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Solid state amps all sound the same?

Do all well made SS amps sound the same

  • Total voters
    50
My MAC 1700 sounded very different than my Sansui AU-7700 & QRX 6500 do, my Sansui 5000a did not sound like my other Sansui's.
Inexpensive Kenwood separates produced listening fatigue quickly.
A pricey Pass Labs was gone in a week, also because of listening fatigue.
A lower wattage Pioneer, the SA 510, I think; Sounded sweet.
Luxman R-117 sounded very different than all of the above, likewise for a Scott R77S.
I like adding the FX Audio to produce some vacuum tube gain (see very lengthy thread here).
 
egellings said:
I suspect that all well made low distortion, low output impedance, flat frequency response amps should sound the same. What would be the mechanism causing a difference? Also, all listening tests need to be done in a double blind ABX or similar manner. Speakers, and anything electromechanical (mics, pickups) are a wholly different story.
Click to expand...
I would say that how an amp handles a real-world reactive load, and responds to the room via the feedback from the speaker in use may determine differences in amps that measure similarly.
 
Dr. Ears said:
My MAC 1700 sounded very different than my Sansui AU-7700 & QRX 6500 do, my Sansui 5000a did not sound like my other Sansui's.
Inexpensive Kenwood separates produced listening fatigue quickly.
A pricey Pass Labs was gone in a week, also because of listening fatigue.
A lower wattage Pioneer, the SA 510, I think; Sounded sweet.
Luxman R-117 sounded very different than all of the above, likewise for a Scott R77S.
I like adding the FX Audio to produce some vacuum tube gain (see very lengthy thread here).
Click to expand...


Do you have that link? Didn't seem to work. Ive been thinking about something like this. Maybe get a little tubeyness but maintain the ease and convenience of my avr.
 
They don't all sound the same but if you are looking at similar price, quality points, there will be less variation than speakers or cartridges. I have a recapped Yamaha CA-810 that has a wonderful sound, and is better than my Emotiva TA-100 and other vintage silver faced integrated amps I have had from Pioneer and Sony.
 
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