View Full Version : A lovely afternoon ahead
Covenant
28-12-2009, 14:30
Dropped the wife off the morning at a health spa then called to Dave Hewitts house to have a borrow. He has lent me a Hypex amp built into a computer case and a home made valve amp.
So the valve amp is now warming up and a Mark Knopfler CD is ready to play.
Dave has some seious gear including brilliant Impulse speakers and his Nelson Pass amp but I was shocked when I saw his Mr Liang amp. It so substantial he has made a trolley to move it around.
So I might be otherwise engaged for a few hours.
Thanks Dave :cool:
Enjoy, Jerry - and keep us posted on how you get on! :cool:
Marco.
Covenant
30-12-2009, 22:42
Surprised to find that I prefer the Hypex amp to the valve jobby which was very nice but somewhat laid back for me. The Hypex sounded much more punchy yet produced a nice soundstage. Its no wonder it sounded good though, judging by the weight there are substantial transformers inside-I presume its dual mono construction as there are two on-off switches.
So I very much agree with a comment made on another thread that well implemented Class D can be up there with Class A.
Rare Bird
30-12-2009, 22:46
Surprised to find that I prefer the Hypex amp to the valve jobby which was very nice but somewhat laid back for me. The Hypex sounded much more punchy yet produced a nice soundstage. Its no wonder it sounded good though, judging by the weight there are substantial transformers inside-I presume its dual mono construction as there are two on-off switches.
So I very much agree with a comment made on another thread that well implemented Class D can be up there with Class A.
My Class 'D' jobbie arrived this afternoon, i'm shocked as i thought it would never surface..I've tried it for 5 mins to see if all works..Just using a wall wart PSU while i get sorted but i'm impressed with it, it's 15 watt but too loud even at 1/4 way :) ..The Onix is taking a back seat put it that way. ;)
hifinutt
31-12-2009, 18:57
nice to see some positive thoughts for class d !
Another positive thought: The Nuforce IA7 I tried sounded very very nice indeed with the Sonus Faber. :)
Rare Bird
02-01-2010, 13:39
Another positive thought: The Nuforce IA7 I tried sounded very very nice indeed with the Sonus Faber. :)
I like the looks of that Nu-Force 'IA-7'. Where you get it from Dimnitri & how much if you don't mind me asking?
'Scuse me for butting in regarding Class D, but I bet that's what the next proper generation of Naim amps will be (from the bently involvement) and once they've given it the thumbs up, then "everyone" will be doing it.....
Rare Bird
02-01-2010, 14:52
There's some shit Class 'D' amps tho Dave..
The Vinyl Adventure
02-01-2010, 14:58
naim "n-vi" is class d isnt it?
Mike Reed
02-01-2010, 14:59
Okay, okay; it's education time.
Class A and B designs I vaguely know about, plus their pros and cons. Does class C exist? Class D I've come across in these and other forums, but haven't a clue how they differ from t'others, unless they're the OTL designs.
Nothing technical please; I'm in my dotage!
Rare Bird
02-01-2010, 15:11
Class 'T' is just a registered trademark ..Tripath, which are implimented in Class 'D'
Rare Bird
02-01-2010, 15:16
Okay, okay; it's education time.
Class A and B designs I vaguely know about, plus their pros and cons. Does class C exist? Class D I've come across in these and other forums, but haven't a clue how they differ from t'others, unless they're the OTL designs.
Nothing technical please; I'm in my dotage!
Yes their is a Class 'C'
http://hem.passagen.se/communication/clc.html
The only 'class' that matters is valve class! ;)
Marco.
Rare Bird
02-01-2010, 15:27
Just no class at all :lol:
:cool:
Covenant
02-01-2010, 15:29
It may be true that the very best Class A designs are superior to Class D but you have to accept that Class D has a lot going for it-cheap, runs cool and efficiently so it consumes relatively small amounts of power. To me though the best thing about it is that it achieves optimum sound quality within a few minutes of switch on. As I tend to listen for brief periods I prefer this to Class A which can often take half an hour to sound good.
Rare Bird
02-01-2010, 15:39
Class A maybe all great but those poor Output transistor are getting continous hammer, heat is a problem & could lead to breakdown a lot easier than other classes..I remember my Musical Fidelity 'A1' (kinda Class 'A') broke down twice didnt sound that fantastic either, the top plate bowed & all the paint blistered off, you could slow fry an egg on it..
I like the looks of that Nu-Force 'IA-7'. Where you get it from Dimnitri & how much if you don't mind me asking?
It was the amp of a friend who brought it for testing along with a Transporter. :)
In France it costed about 1400€. I don(t know the V3 but it should be around the same price, I guess).
You can get one used for less than 700€.
It had a very detailed and "classy" sound : a real HiFi component, no doubt.
The only problem I remember was that the amplifier was sensitive to pluging/unplugging sources while powered on: you needed *absolutely* to have it powered off for doing this...
Rare Bird
02-01-2010, 16:37
Hi Dimitri
The only nu-force i heard is those cheap 'Icon' they sound great so i'm guessing these bigger ones are great also.
Well, what I can tell you Andre is that the IA7 sounds like the best £1300ish amps. :)
It has kind of "valve" detailed sound with the ease of the best ss when the volume is really up.
Covenant
17-01-2010, 14:06
Today I returned Dave's Hypex amp and his valve one too.:(
Really enjoyable comparing the two and its funny that over the past week its the valve one that I have used more. Something about the soundstage that it produces and the way voices are projected into the room.
So not as clear cut as I thought initially and I can now fully understand why so many people love the valve sound.
A big big thank you to Dave for the loan of his equipment, he trusted me and would not take a deposit. Its what AOS is all about. :cool:
It wouldn't be too expensive to build a pair of Hypex amps if you liked them
How did you find these compare against your Tripath's BTW?
Covenant
17-01-2010, 15:59
It wouldn't be too expensive to build a pair of Hypex amps if you liked them
How did you find these compare against your Tripath's BTW?
The Hypex had much more punch and dynamic range than my weedy little Tripath. In terms of musical ability I would say there wasnt much to choose.
Really the Tripath is underpowered for my speakers-20 watts is recommended and the Tripath is nearer 10 watts so just having a lot more in reserve must be a good thing. Plus the Tripath must be operating close to the level where distortion sets in.
Oh right, I didn't realize it was one of the low powered Tripath's:)
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