Amp/Preamp Asylum

RE: My Atma-Sphere Class Ds are long gone.. As much as I LOVE...

75.168.152.124

Ralph

In Reply to: RE: My Atma-Sphere Class Ds are long gone.. As much as I LOVE... posted by morricab on July 01, 2024 at 06:55:49

There are two problems with using the class Ds on Sound Labs. The first is that they simply don't make the power- about 25 Watts- on that load.

The second is they take about 450 hours to break in by all accounts. You can read on our feedback page what happens when they are broken in, compared to our OTLs...

Follow Ups:

Most here aint gotten 450 hours of burn- in time in them . You should develop a speed charge process - Wojciech 09:42:41 07/03/24 (0)
In the factory.
Warm regards
RE: My Atma-Sphere Class Ds are long gone.. As much as I LOVE... - morricab 13:14:37 07/02/24 (7)
Sure, whatever.
- Sound Labs are not a good match for any solid state amp due to their 30 Ohm impedance - Ralph 13:27:18 07/02/24 (6)
  So you really have to work with the controls on the rear to get anywhere with them. Add to that the fact that the class Ds seem to take about 3x as long to break in and you have a situation where most people would lack the patience. They would also be lacking power since our class Ds are only rated 100 Watts into 8 Ohms. That means about 25 Watts on a set of Sound Labs.
  
  Our MA-1s make about 150 Watts on Sound Labs; for a solid state amp to keep up with them that amp would need to be rated 600 Watts entirely due to the impedance (which our OTLs don't mind at all).
  
  So yes, whatever. You of all people should know that the speaker you use with an amp can make or break the situation. Would you honestly use an SET on a set of Magnaplanar Tympany 4s?? This is sort of the opposite of that; while tubes are generally unhappy with low impedance loads, solid state amps can't make power into high impedance loads.
  - RE: Sound Labs are not a good match for any solid state amp due to their 30 Ohm impedance - morricab 23:46:04 07/02/24 (5)
    I have owned many planar speakers, both electrostats and ribbons. For electrostats it really depends on the design, some work just fine with SS (like Acoustat) and some don't (like STAX). For planar magnetic speakers, some will actually work with SET because of the flat impedance. My Apogees actually sounded nice with a Cary SET. My BG planar drivers loved my KR Audio amp, with a second. KR on the 10 inch woofer.
    
    So, the short answer is for electrostats, it depends. They have both high and low impedance , although my ACOUSTATS had relatively mild variance but my Stax had a wild impedance.
    
    Planar magnetic speakers usually have a nearly flat impedance and so it is only low sensitivity that makes them not so SET friendly.
    - +1 exactly! nt - Ralph 08:55:33 07/03/24 (0)
      -
    - RE: Sound Labs are not a good match for any solid state amp due to their 30 Ohm impedance - Story 02:48:23 07/03/24 (3)
      I've had not much of a problem SS or Tube at all with my Quad 57's and I've owned them for 45 years.
      
      I'm not concerned with Orchestral SPL's either but, oh boy, do they sound sweet in the right 'system' (very revealing)
      - +1 Quads don't need nearly the power! nt - Ralph 08:56:26 07/03/24 (2)
        
        In Reply to: RE: Sound Labs are not a good match for any solid state amp due to their 30 Ohm impedance posted by Story on July 03, 2024 at 02:48:23
        
        -
        
        nor can they take it if it's given to them :( - mhardy6647 12:55:22 07/07/24 (1)
        
        In Reply to: RE: +1 Quads don't need nearly the power! nt posted by Ralph on July 03, 2024 at 08:56:26
        
        ... plus, there's that 15 degree vertical treble dispersion.
        
        In a way, they're the perfect loudspeaker for masochists.
        Why, yes -- I do have a pair. Why do you ask?
        ;)
        
        all the best,
        mrh
        
        Didn't ask; - Ralph 09:30:47 07/08/24 (0)
        
        In Reply to: RE: nor can they take it if it's given to them :( posted by mhardy6647 on July 07, 2024 at 12:55:22
        
        The comment was WRT using an SET with ESLs, which won't work on Sound Labs. But I expect you might have some success on ESL57s, if you can get the SET to deal with the bass and treble impedances at the same time.

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