Full review Beh/A-500

[dentman67]

I've been asked by PM and also in a thread to give my thoughts on the Behringer A-500 . I thought it best to start yet one more A-500 thread so that more folks would have a chance to read the full Audio Critic review. I figured this info might get kinda lost in the thread I was asked to respond to.

search on http://theaudiocritic.com

[Edit: Removed for reasons of copyright infringement. Please do not post reviews here from other websites without written, explicit permission from the copyright owner. - Admin]

 

[dentman67]

I'll give you an idea of my thoughts on amps both from alot of reading and a few blind tests . I feel that amps that are desighned and built well all pretty much sound the same , keep in mind that I'm speaking of amps of similar desighn . Tube amps VS solid sate amps would not be a good example of what I'm talking about .

Dont get me wrong , I'm not saying an amp like the A-500 is just as good as say a Bryston or a Krell for example . What I am saying is that the diffrences in sound will be pretty darn small . Amps are not (for the most part) desighned to add sonic signatures , they are desighned to be neutral sounding. No single amp manufactuer has a silver bullet and a desighn that is not known to all others, so it's pretty much an equal playing field . What differs is build quality and in some cases slightly better parts .

This not to say that buying a Bryston amp is a waste of money . For folks who have the cash and want that little extra gain in sound quality along with an amp thats built like a tank and will work for many years thenby all means go for it. There is a very simple reason why every blind amp test you read about ends up showing that most folks couldnt pick one from the other. The reason is the diffrence in sound is pretty small .

Again please keep in mind I'm talking about amps that are desighned and built well , and that are driven within the're limits . The price of the amps matters not .

 

[mtrycrafts]

Since you obviously have access to The Audio Critic, I'd like to hear your comments about their comment that this A500 did as good or better on the power cubed test than the Bryston multichannel amp they tested not long before it.

 

[dentman67]

mtrycrafts ,
I did'nt read that test report/review . I dont have any Audio Critic mags as of yet but I will be sighning up for the online version of the mag . I found that review posted at another forum some time ago.

 

[Nick250]

Dont get me wrong , I'm not saying an amp like the A-500 is just as good as say a Bryston or a Krell for example . What I am saying is that the diffrences in sound will be pretty darn small . Amps are not (for the most part) desighned to add sonic signatures , they are desighned to be neutral sounding. No single amp manufactuer has a silver bullet and a desighn that is not known to all others, so it's pretty much an equal playing field . What differs is build quality and in some cases slightly better parts .

This not to say that buying a Bryston amp is a waste of money . For folks who have the cash and want that little extra gain in sound quality along with an amp thats built like a tank and will work for many years thenby all means go for it. There is a very simple reason why every blind amp test you read about ends up showing that most folks couldnt pick one from the other. The reason is the diffrence in sound is pretty small .

Again please keep in mind I'm talking about amps that are desighned and built well , and that are driven within the're limits . The price of the amps matters not .

Very nice review sir. I have often wondered if the high end amps had a sonic signature built into them to distinguish themselves from their competitors or less expensive equipment. "It sounds different, and is very expensive, therefore it must be better".

Nick

 

[mtrycrafts]

mtrycrafts ,
I did'nt read that test report/review . I dont have any Audio Critic mags as of yet but I will be sighning up for the online version of the mag . I found that review posted at another forum some time ago.

My mistake. I thought that reference was in th eA500 write up but it is in the Bryston write up, I just checked

The PowerCube of one channel of the Bryston 875HT is shown in Fig. 6. Interestingly enough, it is not even as good as that of the dirt-cheap Behringer A500

 

[Nick250]

One more thing, if I ever succumb to the dark side and try out external amplification (my 3806 seems in no way taxed as it is) do the Behringer A500s run cool enough to stack them?

Nick

 

[dentman67]

Nick I'm running a Denon 3805 with my A-500 powering the two mains . The Behringer is the coolest running amp I've come across . After a couple of hours of 94+ db listening in two ch mode the amp will just about become warm to the touch . Not a whole lot warmer then room temp after a very hard workout.

 

[Nick250]

Thats good news, thanks.

Nick

 

[WmAx]

Note: It is a copyright violation to post substantial, verbatim sections of a copyrighted article such as above, unless you had authorization from the copyright holder to do so. The forum(Audioholics) can potentially be held liable. The image links are legal, and you could even summarize the article in your words, so far as the facts are concerned. But you can not (without authorization from the copyright holder) post large sections of a copyrighted article.

-Chris

 

[Audioholics]

Thanks for the heads up WmAx, we deleted the review.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Note: It is a copyright violation to post substantial, verbatim sections of a copyrighted article such as above, unless you had authorization from the copyright holder to do so. The forum(Audioholics) can potentially be held liable. The image links are legal, and you could even summarize the article in your words, so far as the facts are concerned. But you can not (without authorization from the copyright holder) post large sections of a copyrighted article.

-Chris

I should have followed through with my hunch as well. Good for you speaking up