Transients hurting my ears on hifi solid state amps

Suggest adding the Sugden A21SE to your list of class A amps.

Thanks, added!

 ...purchase of a used Luxman L-505uxii.  It really mitigated the problem and is a fantastic match with my speakers.  I had Herron pre and Pass XA-25 power (tube pre, class A power) and I do miss the smoothness in some backing vocals.  Overall a very smooth, engaging, dynamic, and powerful presentation though...

Thanks, that sounds like a similar case to mine indeed. There is a 505 for a similar price than you paid in Germany currently, which could be an option. The 509 is very tempting and seems like a big step up, but too much over by budget, even used. Looking at the reviews of the 505, the smoothness doesn't get a lot of mention, rather the precision, quickness and power. I worry that it might not be smooth enough in terms of what I'm worried about regarding these fast transient and air pressure. However, if this is rather an issue of frequencies, harmonic distortion as several have mentioned, or glare as you put it, perhaps I'm looking at the problem wrong.

I do have a feeling that part of what works for me in tube amps is that they are usually described as "slower" and that slight smoothing of transients agrees better with my ears, in addition to the smoother presentation. So I fear that powerful solid state amps could be an issue, therefore the lower powered class A amps feel like a safer choice. But again, perhaps this is a wrong diagnosis from my part.

@wlutke Can you described a little more in detail the difference in sound compared to the Pass Labs, especially regarding the aspects I mention?

haskisoundi,

The thing I focus on regarding Luxman is the absence of ear fatigue. The offending frequencies are benign and unoffensive yet the speed and pace are outstanding.  It's been awhile since I've lost track of time, playing for hours with my attention on other things.  I experienced that with the 505.  The Pass never passed (Ha!) that test.  To be fair, the Pass at 50Wpc class A, 80 class B, did not wake up the woofers in my 90dB speakers at all (Acoustic Zen Crescendo II).  A sub, though very helpful, did not pick up the pace like the Luxman. The musicality and engagement of the 505 is undeniable yet there is some grain and loss of micro detail in comparison to the Pass.  

Thanks @wlutke for the detailed description! That sounds very enticing and I'm surprised that you find the Luxman more engaging than the Pass Labs. Perhaps it's a question of lack of power, but in any case those speakers look amazing. I think the level of micro detail would be sufficient for me on the Luxman, but the slightly less powerful and slightly more laid back presentation would perhaps be a safer bet.

Thank you.  I misquoted the power on the Pass though.  It’s 25 Wpc at 8 Ohms, 50 Wpc at 4.  The Crescendos are 6 Ohms.  The Pass is a very good amp.  It just wasn’t compatible.  Acoustic Zen recommends 50 Wpc minimum.  

I didn't indeed react to that part in detail. I have been to an ENT and although he could see that subjectively I was sensitive to loud noises, there was nothing physiologically wrong and nothing that could be done from a medical point of view. I've been more sensitive than average for as long as I can remember, feeling the need for earplugs when others didn't, struggling with headphone listening, etc. I play instruments and have been in bands.

When I had my bout of needing to see an audiologist it was a sudden onset, and it went away in a few weeks.
So I suppose if the amps that were good in the past are still around it would be worthwhile to use them to see if they are still good, or whether the hearing is now sensitive.

As said, listening on a speaker system, I never had this issue before going to higher end models and my theory was that the higher precision and faster transients translate to a higher perceived air pressure.

It is sound pressure, not air pressure.

I doubt that the amps are any “faster”, as most amps play 20kHz just fine, and nothing is going to arrive faster from a 2kHz signal, than a 20kHz signal.

And if it is grating harmonics that spray into the upper frequencies then that could be cured with the amps that were mentioned as being good sounding.

But a fishbone diagram would include things like:

• ears
• distortion signature
• clipping affecting distortion signature

so we sort of need a way to ameliorate or exonerate the most probably causal mechanism (candidates).

Once we know the mechanism, then we can determine the best equipment to use to mitigate the mechanism.
(But I do not go straight to power cords, power conditioners, now cables as mitigation mechanisms… I like to take a more direct approach than a “buying festival” to play “pin the tail on the donkey”, where I am hoping to hit the solution by accident or chance.)