So, do all amplifiers sound the same?

[SteveR750]

To the OP, IME the sonic differences are as big as anything else you choose to compare in "hi-fi".

However, maybe in absolute terms, the differences are really quite small, but to those of use that seem to have more money than sense (myself firmly included in this group I hasten to add) believe that the differences are night and day and worth paying vast chunks of money for. I'm struggling to hear that much differences between spotify 320kbs and CDA, and as you know from my DAC experience, there aint much point in spending a wad in that direction either, but I'm pretty sure I could tell my M2 from a K2 from a Cyrus of any denomination.

 

[Anonymous]

Yes. I think if it can drive the rated ohms of your speakers, and if distortion is below .1%, every amp sounds the same. This endless and expensive search for costly high-end amps is all manufacturers' hype (IMHO).

 

[Anonymous]

No, I don't think so because the frequency level varies between 20 - 20 000 Hz the normal human range of hearing.

 

[Mooly]

Yes. I think if it can drive the rated ohms of your speakers, and if distortion is below .1%, every amp sounds the same. This endless and expensive search for costly high-end amps is all manufacturers' hype (IMHO).

Turn your statement around a little and apply the same logic to CD players

A £10 portable and £1000 top end player have virtually identical specifications with regard to frequency response, distortion, channel separation etc etc and many of these figures are orders of magnitude better than any amplifier could hope to achieve. Therefore... all CD players sound the same

As outlined in my earlier post, the reasons are complex but one thing you must do... trust what you hear.

 

[Native_bon]

Yes. I think if it can drive the rated ohms of your speakers, and if distortion is below .1%, every amp sounds the same. This endless and expensive search for costly high-end amps is all manufacturers' hype (IMHO).

As outlined in my earlier post, the reasons are complex but one thing you must do... trust what you hear.

+1

 

[BenLaw]

Native_bon, I know you say none of your work has been officially released but do you have links to anything you've produced? I'd be really interested to hear some

 

[MajorFubar]

Yes. I think if it can drive the rated ohms of your speakers, and if distortion is below .1%, every amp sounds the same. This endless and expensive search for costly high-end amps is all manufacturers' hype (IMHO).

No offence but that's the same (wrong) line of thinking which believes that the SQ of an amp is directly related to how loud it goes. I'm sure you would be very easily able to disprove that theory to yourself by going to listen to a number different amps, blind or not, and you don't have to spend megabucks to hear it. Listen to something from Arcam and Cyrus for example and it's blindingly obvious, their presentation is completely different to each other.

 

[Superaintit]

So, do all amplifiers sound the same?

Let me answer your question with a question oke:

Do all ears hear the same?

Do all eyes see the same?

Do we all love the same tastes?

Maybe all amps can sound the same; not sure if everyone would love it, though.

 

[BigColz]

Yes. I think if it can drive the rated ohms of your speakers, and if distortion is below .1%, every amp sounds the same. This endless and expensive search for costly high-end amps is all manufacturers' hype (IMHO).

No offence but that's the same (wrong) line of thinking which believes that the SQ of an amp is directly related to how loud it goes. I'm sure you would be very easily able to disprove that theory to yourself by going to listen to a number different amps, blind or not, and you don't have to spend megabucks to hear it. Listen to something from Arcam and Cyrus for example and it's blindingly obvious, their presentation is completely different to each other.

A lot of entry level amps sound quit similar maybe thats why there's these people who think all amps sound the same.. Most high end amp manafacturers have a signiture sound and I could tell most blindfolded although some could sound similar enough for some not too notice i suppose.. The difference from my old Cyrus to my new (on Sat ) Electrocompaniet amp is a big difference between high end sounds IMO..

Yes Something like Arcam, Cambridge, NAD etc compared to Cyrus or Musical fidelity (class d) is extremely obvious and you'd have to be deaf to not hear the difference. Even with tone controls it's the presentation that is completely different and why I have struggled to find a high end amp sound I like..

 

[drummerman]

Yes. I think if it can drive the rated ohms of your speakers, and if distortion is below .1%, every amp sounds the same. This endless and expensive search for costly high-end amps is all manufacturers' hype (IMHO).

As outlined in my earlier post, the reasons are complex but one thing you must do... trust what you hear.

+1

Probably the single most unreliable part of the hifi chain. Whilst everything else is measurable and can be logically explained, even cables, your hearing, connected to your vision and often some wishful thinking is for sure capable of making a right old mess of things ... or of course create magic. It is however is a bit of a hit and miss affair ... like most things hifi.

Great isn't it?

regards

 

[Helmut80]

I don't care, I choose on looks anyway

on another note, are there really that many amps with comparable specs? Will Electrocompaniet Nemos have similar specs to 600w McIntosh or Bryston mono blocks? Or is there anything in the specs that helps explain the differences in sound?

 

[Phileas]

Do all ears hear the same?

No, but that's irrelevant. It's the same ears doing the listening.

 

[steve_1979]

Does a blindfold affect taste, as well as hearing ?

Yes.

I once saw a documentry where some people were asked to eat some baked beans that hadn't had the orange food coloring added to them. They looked grey and very unappetizing.

The people who tried them while wearing a blindfold said that they tasted nice and were no different to ordanary baked beans. The people who didn't wear a blindfold and could see what they were eating said they tasted horrible and struggled to eat them because they tasted so bad.

 

[BenLaw]

There's also another baked beans study where people consistently preferred the beans that came out of a Heinz tin instead of a value tin, even where they were the same or had in fact been swapped. Also the wine test where experts described the red wine taste of white wine that had been coloured red.

 

[CnoEvil]

Does a blindfold affect taste, as well as hearing ?

Yes.

I once saw a documentry where some people were asked to eat some baked beans that hadn't had the orange food coloring added to them. They looked grey and very unappetizing.

The people who tried them while wearing a blindfold said that they tasted nice and were no different to ordanary baked beans. The people who didn't wear a blindfold and could see what they were eating said they tasted horrible and struggled to eat them because they tasted so bad.

Does that not show that "colour" effects taste, rather than being unsighted.

 

[Superaintit]

Do all ears hear the same?

No, but that's irrelevant. It's the same ears doing the listening.

What I'm saying is that IME there are differences. I think difference in amp signature might be specifically created to suit certain tastes.

I imagine that also speaker load and how well the amp copes with this can affect the sound.

The same amps in active setup might have less of a signature sound, who knows?

Just my opinion, YMMV.

 

[fr0g]

Does a blindfold affect taste, as well as hearing ?

Yes.

I once saw a documentry where some people were asked to eat some baked beans that hadn't had the orange food coloring added to them. They looked grey and very unappetizing.

The people who tried them while wearing a blindfold said that they tasted nice and were no different to ordanary baked beans. The people who didn't wear a blindfold and could see what they were eating said they tasted horrible and struggled to eat them because they tasted so bad.

Does that not show that "colour" effects taste, rather than being unsighted.

No, it shows that your brain fills in when it expects something to taste (or sound) a certain way.

 

[CnoEvil]

No, it shows that your brain fills in when it expects something to taste (or sound) a certain way.

This may be partially true, but it's too simplistic (imo). Colour and taste are inextricably bound together.....probably going back to our ancestors, where being hardwired to avoid eating things of certain colours could save your life.

Using the right food colouring to make stuff look more appetizing, is very much based on known science.

 

[fr0g]

No, it shows that your brain fills in when it expects something to taste (or sound) a certain way.

This may be partially true, but it's too simplistic (imo). Colour and taste are inextricably bound together.....probably going back to our ancestors, where being hardwired to avoid eating things of certain colours could save your life.

Using the right food colouring to make stuff look more appetizing, is very much based on known science.

And I'm pretty certain the purveyours of aircraft-grade steel-cased amps at aircraft-grade prices know something about the equivalent, inextricably linked science when it comes to sound

By the way, I do think amps sound different. I'm certain of it. But I do wonder about dm's interesting concept of them sounding the same with tone controls...on that I think it's a very big maybe.

 

[CnoEvil]

And I'm pretty certain the purveyours of aircraft-grade steel-cased amps at aircraft-grade prices know something about the equivalent, inextricably linked science when it comes to sound

Then again, there are those that buck the trend, and put SQ above all else.....and if it looks good as well, it's icing... :shifty:

 

[BenLaw]

No, it shows that your brain fills in when it expects something to taste (or sound) a certain way.

This may be partially true, but it's too simplistic (imo). Colour and taste are inextricably bound together.....probably going back to our ancestors, where being hardwired to avoid eating things of certain colours could save your life.

Using the right food colouring to make stuff look more appetizing, is very much based on known science.

This rather ignores the one where they look the same but people's taste is dictated by the can they come out of. Very like hifi!

 

[CnoEvil]

This rather ignores the one where they look the same but people's taste is dictated by the can they come out of. Very like hifi!

That's the marketing / branding element.....and goes to show that almost eveything is more complicated than it first appears to be.

 

[BenLaw]

This rather ignores the one where they look the same but people's taste is dictated by the can they come out of. Very like hifi!

That's the marketing / branding element.....and goes to show that almost eveything is more complicated than it first appears to be.

Ah good, at least you accept that when someone says 'there's definitely a difference because I heard it' we can't take that at face value and it is 'more complicated than it first appears to be'.

 

[CnoEvil]

Ah good, at least you accept that when someone says 'there's definitely a difference because I heard it' we can't take that at face value and it is 'more complicated than it first appears to be'.

Likewise, when someone who hasn't heard it, says there isn't a difference.

 

[char_lotte]

All beans sound the same.