Ious, not quite sure of your point...sounds like you agree with me. Of course one can tell differences between gear, but whether or not they are preferable is another matter and system dependent.
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.
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.
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Dave_b, only that when doing an A/B particularly with consumer vs transparent articulate equipment, listeners ought to be able to identify each, though which they prefer would be a matter of taste. As for us, when we do something to our system it's often a small tweak, and it can take us an extended period in order to fully grasp its total effect. Often we can immediately hear a difference, but some components need to burn in, and even if not, it's often not immediately obvious the extent of the changes. So in one context I agree completely, but if you were referring to an A/B with consumer quality gear, and truly high end gear, then I disagree. |
Just for those unaware, SITs and VFETs are just power JFETs.SIT stands for Static Induction Transistor. VFETs are SIT devices. Power JFETs are a different beast:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JFETThere's a lot less info on SITs:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Static_induction_transistor But there's a pretty good thread about Nelson Pass's rework of the Sony VFET circuit in DIYAudio.com. The kit that he came up with was excellent- all sold out now... It is one of the best solid state amps I've heard. |
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- 142 posts total