So you've heard all Class D amplifiers out there (excluding the Devialet)?
Hi juma, the difference is less than you think with VBR, but with standard mp3 I agree. I probably wouldnt go as far as to say 160kbs vbr, but certainly with 256 and 320kb/s the difference is rather negligible. To allay concerns, my hearing is fine up to at least 16khz and I listen on custom in ear monitors @ $1300USD fed by a highly detailed ESS dac. For audiologists, best practice says when you go to get your impressions for the IEMs, they should test your hearing. this technology matches or betters ATC active monitors for detail retrieval IME and bad recordings are dead obvious
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Hello,
a little off topic: But what exactly in my writing-style reminds you of a young person? My style is that of a non-native english speaker and I am between 30 and 40. I can hear up to ~16Khz depending on the SPL level. I did this test with a friend of mine too who can hear the difference between amps (but still he does not believe in esotheric cables and other voodoo) as he is in PA / club sound installation business. He has some high end headphones and could not tell the difference even on one of his own favourite files at 128kbit using Xing Audio Catalyst. I think the reputation of MP3 is bad because there are many badly encoded files, or analoguely ripped or maybe created off an internet radio stream or whatever. The encoding itself and the mp3 standard itself is transparent to the ear for >128 kBit VBR.
Ahm well - but I am not aware of shops where I could buy MP3 in decent quality.
All online stores that I tried sell stuff that seems to be ripped down in the poorest manner from a CD that was also recorded with the intension to win as fast and cheap as possible the loudness war.
Of course I know Linn Records, but lots of music is not available there.
All popular artists are owned by the large labels that sell CDs recorded for loudnes war and with corrupted non compliant data format (for copy protection that makes the pirates just laugh) and many CD players won't play the CD all.
So buying these CDs is also no alternative and carrying them back to the store is just wasted time, nobody pays back to me the lost time.
Hifi community obviously accepts the lack of high quality sources, no wonder that poor home equipment is accepted and rated great as well.
So why not class G, where class D is cascode to class A or class AB? Can a balanced class D amplifier from a single, balanced class D driver chip be used to provide an 'envelope' to two class A or class AB output stages?
BTW, with regard to MP3, if I listen with my laptop computer speakers I cannot tell a difference. But the moment I run it through my wide bandwidth EC class AB amplifier the difference is blatently obvious. It sounds grainy and incomplete. The high frequencies are highly disturbed and the soundstage perception is non-existent. Some codecs are better than others, but MP3 just plain sucks, IMHO.
BTW, with regard to MP3, if I listen with my laptop computer speakers I cannot tell a difference. But the moment I run it through my wide bandwidth EC class AB amplifier the difference is blatently obvious. It sounds grainy and incomplete. The high frequencies are highly disturbed and the soundstage perception is non-existent. Some codecs are better than others, but MP3 just plain sucks, IMHO.
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So why not class G, where class D is cascode to class A or class AB? Can a balanced class D amplifier from a single, balanced class D driver chip be used to provide an 'envelope' to two class A or class AB output stages?
"Enveloping" in switched-mode the supply for a linear AB stage working at low VCE is called class TD, if I am right.
No... they are called class H. There is no such thing as class "TD" outside of Lab Gruppen marketing documents.
Glass G amplifiers use discrete switched voltage levels for the rails which essentially make a binary step to a higher level when required. There can be multiple steps, but the key is that they are discrete steps.
Class H describes a continuously variable supply rail that tracks the output of the amplifier above a predetermined level.
It doesn't matter how you achieve the tracking, the class stays the same. In the case of class H you can have a linear or a switch mode supply tracking the output stage. The only important thing is that it tracks in a continuous and not a discrete manner.
Regards,
Owen
Glass G amplifiers use discrete switched voltage levels for the rails which essentially make a binary step to a higher level when required. There can be multiple steps, but the key is that they are discrete steps.
Class H describes a continuously variable supply rail that tracks the output of the amplifier above a predetermined level.
It doesn't matter how you achieve the tracking, the class stays the same. In the case of class H you can have a linear or a switch mode supply tracking the output stage. The only important thing is that it tracks in a continuous and not a discrete manner.
Regards,
Owen
There is a lot of hype about the Ncore amps on another forum. There are claims that is does not sound like any other Class D amps to date (which would be a good thing, as I have yet to hear a Class D amp sounds good in the HF arena). I would like to hear it to see how much of an improvement it provides.
To me, (IMHO), Class A still sounds the best (even over Class AB). I took a Threshold S300 with optical bias, and converted the amp to a SA/3, a 50 WPC Class A. To me, it sounds better as a Class A than Class AB. There are subtleties that are heard with Class A that one does not hear with the same amp as Class AB.
To me, (IMHO), Class A still sounds the best (even over Class AB). I took a Threshold S300 with optical bias, and converted the amp to a SA/3, a 50 WPC Class A. To me, it sounds better as a Class A than Class AB. There are subtleties that are heard with Class A that one does not hear with the same amp as Class AB.
Class G/H
No... they are called class H. There is no such thing as class "TD" outside of Lab Gruppen marketing documents.
Glass G amplifiers use discrete switched voltage levels for the rails which essentially make a binary step to a higher level when required. There can be multiple steps, but the key is that they are discrete steps.
Class H describes a continuously variable supply rail that tracks the output of the amplifier above a predetermined level.
It doesn't matter how you achieve the tracking, the class stays the same. In the case of class H you can have a linear or a switch mode supply tracking the output stage. The only important thing is that it tracks in a continuous and not a discrete manner.
Regards,
Owen
You are wrong. Class G was invented by Hitachi and tracks the audio signal. Class H is a discrete step switcher
No... they are called class H. There is no such thing as class "TD" outside of Lab Gruppen marketing documents.
Glass G amplifiers use discrete switched voltage levels for the rails which essentially make a binary step to a higher level when required. There can be multiple steps, but the key is that they are discrete steps.
Class H describes a continuously variable supply rail that tracks the output of the amplifier above a predetermined level.
It doesn't matter how you achieve the tracking, the class stays the same. In the case of class H you can have a linear or a switch mode supply tracking the output stage. The only important thing is that it tracks in a continuous and not a discrete manner.
Regards,
Owen
You are wrong. Class G was invented by Hitachi and tracks the audio signal. Class H is a discrete step switcher
Aha I am not awaye that Hitachi is doing amplifiers.
Tracking the audio signal was invented by a swedish LAB engineer back in the 90s, AFAIK.
Very much regret that I can not help you with this, perhaps someone else might have info. It would be very good indeed if this issue can be cracked as I find Class D by itself unlistenable, has a unrelenting sound that makes me want to turn it off. I can not understand how the Primare 132 got an EISA award however it was better than the Bel Canto amp .
MOER and Workhorse:
You guys are confusing marketing documents and patents from amplifier manufacturers with actual electronics theory.
If I build an amplifier tomorrow with a class D driving the supply rails for another class D and call it "class TURBO X" in my patent/whitepaper/brochure does that make it so? Not really... it's still a tracking amplifier, and if it uses a continuously variable tracking scheme then it's class H, simple as that.
References:
Class H Basic Operation
Class-G Amplifiers
Electronic amplifier - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Many class D and pro-audio manufacturers are famous for this. In an effort to differentiate themselves from some of the negative aspects of class D amplifiers, the make up new classes like "class T" which are always just class D amplifiers with some marketing jargon to make it sound like they don't suffer the same issues.
Regards,
Owen
You guys are confusing marketing documents and patents from amplifier manufacturers with actual electronics theory.
If I build an amplifier tomorrow with a class D driving the supply rails for another class D and call it "class TURBO X" in my patent/whitepaper/brochure does that make it so? Not really... it's still a tracking amplifier, and if it uses a continuously variable tracking scheme then it's class H, simple as that.
References:
Class H Basic Operation
Class-G Amplifiers
Electronic amplifier - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Many class D and pro-audio manufacturers are famous for this. In an effort to differentiate themselves from some of the negative aspects of class D amplifiers, the make up new classes like "class T" which are always just class D amplifiers with some marketing jargon to make it sound like they don't suffer the same issues.
Regards,
Owen
Specifically the Bel Canto S500, Primare was much better but not as good as my own 14 year old Class AB and another one whose brand I have forgotten.
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