Class D amps inherently inferior?

Is there something about the switching technology of Class D amplifiers that sounds bad?

[jeffreypicciolo]

Folks, I can tell you that I went from a well regarded AB amp to the Stellar S300 (Class D)and it is a wonderful amp. Incredible grip and an overall sweetness that is glorious. I'm using this amp with Class B full range speakers that love power and this amp delivers. The bass grip is something that has to be heard to appreciate. The Absolute Sound did a review of this amp on 1/27/2023 (Neil Nader) and he was effusive in his praise of this amp and wrapped up his review by saying [S-300] ..."enthusiastically recommended without reservation". He also discussed in detail class D and his opinion of it as executed by PS Audio. Worth the read.

[DN]

Amplification really isn't a problem anymore. It is the input into the amplification that is crucial. The obsession with linearity and naturalness has diverged into clinical hell.

[horndawg]

I agree. M700's sound great, speaker cable also has made a bigger difference than I would have ever thought too.

[zizendorf]

"Designed properly, it sounds great." Yup, that's just the way my Rogue Audio Sphinx V3 sounds! It's a class D hybrid with tubes - which I guess are what make it sound so good (paired with my Tannoy speakers). The "synergy" must be there because my efficient Tannoy speakers sound very warm and revealing!

[nj]

Paul would you kindly explain the pros cons and your views of class G amplifiers.

[wilcalint]

Class D amplifiers, are based on digital switching

Class D amplifiers generate 3rd order harmonic distortion and high frequency noise. That is because the output transistors switch the output to either VDD or ground, the resulting output of a Class D amplifier is a high-frequency square wave. The switching frequency (fSW) for most Class D amplifiers is typically between 250kHz to 1.5MHz.

Vacuum tube amplifiers produce pleasant sounding 2nd order harmonics. Which is preferred by most listeners for being. "Lush & Glorious"

By placing a vacuum tube buffer stage prior to the Class D electronics the resulting sound is most pleasing to most people. This has been a well known fact for decades. Take a classic Nelson Pass Class A amp ( dry, cold but deadly accurate ). Drive it with a vacuum tube preamp and presto a Lush and Glorious sound.

[armanddimeo]

I have an NAD 3020 D, which is Class D. I use it in a second system and think it sounds amazing. NAD, along with PS Audio, is one of the companies I would trust with Class D.

[edhuslik]

I own the Focal Electra bookshelves with 2 REL t7i subwoofers and they sound wonderful with my Class D Peachtree Nova500. Powerful & precise.

[svtbass]

Im a bass player. And the latest craze ( 10 to 12 years) has been Class D bass amps. I have played a few, MESA, Genz Benz, Aguilar. They ALL lack something. Its a feel thing. and all seem HPF too high.
MESA claims their amp is 800 watts. I'll tell you it is NOWHERE near the 800 watts of my old Crown PSA2 FEEL.. Many of these bass amps use the ICE Modules.
I am glad to hear your professional input. It verifies what many of us bass players have experienced in the pro performance world.

The engineers guys says there is NO difference between a Class D or Class AB amps sound. Many who play them beg to differ. But we don't wear a lab coat with pocket protectors., so our input is discounted .lol
As you say the input Tube or FET if designed properly can make sound glorious. But in a commercial grade consumer bass amp we know they are using teh cheapest components to gain the MAX profit even thought the engineer claims otherwise. We hate HYPE

I've gone back to playing Class AB amps on my bass rig.

[delcampbell]

Class D can sound wonderful. I was convinced by hearing an in-store demo. I bought 2 Anthem Statement M1 mono and am still stunned to this day. And I have an love McIntosh, and anthem Class A/b and as well. Ive not heard the psaudio, but if they took the care that anthem did from the ground up, I'd love to hear them and bet they would sound amazing.

[nitzubishi]

As some other commenters have noted, class D amps respond very differently to peaks and valleys in speaker/crossover impedance. Any speaker no matter the quality is going to sound very different with a class D amp than with a similarly spec'd AB

[lights]

Tried a $3200.00 Class D Marantz and hated the sound. Purchased a Hegel Class A/B and never looked back.

[endrizo]

i like their size lightness and coolness. dont need a big hot monster anymore

[sostatic]

The Class D idea in of itself isnt inferior ... as a designer myself, what I find in the market, is thin cheap substrate with poor print layout, and coupled with the cheapest jellybean SMD components can "cause" them to sound poor. Quite a lot of excellent Class A and A/B designs learned lessons from Levinson, Pass Labs, Krell etc. and have come on leaps and bounds, hold a lot more immediate energy and therefore, punch.

[razisn]

I would love to see you arguing all this with Bruno Putzeys..

[jimbo]

Class d amps are cheaper !!!! And just different, they are fun to play around with and can sound great too

[Brian__of_Nazareth]

Dear Jeffrey,
a proposal to check:
Take some wire wound 5W resistor of say 0.1 or 0.22Ohms and connect it in line with the positive/red output speaker terminal of your class D amp output, the other end to the speaker cable to the positive speaker input terminal - and check the sound now.
Background: the speaker is best sounding not at the maximum damping factor available. Damping factor (a reversal value related to the differential source impedance of an amp related to the load impedance) is usually very high with Class D amps hence the output devices are switching and control depends mostly on high negative feedback. That's totally o.k. but can be absolutely too much of a good thing when it comes to real speakers, that worked well and perfectly aperiodically damped on a predecessor amp with less damping.
So if you reduce that value, the speaker may sound less over-controlled, thicker...

[steveodian]

I am very happy with my M1200’s powering my vintage Infinity Quantum 2 speakers.

[rolandlickert]

I have a NAD C-388 which is not as expensive as some units you mentioned in your Video
I use a Dynaudio DM 3/7 and its matches very well. I had many systems in the last 54 years but when you get older you prefer more convenience and not looking for absolute sound. So far I don't regret my switch to D.

[volpedo]

Mentioning Nad and forgetting to mention the other amp manufacturer sounds very much like name shaming and given the viewers any chance to form a sound opinion. I wish Paul discarded these emails.