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ICE Amps for classical music?

I listen to classical orchestral music at heavy volume. I detest reproduced music for always sounding more or less electronic and not acoustic. Real music is beautiful in a way reproduced music--so far at least-- never is. I have become curious about Wyred4sound amps because of low price and high watts. I am wondering if any of you "mostly classical" listeners have heard these amps and feel they do no more damage to music than amps which are NOT ICE amps. I am using a Plinius SA100 now and have used a VAC 100/100,
a Bedini Classic 100/100, a Music Reference RM-9, and other tube and solid state amps. They all had their pluses and minuses, of course, but for least electronic, clearly the Bedini was the winner. So what about ICE amps?
rpfef
muralman1
1,527 posts
 
Curriemt11, you have a wonderful system. I love the artful symmetry. My
apology. The only reason I jumped in with my speakers is because you thought
the low impedance of your Soundlabs may be a problem. My answer is no, the
load is not the problem.

I can say, for a fact, you SCs will be a poor match in a class D system. Any SC
with anything but a whisper of dielectric will announce itself loudly as fizz over
your music. The interconnects and vinyl would be stellar partners.

I would just love to bring over my gear to test on your Soundlabs. I in no way am
sure at all it will be a good match. Class D will spurn the wrong suitor. I make
no bones about that.
guidocorona
4,298 posts
 
Rpfef, my experience is that some ICEpower amps can render that magic sense of rozin and 'wood' with at least the same finesse than some rare devices designed around other technologies. By coincidence, it is the hiss of rozin and that slightly 'bristly' harmonics from lower bowed strings instruments that which I seek in music reproduction. . . and also the rare 'good' kind of intermodulation. . . the one that you hear sometimes emanating from the middle of your skull while listening to solo violin doing multipart counterpoint. . . e.g. on the HDCD recording of Lara St. John playing Bach works. I can hear this kind of magic from 2 of my favorite amps, both currently in my system, the ICEpower Rowland 312 stereo and the equally ICEpower-based Bel Canto Ref 1000 Mk.2 monos.
simontju
257 posts
 
Hello Guido,

How do you compare "312" vs "Ref1000 Mk2" ?
Thank you.
eldartford
4,262 posts
 
UCD modules in amps like the Channel Island D-200 are slightly improved over the ICE module. (High frequency response is not sensitive to speaker impedance). The TriPath module, used in the CarverPro ZR1600 amp gives nothing away to UCD or ICE. (I have both models of amp).

Unlike the ICE module, the UCD modules and appropriate power supplies and even a wiring harness are sold to consumers. You can easily build a superb amp for less than a grand.
kijanki's avatar
kijanki
4,428 posts
 
Eldartford - I'm not sure if Icepower is sensitive to speaker impedance. By numbers it has even higher damping factor than UCD. Opinion might be just carried over from Tripath where output of the filter wasn't in the feedback loop. Somebody mentioned that Hypex sounds like very good class AB amp while Icepower sounds a little more like good tube amp. It might have something to do with output configuration (full bridge vs. half bridge) but I'm not sure.
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