2. amps-preamps
  3. 137752-82411

Is there actually a difference?

Speakers sound different - that is very obvious. But I’ve never experienced a drastic change between amps. Disclaimer that I’ve never personally ABX tested any extremely high end gear.

With all these articles claiming every other budget amp is a "giant killer", I’ve been wondering if there has ever been blind tests done with amplifiers to see if human ears can consistently tell the difference. You can swear to yourself that they do sound different, but the mind is a powerful thing, and you can never be sure unless it’s a truly blind test.

One step further - even IF we actually can tell the difference and we can distinguish a certain amp 7/10 times under extreme scrutiny, is it really worth the thousands you are shelling out to get that nearly-imperceivable .01% increase in performance?

Not looking to stir up any heated debate. I’ve been in audio for several years now and have always thought about this.
asianatorizzle
tomcarr
1,496 posts
 
Good thread started here, OP. FWIW I think it depends on what you consider "drastic". I can tell differences between my NAD, Denon, NuForce, Krell and Vincent amps. Differences of about 10%, maybe 20% with regards to sound quality. Just my 2c, YMMV.

Tom
Ag insider logo xs@2x
cleeds
5,942 posts
 
twoleftears
... not a huge difference between competent SS designs, despite the supposed chasms that audio reviewers like to dwell on and rhapsodize about ...
The problem with opaque criticism such as this is that labeling something a "huge difference" or "not a huge difference" is completely subjective. The same happens when others observe the diminishing returns that happen as price increases. Those relatively small, incremental improvements are very important to some, and not at all important to others. The OP asks "is it really worth the thousands you are shelling out" for those improvements. The answer is for every audiophile to decide for himself.
tomcarr
1,496 posts
 
+1 @
tomcarr
1,496 posts
 
cleeds
david_ten
5,480 posts
 
There are no giant killers in audio, only good values and products that don't perform at their value.

Synergy and bottlenecks are the name of the game. Creating one and eliminating the other can make your system revealing of differences or completely void of them.

Very well said, @audiothesis  

I will add that some do, and will, look a giant in the eyes. : )
More to discover