i don’t have the power

By now you have boosted those tiny phono signals to something usable, but you aren’t quite there yet. Your speakers need some oomph behind them and what provides that is of course the amplifier. There are two basic types. Integrated Amplifiers and Power Amplifiers. This discussion is going to restrict itself to Power Amps; again of which there are two basic types. Mono and Multi Channel (usually Stereo)

The physical size of a stereo amplifier is usually smaller than that of two individual monoblock amplifiers. The price is usually more affordable as well. Since so much of the recorded music we enjoy is mixed in stereo, it’s generally much easier to go with a stereo amplifier for our audio setups.

However…these advantages come with some downsides. Since the stereo amp signal paths share the same chassis, transformers and power supply, they are not as isolated and will often inherit crosstalk, resulting in more noise, interference and distortion in the signal path. Many stereophiles will go with monoblock amps for this reason.

The other consideration in any discussion of amplifiers is going to be about solid state versus tube. You can probably guess what camp I am in on this one; at least philosophically.

The adherents of each are very passionate about their viewpoints and if you are committing to high end audio gear there are lots of choices, and one of those is whether you’ll be looking for a tube amp or solid state amp.

Either choice will deliver high quality audio reproduction. But they will sound different. This is because they are constructed differently and therefore generate their sound output differently.

Solid State amps are driven by current throughout the device. They usually have a single power transformer, and utilize silicon with current. 

Tube amps however are driven by voltage and therefore require an output transformer to convert the voltage from the tubes to current that runs through wires to the speakers to create sound.

What does this mean in the real world?

Solid State

Clean and more ‘detailed’ crisp sound | More durable | More power efficient (i.e. more watts per dollar) | Almost zero harmonic distortion | Faster gain control

Tube

Warmer, smoother sound | More texture and realism | Three dimensional sound | Customization by changing tubes | Looks hella cool

At the end of the day it will come down to personal preferences. Here are a few options for those of you who have a few spare coins eating a hole in your pockets…

Of course this is a monoblock so you need two of em if you want stereo sound…

Tube 300watts. Quad Balanced Design 116lbs THD 0.5% Dynamic Headroom 1.2dB

And Mac’s just look so old school that ya gotta love em. They have been around since 1949.

Plus…The Grateful Dead’s famous Wall of Sound utilised forty-eight 300-watt per channel MC2300 amps for a total of 28,800 watts of continuous power.

German made. The Edzard is a modular four-part tube amplifier: two Monos with their own power supply weighing in at approximately 200 kg gross weight.

The KRON 1610 tubes and Kron 300B driver tubes deliver a whopping 50 Watts into 8 ohms.

It uses oiled paper capacitors, and silver output transformers. The chassis is constructed out of some uber secret proprietary material that attenuated parasitic mechanical vibrations.

Each amplifier is hand built for a customer.

Unfortunately I couldn’t find out too much about UltraSound when researching this piece. This Steampunk amp encased in solid walnut is one of a kind. Literally; only one built in Italy. Six transformers with adjustable polarization resulting in zero feedback. Likewise this tube amp has zero damping factor as well. I was surprised at the sheer number of Steampunk amps there are out there…

Now for the absolute over the top in amps go for this bad boy. This unit stands 8’ tall, weighs in at over 3,300lbs and delivers 120,000watts. Yes you read that right. In rest it takes on a closed cylindrical shape, but once powered up it unfolds to the configuration shown in the picture, revealing much of the inner workings; which consist in part of six 30kw transformers, 16 ceramic diodes, 216 aluminum electrolytic capacitors, and 2,112 high current bipolar transistors