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Class D amplifiers. What's the future look like?

I have a number of amplifiers: Luxman C900U, Bryston 4BSST2, Audio Research VSI 60 Integrated, NAD C298 and some other less noteworthy units. As I swap them in and out of my main system, I've come to the conclusion my very modest NAD C298 is about all I really need. Granted if I had extremely hard to drive speakers, I might be better with the Bryston or Luxman, but driving my Harbeth 40.2 speakers, the NAD is just fine. 

I thought a while ago that class D would quickly overtake amplifier design type mainly due to profit margin which I think would be much greater than A/B and tube. I'm not saying the other design styles would go away, just that D would be the most common style. 

Clearly my prediction is not panning out, at least in the mid and high-end audio world and I'm wondering why? It seems companies such as Bryston, Luxman, McIntosh, Hegel and so many others are sticking by A/B. I'm no "golden ears" guy, but is the perceived sound issue(weather real or imaginary) still holding D back? Maybe my assumption of profit margin is not correct? Maybe the amplifier manufacturers are experimenting with D, but keeping tight lipped until release? Perhaps brand loyalists don't want change similar to what happened with "new coke". What else am I missing?

 

128x12861falcon
pennfootball71's avatar
pennfootball71
278 posts
 

Class D is better if you are not cheap and look at a New Products from AGD and Mola Mola. However you need a budget from 15.8-25k. Then you get the good class D products from the top products.
there is no cheap magic bullet! If you spend the money you can get class D that sounds better than most AB things under 100 grand!

deep_333
1,529 posts
 

15k to 25k for 2 cheap Chinese boards in a box, aka class lousy D, so D maker can laugh his way to the bank? (Laughing at the big ol’ dumdums who paid him, bwaaaahahaha) No thanks...

Lousy D beat any class A under 100k? The Class D maker/naked emperor’s pride must be on a serious rise these days. Either that or the D lovin ASR psycho train chasing 0.00000000001% THD must be making more stops at the Audiogon station too these days.

ddafoe
259 posts
 

15k to 25k for 2 cheap Chinese boards in a box, aka class lousy D, so D maker can laugh his way to the bank? (Laughing at the big ol’ dumdums who paid him, bwaaaahahaha) No thanks...

deep_333, you are not helping yourself make the point that any of your views/posts are actually worth listening to. I was going to suggest that maybe you spend the money and buy Ralph’s Class D monos and give them a fair shake in your system, and then let us know how they compare. You know, instead of trashing something it doesn’t sound like you have heard, and Ralph buying products that you own, and treating them as the holy grail in amplification and designing his to meet those lofty heights.

From what i’ve experienced thus far, the type of stuff you do could work for guys who mostly roll with midfi

Amp 1 : Luxman C900u+M900u

I’ve seen a post on this site where the person who rolls I guess relative to you in the ’uber-high-end’ talked about your M900u as one he would consider putting in his child’s room to play bedtime music. In my view it is hard to win an ego contest on an internet forum, so why try?

 

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marco1's avatar
marco1
550 posts
 

In my view it is hard to win an ego contest on an internet forum, so why try?
 

Apparently some people think it’s pretty easy when you don’t know who they are, where they are, or what they are.

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