This is what I want! An open letter to the industry.

[Rob Babcock]

Okay, Denon factory reps, listen up. And anyone with some pull with Onkyo, Yamaha & Marantz should check this out, too.

In case any of you have been hiding out in a cave somewhere, there's currently a revolution underway in digital amplification. Texas Instruments, Tripath and B&O (ICEPower) have some radical and innovative amplifier modules out there that are causing quite a stir in the High End. They combine low heat & low power consumption with tremendously detailed and vibrant sound (and some science fiction looking damping factors!).

So why is it you guys haven't figured this out yet?

Don't say because it's too new. Panasonic, Sony, JVC, Sharp, HK & Kenwood have all figured it out, and some of these guys are into their second and third generations of amps! And don't say it's because the technology isn't ready for real high end audiophool-approved sound. You'd get some arguements from Bel Canto, AVReality, and Bang & Olefson. Those guys are selling 1st gen amps for several thousand each! And I think the Spectron Musician III is about $5k!

I'm also disappointed that most of the companies making receivers based on digital amps are aiming at the low end of the market. On the one hand this makes sense: a digital amp doesn't need as beefy a power supply and is much cheaper to make than a good analog amp. But to saddle the technology with the very cheapest parts and implementation is really selling it short- the truth is current digital amps give the best SS & tube amps a good run for their money. Even very cheap digital amps.

The only large companies making digital receivers with high-end aspirations are Sony and Harmon Kardon. In fact, the top-o-the-line Sony sports a whopping 7 X 200 Watt amp section! And it aims for the Holy Grail of Audio (at least to me)- the receiver takes a digital signal from input to speakers performing no analog conversions at all! Even SACD is kept totally digital from player, thru hi rez input, thru the amps.

Denon, you get a partial pass for at least selling a digial (Tripath?) model in Japan. But it's a "lifestyle" model designed more to look nice sitting next to a plasma than serve as the center of a complex AV system. And why deny the US market even that much?

A thumbs down to the rest of you short sighted manufactures for failing to get in gear. The future is knocking on the door- let it in.

BTW, Denon. You wanna make it up to me? Okay, how about an "AVR-3805D" or "AVR-4805D". Pretty much the same models you have now, but add digital amps, keep the signal & all manipulation thereof in the digital domain. I'd say 150 to 200 digital watts would be about right. My choice would be for the new breed of Tripath that accepts digital input, but hey- surprise me!

Do this and I'll happily sell of my stack of amps and settle down contentedly with my new baby. And I won't need to upgrade ever again. Well, at least not until the next new theater format. Meaning about a year.

 

[m1abrams]

Ok I have not looked into these Digital Amps, but you made a comment that the signal never gets converted to the analog domain? How is that possible, speakers will NOT take a digital signal. At some point the signal must be converted to analog. Doing so without amplification to me seems very odd. You usually only have signal in a digital signal, no power.

Maybe a link explaining digital amps a little more.

 

[Yamahaluver]

I dont know if you are aware but Yamaha does make MDX-1 high end digital amp with a whopping 500Wx2RMS, it has been favorably reviewed by lots of overseas publications and having heard it first hand, I can say, it is pretty close to their earlier class A offerings except this one has more power and is way more expensive at $4500.

 

[Sounds Simple]

Ok I have not looked into these Digital Amps, but you made a comment that the signal never gets converted to the analog domain? How is that possible, speakers will NOT take a digital signal. At some point the signal must be converted to analog. Doing so without amplification to me seems very odd. You usually only have signal in a digital signal, no power.

I believe Rob's point is that the signal stays in the digital domain from sourse all the way till it is converted at the output stage. The difference is that most designs do a D/A conversion and then do analog amplification. I'm not certain how the digital amps work but they operate digitally.

Bob

 

[nova]

Don't forget about digital speakers, like the Meridian DSP line. These keep a digital signal from the DVD/CD player all the way to within inches of the driver.

 

[Rob Babcock]

Depending on which amp you choose, some are really "power DACs", but some truly do output a digital signal to the speaker. The way it works is akin to film; it looks continuous even tho it's a series of stills. The speaker is fed digital pulses but at a rate far higher than even DSD. The mass of even the lightest speaker driver is high enough that the momentum of the driver continues between pulses, and the sound you get is seamless. In that type of a rig, your speaker is really the DAC.

The Meridian stuff is awesome, but don't they merely keep the signal digital until it's amplified? If so, an inch before the speaker or a mile, there's still an extra conversion cycle there. Some of the digital amps (like the Sony S-Master Pro) never process anything analog at all. Some do- the current Tripath, for instance, convert the signal to analog right at the chip. The TI chip that Panasonic uses also performs all DSP and the actual amplification digitally, too. The beauty of doing this is that you not only keep the signal pristine, removing the degradation that's inevitable with each conversion, but you completely take the need for a good DAC/CD player out of the equation. There is talk of hooking up an NEC Mulitspin CD rom to the Panny, and indeed I know of one guy that uses a loptop PC with a good soundcard to drive a Panny (and his PC has room correction software of his own devising!)

I didn't realize the Yammy MDX-1 was available in the US. If so, kudos to Yamaha. Still, they could make that tech available at a little more reasonable price.

 

[Rob Babcock]

One benefit of the new breed of digital amps is their efficiency, compactness & low heat output. Some in fact actually have the "Energy Star" sticker on them! Just look at the PANASONIC SA-XR25; this little guy manages to crank out 6 x 100 Watts (admittedly rated at 6 ohms) in a 3" high case at a weight of under 9 lbs! And the fan is a bit smaller than the case fan from your PC.

 

[nova]

I'll have to admit I'm not really sure about the Meridian's. I was under the impression they are self powered with discrete class A amps. There would be no conversion until inches from the driver. Just thought I'd mention the fact that there are digital speakers out there too. Dunno if it is even relevant to your original post ;-)

 

[Rob Babcock]

While I'm dreaming anyway, I'd also love to see pre-pros with a HDMI or some other connection to a digital amp. An umbilical of sorts, and it could even be a computer style interface. The idea would be a one-wire, true-digital connection to a 5/7 channel digital amp. This way you could get the processor you want and buy just the amount of amp you need. Just imagine a broadband connection feeding a 5 X 300 Watt Digital Amp a DVD-A signal with no analog stages!