LSA Voyager GAN 350 versus Merrill Audio Element Amps or AGD Grand Vivace and Vivace Amps

Very good question you ask.

I have the voyager on a very good power cord, spring pods and 10lbs of weight on top.  I am very pleased, but have spent no time with any higher priced class D amps—GaN-fet or other.

In case you didn’t see it, https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/lsa-voyager-gan-amplifier?page=10
It was reported (by Chorus, I think) that a guy who replaced his Pass Labs amp with a Voyager spent time with Merrill Amps that cost many multiples of the Voyager.  That guy thought the Merrill sounded a little better in some ways.

Soundhound, you covered the moving parts of the matter rather well, in my view.

The words “current” and “currently” are meaningful, however, as more and more choices will come, beyond what we already know is on the horizon: Atma-sphere, Mytek class D’s.

And as forum member, ricevs, and perhaps others have posted in some detail, the new offerings will offer advancements in design and sound quality. I can’t wait to see how manufacturers up the ante in performance and value to gain our business.

With respect to diminishing returns, I get that once you hear a difference you really dig, you can’t un-hear it.  So, to the the extent that it is within your means, you decide if you want to pay up for the delta. Or…look at other ways to get a meaningful delta in one’s system—which includes the seat and room.