I just watched a review posted about 9 months ago by Steve Guttengerg. He was reviewing the NAD M23 which is a class d amp based on the Purifi Eigentakt module. It caught my attention because a year or two ago I built an amp from a kit that uses the Purifi Eigentakt evaluation modules. My experience with my kit, compared to the McIntosh amp it replaced was very similar to what Steve found in his review - that it is very transparent and just passes the source through without alteration (other than making it larger) and with negligible regard for the load (speakers) being driven. Based on my own experience and Steve’s comments, I’m at a loss for what more to ask of an amplifier- other than more power, whether I need it or not.
According to Steve, the amp being reviewed exceeded the others he compared it to in clarity, transparency, detail, speaker control and probably some other things. This got me to wondering - is this what everyone wants?
My goal has always been to have a system that will reproduce what the microphone heard or what the producer intended me to hear when a recording was made. With such a system, I can use dsp, tone controls or an equalizer to color the sound any way I want but I always want to start from the baseline of being able to hear what was recorded.
Listening to some of Steve’s comments in his review, I’m led to think that some people are seeking a system that colors the original in a particular way suited to their taste so I thought I’d ask you guys. What are you looking for in a system?
My main goal is to get my system powered to the point where the system has an effortless quality that only high powered amplification can provide. My system is remarkably accurate and has a remarkably wide frequency response and is wonderfully transparent to sources. I have a LOT of music on both vinyl and digital so my system has to play everything extraordinarily well. Sources I’ve got pretty well sewn up now that I have a decent streamer.
So, the only thing I have left to get are a pair of 900 watt mono amps. And the crazy part is that it’s not about playing loudly. It’s that effortless, unrestrained quality that only tons of power can provide when playing uncompressed music. When music’s dynamics are unrestrained, it takes on an unmistakable realness that low wattage systems simply cannot approximate.