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Unofficial Orchard Audio StarKrimson Ultra Amplifier Owners

Reposting details about my loaner Amplifier from Orchard Audio. If there are other owners of the fully assembled or DIY boxes. Please feel free to post here.

Obviously all the "Armchair Engineers" can feel free to either deficate or praise your thoughts on GaN LClass D Amplifiers even if you’ve never heard one but feel to have an opinion. Then there’s the brainwashed Placebo Effected Guys that feel Class D just ain’t there yet. You can post here as well while the rest of us laugh. It’s usually the Geezer crowed that has a n issue with Class D. Anyway here’s my repost :

I actually have the Orchard Audio StarKrimson Ultra on loan for the Arizona A/V Club to get passed around. Leo Ayzenshtat is great to work with and sent us the original StarKrimson (then BOSC) Amplifiers and power supplies last year. Yes, it was a kludgy setup but sounded so good I sent all my PS Audio M700’s & an S300 off to The Music Room ! After I DIY’d some of his GaN boards, they went up in smoke because of a not recommended Power Supply bring up method I had going (long story). But they sounded amazing when I didn’t let the smoke out of them.

Fast forward to the StarKrimson Ultra just received for my review (YouTube & for the Club & Leo). They are amazinger sounding. He’s hit it out of the park again and then some. All the issues I had last year have been resolved. No break in required either. These are out of the box perfect. Understand that I’m an all Tube Guy and I will do a comparison between the currently direct connection form my PS Audio DSSr. DAC into the Ultra and the DSSr. into my BAT VK50-SE then head to head out to the Ultra and my Jolida 3502p KT150 Tube Amplifier.

Speakers in my Evaluation :
KEF R3
Bose 901 Series 1 from 1968
my Homebrew DIY Open Baffle Speakers
KEF 105/3 modified
Future plans of mine are to DIY from blank PCB’s 5 Ultra Amplifier Modules for a kick ass Home Theater setup and for the Summer, use two of those 5 channels for the main L & R. Fall/Winter/Spring would be back to the Tubes for the L & R while the Center & Surrounds would be powered by the Ultra’s. Surface MOunt Soldering for me is easy but the BGA devices will have to be put on by a board shop.

The beauty is you stop listening to the Amplifier and start listening to the music very quickly.
https://orchardaudio.com/shop/ols/products/strk-ltr-mdl
https://orchardaudio.com/stereo-ultra
The ClassD Audio stuff is pretty good too (haven’t their GaN’s) through a friend who had a 250Wx2 built for him.

My Evaluation rig is setup so that nothing colors or influences the (no BAT VK50-SE in the chain - until all reviewing is done this way first)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZPGJR1RatZf2ZrzW9
rajugsw
roxy54's avatar
roxy54
7,700 posts
 
ozzy62,
No apologies from me. I think that the amplifier sounds very promising and I have no issue with it. I think his introduction in the thread was very rude, because it was, and that's not a "jab".
ozzy62's avatar
ozzy62
2,845 posts
 
@roxy54 Thats not the kind of “jab” I was referring to…….
roxy54's avatar
roxy54
7,700 posts
 
ozzy62,
Sorry, I completely misread your first comment.
pedroeb
493 posts
 
Not everyone wants a Class D amplifier
That raises an interesting query. 

Are all Class D amplifiers considered to have the same "sound" flaws*, or are some superior to others?

*Perhaps when compared to tubes - if that's the main reason to reject them.
rajugsw OP
194 posts
 
I've used the PS Audio M700's and M300's for over a year. It was the sound of the Orchard Audio Amplifier's that won me over. I've already fooled people by teling them it's a Class A/b Amplifier with interior heat sinks for about 30 min. of listening and they believed me...LOL !

I'll be doing a comparison later in the week/weekend with my Joilda 3502p and I'll let you folks know my findings. My final listening session will be adding my BAT VK50-SE in front of the Ultra and hear what happens.
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