Chaka wrote:
Ha ha, I like the sarcasm. I am far and away not an expert on circuit
design and don't know enough about opamp vs. discrete, I was just
pointing out an observation so I can't add to the argument.
Well, part of it is true. Many Audiophiles and so-called Recording
Engineers swear that there is a huge difference, and that Class A is
clearly superior.
A little of it even has a basis in engineering. A "class A" design has
no zero crossing distortion. A "class B" design essentially takes two
half-amplifiers, one for the positive signal and one for the negative,
and combines them. The obvious advantage over a Class "A" design is that
when no music signal is flowing, no current flows, and no greenhouse
effect. But some folks claim that the joining of the two signals is
never perfect and can be heard. It is usually very easy to tell of a
component is Class A, it will be warm to the touch even when idling.
The discrete versus PCB arguement has equally vocal supporters on each
side. Just check out any The Absolute Sound review of something with
hand wired, point-to-point connections. It will "remove a veil" and all
sort of great things.
And crappy layout of the PCB (as with hand wiring) can lead to many sins.
Part of what makes something "audiophile" is the claim that the design
was made without economic compromises. Hence all the $10,000 CD players,
and $50,000 amplifiers. But all engineering is design the most quality
or whatever other "best" definition you want, for the least money. The
good engineers deliver very good quality for a reasonable price. Exactly
what is 'reasonable' is left to the reader.
But it really is all about the music.
--
Pat
http://www.pfarrell.com/music/slimserver/slimsoftware.html
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