D-SONIC SOA Class-D Core Amps. The best Class-D ?

With all due respect, the OP asked if anyone had bought or heard a couple of amps in the D-Sonic SOA line. I have been following this thread and so far it appears that the only firsthand experience - with another highly touted amp - came from Wilsynet regarding the Hypex NCore based modules. He goes on to discuss personal amplifier experiences / comparisons; and that provides a credible point of reference.

So what's the point? Not to jump in the middle of a p---ing contest, but to say that my experience has been that unless one has the opportunity to hear a piece of gear and determine how that product meets their particular tastes ... everything else is pure conjecture and opinion.

I have spoken with a number of audio company owners and amp designers; and there was not one who did not think that his product was better than anything else at or near the same price point. In fact they almost always cited higher priced equipment that theirs outperformed and/or replaced. I respect that. There were also a few who put the product in my hands to try out ... some costing a few thousand dollars. Some of it got sent back. That's the nature of the audio hobby.

Higher end specialty audio is basically one of the last remaining "cottage" industries. It's generally a one-person show. A number of companies started within the last few years are doing quite well now. The free trial is what they invariably have in common.

So am I alone here? Has anyone else read the glowing reviews, followed the latest industry news, gotten caught up in the hype and buzz of a particular product or design only to be less than satisfied when you got it installed in your own system?

Perhaps D-Sonic should sponsor a "tour" the way a number of companies do when they want to introduce something new. That would be one path to determine how well it really compares to other amp designs in general and to Class-D in particular. Or they could drop the "restocking" fee so that folks could post real listening impressions here and elsewhere. IMHO that would be more useful.

Audiozen, I'm not challenging your exuberance for your D-Sonic, any other class D amplifier, or your anticipation of what they might become. I'm on my fourth switching amplifier myself.

Yes, I want my tube amps to sound like tube amps yet there are some tube designs that are voiced to extremes that do not appeal to me. No, I don't want my studio monitors rolled off at the extremes or embellished at any point in between which is why I'm thrilled with the truly proprietary design nCores.

Currently there is a fundamental difference in distortion characteristics between tube and solid state, weather it be linear, switching, hybrid, or using DSP modeling, as I mentioned earlier. I'm somewhat pessimistic that this will ever be overcome. On the other hand if it is then I agree, the maintenance of a tube amplifier will become an important factor for many tube users to switch to what many consider the class D'ark side. I will be one of the first to do so.

Whats the point?..Stratehed..check your tickets..I think you got on the wrong Airplane..the main focus of this thread is to highlight the engineering advancements in Class-D topology during the past several years such as in house designed switching devices from Abletec, Nuforce, Audio Research, Philips/Hypex, and how these variations of pulse modulation methods have improved the sonics of
Class D amps compared to the more traditional PWM amps that have been around for years. The biggest Class D brute on the market is the Marten M-Amps from Sweden using Abletec amps. They have massive power supplies and very large transformers, weigh a 100 pounds each, run cool and cost a whopping $40K a pair. I dig as deep as possible speaking to engineers from a variety of companies, but the most reliable source to get the most honest and accurate assessment of these products is not from the magazines, but from the many Audiophiles who purchase these products and give their evaluations on many forums and threads on sites in Europe, Asia, and the States that are just as well respected as Audiogon. I communicate on these sites daily as well as other Gon members to get a much broader picture of the current landscape of high end audio. I predict that the most talked about and exciting Class D product of the year will be the new Theta Prometheus Class D amp which has been delayed but should be available shortly. It was sad to see Ice H2O go out of business because Henry Ho's Class D amps with major upgrades with his large transformers and large capacitor banks were very promising.

Got an email from Dennis Deacon with D-Sonic today acknowledging my talk with Abletec that he's using Abletec amps. He evaluated and listened to Class D amps from different companies including Hypex and found the Abletec amps superior.

My apologies ... OP stands for "original posting" or "original post".