I think that the improvements in SS amps exceeds those made with tube amps. Years ago there werent many SS designs that I could enjoy. Now there are many, mostly from Europe and very expensive.
How far have ss amps really come in the last twenty years?
I have owned and enjoyed my Jeff Rowland model 8 ( recently modded and upgraded by Jeff to the last version) for many years. I recently had the opportunity of comparing it ( after mods) to a few of the current ss models from Gamut, D'Agostino, YBA, Parasound, Sim audio, CH precision, Constellation,PS audio,Pass Labs and Musical Fidelity. The results were very interesting, because to my ears and in the systems that we did the comparison, the Rowland held its own against all but the most expensive D'Ag and CH amps. Even those were only very slightly outclassing the Rowland in the areas of top end resolution...and a tad in the bottom end resolution. Now the thing is that the last revision to the Rowland 8 was designed by Jeff over ten years ago!
So, my question for those more technically inclined than myself is...how far has the design of ss amps come in the last ten...or even twenty years?
So, my question for those more technically inclined than myself is...how far has the design of ss amps come in the last ten...or even twenty years?
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Hi Davey.... I've been searching for this noise for over a year. It sounds like a resonance....so I banged on everything in the room - nothing loose/vibrating. The sound is there on CD and Vinyl, so I thought it might be the speaker - Vandersteen 5A. I reached out to Richard who suggested it sounds like the support cones are loose....checked - nope. I removed the tweeter and sent it to Vandersteen.....fine. When I got the driver back into the cabinet, I removed the midrange and sent it back to Vandersteen - fine. I then removed the high pass filters from both speakers, the integral amps, and the crossovers thinking the factory would replace the batteries while checking for the noise (which they did)... but they also told me there was nothing wrong with the components I sent to them. The noise is not coming from the preamp, because I have a dedicated amp for the earphones, and - no noise. This is very interesting, and a real project. I'm off to the audiologist for inspection....we'll see....(hear) |
All I can say is; I once owned a fully refurbished, by Krell, KSA-250 amp and to my ears it sounded wonderful. Even my wife and children commented on the superior sound quality. Tight deep bass and superb transient response. It seemed to take a firm grip of my speakers (B&W N801 at the time) and made them do what it wanted to do. Seven years ago I sold the Krell and have regretted the decision ever since. So yes, if in top notch condition, some older SS amps can sound wonderful. The key words here are; CONDITION and SOME. This is what Robert Harley said about the Krell KSA-250 27 years ago: https://www.stereophile.com/content/krell-ksa-250-power-amplifier-robert-harley . |
@mgattmch I would bet that your old Krell KSA 250 would give most ss amps today a very tough run for their money! @stringreen What you describe must be a bit infuriating! If it is just in the left channel, have you tried simple things like swapping all the cables..left to right etc. A resonance sound could be coming from the furniture in the room as well. That is what I have noticed when I have had issues like that, and they can be difficult to suss out! |
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