Do Amps matter.. in an Amp?

@kijanki and @atmasphere very knowledgable replies thank you! So if I follow, there's many 'dials' one can change to design an amplifier. Some have significance as measurements, some do not. I thought of this question when looking at power supplies that were all 5v but got more expensive as the amperage went up. Or as you say "These numbers might reflect good power supply, but have nothing to do with reality."

Or to say in another way, this measurement was into a shorted load - speaking of which I did trash one of these high average amps, and indeed, just like an arc welder it melted the circuit board! But as to if this means anything to making music fun to listen to.. I wonder, if you have a tube amp, even 3 watts should be pleasant enough to listen to, do these have other numbers like amperage and power supplies and damping and such to consider? I guess I just see certain numbers all the time but no real context as to why they are important, and why they do seem to have some percievable effect. At least on cost!

@hilde45 totally! It's the benefit of a good brick and mortar store, and in 'high end audio' so much is about fit with your room, other equipment, etc. they tend to let you try things in your system. I was happy to own Wyred, Rogue for a while, I tried Hegel, Acoustic Research, PS audio, Odyssey, er, perhaps one or two I forget.. but it's really vital to not get too distracted by specs and cost and focus on seeing if it works for your setup. Oddly, you get used to almost anything, so auditioning may not be the most scientific way to assess the quality of a product. Almost all of these were mono blocks, so that does make some things easier - haven't really tried many integrated amps. 

Or to say in another way, this measurement was into a shorted load

@dain I think you misunderstand- that current is not when the amp is driving a short, its when a short is placed across the power supply of the amp. The output section of a 1000 Watt amplifier would not be able to survive that kind of current!!

@atmasphere sure, as you said, it's a weird measurement since it doesn't reflect any real useful scenario of use. Did I get that right? I still ask, as power supplies aren't cheap.. even if it's a 15 watt amp (BTW, great observation on why lower powered amps may be better designed since they prioritize better quality) it must have some spec a potential buyer may appreciate? Or is it all numbers for marketing sake and really you just need to trust your ears? Or even class D which I guess don't have a power supply except for what's coming in from the grid?

sure, as you said, it's a weird measurement since it doesn't reflect any real useful scenario of use.

@dain Exactly.

Class D amps most definitely have power supplies!! It can have an enormous effect on how they perform.

I'm not saying this 'current' thing is bad! I am pointing out however that without context it can be really misleading. Take the example I gave where our 220Watt MA-2 amplifier (which is a tube amplifier) is rated at 80Amps! We put all that extra capacitance in the power supply because the amp does not use any feedback and so everything like capacitance in the power supply affects it.

We also developed a class D amp of our own design and it makes the same power into 4 Ohms as the MA-2 but has a much lower 'current' value. It however uses 37dB of feedback and so can reject power supply problems in a way that the MA-2 cannot. I think it sounds better on 4 Ohm loads too.

Don't get hung up on any single variable in the specs. The old maxim 'trust your ears' applies here.