square_wave
Well-Known Member
If you try to mathematically prove that a Gamut amplifier (or a Mark levinson or any other worthy amplifier) is better than a NAD or Rotel, it is very difficult because both will have their measurable distortion very much under what is audible to the human ear. But are they same ? Not at all. There is a world of difference !
If you measure an SS amp (even the ones that cost below 500$), they will measure much better than any hi-end tube amp which is out there. But most very experienced live concert goers (western classical , Jazz etc..where there is no amplification used), prefer Tube amps. The swear by them ? Why ? I have talked to a couple of them and they say it sounds like the real thing. And these are guys who reside in the west and practically live in concert halls and some have children who are studying music while some are ex-musicians.
I have once participated in a A/B shootout between a Plinius Class A power amplifier costing around 3 lakh and a pair of diy tube mono-blocks. The tubes sounded much better in all aspects.
One member mentioned the "coldness" that people complain about in solid-state amps. There is no coldness when we listen to live music. So if there is coldness, then either the amp design is questionable or there is a mis-match in the setup.
So quantifying these like apples is pretty much meaningless. If something is audible to one person, it is very much a REALITY for that person. It may not be the case for another who cannot hear it or do not care for it.
It is like photography. For most, a 10k worth 10 megapixel camera is actually overkill. They will never use it to even 90 percent of its potential. Some of my friends who are seriously into photography will not touch such a camera even with a barge-pole.
So IMHO it is pretty much an issue of what a person is capable of hearing and appreciating and also a case of priorities. I have a friend in Bangalore who have pretty good quality gear connected with ordinary 250 rupees interconnects and stock cables. I once carried a siltech new-York interconnect and speaker cables to his house and the difference was huge for me and an audiophile friend who accompanied me. But my friend could not make any difference at all. He is a good friend, so I maintained a knowing silence and continued enjoying the single malt.
I agree with Arj that the issues could be " what you look for" and "what you hear and percieve".
If you measure an SS amp (even the ones that cost below 500$), they will measure much better than any hi-end tube amp which is out there. But most very experienced live concert goers (western classical , Jazz etc..where there is no amplification used), prefer Tube amps. The swear by them ? Why ? I have talked to a couple of them and they say it sounds like the real thing. And these are guys who reside in the west and practically live in concert halls and some have children who are studying music while some are ex-musicians.
I have once participated in a A/B shootout between a Plinius Class A power amplifier costing around 3 lakh and a pair of diy tube mono-blocks. The tubes sounded much better in all aspects.
One member mentioned the "coldness" that people complain about in solid-state amps. There is no coldness when we listen to live music. So if there is coldness, then either the amp design is questionable or there is a mis-match in the setup.
So quantifying these like apples is pretty much meaningless. If something is audible to one person, it is very much a REALITY for that person. It may not be the case for another who cannot hear it or do not care for it.
It is like photography. For most, a 10k worth 10 megapixel camera is actually overkill. They will never use it to even 90 percent of its potential. Some of my friends who are seriously into photography will not touch such a camera even with a barge-pole.
So IMHO it is pretty much an issue of what a person is capable of hearing and appreciating and also a case of priorities. I have a friend in Bangalore who have pretty good quality gear connected with ordinary 250 rupees interconnects and stock cables. I once carried a siltech new-York interconnect and speaker cables to his house and the difference was huge for me and an audiophile friend who accompanied me. But my friend could not make any difference at all. He is a good friend, so I maintained a knowing silence and continued enjoying the single malt.
I agree with Arj that the issues could be " what you look for" and "what you hear and percieve".