Going down-market

[Joe]

The old Border Patrol power amp has had to go in for some major fettling (the problem being more deep-rooted than merely dirty connections) so after some music-free days I've borrowed a Pro-Ject amp box, a tiny little Class D amp, 30 wpc and about £150 new.

It's (obviously) not a patch on the BP sound-wise, but it makes nice enough sounds to act as a stop-gap till the BP returns.

It really is tiny though; about the size of a ciggie packet. But it's got a blue LED so it's easy to see in the dark.

[jandl100]

I'm very fond of the class D switching amp sound.

A little laid back, usually, but very pleasant and 'musical'.

I once powered a pair of £5k Kharma Ceramique 3 speakers with one of those little plastic bodied £30 T-amps for quite a while. It sounded bloody good, actually - easily a sound that could be lived with. Give them an easy speaker load and they can provide an amazing sound, even ignoring the implausibly good vfm.

I'd not be that surprised if the sound was closer in quality to your BP than you say, Joe!

Along with my lovely Cary single-ended valve monoblocks I also have a big Bel Canto eVo4 class D amp - a 4-channel amp, but 400wpc when bridged to stereo and a very involving and enjoyable sound - even if it doesn't have the rez and immediacy of the Cary amps.

Yup, there are some real class D bargains out there!

[Covenant]

But why are so many people against Class D? I suspect its a snob value thing. How can something so cheap be so good.

[aquapiranha]

But why are so many people against Class D? I suspect its a snob value thing. How can something so cheap be so good.

Nail, head.

I really like the 'class-D' sound, I really enjoyed the Trends I had and really miss it now it's gone. I think lots of people might change their minds if they heard a quality tripath amp for example, but there will always be those who subscribe to the view mentioned by Covenant.

I may well be using class D on the bass side of the OB's I have planned, with the Decware on mid/treble duties, but I have dallied with the idea of selling the Decwares (excellent though they are) and using two Tripath amps.

YMMV

[Joe]

I have no preconceptions or prejudices here; I'm not mithered what class an amp is so long as it sounds good and is reliable. Once fettled the BP will on its final warning!

[aquapiranha]

I have no preconceptions or prejudices here; I'm not mithered what class an amp is so long as it sounds good and is reliable. Once fettled the BP will on its final warning!

Hi Joe. this is exactly the way I feel about it... I have heard many many different amplifiers, and while I do not pretend to know the technical reasons why they sound different I can certainly use my ears to give me an informed decision as to which I prefer. On the speakers I use the lowish output of the the tripath amps ( I mean 2020 /2024) is of no consequence, as it is with my 1.8W Decware SET. I have found that the sound I get from either of these amps is to my liking, though each does have it's strengths though I could live with either! The Tripath amps have some scope for modification if you are that way inclined as do valve amps, another bonus IMO.

I have also been looking at class D such as ColdAmp and Hypex - in fact the choice of relatively inexpensive and yet great sounding amps is huge! more so if you can solder.

Enjoy.

[MartinT]

I use a Sonic-T to power my computer speakers (a venerable pair of Videotone Minimaxes). It sounds superb!

[Joe]

After a few more hours' listening, I think I've got the measure of the Pro-Ject amp. It's far batter than I'd expected, good enough to use permanently if I was hard-up, BUT, there's definitely something lacking. It masks details that I know are on certain discs and it imposes a slightly bland, flattening acoustic, so that things get a bit 'samey', with hints of old-style CD 'hardness'.

On the other hand, it 'just works', it stays cool, and uses minimal 'leccy. Caroline much prefers its looks to those of the BP, which she describes as 'that big black thing with lightbulbs'.

[roscoeiii]

I've really liked some of the class D set-ups I've heard, but have also been quite surprised at the difference the preamp makes with these amps. Put a DIY Bride of Zen preamp (Nelson Pass design) with a Trends 10.1, and the sound was far too etched and sharp. Paired with some Gainclone monoblocks the preamp gave a much warmer presentation that was perfect for the bedroom system I was setting up. Still dunno what was going on there, but it was clear from the 2 preamps with the Trends that the preamp can drastically affect the amps sound. Quite noticeable in the systems I put it in, but I haven't seem mention of this elsewhere online. Don't know if it's been the same in other folks' experience or if there was something about this preamp...