Sound signature

[renjith lal]

Hi All,

I have one question regarding the sound signature and clarity.


Does power amp contributes to sound signature?
Considering preamp and power amp which one is mainly contributing to sound signature?

Other than preamp , power amp and speakers what else effecting sound signature?

I am bit new to this field, so please bare with me if the question is too simple.

Best Regards
Renjith

 

[anm]

I will not bare with you, I will just watch.

 

[Flash]

I will not bare with you, I will just watch.

hyeah:hyeah:hyeah:hyeah:hyeah:hyeah: are you sure you even want to watch

 

[renjith lal]

Sorry guys, that was a typo..

 

[audiodelic]

Well DAC is going to contribute most to sound signature thereafter pre amp and power amp should be able to only amplify that signal with least coloration.

Amount of coloration from pre or power amp should be way less than dac, so if you want to change sound signature go and listen to different dac's.

 

[Flash]

Hi All,
Does power amp contributes to sound signature?
Considering preamp and power amp which one is mainly contributing to sound signature?

Most power amps do not contribute to sound signature. However there are a few that do change the sound signature
Amongst the 2 preamps contribute towards sound signature. changing preamps can completely change the sound signature on the basis of user tastes

Other than preamp , power amp and speakers what else effecting sound signature?

Besides preamp, PA, speakers........
CDP, DAC, Speaker Cables, Interconnects, Speaker toe-in and your Room Dimensions, room placement all affect sound signature.
Most people forget that a room plays a vital role in changing the sound signature or creating issues with reflections, brightness, bass boom etc.

 

[BLASTO]

DAC > Pre > Power > Cables.

Room effect contributes too.

 

[koushik]

Most power amps do not contribute to sound signature. However there are a few that do change the sound signature
Amongst the 2 preamps contribute towards sound signature. changing preamps can completely change the sound signature on the basis of user tastes

I am sorry to differ from your view. IMO almost all power amps contribute to sound signature. Think of playing same setup with a NAD and a Marantz OR a Rotel and a Arcam ... they will give completely different sound signature.

 

[Flash]

I am sorry to differ from your view. IMO almost all power amps contribute to sound signature. Think of playing same setup with a NAD and a Marantz OR a Rotel and a Arcam ... they will give completely different sound signature.

True, they do change sound signature
NAD / Arcam / Tube based PA's etc
but not to an extent of how much a Preamp does it.

I have tried
NAD + Denon
NAD + Arcam
Rotel + Denon
Rotel + Arcam

 

[anm]

Each component is designed with a certain signature, eq curve etc in mind. So each will contribute. You will have to see the system in totality.
I think the speakers contribute the most though.

Watching to see if someone interesting bares with him

 

[square_wave]

In most practical music systems, this is the order in which components affect the general sound signature provided you are looking at components at similar price points and they are all synergistic in nature.

1. Speakers
2. Room and acoustics
3. Source and Preamp
4. Power amp
5. Cables

The pursuit of High fidelity is a different game. There are different approaches depending upon the situation.

 

[rohitmusic]

Since I am also sailing in the same boat...

Based on info on this thread power amps seem to affect sound signature least.

So is it wise to get a power amp of similar specs from the VFM brands like Norge instead of pricier brands?

How much would be the value add of more costlier power amps and why?

I am getting the impression that the power amp does just one function to provide "x" amount of power. So if a norge amp can provide that same power "x" then why not go for it?
Are there any other variables that need to be taken into consideration other than the raw power output? (Ignoring the sound signature part of it for now as they are the component that affect it the least as per above inputs)

 

[renjith lal]

Room and acoustics play a big role than source and preamp for stereo listening ?
Can you give some more info on this?

Thanks in advance
Renjith

 

[jls001]

I think the room is your biggest ally and also your biggest enemy. So all efforts and expenses must go towards trying to overcome the limitations of the room, and maximising its strengths.

Even a system that is generally accepted as good by people who own them will not sound good if it is not properly optimised to the limitations of (another) room. By the same token, a not so good system can punch above its weight class when properly optimised to the room.

But the above assumes that one has assembled a system, and want to fine tune the setup to the next level. If you qualify for this, I'd suggest you tackle speaker placement seriously. A good starting point is the Cardas guide. If you must change components, do so only after you are sure that you have eked out the best the current setup can give.

PS: I disagree with people who say the power amp does not contribute much to the sound signature, or contributes very less. With everything else being kept the same, when I swap between two power amps I find a substantial difference in my setup.

 

[Nikhil]

Does power amp contributes to sound signature?
Considering preamp and power amp which one is mainly contributing to sound signature?

Other than preamp , power amp and speakers what else effecting sound signature?

Quick answer about the power amp: Yes. How much? It depends on your ears. Different amps sound different with different speaker combinations.

Once you've taken care of the pre-amp, power amp and speakers - you can also look at the power conditioning and room acoustics (already mentioned).

 

[Divakar7]

Wow, I am learning something new every day. Today's gem is that power amp has negligible impact on sound signature. We may as well all buy Norge

 

[rohitmusic]

Wow, I am learning something new every day. Today's gem is that power amp has negligible impact on sound signature. We may as well all buy Norge

Even I am not able to digest this "fact"..
There has to be some improvement/delta/difference with higher amps.

 

[doors666]

A good quality power amp is supposed to be transparent. If you can distinguish between two high quality power amps, then by definition they cease to be high quality:lol:

 

[Divakar7]

If the goal of an audio component is to reproduce the music as faithfully as possible, any coloration that is introduced is undesirable from such a perspective. Based on their shortcomings, amps will introduce artefacts in the form of noise, distortion, clipping etc that are essentially their sound signatures. Where do these shortcomings reveal themselves in an amp?

Current output, power bandwidth, THD, quality of: capacitors, transformers, power supply, circuit design, isolation, clipping performance -- all these and more impact an amps performance. To say that all amps at the same power rating have more or less the same sound signature..I don't know what to say.

 

[tirthankar]

I believe the questions answer depends on how we look at the term signature.
If we are meaning color, then yes the power amplifier should contribute the least to that. The ideal amplifier, as per Peter Walker, is a straight wire with gain. Warmth, transparency and everything dealing with accuracy of sound is affected more by speakers, preamp and source.

But when we are dealing with sonic qualities like dynamics, micro details like decay of an instrument , speaker control...attributes related to the impact (for want of a better word) of sound, the power amp has considerable effect.

They overlap a lot. There are some amps which can mask details even when the source produces gobs of detail. There can be speakers so flat that they can make even the most detailed and dynamic electronics fall flat. And a poor source can make the most detailed and dynamic stereo struggle to impress.

It is a harmonious mixture which makes an ideal stereo sound at its best.

My two cents.