Absolute Sound March of 2016 compared the Audio Alchemy components to Soulution quite favorably
Granted the AA amp is a hybrid, but, $4K vs unobtanium. I bought them and am extremely happy |
I have owned PS Audio GCC 250w amp since new (still in my TV system), several W4S amps; mono & multi-channel, Emerald Physics 100.2SE monos (much better with special fuses, but still bright). I was about to pull the trigger on a Nord Two (newest Ice tech) when I got a great deal on a Audio Alchemy Stereo amp, and a month later I replaced my Hattor XLR (impedance mismatch) with a AA Dac/Pre. The combination is revelatory. Don't believe me? Search The Absolute Sound March 2016 review. That COMBINATION produces a natural sound that defies its price point : The combination MSRP is a mere $4000, including a kickass dac |
Many here know I replaced 2 Emerald Physics 100.2SEs with an Audio Alchemy DPA 1 HYBRID stereo amp, but at the time I was using a Hattor XLR passive pre that George pointed out was also a impedance mismatch. But when I replaced the Hattor with the Audio Alchemy DDP-1 DAC/Pre that the music came together in amazing ways (sonically neutral and 3D) . It was only AFTER listening to them that I was made aware of The Absolute Sound review in March of 2016, comparing them to the SOULution amp/pre. This combo revealed abilities in my Emerald Physics KCIIs, tht allowed me to eliminate my 2 SVS powered subs!
The AA combo MSRP is $4K. I am still writing on the external power supply |
For those like myself who are on very limited retirement budgets, I highly recommend the Audio Alchemy amps and dac/pre. Both were reviewed in TAS back in March 2016
If you are interested in them search for Elac |
George I clicked on the GaN link you provided, Alas, it does not account for XLR |
huh, somehow I haven't been receiving updates but I am subbed WTH |
Gfi
Me thinks thou doest protest too much
I will soon-ish hear old vs new class D vs GaN
My Audio Alchemy DPA-1
Hypex 400ucD
(MSRP $1995), which I've owned close to 2 years, sounds excellent to my ears, in my system; Emerald Physics KCIIs (93dB), CorePower 1800, Audio Alchemy DDP-1 + PS 5, Marantz HD CD 1 as a transport, Oppo 105 (upgraded power supply) for SACD & DVD-A, and WireWorld series 7 & 8 cabling.
I expect to have ric schultz EVS 1200 ($2200) in a couple weeks, to compare against it. And a few weeks after that I will be listening to a ~200 wpc GaN prototype
I have little doubt that the GaN will be better, but by how much, and at what MSRP differential? |
My experience with Ric Schultz’s EVS 1200 with barely 75 hours is; it is vastly superior to my previous class D amps 2 different W4S (~ 8 years ago), Emerald Physics 100.2 SEs (3 years ago), Audio Alchemy DPA-1 which I just sold to keep the 1200, and PS Audio M700s, which sounded like the DPA-1 with 2.5xs the power, which my room demands (MSRP $2999). The EVS uses 2 of the newest 600w IcePower modules, which he then does a number of tweaks to, plus other cool tweaks an Italian chassis: $2200,
If interested, I have thread on Agon
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With the previous amps I mentioned, there simply wasn’t enough bass or mid-bass with the KC IIs. I have 2 SVS powered subs (Plus and Ultra), which I used throughout. The subs were a band-aid and were near impossible to blend. Awhile ago I decided to turn them off. Ahhhhhhhh. Reminded me of my Magnepan 3.5Rs seamlessness, but lacking bass, which is why I bought the subs. The KCIIs were a good 6 ft from the front wall. I decided to move them back, settling on ~ 4-5" farther back, and whamo, solid bass with a rich mid-band. The EVS 1200 is that much better
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Thanks nitro
Nice to get validation
These are the same modules that Ric uses in his/my EVS 1200, but Ric also mods the supporting parts
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Still, it points how how good IcePower 1200as2 modules are even with minimal tweaking.
Ric Schultz has a long standing reputation about high performance tweaking
Anyone is welcome to come hear, including GFi
Just know I live in Ft Lauderdale, FL
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GFi,
put your money where your mouth is and buy the EVS 1200. Then, and only then, would anything you profess, potentially have any value. Alas, you have so convinced yourself that all class D sucks, that you would have to bash it just to save face.
Get a life
To anyone else who has denied themselves the opportunity to hear which of us is telling the truth, it’s your loss.
What more could Ric possibly do than give you a money back guarantee?
I had no way of knowing whether his tweaks would be magical, until/unless I bought it. I did, and I did not return it
$2200 is an absolute bargain in todays world of uber expensive hi end audio amps
Apparently, the GaN Voyager is still going through its development issues. Why? It’s a
ground up build, whereas RIc was able to take off the shelf newest IcePower
1200AS2 modules and analyze how they could be improved, and did it. BIG DIFFERENCE
I have owned lots of TOL/SOTA tube equipment, Lector, Musical Reference RM 9, Judd Barber custom OTL amps, Rogue M150s, and lots of SS amps; Parasound A23, NYAL 300 and 600 (yes Im that old), Bell Labs, my favorite being Kinergetics KBA 75 class A, and plenty more that I cannot recall
Additionally, multiple class D amps; PS Audio, W4S, Emerald Physics 100.2 SE monos with upgraded fuses
Ric’s EVS 1200 is the only one that reminds me of the KBA 75
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gFi
I started it? You’re the one who keeps dumping on class D, including Rics, which he has pointed out a couple times that his has a significant number of modifications.And your response "YEAH, SURE"
Once you’ve made your point, time to move on, but noooooo. Seems like every time someone posts something positive, you have to rush BACK in and spew your ’knowledge’, for which people who actually understand the electronics, have to correct you, yet again
And "I", as very happy EVS 1200 camper, with quite a few amps under my belt feel compelled to respond
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erik, et all
let’s stop feeding the troll. He is clearly lonely for attention, apparently of any kind, and knows how to push our buttons. In my case at least I am officially no longer giving his comments the time of day
Do we have an Ignore feature? |
