Re: Do all amplifiers sound the same?

In article <GJidnSl7jtKxQvLanZ2dnUVZ_s2tnZ2d@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>,
 Steve <goldstarsteve@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:

> Some time ago the now defunct stereo review had an interesting article
> on blind a/b tests between different amplifiers - I saw a reprint
> here;
> 
> http://bruce.coppola.name/audio/Amp_Sound.pdf
> 
> After a hiatus of many years I am now putting together a system and
> every one I talk to tells me there is a difference between amplifier
> sounds. I am sceptical and in a recent audition could not tell a Creek
> EVO from a NAD 325 BEE (through EPOS M12.2 speakers with a Creek cd
> source).
> 
> Has any more work been done on this subject, esp. blind a/b tests?
> 
> Steve

Steve,

This is two of the topics most likely to generate a lot of heat--amps 
sounding different and blind a-b tests.

Before it gets too wild let me put my two cents (Australian) in.

Of course different amplifiers sound different. Since they are made 
differently, with different components, and they measure differently, 
how could it be otherwise? Whether the differences are significant is a 
matter of personal decision. You make your decision and plonk down your 
money.

Some will argue that well-made amps that measure the same will sound the 
same. This is necessarily true--it is a tautology--assuming that we 
measure everything that can be heard.

Blind a-b testing is the gold standard of testing for difference. It 
does however have to be done well and usually isn't. Some of the subtle 
differences in music reproduction are very difficult to pick, and often 
require extensive experience or training to distinguish. As well, some 
differences show up after long trials (days, weeks, or months!) and 
testing of this longitude are as rare as hen's teeth. 

Our auditory memory is very short, and often very inaccurate, and that 
is an argument NOT for short duration tests, but for using something 
that is longer lasting and more reliable, namely the emotional response 
to the music.

I know from my own experience swapping interconnect cables that while I 
couldn't pick which cable was in my system at any one listening session, 
over months I came to prefer one set--based on my desire to put on 
another record and listen more, or turn the music off and do something 
else. These preferences were a surprise to me and I performed enough 
swaps to make certain.

If you can, audition each amplifier on your list for long enough to know 
whether you enjoy the way it produces music. After all, you will be 
using it to produce music, not listen to sound.

Greg