And people will find charm in it! Like in those Germanium transistors on Pavel's picture: they are popular among people who believe that they sound smooth.
They are right: I packed more chicks, playing a "The Platters" on my radio germanium transistor than today playing their CD on my blowtorch preamp.
Since we are talking here about discrete transistors and not ic's is there a point where the newer devices are no longer relevant to audio reproduction? What I am asking is, is there a point where the increased bandwidth and speed of the transistors becomes more of a problem with rf , emi, and other high frequency anomalies that actually are a detriment to the production of audio frequencies?
Faster they are, better they sound, on my point of view.
According to my guru (Mr Murphy) all active parts oscillate at a frequency you can only detect with the last ultra fast and very expensive equipment (that you can't afford) at the time you use them.
I have a Telefunken portable radio that I first bought in 1965, and used it, even today. I love it! Better than any Sony, etc I have ever tried.
We all know, the Bajazzo! Full of germanium transistors. Does it have coupling transformers as well? 😉
I know that I should not say this, but I am still disappointed in CD's. Even modern ones played on new, SOTA electronics (OPPO 105).
For example, just this month, a recording engineer of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO Brass) sent me a CD copy from a 24/96 master or an SACD and I really like the music, BUT I don't like the GLARE of the CD. Oh well, yet with the same playback equipment, I love Chesky 24-96 and SACD's. Now I have to get the SACD of the same performance to compare.
For example, just this month, a recording engineer of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO Brass) sent me a CD copy from a 24/96 master or an SACD and I really like the music, BUT I don't like the GLARE of the CD. Oh well, yet with the same playback equipment, I love Chesky 24-96 and SACD's. Now I have to get the SACD of the same performance to compare.
You bet! However, it still sounds good. It has both coupling and output transformers, and VERY LITTLE negative feedback. To impress my 19 year old technician, I played it for him a few weeks ago. He was amazed! So much for progress. '-)
They used parallel feedback to the base of the driver, input transistor was loaded on it. Quite unusual for modern designs, "voltage gain" oriented.
Nothing like thoughts, gotta keep the gears movin' somehow ...! 😀
These "investigations" stem from my point that the FB area has to be able to function perhaps at an order of magnitude better than the amp overall, to really do its job. That output waveform is a 20k sine wave, with the FB "glitching" or correcting, at something way beyond that frequency. To me, these are parasitic oscillations, triggered by instability in the amplifier, they shouldn't be there because at the very least they can couple to parts of the circuit that shouldn't see those sort of frequencies.
If enough of the FB circuits out there in the real world are doing this, then maybe that's why this technique has got a bit of a dirty name ...
Frank
You've got glare? Sorry, John, but that means you're listening to distortion, pure and simple, of the replay circuitry, you're not hearing what's encoded on the CD. As I've said many times, it is not a trivial exercise to eject that gremlin from a system, which is not the same thing as saying it can't be done ...
Frank
Except that that reproduce system is SOTA and first class. AND it works for SACD, Blue Ray, and 24/96K just fine. AND I have the schematics and approve of them, (at this price point).
John, read this, fas42 is RIGHT !
It is pretty difficult to get a perfect digital signal. need very low noise PSUs, separated for Digital and analog, need perfect clocks, need perfect first analog stage etc...
I use a digital filter (Behringer DCX2496) Was obliged to change a lot of parts (psus, clocks , analog stages. It was awful at first sight. Absolutely transparent and fluid now.
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