Mytek slams Hypex in Stereophile Amp Review

I'm not so sure about it being possible to modify the modules themselves. I believe that they are pretty fixed.

Definitely possible - Rogue does it.

Do any readers have specific experience with Hypex amps and big speakers to confirm or deny Mytek’s claims?

My experience is with Rogue’s Hypex-based Sphinx and Pharaoh. Neither could produce the lowest octave of my Monitor Audio Silver 8s (not the most efficient speakers, but certainly not anywhere near the worst). The same applied with my Epos Epic 2s - fairly efficient speakers. My $300 Yamaha embarrassed those amps when it came to bass.

I’d like to share a contrasting viewpoint to Helomech’s. I’ve had several amps driving my Magnepan 1.6s/1.7s over the years. Of course, these speakers demand lots of current from an amp. I had never given much attention to Class D amps, as most that I had previously heard sounded somewhat sterile to my ear. Then I dropped a Rogue Sphinx into my system and my jaw dropped. It was not only musical, but had excellent dynamics and power. This was especially true in the bass. It was difficult for me to believe that such a budget amp could mate so well with the Maggies. I attribute some of the musical nature of this amp to the tube preamp section. Some of the dynamic power may be due to its hefty linear (as opposed to switching) power supply. In any case, it’s an amp worth auditioning even if your budget can afford more. BTW - I also tried the Pharaoh in my system and found it wanting. There’s something special about the Sphinx, at least in my system’s configuration. It’s certainly not lacking power, including in the bass region. The folks at Rogue are great to deal with as well.

Let me add that I’ve always respected Yamaha products. Great value for the money. Back in the VHS days, I would only buy Yamaha players. More recently I purchased a Yamaha sound bar for my family room’s Sony TV. However, I’d be somewhat shocked if one of their $300 amps can best the Sphinx. A model number would be helpful...

Best to all - Michael

Hi Michael,

The Yamaha amp in question is the A-S500. I’m not too surprised by your experience with the Maggies as their bass pretty much drops like a cliff below 40Hz. I was referring mostly to the lowest octaves. Still, on the whole, my A-S500 sounded more powerful and brawny than either the Sphinx or Pharaoh, even with the Epos Epics which also lack the lowest bass octave. The Yamaha measured as a fairly high current, low-impedence-stable amp in independent lab measurements. http://i.nextmedia.com.au/avhub/australian-hifi_reviews_2014_2014-02_yamaha_as500_amplifier_review_and_test_lores.pdf

The Sphinx, in Stereophile’s test, clipped at 155 watts into 4 ohms. It’s not a 200 watt amp as claimed.

I do agree that the Sphinx is the better of the Rogue hybrids, and IME, it actually sounded more powerful than the Pharaoh.