On 07/03/2014 02:32 PM, Tony Alfrey wrote:
But in fact, 2nd order harmonic distortion in a good valve amplifier can be made extremely low and done so without the need for the massive amounts of negative feedback required of any solid-state amplifier. There has been direct correlation between that negative feedback and the perceived sound quality. In short, what one assumes should provide a good-sounding amplifier (low harmonic distortion of all orders) often results in an amplifier that simply sounds bad.
Field effect transistors also produce even order harmonics in a manner very similar to tubes. On the other hand, bipolar transistors produce odd order harmonics. Regardless, it still boils down to transfer function. One of the early transistor amp proponents created one with the same transfer function as a tube amp and listeners couldn't tell the difference. As for feedback, even tubes use negative feedback and, unless the loop time is too long, you can't hear the difference. On the other hand, proper feedback is what enables excellent transfer functions. If you can't measure the difference, you can't hear it. -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org To contact the owner, e-mail: opensuse+owner@opensuse.org