Class A Amp

[ryder]

I haven't heard the Sugden, but there's a sense in which lots of amps are like this. Rotel amps costing £150 second hand will do.

However, when you have a really special amp, it does make a difference to timbre, and to image. My Rotel amps disappear and when listening they are perfectly satisfactory -- if I move from the Rotel to the Radford or the Krell, I am reminded of all the weaknesses of the Rotel, how it fails to resolve overtones and all the detailed information which make the audio sound like a real presence.

Is it worth the additional £2K+? I think it probably is!

Fully agree. One can attain musical bliss with a £150 amp, DAC or speakers. It's only when you start to compare the gear the differences will show up.

 

[booja30]

Nice work!

Thanks!

I just finished the preamp and have had a chance to test them out! They sound excellent, but the amp really heats up our already warm apartment in Valencia. So I'm going to do a write up about them build process (including the CAD and 3D printing work) and then put them up for sale. It's a shame in a way, but for me it was worth it to have a meaty project to work on during lockdown and beyond.

Here are the final products:

They really need a good home up north somewhere where the heat output is a benefit.