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STK Not Good?

z-adamson said:
I see what you are saying for #1 and #2.

So for #3....."for what it is".....

What do you mean by that?^^
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They're usually used in moderately priced gear. I haven't noticed them to sound worse than discrete gear which is comparable in age and price to the equipment which used STKs, but on the other hand, moderately priced gear kind of has a performance ceiling.

Kind of like saying "it has good acceleration for an economy car", etc.
 
HPMguy said:
The STK modules are just the output Darlington pairs and associated emitter resistors and a few other bits, all of which are likely to be fried when an output shorts. I've never noticed a particular difference in sound quality
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Some STK modules are a whole amplifier, or even a whole stereo amplifier. Some are just a driver stage, while others are just outputs. It really depends on which specific STK you're talking about.
 
I feel like with discrete gear, each heat generating component can be placed on its own heat sink. And emitter resistors can be spec’d a little better, since size is not an issue with them. I feel like the parts being better “heat sinked” makes for a better device.

The Sansui z9000 for example, has a STK and that thing runs very hot. It is a voltage amplifier in that case.
 
Actually, I think the STK modules provided the ability to better match components through automated manufacturing, and the close proximity in the epoxy allowed them to be thermally matched as well. At least that was the intent in addition to potential manufacturing cost savings. I'm sure some modules did that better than others.

But these days, with the modules being unobtanium I obviously much prefer discrete components.
 
TomKatt said:
Actually, I think the STK modules provided the ability to better match components through automated manufacturing, and the close proximity in the epoxy allowed them to be thermally matched as well. At least that was the intent in addition to potential manufacturing cost savings. I'm sure some modules did that better than others.

But these days, with the modules being unobtanium I obviously much prefer discrete components.
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Yes. The STK had a lot of pluses due to the tight integration of components. Most importantly, temperature compensation and bias. These units had typical THD specs of .004%. Most discrete amps are lucky to see .04% THD. Yes, it was a cost cutting measure, but it also met the engineering creed of "cheaper and better". Now most "receivers" use class D amps with typical specs of .1% THD, definitly cheaper, but not better. Ya I know, you can make the argument that you're not supposed to be able to hear harmonic distortion below .5% so what's the big deal.
 
If you can find good quality STK's, they perform and sound just as good as discreets. I have a good supplier of good aftermarket stk's. The stk's in my fisher rs 2010 are cool as a cucumber, because they have big heatsinks.
 
I believe the Kenwood KA-7300 used Darlington STK's and sounds outstanding. It's 45yrs old and still going strong so fingers crossed.

Currently only being used as a preamp with the Soundcraftsmen MA5002 doing the heavy lifting for the AR's in the bedroom so there's that lol.

IMG_20230826_093938166_HDR.jpg
 
I will also vouch for ceitron as a trustworthy supplier - going back at least four decades, no less!

Besides their own website, they also have an ebay "store", which can be more convenient and lower in shipping cost.

Not everything they offer is available via ebay, though, so it's worth checking with them directly if you're after something hard-to-find.

Just to be on-topic, I see ceitron is offering STK0080IIs, (in)famously used in Yamaha CR-1040, also used in Marantz SR-6000 and probably other models. Are they original Sanyo parts? Nah. But I would trust those parts coming from ceitron way more than I would with any other supplier I know.
 
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