[lcaillo]

I just received an Eagle that I bought and hooked it up. I have a curiosity about amps, partly fueled by my curiosity with the constant debates about whether amps sound different or not. The intellectual side of me cannot identify differences in most in any objective way, but there is another part of me that wonders why so many people experience amps differently, including to some degree, me.

So I have been listening to my Arx 5 with my B&K 2220 and been thrilled with the sound. Based on my experience with the Eagle 2 many years ago, I recall it being a very solid amp, having no problems driving anything. Some of the best listening experiences I had with a variety of speakers were with this amp or the PS 200. So I fully expect that I won't hear any difference between it and the B&K, also, a very solid amp.

So do I hear any difference. Not that I can put my finger on. But something makes me want to go back to the B&K. Listening to the same music, I just don't quite have the same experience of being drawn into the music. Maybe after listening for a while and getting over the curiosity that will change. So I will give it a go. After a while I will set up some blind comparisons to see if I can actually hear any difference.

So am I saying that they sound different to me. Not really. What I am saying is that the experience of the music seems different. This is very possibly a purely psychological effect, but regardless, there is a difference in how much I am enjoying the listening. And that is what it is all about. I'll get to the bottom of it and either determine that there is a perceivable difference or not, eventually, but the fact that I experience something now is worthy of exploration. Perhaps just the distraction of listening to something different. We will see...

 

[Peter Loeser]

Funny you should mention the B&K. I had a Ref 4420 for a while and of all the amps I've owned I want to say it's been my favorite. Like you, I couldn't put my finger on why. Maybe it's psychological. It's the only piece of gear I've gotten rid of that I find myself wishing I'd kept. I generally agree with the rest of your comments above. My ears generally tell me there's no difference but I almost want to hear it, so I keep hoping it will happen sometime. Maybe I need to find another used 4420...

How to you plan to design your blind comparison test?

 

[lcaillo]

The listening is about experiencing the music. Sometimes I hear things that I could not otherwise and sometimes I just get more or less into the music and can't really tell why. The Arx captivated me, and still bring the magic. Amps are a curiosity because they are harder to pin down once you get to a level of what I consider competence, i.e. able to deliver enough power to not reach their limits into the load.

An example of where I can hear a difference that I am certain I could repeat blind is comparing the internal d/a in my netbook to my Dragonfly, or comparing MP3s to FLAC or WAV files. I can still enjoy the music with even the output of the computer and MP3 for casual listening, but when I sit down to really enjoy the performance of the music, they just fall short. I am guessing that with time the amps won't make much difference, but initially there is something.