Good Class D amps ??

[sandyk]

1 minute ago, GeneZ said:

  I appreciate that.  Thanks.

 

On the other hand...   Looks like what might have been, is possibly no longer the case?

 

https://www.quora.com/Do-SSDs-use-more-or-less-power-than-HDDs-and-by-how-much

 You don't need the really fast  (and thirsty) SSDs for the OS etc. unless you also need the PC for things like 4K video processing etc.

Neither would it appear to be a good idea to use a very fast PCI-E version SSD for audio use as it's power can't be readily further improved/isolated .

SSDs like the Samsung EVO 850 are quite suitable for less demanding applications ,including video processing, but will take a little longer to do so .

 

[GeneZ]

All I know is that when I switched to a SSD PC the audio quality improved.  There are times when there is a lull in the performance that makes me wonder if my preamp is turned off.  Dead quiet.  Not sure if any tweaks in this area may be necessary.  But I might want to consider upgrading to a newer version SSD because the longevity factor has now been improved.

[Matias]

On 11/29/2018 at 8:58 PM, jmpsmash said:

 

I ended up getting the monoblock from Nord. They are quite comparable. They are pretty much just the same ideas with the same components in the input stage (Sparko regulator and Sparko/SI op amps). Interesting that you think the Apollon has better layout, the only difference i see is the orientation of the power supply. they have the opposite orientation and the Nord one ended up with shorter cabling from IEC to PS and from PS to the input stage board.

 

And I ended up ordering yesterday the Apollon NC800 SL with Sparkos opamp, but I am going to test the SI from a friend as well.

[mocenigo]

26 minutes ago, Matias said:

 

And I ended up ordering yesterday the Apollon NC800 SL with Sparkos opamp, but I am going to test the SI from a friend as well.

 

I think none of you two will be disappointed. These amps are just great. Everybody knows where my preference lies and I won't repeat it (I also sent them back for an upgrade and I will report).

In order to reveal any "flaws" of good class D amps you need extremely revealing speakers (I think I do but I do not find flaws) and compare them to traditional A/AB amps that cost one order of magnitude more. Especially with very neutral opamps they will  mostly act like a voltage and current magnifying lens of what is upstream.  My preamp is a good chinese "study" of the FM255 (I have to correct the ground wiring...) and I can definitely recognise the sound signature I heard a few times at some trade shows.

 

 Roberto

 

 

 

[Ajax]

On 11/29/2018 at 10:31 AM, jmpsmash said:

 

So it has been decided. I will get the NC500 w/ Sonic Imagery opamp from Nord.

 

And my current NC400 has already been fixed. Super fast shipping from Hypex arrived from Netherlands in less than 2 days and swapping in the new module only took 10 mins. Now it is being burn in around the clock. It will take a week for it to match the hundreds of hours that I have on the other channel.

 

After the NC500 arrives and burned in, I can do a comparison. And I will need to find a new home for the NC400. I am tempted by the ST-10 too actually.

 

 Hi jmpsmash,

 

I purchased the Nord One UP NC500DM Stereo amplifier with the Sonic Imagery op amp about 2 years ago and have been very very happy with its performance while driving a pair of ATOHM GT1 bookshelf speakers (French) and a pair of ATC SCM19 (UK). 

 

Its being fed Tidal and hi Rez using  Audirvana via the balanced outputs of a Benchmark HDR DAC 1.

 

I note that our resident tosser GUTB insinuated in a post on about page 3 of this thread that I was making up the fact that I was enjoying the sound of the Nord as “no one with high end audio systems uses class D” or words to that effect.

 

Why I would feel the need to do that I am not sure. I can’t remember a thread where GUTB hasn’t either offended someone or made a full of himself.

 

I am therefore keen to hear your impressions so pls post when you get the time.

 

All the best

 

R

 

Ajax

[GeneZ]

On 3/31/2018 at 5:24 PM, GUTB said:

 

Only you can say if you’re pretending to like the sound or not.

 

I’ll note that no one with high end systems prefers class D.

  No one?   That shows you have no class. 

[wgscott]

19 minutes ago, GeneZ said:

  No one?   That shows you have no class. 

 

Ignore him.  He's a full-time troll.

[GeneZ]

 

 ?

 

I hear you.

[jmpsmash]

5 hours ago, Ajax said:

 Hi jmpsmash,

 

I purchased the Nord One UP NC500DM Stereo amplifier with the Sonic Imagery op amp about 2 years ago and have been very very happy with its performance while driving a pair of ATOHM GT1 bookshelf speakers (French) and a pair of ATC SCM19 (UK). 

 

Its being fed Tidal and hi Rez using  Audirvana via the balanced outputs of a Benchmark HDR DAC 1.

 

I note that our resident tosser GUTB insinuated in a post on about page 3 of this thread that I was making up the fact that I was enjoying the sound of the Nord as “no one with high end audio systems uses class D” or words to that effect.

 

Why I would feel the need to do that I am not sure. I can’t remember a thread where GUTB hasn’t either offended someone or made a full of himself.

 

I am therefore keen to hear your impressions so pls post when you get the time.

 

All the best

 

R

 

Ajax

 

Lots of trolls in this forum.

 

I will be receiving the Nords today. Gonna give it a few days of burning in.

 

I also listened to the NuPrime ST-10. Quite impressive, great focus and texture, placement and imaging is so precise there is a great sense of presence and realism. It sounds a bit more dark than the NC400 though, the NC400 sounds more open. I wish I have the budget for the Evolution One, I can only imagine how good that sounds.

 

Maybe I will get to do a 3 way comparison.

 

 

[jmpsmash]

7 hours ago, Matias said:

 

And I ended up ordering yesterday the Apollon NC800 SL with Sparkos opamp, but I am going to test the SI from a friend as well.

 

Very interested to know what you think the differences are. Took me a while to decide on which one to get and at this point I am still not sure if getting the SI is the right choice. the Sparkos are $80 each.

[GeneZ]

1 hour ago, jmpsmash said:

 

Lots of trolls in this forum.

 

I will be receiving the Nords today. Gonna give it a few days of burning in.

 

I also listened to the NuPrime ST-10. Quite impressive, great focus and texture, placement and imaging is so precise there is a great sense of presence and realism. It sounds a bit more dark than the NC400 though, the NC400 sounds more open. I wish I have the budget for the Evolution One, I can only imagine how good that sounds.

 

Maybe I will get to do a 3 way comparison.

 

 

  If it sounds dark?   What preamp? What cables?  Speakers?  

 

Mine is effected by anything in front of it. I have made it sound dark with certain speaker cables.  I find its no more darker than what precedes it.  I get a very open 'transparency' with my set up. 

 

Though my speakers are far from what was listened with here.. This review matches my experience.

Amplifier Reviews, Analog Reviews NuPrime ST-10 power amp

[jmpsmash]

Just now, GeneZ said:

  If it sounds dark?   What preamp? What cables?  Speakers?  

 

Mine is effected by anything in front of it. I have made it sound dark with certain speaker cables.  I find its no more darker than what precedes it.  I get a very open 'transparency' with my set up. 

 

Though my speakers are far from what was listened with here.. This review matches my experience.

Amplifier Reviews, Analog Reviews NuPrime ST-10 power amp

 

It sounds darker when A/B comparing with my NC400. Everything else are kept the same. In fact, I think the ST-10 beats the NC400 on all categories except for the sparkle at the upper frequencies. It has clarity and transparency, even at the high frequencies, just that it is not as forward. Mind you that it doesn't have the DTSS mods that yours has. from ppl who reviewed it says DTSS opens up the upper end.  Perhaps the DTSS mod is where it fixes these issues.

 

[Matias]

2 hours ago, jmpsmash said:

 

Very interested to know what you think the differences are. Took me a while to decide on which one to get and at this point I am still not sure if getting the SI is the right choice. the Sparkos are $80 each.

 

Unfortunately it is going to take a long time until I can test both opamps in my system. But I really do not expect anything different from what is already described in both Nord and Apollon websites: Sparkos warmer and more laid back, Sonic Imagery leaner and higher clarity. System matching is to the owners' taste. I tested the Nord with Sparkos and it sounded excellent in my system.

[fas42]

19 minutes ago, GeneZ said:

Though my speakers are far from what was listened with here.. This review matches my experience.

Amplifier Reviews, Analog Reviews NuPrime ST-10 power amp

 

From that review,

 

Quote

Rarely does an amp achieve an ideal balance of richly textured timbres and harmonics, bottom-end authority, startling dynamics, exquisite low-level detail, and a fully revealed, fully dimensional sound stage against a backdrop of mile-deep silence.”

 

This type of prose always makes me laugh ... as if the amp is doing this 'magic trick' all by itself, because it has some specialness inside it ...

 

Ummm, no. It's the recording, silly , that has these qualities - the "ideal balance" is, that it just gets out of the way, completely, from adultering what's been recorded - sorta what one is after, I reckon.

[Matias]

Nord has a new Mk.2 version now of the NC500 amp, with different buffer board and opamps:

https://www.nordacoustics.co.uk/copy-of-nord-one-se-nc500

[Ralf11]

I'd really like to know how the Nords compare against PS Audio's Stellar Gain Cell amps...

[Matias]

27 minutes ago, Ralf11 said:

I'd really like to know how the Nords compare against PS Audio's Stellar Gain Cell amps...

 

I understand that the PS Audio Stellar amplifiers are based on the new ICEpower AS modules: 2 x 300AS1 on S300, 1 x 700AS1 on each M700, plus their custom buffer. I read that currently the best ICEpower module is the 1200AS. And also that both Apollon and Nord sell both nCore NC500+discrete opamps and ICEpower 1200AS, and both say that the best sound quality is the NC500.

Having said that, of course the ideal would be to test all options in the same system. I would very much like to read such a shootout review.

 

PS: Apollon also has a "PRO" buffer board that accepts the larger opamps from Sparkos or Sonic Imagery, but not the smaller DIP8 versions, although they said not be night and day difference.

[GeneZ]

1 hour ago, jmpsmash said:

 

It sounds darker when A/B comparing with my NC400. Everything else are kept the same. In fact, I think the ST-10 beats the NC400 on all categories except for the sparkle at the upper frequencies. It has clarity and transparency, even at the high frequencies, just that it is not as forward. Mind you that it doesn't have the DTSS mods that yours has. from ppl who reviewed it says DTSS opens up the upper end.  Perhaps the DTSS mod is where it fixes these issues.

 

Its called -  TDSS (no biggy)....   

 

Bob Smith told me can do the same mod to any amplifier.  He first modded my smaller Nuforce STA 100.  When I heard what it did it convinced me later on to have the ST-10 modded when I bought it.  The unmodded ST-10 I guess can sound a bit darker. 

[GeneZ]

1 hour ago, fas42 said:

 

From that review,

 

 

This type of prose always makes me laugh ... as if the amp is doing this 'magic trick' all by itself, because it has some specialness inside it ...

 

Ummm, no. It's the recording, silly , that has these qualities - the "ideal balance" is, that it just gets out of the way, completely, from adultering what's been recorded - sorta what one is after, I reckon.

  If I never heard other amps with my system I might have tended to agree with you.  Yes, a better recording will sound better.  But I listened to better recordings with other amps as well.  Its not all that simple. 

[jmpsmash]

50 minutes ago, Matias said:

 

I understand that the PS Audio Stellar amplifiers are based on the new ICEpower AS modules: 2 x 300AS1 on S300, 1 x 700AS1 on each M700, plus their custom buffer. I read that currently the best ICEpower module is the 1200AS. And also that both Apollon and Nord sell both nCore NC500+discrete opamps and ICEpower 1200AS, and both say that the best sound quality is the NC500.

Having said that, of course the ideal would be to test all options in the same system. I would very much like to read such a shootout review.

 

PS: Apollon also has a "PRO" buffer board that accepts the larger opamps from Sparkos or Sonic Imagery, but not the smaller DIP8 versions, although they said not be night and day difference.

Anyone who lives in the silicon valley area who has the icepower amps and would like to get together for a comparison we can arrange it. 

 

The mk2 of the nord amps also has the pro socket. That's the main change with the matching pro level opamps.

[jmpsmash]

1 hour ago, Matias said:

Nord has a new Mk.2 version now of the NC500 amp, with different buffer board and opamps:

https://www.nordacoustics.co.uk/copy-of-nord-one-se-nc500

 

He told me about it before I made my purchase. I didn't want to try something unreviewed so I got the mk1 version. He said there will be an upgrade path.

[GeneZ]

1 hour ago, Ralf11 said:

I'd really like to know how the Nords compare against PS Audio's Stellar Gain Cell amps...

   Gain Cell refers to the preamp section of its Stellar DAC.  The Stellar amps are basic amps.  And, very good sounding.

[Ralf11]

"The S300 combines the slam, linearity, and toe-tapping pacing of a Class D output stage with the warmth, grace, and rich inner detail of Stellar’s Class A Analog Cell. "

 

that's what I thought they used the term Gain Cell for

[Ralf11]

1 hour ago, jmpsmash said:

Anyone who lives in the silicon valley area who has the icepower amps and would like to get together for a comparison we can arrange it. 

...

 

if you guys do a shootout, please write about it on here

[GeneZ]

1 hour ago, Ralf11 said:

"The S300 combines the slam, linearity, and toe-tapping pacing of a Class D output stage with the warmth, grace, and rich inner detail of Stellar’s Class A Analog Cell. "

 

that's what I thought they used the term Gain Cell for

 

Gain Cell is a means to adjust the volume of a preamp, sans a typical attenuator.  Rather than attenuate the full signal of a signal like a volume control does, the gain cell adjusts the output voltage of the preamp to raise and lower the volume.  Its not a variable resistive device like a volume control.  That's how I understand it.  Paul McGowan explains it in this video.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFdZRLwUI0Y