Quote:
Originally Posted by
Airsculpture
Can you blind test the difference between an AVR and a 2 channel amp ?
Yes -- use an SPL meter to make sure the volumes are the same, and then A/B the AVR and AMP.
_WHY_ there is even a difference in the first place though?
Let's turn to basic Math to tell us:
* A 5.1 $1000 AVR, let's be extremely generous and say, has roughly 75% of circuity for audio. That's $125 of parts/channel dedicated to audio.
* Now compare and contrast to a two channel $1000 amp which has 100% of circuity for audio. That's $500 of parts/channel. The fact that the circuit designer doesn't have to worry about "video noise leakage" means the (audio) quality _should_ be better. This isn't rocket science, just basic engineering.
So with the higher budget to play with, who do you think is going to chose the higher quality components? The AVR jack-of-all-trades that is going with the cheapest components to get the cost as low as possible, or the AMP master-of-one who
doesn't have to pander to the race-to-the-bottom-of-the-barrrel extremely price conscientious consumer?
Obviously DSP room correction changes the equation, but dollars for dollars, a 2 ch amp should sound better then an AVR. Obviously, there are always exceptions.
Something else to keep in mind is that Music usually doesn't get down to 20 Hz the way Movies do. Sometimes you'll see amps sacrifice "extension", that is, fall off sharply at 40 Hz but what they give up they gain in quality -- they are much "flatter" across the board.
Audio quality is a constant battle between:
* THD
* volume
* responsiveness
* crossover balance
* DSP correction for sound nodes and sound nulls,
* etc.
This is why the one person can love one amp and another person can hate it.
This week I got to hear the Cambridge Audio CXA80 and the Yamaha A-S801. Immediately I noticed A-S801 was "brighter" -- the salesman was surprised I picked up on it so quickly -- but it was obvious to me. Some people prefer the "brighter" sounds, others want a more "neutral" or "laid back" feel.
It all depends on what you prefer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Airsculpture
am I losing sound quality with a multi channel amp as opposed to a dedicated 2 channel amp ?...my budget is $350
Probably, but as I've said in other threads:
The _only_ way to KNOW is to listen in YOUR room -- because otherwise you're just listening to someone else's hyperbole.