I have been persuaded by recent readings, here and on the Steve Hoffman forum, that SET amps fail to supply true HIFI reproduction, and presumably degrade authenticity in search of pleasing sound. So, when I chose to replace my, nearly new, Naim NAP 200 amp. with a 300b SET amp. was I inadvertently chosing aethetics over authenticity? A choice I do not regret, incidentally.
aesthetics v authenticity....HI FI and SET amps
- Thread starter Brian S
- Start date
chris@panteg
pfm Member
I've heard poorly designed set and very good set amps, the good one's sound very convincing musically in my opinion.
Does authenticity really matter. I want a system i enjoy and can sit and listen too.
Besides Naim is about as far from authentic as can be
Yes, I largely agree with your first point.
I know nothing of the reputation of Naim, re. authenticity.I wasn't intending to specify any particular none SET amp, just amps that reach criteria to qualify as HI FI
Purité Audio
Trade: Purite Audio
If you enjoy the aesthetic of valves, perhaps just turn it on but don’t connect it to anything.
Keith
Keith
I take your point. I chose the 300b over the Naim as it was easier on my left ear when listening to high violins or high resgister piano. The idea of valves never appealed to me.
G
Guest432
Guest
Who cares about "true hifi reproduction" (excluding serge of course) buy your kit on how it sounds to you reagrdless of what other people think.
SET sounds fantastic when done well and also looks much better than black boxes with illuminated green badges.
SET sounds fantastic when done well and also looks much better than black boxes with illuminated green badges.
Arkless Electronics
Trade: Amp design and repairs.
By and large SET amps are not capable of meeting even the minimum standards required for an amp to be called hi fi... not even by DIN 45500 standards, which were regarded as lax in the mid '60's. They are sound effects generators.
I remain, after 18 months, truly delighted with the Musicarch 300b,
Arkless Electronics
Trade: Amp design and repairs.
THD no more than 0.1%, flat from 20Hz to 20KHz, a damping factor of at least 16 and a signal to noise ratio over 65dB would be a pretty good start. by these criterion virtually all competently designed amps meet the min standard for hi fi.
Thanks.
awkwardbydesign
Officially Awesome
Then hifi is wrong. There was a 5 year thread on diyAudio about high fidelity, and the most important question is:- fidelity to what? Electrical signals or original sound? And sound is what your ears hear; without ears listening there IS no sound, just air vibrations, and THAT is what is measured.
So don't be sucked in by the spurious arguments.
Arkless Electronics
THD no more than 0.1%, flat from 20Hz to 20KHz, a damping factor of at least 16 and a signal to noise ratio over 65dB would be a pretty good start. by these criterion virtually all competently designed amps meet the min standard for hi fi.
And this says nothing about how you may or may not enjoy the sound
THD no more than 0.1%, flat from 20Hz to 20KHz, a damping factor of at least 16 and a signal to noise ratio over 65dB would be a pretty good start. by these criterion virtually all competently designed amps meet the min standard for hi fi.
And this says nothing about how you may or may not enjoy the sound
Arkless Electronics
Trade: Amp design and repairs.
Fidelity to electrical signals yes. Definitely not fidelity to "music" as that's meaningless. Hi fi should not sound "good"... it should not "sound" anything in itself in fact but should allow the electrical signal recorded in the source material the best possible chance of coming out of the speakers as longitudinal waves with nothing added and 'now't taken out.
What utter garbage. If this was the case every manufacturer would sound identical. They don’t ccause we are all different and tailor our systems to suit ourselves.
Arkless Electronics
Trade: Amp design and repairs.
Completely irrelevant to hi fi IMO. You're supposed to be enjoying the music and if the hi fi adds a sound of its own then that is a form of distortion.
Quad put it well with "the closest approach to the original sound" tag line. A hi fi is NOT supposed to sound "nice" or anything like that! If the original performance featured a shrieky wiry sounding violin then it should sound just as unpleasant when replayed! What SET's and similar often do is round off the top end by rolling off at 12KHz or so and then produce loads of 2nd harmonic distortion that further "richens and thickens" the sound, producing a more "grannys mellow radiogram" sound that some may like but most definitely it is not hi fi...
pure sound
Trade: manufacturer/distributor
Rules out pretty much all loudspeakers then. What are you going to play your 'HiFi amplifier into?