Digital Amps - Your opinions and why so few?


Hi, I'm in the market for new amps for Maggie 3.6r's and just wondered what your experiences/opinions are on digital amps.
The technology seems well developed, and the advantages seem very tangible 'on paper'. I spoke with a tech guy at Tact Audio concerning their S2150 amp, and the 'specs' are very impressive. They amps also provide the facility to replace the speaker x-over. In a 2-way speaker, you can use two digital amps and program each amp with the associated crossover parameters.
I also spoke yesterday with a real gentleman, Henry, the designer/founder of H2O digital amps. I found him by following a buzz on the apogee audio website, where people using the difficult to drive apogees are dumping off their big Krells and Pass amps, and getting in the queue for the H2O. The few people already using the H20's are raving about them.
Then of course there are the Spectron amps, though I read somewhere recently that they may be going out of business?

The point is, if this technology has matured, and these amps can compete with convential amps, and they are cheaper, lighter, give off less heat, generate higher watts from a smaller/lighter chasis, and.....wait for it....may actually sound better dollar for dollar, why don't we see more of them around?

Rooze
PS - I'm considering dropping big $$$$$ on a pair of new S2150 Tact digitals, please, please talk me out of it, and tell me these amps are crap....
128x128rooze

Showing 5 responses by gmood1

I agree with Eldartford and the AudioEngr...the Carver ZR series amplifiers are the ShizNit! LOL
Telescope_trade I haven't heard the Hyperions. I need to go up to PeteWhitleys and listen to them. I believe he bought a pair not long ago.You can use adapters. I picked up some from Radioshack for 8 bucks to use between the Carver and MiniMax tube preamp. This amplifier is just so easy to listen too. It seems to bring out the virtues of the MiniMax. I imagine it would work well with just about any decent preamp though. The amplifier doesn't suppress the music at all. If the preamp and source can keep up with the dynamic swings in the recordings. The Carver will let you hear it! The bite of the horns and the strums of string instruments are vivid and full of colour.It doesn't add artificiality. It just puts out front whatever the recording engineer wanted you to hear at that moment.Whether the singers voice or separate instruments jumping out when they are suppose to.

It is such a surprise and delite to hear something that doesn't cost an arm and a leg that performs this well.

ATB
Hopefully your running them in the bypass mode.Using the attenuators puts the amplifiers in a protection mode.It degrades the signal quite badly.

Good Luck!
If you are running Magnepans stock ,you will never hear what any amplifier is capable of with these speakers IMHO. You are running great multi thousand dollar gear with 50 dollar crossovers.There's so much more information in the music you aren't hearing with these speakers. There's no way to explain it unless you have experienced it. I hope it works out for you.
That's great!! You should hear a tremendous improvement in depth,bass and transparency.
Good luck with the mods.

ATB