Cdc, I believe that Pass amps are SS amps that use very low, or no, negative feedback. Even still, as a SS amp, I would expect it to be a constant voltage source.
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I ran a high power/low current Carver m4.0t transfer function amp for years. It did in fact work best and quite well overall with more "power paradigm" friendly speakers I owned concurrently, specifically Magnepan and Triangle. Though at 360 w/ch it went plenty loud, it left a lot to be desired especially in the bass region with others I also owned concurrently, like OHM, B&W and Dynaudio. |
The way to get a conventional solid state amplifier to operate in the Power Paradigm would be to add some current feedback, but not so much that it acts like a 'current source' device. To my knowledge, no such products exist - for now. If you want to take advantage of Power Paradigm principles, you will, for the time being, have to use a tube amplifier. |
The Nelson Pass amps I referred to earlier that act essentially as current sources and therefore have very high output impedance are listed at his "First Watt" site here. (His amps that are marketed under the Pass Labs name are of course voltage paradigm amps, as Bruce indicated). The ones I was referring to, which I suppose could be called "current paradigm" amps, are the F1, F1J, F2, and F2J, which are indicated as no longer being produced. The literature provided at the site indicates that they are of course only suitable for use with a limited number of speakers, primarily those using just one driver and providing high efficiency. What may be more interesting, though, are the currently produced SIT-1 and SIT-2 models, which I hadn't been aware of previously. Based on a quick look at their descriptions, specs, and manuals, those would appear to be true solid state power paradigm designs, although their power ratings are limited to SET territory at 10 watts. Best regards, -- Al |
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