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High End Amp Price Collapse musings

If Class D amplification becomes accepted by audiophiles there should be a glut of high end amps (Krell, Levinson, Pass etc) becoming available on the used market at prices a fraction of what they are now.

Think CRT TV when the flat panels began emerging.I think Ill hold off on a new/used amp purchase for a little while. Maybe I will bet a Boulder.

Has any one else considered this?

energeezer
jmcgrogan2's avatar
jmcgrogan2
6,346 posts
 
@grannyring , Bill, how is this digital amp revolution different from the digital source revolution of the 80's? 
I mean it's not like CDP's killed vinyl. Maybe they did for a while, but there has been a resurgence in vinyl in the last 15-20 years.

While I'm sure that Class D technology will improve over the next decade or so, I don't see it affecting the market for Class A SS amps and tube amps that much. Certainly not enough to where folks are dumping their $20K amps for pennies on the dollar.
grannyring's avatar
grannyring
6,522 posts
 
Good question John. It has hurt and will continue to hurt vinyl. The latest hipster fad for turntables is a fad and will fade away. Steaming, Tidal, Roon, one box digital solutions etc... are absolutely eating away from vinyl, cds and the like. No doubt about it.

I am not saying folks are dumping their amps, though many of us have, but I am saying they will be replaced with these new generation of amps over the next 10-15 years. Except for the laggers as it is with all real innovation and change.

I am a tube amp lover and will always have one. I love building and modifying tube gear, but it is a hobby and interest of mine. In terms of sound my digital amp/pre/dac/room correction unit simply sounds better than my pride and joy tube amp build. I have more emotional investment in it, but I know it does not sound as good in terms of fidelity. 
energeezer OP
26 posts
 
"761 posts02-02-2017 8:39pmThe analogy is interesting because from the start hi definition flat panels were better than CRT scrrens, I don’t think the same is true and maybe never will be with regard to class a and ab amps v. Class d amp"

This is absolutely not true. The first generation of LCD flatscreens had horrible black levels and were 60hz ref rate making them poor on motion.
They were sharper and brighter but the contrast ratio was the fly in the ointment. I will concede that some of the early plasmas were close but still not better than mature CRT.


energeezer OP
26 posts
 
Some of you miss the point. The point is simple. As Class D advances it will eat into the high end class A market.  We have seen this already happening to a small degree. Some people on this thread indicate they already switched.
Once Class D is close enough in quality even some of the deep pocket Krell, Pass etc guys will switch.
Once that happens they will sell thier existing gear which will gradually bring the value of that existing gear down giving not so deep pockets the chance to own true high end as it exists today.
facten
2,884 posts
 
Question I guess would be why would the " not so deep pockets"  buy used "true high end as it exits today" if , as you presume, Class D of the future matches it? 
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