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which is better? Stereo Amp or Monoblocks?

Which do you like better ?  Stereo Amp or Monoblock amps ? Thanks for your Input!
128x128rsa
auxinput
2,920 posts
 

Obviously, comparing a $500 monoblock with a $3000 stereo amp (say Rotel vs Parasound).  The Parasound is going to win.  I took this question to ask about amp topology.  Not which amp actually sounded better. 

Say you have a monoblock amp and a stereo amp with all the same component quality, driver circuit design, output devices, power supply capacitors, etc.  If the stereo amp uses a shared power supply, then the monoblock is going to sound better.  It may still sound better even if the monoblock is single ended.  If the monoblock is fully balanced/differentially, it will beat the stereo amp (as long as the it is properly designed for balanced topology -- some amp circuits do not bridge/mono well).

ivan_nosnibor's avatar
ivan_nosnibor
1,052 posts
 
+1 on stringreen being all over it.
atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,993 posts
 
+1 for stringreen.

The thing is you have to qualify any answers with 'all other things being equal'.

If you do that then monoblocks are the clear winner. One advantage is you can place them by the speakers and keep your speaker cables short. This can really help with definition and impact, particularly if you have 4 ohm speakers. But my speakers are 16 ohms and I find that short speaker cables help them out too.


mr_m
1,900 posts
 
Atmasphere,
What are the advantages of a loudspeaker system with a 16 ohm nominal rating???
salectric
756 posts
 
I prefer separate monoblocks but each has its sonic merits.  After building both push-pull and SE amps, some of which have been very similar in design and build except one being monoblocks and the other a single-chassis stereo amp, I reached a tentative conclusion--- the main differences I could hear were actually in imaging and soundstage characteristics.  The stereo amp seems to have greater image density in the middle of the soundstage and less extension to the extreme sides.  The monoblocks have a bigger soundstage with greater extension on each side but images are not as precisely fixed in space in the middle.  Overall I prefer the monoblock presentation but I can see how someone else might prefer the stereo.  I say "tentative" because it is really difficult to be sure what you are hearing is due to the monoblock vs. stereo chassis and not some other issue, but that's what I have heard on a couple occasions when I was able to make such a comparison.
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