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How far have ss amps really come in the last twenty years?

I have owned and enjoyed my Jeff Rowland model 8 ( recently modded and upgraded by Jeff to the last version) for many years. I recently had the opportunity of comparing it ( after mods) to a few of the current ss models from Gamut, D'Agostino, YBA, Parasound, Sim audio, CH precision, Constellation,PS audio,Pass Labs  and Musical Fidelity. The results were very interesting, because to my ears and in the systems that we did the comparison, the Rowland held its own against all but the most expensive D'Ag and CH amps. Even those were only very slightly outclassing the Rowland in the areas of top end resolution...and a tad in the bottom end resolution. Now the thing is that the last revision to the Rowland 8 was designed by Jeff over ten years ago! 
So, my question for those more technically inclined than myself is...how far has the design of ss amps come in the last ten...or even twenty years? 
128x128daveyf
czcharlie
2 posts
 
Hi,

I’ve never responded or been active on this forum, but enjoy reading the questions and answers. How far has SS come in the last 20 years?... It really comes down to how that particular power or pre/amp is designed and the circuitry and quality of components that it’s created from. It needs to be designed for task at hand, be it high current for driving more demanding speaker systems, then an appropriate match must be chosen.  I think SS designs are great but must be far more complex than typical tube amps to reproduce music faithfully and listenable. The easy answer is that you generally get what you pay for. 
daveyf's avatar
daveyf OP
2,865 posts
 
@czcharlie I don’t think that really answers my OP. Unfortunately, IME in high end ...a lot of times you really do NOT get what you pay for. As the pricing structure in the hobby has escalated, the fact seems to be that you more often do NOT get what you pay for as the price rises!
IMHO, a lot of manufacturer’s now depend on fancy casework to attract the hobbyist and to justify the very high pricing structure. This seems to be a little less prevalent in the tube sector than in the ss sector. Not saying that all of the ss manufacturer’s are going down this road, but a lot are. They seem to know where their customer base is and design the casework appropriately...regardless of the technical merit..or the actual SQ. All IMHO.
georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 
a lot of manufacturer’s now depend on fancy casework to attract the hobbyist and to justify the very high pricing structure.
They seem to know where their customer base is and design the casework appropriately...regardless of the technical merit..or the actual SQ. All IMHO.

Ditto.
And there’s a lot of these "Glitz Queens" in audio, they think if it looks the goods it must sound the goods, and ignore even if if their ears are telling them different (or they can’t tell).
They’re usually the same ones that put these "glitzy" components up on just as "glitzy pedestals" in between the speakers (unknowingly ruining the stereo imaging) so they can gaze at them in wonderment and awe at what they've purchased while "trying/pretending" to listen to music.

Cheers George
orpheus10
8,668 posts
 

As Stringreen stated, amp designs have not changed so much in the last twenty years, but quality of parts has.

You can get a mind blowing upgrade in the same amp, by upgrading capacitors, diodes and resistors without changing the design one iota.

This goes for tube amps as well. Presently I'm upgrading a tube amp by changing to much higher quality capacitors.
harrylavo's avatar
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harrylavo
345 posts
 
Exactly right, in my opinion and experience.
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