OK so now I just need to know how it sounds so I can justify the price. These guys aren't cheap but if it out performs the competition by a large margin then it may be worth the price. For me to get serious about picking a pair of these amps up I would need a well written comparison to a F5, a UCD amp and a popular off the shelf amp. I would pick these amps to compare to because they would give us a wide range of users who could relate to the review. The F5 is probably the best sounding, beginner DIY amp available. Many people have built the F5 and know that it is an amazing performer. The UCD would show us how the technology has improved from the last generation. Comparing to a popular off the shelf amp would allow anyone to walk into a hi-fi shop and get an idea how the ncore will compare to what they are hearing.
+1
sounds reasonable. comparative reviews are, IMO, more credible. I myself would like to read comparisons with the UCD (which I own).
as for the Pass amps (are we really discussing high distortion class A amps here? oh my)... I confess, I do own a DIY impersonation of the F4. some local guy had it on sale and I said what the heck.
compared to the UCD the F4 sounds wrong. depending on the input (voltage) stage used it either sounds "dirty" or lacks any form of soundstaging whatsoever.
I even tried the UCD as a preamp. surprisingly or not this combination gave the best result. sounded more involving than the UCD but at the same time it sounded almost like mono. to such an extent that I even took the lid off to check for shorts. with other input stages the sound was gritty and ambiguous. to F4's defense, I still think there might be something wrong with it, although I have checked.
compared to it, the UCD sounds very precise but a bit shy. the soundstage is very well defined and wider. but it also tends to sound a bit cold. don't take this as a reference "review" as the rest of my setup is on the analytical/cold side so I'm not sure it's the amp's fault.
I don't know what legato is, other than a drawn out manner of phrasing in classical music. However, if you don't connect the grounds somehow, the common mode voltage becomes undefined.
Maybe you missed my (very short) review, it was a comparison of NC400 and UcD180HG HxR.
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/class-d/190434-hypex-ncore-95.html#post2829491
You missed my impressions?
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/class-d/190434-hypex-ncore-146.html#post2855833
+2.
That is what I am waiting for: comparisons with Pass designs, and for example the not uninteresting and cheaper "Wire Amp" based on LME49830 which runs right now at another thread (has also a bit more of DIY), and my own Yamaha B2 VFet amplifier which uses power jfets specially designed for "audio" (not done anymore these days...).
I know the sound of UCD, and expecting Ncore to sound better than UCD is self-evident; therefore confirmation of better sound by people switching from UCD to Ncore (Stig Erik), with all respect, does not tell me how Ncore performs amidst other high quality amplifiers, be it class A, A/B, solid state or tube.
Time will tell.
Maybe "lousy" when you try it to drive your low efficiency open baffle loudspeakers. Please tell how you compared; now it seems you compared apples and pears
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