analogluvr Ditto that. But there aren’t any speakers "THAT I LIKE" yet without any colorations that they can drive with ease (without bandaid fix autoformers), top to bottom, so "TO ME" your ****** if you do and ****** if you don’t. The only way is to make a hidiousely big OTL Class-A with a bazillion tubes, so they could drive hard to drive speakers speakers that are designed to be flat, low coloration, low distortion and without horns to make them efficient. Cheers George |
Though I haven't yet heard one (soon to be rectified), I am curious if the answer turns out to be a direct-drive tube amp driving an ESL loudspeaker. No amp output transformer, no ESL step-up transformer---sounds very promising, right? An OTL driving an ESL gets half the way there, but that designs (generally) somewhat high output impedance brings its own potential penalty. |
Practically, high efficiency good quality Class D amps are capable of delivering the most high definition sound with the widest variety of speakers. Otherwise, at the other end of the spectrum, low efficiency Class A amps can do the job very well also but you typically need larger, higher efficiency, easy load to drive, and typically more costly speakers to get the deed done. How loud one need go is another key factor. A lot of detail listening is done practically at modest volume, which is a lesser challenge for most amps. |
When I joined the single ended tube amp cult (the meetings surprisingly require elaborate disguises and often feature meaningless chanting) it was sort of an experiment as I became curious about all the fuss and mythology about these amps, so to speak. The tonal palette revealed in the amp I wound up with, a Dennis Had hand made little 12wpc gem called an Inspire Firebottle HO (high output), was a surprising and simply a game changer. I'd been using a classic push pull tube amp for some years prior to the Had amp, have owned countless nice SS amps, use tubed guitar amps for over 50 years, and still...blown away by the Had. Paired it with relatively efficient (alleged 91db Silverline Preludes, 93db Sonist Recital 3s) and although preferring the Preludes over the Sonists tonally I was compelled by curiosity (again) to try Klipsch Heresy IIIs with the 8ohm nominal 99db efficiency. Added a tube preamp, and am happily enjoying the rig on another level entirely...tied to efficient speakers, el tubo a mundo, and enveloped in a self indulgent smugness about the whole thing. |
All nonsense. Making up stuff to fit one's fantasy. Some amps do some things better than others, but fail in a different area. There was just another thread about what is the best amp. again, no consensus, 'cuz if there was, there would only be one amp manufatcurer. LOL Everyone would own THAT ONE. So I say HUMBUG! no such best pure sound amp class animal exists. |
You can't really say amp without including the speakers in the loop. And you can't really say speakers without saying room. For me, only using one cap in my crossover, my answer is going to be different than the person using complicated drivers and crossovers. Recently I'm a class D guy. Michael Green |
Generally speaking, class A will have the lowest distortion and thus the 'PUREST SOUND'. Generally speaking, because execution can play a pretty big role in the results. BTW, the **kinds** of distortion can be more important than the amount; 0.005% THD won't do you much good if its all higher ordered harmonics (which is often the case with THD figures this low) since the ear uses higher ordered harmonics to sense sound pressure. For this reason the ear has to be extremely sensitive to higher ordered harmonics and so is more sensitive then the best test equipment! Recently, class D has begun to show promise as an amplifier technology that can lack the higher ordered harmonics. When amps don't make higher ordered harmonics, they can sound very relaxed with great detail, such that you can listen to them all day. This BTW is the foundation of the tubes/transistor debate... So if one is being pragmatic, there really isn't a one-word answer to your question. |
