Yeah!
I have visions of class A, class AB and tube amp designers all carrying Bruno dolls around at CES and sticking them with pins...HA HA and whispering to each other...." OMG! first Genesis and now..Theta!!...we are all doomed!!"
hardly. the perfect amp may already exist (for a price) but I can't imagine an audio product destroying competition. at least as long as there are people who would buy an amp just because the case contains some wood panels
No, they are safe - there will always be people with too much money and not enough sense, who will want an amplifier that is big, heavy, has no "D" in it's description, and definitely doesn't have a SMPS. Because, as we all know, something vaguely digital or switching just can't sound right...
hardly. the perfect amp may already exist (for a price) but I can't imagine an audio product destroying competition. at least as long as there are people who would buy an amp just because the case contains some wood panels
I was bored sitting here waiting for listening impressions of NC400's and that was .........A JOKE.......TFI Friday!
Got my second Ncore shipment today, four NC400 + SMPS600.
Two are already up and running, powering my dipole woofers (20-200 Hz), replacing four UcD400HG's. Its now a 2 ohm load....
Listening tests will commence......
Oh... and BTW, the promised spade cable lugs for the output connectors are not included as yet.
Two are already up and running, powering my dipole woofers (20-200 Hz), replacing four UcD400HG's. Its now a 2 ohm load....
Listening tests will commence......
Oh... and BTW, the promised spade cable lugs for the output connectors are not included as yet.
Remember circa 1990s (who knows, maybe 80s?)...IIRC it was a Mervyn's TV ad...the typical housewife arrived early in front of the Mervyn's entrance, her face against the glass, knocking on the door, saying "Open, open , open , open..."
"Post it, post it, post it, post it.....:"
I am now in possession of my friend's amp I'll call X (prefer not to name it because it's for sale) which soundly trounces (annihilates) my French YBA-designed Asian-sourced Audio Refinement Multi-3. In direct A-B, the X owner said the Tent Labs tube input/transformer-coupled Hypex (not Ncore) was "30-40%" better than his X amp. Guido Tent spoke very highly of the Ncore technology.
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Lucky You how on earth is that possible ? Do they take preorders somehow ?
My first order was the on the first batch in december.. that was sold out after 5 hours or so. Made my second order around mid january...
Even though the webshop says "sold out" you can still place orders for the modules.
Are you telling me I've now got to put Ncore in the LS1 subs? Harrumph.
Having more or less arrived at my conclusions based on reasonable assumptions but not actual tests I'm happy to stand corrected on this matter but in that case I do hope some day I'll manage to get my head round it.
Having more or less arrived at my conclusions based on reasonable assumptions but not actual tests I'm happy to stand corrected on this matter but in that case I do hope some day I'll manage to get my head round it.
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I remember vaguely that Bruno said UcD and Ncore would sound more or less the same in the bass...? Anyway, that is wrong, very wrong!
I have to do some more listening tests to be sure, but.... the Ncore's bass is sensational, no less than that.
You have not heard my Coldamps !
But not modded Coldamps is **** ! Anyway I will build those N cores for a couple of friends. I do not think they need much modifications. I love Discret input stage !
Difficult to get some (for me at least) reliable reports for the time being apparently....
When bass in my system sounds "sensational" I probably stop listening after an hour or so....
I am sure that the amps sound very good, but how good amidst other well known good sounding amplifiers???
Not meant in a negative way, but please try to be a bit "subjectively objective" (should not be too difficult for a Norvegian
).I have been a die-hard Class A amp guy – SS and tubes including OTL’s - for decades. I tried a Halcro when they first came out. It may have boasted ultra-low distortion figures, but it was too sterile and thin sounding for my tastes. If this meant I liked an amp with coloration then so be it. Bring on the color.
A few months ago I bought a Class D Audio SDS kit just for kicks based on a friend’s recommendation. Compared to my Class A OTL’s they had better bass articulation, similar midrange, better macro/micro detail, but overall the tonal and energy balance wasn’t right. They sounded “over-caffeinated” and had a glassy, un-natural sounding high frequency, which quickly led to listener fatigue. The amp over exaggerated leading edge transients and truncated the decay. Despite these negatives, I found myself enjoying the SDS for periods of time, but ultimately preferring my Class A OTL’s for their better tonal balance and natural sound.
Within just a few seconds of listening to the nCore I knew they were a game changer. This is the most accurate, resolving yet musical amplifier I’ve heard with perhaps the exception of the Clayton M300’s. I can’t be definitive on the Clayton’s as I heard those at a friend’s place who has a system very similar to mine and it’s been too long to rely on aural memory. I will be sending him my nCores so he can weigh in with his own impressions.
I have listened to probably over 4 hours of various recordings from classical to rock, unamplified to heavily synthesized and poor to excellent recordings.
First, the nCores get the tonal and energy balance right. Gone is the over-emphasis of the attack. Attack and decay sound like live music. There is a harmonic richness of instruments and vocalists, which grabs you. I listen to a lot of live unamplified music, especially piano and the nCores sound much more true to live. Second, the resolving power is phenomenal. Truly. The nCores expose details that I have never heard before on very familiar recordings and it does it with complete and utter effortlessness. One really notices this on complex passages. The size and location of performers and instruments as well as the recording venue are much more accurately rendered. Bass is the best I have ever heard. Lastly, the nCore sounds great at low volume and at even very high volume there is not even a hint of distortion.
Bottom line, I’d have to say the nCore’s live up the Hype(x). My friend gave that to me so I can’t take credit for it…. A BIG congratulations to Bruno, Jan-Peter and the entire Hypex team as well as a thank you for making this new world class technology available to the DIY market.
Will the nCore’s be everyone’s cup of tea. I’m sure not. You will hear, for perhaps the first time, what the rest of your system and room really sound like and it might not be what floats your boat. If your source is a bit bright and thin you will hear it in all of its glory. For me I have worked very hard to build an accurate end to end playback chain and the nCores are the perfect fit. They are staying.
Lastly, just to put the information in one place a few words about my system. My speakers are Geddes Abbeys a two way, controlled directivity monitor with 12” compression driver loaded waveguide with foam insert and 12” pro woofer. They are 95 db efficient, have extremely flat polar response and are super dynamic. My source is a Metric Halo LIO8 DAC/PRE fed via FireWire from a Mac Mini both powered by custom linear power supplies fed from a PurePower 2000 battery-based regenerator.
Okay….my job here is done….back to some wine and listening. Happy weekend everyone. I'll try to add some more comments as I listen more.
A few months ago I bought a Class D Audio SDS kit just for kicks based on a friend’s recommendation. Compared to my Class A OTL’s they had better bass articulation, similar midrange, better macro/micro detail, but overall the tonal and energy balance wasn’t right. They sounded “over-caffeinated” and had a glassy, un-natural sounding high frequency, which quickly led to listener fatigue. The amp over exaggerated leading edge transients and truncated the decay. Despite these negatives, I found myself enjoying the SDS for periods of time, but ultimately preferring my Class A OTL’s for their better tonal balance and natural sound.
Within just a few seconds of listening to the nCore I knew they were a game changer. This is the most accurate, resolving yet musical amplifier I’ve heard with perhaps the exception of the Clayton M300’s. I can’t be definitive on the Clayton’s as I heard those at a friend’s place who has a system very similar to mine and it’s been too long to rely on aural memory. I will be sending him my nCores so he can weigh in with his own impressions.
I have listened to probably over 4 hours of various recordings from classical to rock, unamplified to heavily synthesized and poor to excellent recordings.
First, the nCores get the tonal and energy balance right. Gone is the over-emphasis of the attack. Attack and decay sound like live music. There is a harmonic richness of instruments and vocalists, which grabs you. I listen to a lot of live unamplified music, especially piano and the nCores sound much more true to live. Second, the resolving power is phenomenal. Truly. The nCores expose details that I have never heard before on very familiar recordings and it does it with complete and utter effortlessness. One really notices this on complex passages. The size and location of performers and instruments as well as the recording venue are much more accurately rendered. Bass is the best I have ever heard. Lastly, the nCore sounds great at low volume and at even very high volume there is not even a hint of distortion.
Bottom line, I’d have to say the nCore’s live up the Hype(x). My friend gave that to me so I can’t take credit for it….
A BIG congratulations to Bruno, Jan-Peter and the entire Hypex team as well as a thank you for making this new world class technology available to the DIY market.Will the nCore’s be everyone’s cup of tea. I’m sure not. You will hear, for perhaps the first time, what the rest of your system and room really sound like and it might not be what floats your boat. If your source is a bit bright and thin you will hear it in all of its glory. For me I have worked very hard to build an accurate end to end playback chain and the nCores are the perfect fit. They are staying.
Lastly, just to put the information in one place a few words about my system. My speakers are Geddes Abbeys a two way, controlled directivity monitor with 12” compression driver loaded waveguide with foam insert and 12” pro woofer. They are 95 db efficient, have extremely flat polar response and are super dynamic. My source is a Metric Halo LIO8 DAC/PRE fed via FireWire from a Mac Mini both powered by custom linear power supplies fed from a PurePower 2000 battery-based regenerator.
Okay….my job here is done….back to some wine and listening. Happy weekend everyone. I'll try to add some more comments as I listen more.
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