Home General Asylum

General audio topics that don't fit into specific categories.

[ Follow Ups ] Thread: [ Display  All  Email ] [ General Asylum ]
[ Alert Moderator ] [ Edit ] [ Delete ]

Re: What is the amp?

> I have only read a few comments, from Miles, in the last few days. I have never seen his magazine(?), so my following comments are based on a dearth of knowledge.

Miles seems to have a bias against SS, regardless of the technology and implementation. Sending him a sample may be a pointless exercise. Can you point me to any SS (positive AND negative) amp reviews from him?>

Myles, please.

Ultimate Audio is distributed in Australia by Michael Ong of Scientific Advanced Technologies in City Beach, Western Australia.

Trevor, I've reviewed for 15 years now, numerous products of all makes, models and types; SE, triode, pentode, solid-state, hybrids (for TAS, Audio Adventure and Ultimate Audio). Yes, even digital, despite my being an analog fanatic.

For the record: being a reviewer means means separating out personal preferences from the review at hand. Our job is to describe of how close the component comes to and where it deviates from reality. When we finish a review, the reader should be able to construct in their mind's eye what the product sounds like. Just because a product is not my personal cup of tea, doesn't mean someone else won't go for the unit's particular set of strengths.

FYI, I've done reviews of the following ss amplifier: Sutherland, Goldmund, Ensemble and Mark Levinson 336 (just had the Linn Klimaxx in recently too and finished some listening sessions with the new Krell CAST technology and the EC Nemo amplifiers). So I think I've been fair and exposed to the "best" in ss amps in the US.

In fact, I'm switching back and forth between the 336 and the cj Prem 12s right now- and the new Rowland Model 12s are due in end of November.

The Levinson 336's are the closest I've heard to tubes yet; easy to listen to but what I like most is there ability to retain their character, regardless of the volume level and musical complexity. All with the preciseness and quickness associated with ss.

What's more, the 336s do sound like their power rating. Many have observed over the years that tube amplifiers sound 2X as powerful as the corresponding ss amplifiers. The 336s definitely are the exception to the rule.

Once you've heard the 336s, you realize how far wrong all other amps go and at what level they crap out. And it's not just power (the 336s put out 750 watts into my ML or probably around 500-600 into my Vienna Acoustics). I've had 400 watt per channel amps hit a brick wall in dynamics.

And no, I don't have any prejudice, just that the two technologies are very different sounding to my ears. If you want to promote solid-state as detailed, good bass, ability to drive difficult loads, etc, fine. But when it comes to harmonics, low level resolution, soundstaging and ease of listening, then the baton has to go to tubes.

While I appreciate the suggestion to hear the amplifiers-and I'm open to anything--we do have to limit our coverage to products that are obtainable in the US (I do remember hearing the amps some yrs ago, maybe 4 yrs?, at CES). If the amplifiers do have a US distributor, we'd certainly like to hear them.

Myles B. Astor
Publisher
Ultimate Audio




This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:
  Parts Connexion  

Follow Ups Full Thread
Follow Ups
You can not post to an archived thread.

[ Top Top of Page ] [ Contact Us ] [ Support/Wish List ] [ Copyright © 2025, Audio Asylum, all rights reserved ]
[ General ] [ Speakers ] [ Tubes ] [ Vinyl ] [ Digital ] [ Hi-Rez ] [ Video Asylum ] [ Cables ] [ Tweaks/DIY ] [ Music ] [ Films ]