to other manufacturer's amps....I am very skeptical about their line.....continue reading the other ideas I have come out with...
I had a pair of Carvers, they were light and yet it seems as if they produced some impressive Watts....my M 4.0 t produced 375 watts per channel and weighted about 25 lbs or something like that....but knowing by experience, these were the most ANEMIC watts I have ever had the pleasure of producing. Very weak when attempting to run tough loads.
Class A output SS amps....tend to be heavy, but their wattage seems to be low. I am curious about Clayton and their famous S-40? That produces 40 watts, but are tauted to have a lot of power in the perception of sound....Does this mean that a Clayton S-40 has more slam, soundwise as my DNA 225? If this is the case, what about Clayton S-40s versus my BC 2 monoblocks? Each having 75 watts of class A power+ being 75 lbs each? I do not remember my BC-2 having that much sense of SLAM.
The monster amps have a lot of weight, but then, they cost nearly as much and at least, perception wise (especially Krell/Levinson) have a lot of slam in their sound
Some SET amps, being low wattage, I have read somewhere that even THEY can have a sense of slam if properly set up...I.E: context of how they are being sonically displayed, perhaps with a huge folded horn set up.
And this question goes on and on....
Would like to have a list of amps, be it classic or contemporary with a small comment on their WATTAGE, WEIGHT and their sound characteristic...be it neutral, soft, dark, SLAMMY? etc... and your rationale about why each one of them are either excellent in value or very poor.
PAUL
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- 17 posts total
- 17 posts total