Apologies for the long post. I hoped putting this in writing would help clarify things and I wouldn’t have to ask, but alas….
I am planning to make a series of upgrades over the next few months, and one decision has been a problem for me. I have had my eye on the Anthem STR Integrated since it came out, but after the time I’ve spent on this site I’m in doubt about its performance. The other option I’m considering is a MiniDSP SHD with a pair of Purifi monoblocks.
My biggest fear with this purchase is, if I were to go with the Anthem, would I constantly wonder if it could sound better for the same amount of money? The MiniDSP/Purifi combo would alleviate that fear, but I am put off by the complexity of the MiniDSP (more on that below). So, I’ve laid out my reasoning and questions below in case anyone is bored and wants to read a bunch.
Cost: close enough not to be an issue (the Anthem is on sale regularly for $3600 USD).
Aesthetics: I like the Anthem better and it will reduce clutter and number of cables.
Room Correction: It appears that Anthem Room Correction is less robust than Dirac Live, but probably more user-friendly. I haven’t seen anyone directly compare the two in any detail. Would I be missing out on any essential features by going with ARC over Dirac+MiniDSP?
User Experience: I’ve read through the MiniDSP SHD manual a couple of times (https://www.minidsp.com/images/documents/SHD Series User Manual.pdf), and there is so much there I don’t understand, and probably will never use (back-end processing? Custom biquad programming? I have to tell it which output is “Right” and which is “Left” and then remember that to make adjustments later?). I imagine this flexibility is a boon to some, but it seems like a lot of work and research before I could even use it. It’s a little overwhelming. I’m sure I can do it, but all I'm doing is plugging in 2 sources and 2 speakers. I know lots of people here have used the MiniDSP products, so if I’m wrong about the complexity please let me know.
Performance: UGH! This is where I need the most help.
Preamp: After reading some other threads on ASR I think I can ascertain that the digital inputs of the Anthem STR Integrated preamp section would have a SINAD in the high 90s (https://www.anthemav.com/products-current/model=str-integrated-amplifier/page=specs). This is good enough for me compared to the 110 or so that the MiniDSP showed in Amir’s measurements (https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...nts-of-minidsp-shd-dac-dsp-and-streamer.4286/). I would only use the digital and phono inputs (or one analog in the MiniDSP for a phono pre).
Anthem STR Integrated preamp specs:
Amplifier: Stereophile measured the Anthem STR Integrated (https://www.stereophile.com/content/anthem-electronics-str-da-integrated-amplifier-measurements) and Amir measured the Purifi amp (https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...easurements-of-purifi-1et400a-amplifier.7984/), but I cannot find much to compare in those two sets of measurements. I think the following comparisons are instructive, and I’ll comment, but PLEASE don’t hesitate to correct me where necessary.
Anthem THD+N vs power into 4 ohms:
Purifi THD+N vs power into 4 ohms:
The Anthem appears to have about 75 more watts available (looking at the point of lowest distortion), but the Purifi is an order of magnitude better in THD+N%. But what exactly is better? Is it just less noise? Ten times less noise? This looks very impressive from a science/engineering standpoint, but I have no idea what that should mean to me as a consumer.
Anthem THD+N vs Frequency at 20volts (=50watts into 8ohms, 100watts into 4ohms, 200watts into 2ohms)
Purifi THD+N into 4ohms various wattages
Aside from the channel mismatch in the Anthem (is that significant?), the two look pretty similar to me. Since the Anthem was measured at 100watts, I am extrapolating that the Purifi at 100watts would fall between the 33 and 193watt measurements shown by Amir. Is the rise in distortion above 7kHz in the Purifi just because of noise shaping? In the audible bandwidth would it be flat? Is that a noteworthy difference in performance?
Anthem IMD 100watts per channel
Purifi IMD no pregain, unknown other parameters (I assume the same as Stereophile? Or it doesn’t matter? Or it’s there somewhere and I missed it?)
Here it looks like the IMD is about 20dB better in the Purifi amplifier. However, since the noise floor appears to be lower in the Anthem which doesn’t correlate to other measurements, assuming similar test conditions seems like a mistake. What does this mean to a consumer? Will I hear a difference?
There is a lot more information in both sets of measurements, but I don’t know how to compare the rest (if it is even possible). I could probably solve my problem by getting the Anthem STR Preamp with the Purifi monos, but that will blow past my budget unless anyone knows where I can get the preamp for a 65% discount. I realize also that several variations of the Hypex amps are available for less than the Purifi, but that would still be too much. The NAD M33 is interesting, but also too expensive and not much for measurements available.
If you read this far, thanks! I hope to learn something from this that I can use for more than just this one decision.
I am planning to make a series of upgrades over the next few months, and one decision has been a problem for me. I have had my eye on the Anthem STR Integrated since it came out, but after the time I’ve spent on this site I’m in doubt about its performance. The other option I’m considering is a MiniDSP SHD with a pair of Purifi monoblocks.
My biggest fear with this purchase is, if I were to go with the Anthem, would I constantly wonder if it could sound better for the same amount of money? The MiniDSP/Purifi combo would alleviate that fear, but I am put off by the complexity of the MiniDSP (more on that below). So, I’ve laid out my reasoning and questions below in case anyone is bored and wants to read a bunch.
Cost: close enough not to be an issue (the Anthem is on sale regularly for $3600 USD).
Aesthetics: I like the Anthem better and it will reduce clutter and number of cables.
Room Correction: It appears that Anthem Room Correction is less robust than Dirac Live, but probably more user-friendly. I haven’t seen anyone directly compare the two in any detail. Would I be missing out on any essential features by going with ARC over Dirac+MiniDSP?
User Experience: I’ve read through the MiniDSP SHD manual a couple of times (https://www.minidsp.com/images/documents/SHD Series User Manual.pdf), and there is so much there I don’t understand, and probably will never use (back-end processing? Custom biquad programming? I have to tell it which output is “Right” and which is “Left” and then remember that to make adjustments later?). I imagine this flexibility is a boon to some, but it seems like a lot of work and research before I could even use it. It’s a little overwhelming. I’m sure I can do it, but all I'm doing is plugging in 2 sources and 2 speakers. I know lots of people here have used the MiniDSP products, so if I’m wrong about the complexity please let me know.
Performance: UGH! This is where I need the most help.
Preamp: After reading some other threads on ASR I think I can ascertain that the digital inputs of the Anthem STR Integrated preamp section would have a SINAD in the high 90s (https://www.anthemav.com/products-current/model=str-integrated-amplifier/page=specs). This is good enough for me compared to the 110 or so that the MiniDSP showed in Amir’s measurements (https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...nts-of-minidsp-shd-dac-dsp-and-streamer.4286/). I would only use the digital and phono inputs (or one analog in the MiniDSP for a phono pre).
Anthem STR Integrated preamp specs:
Amplifier: Stereophile measured the Anthem STR Integrated (https://www.stereophile.com/content/anthem-electronics-str-da-integrated-amplifier-measurements) and Amir measured the Purifi amp (https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...easurements-of-purifi-1et400a-amplifier.7984/), but I cannot find much to compare in those two sets of measurements. I think the following comparisons are instructive, and I’ll comment, but PLEASE don’t hesitate to correct me where necessary.
Anthem THD+N vs power into 4 ohms:
Purifi THD+N vs power into 4 ohms:
The Anthem appears to have about 75 more watts available (looking at the point of lowest distortion), but the Purifi is an order of magnitude better in THD+N%. But what exactly is better? Is it just less noise? Ten times less noise? This looks very impressive from a science/engineering standpoint, but I have no idea what that should mean to me as a consumer.
Anthem THD+N vs Frequency at 20volts (=50watts into 8ohms, 100watts into 4ohms, 200watts into 2ohms)
Purifi THD+N into 4ohms various wattages
Aside from the channel mismatch in the Anthem (is that significant?), the two look pretty similar to me. Since the Anthem was measured at 100watts, I am extrapolating that the Purifi at 100watts would fall between the 33 and 193watt measurements shown by Amir. Is the rise in distortion above 7kHz in the Purifi just because of noise shaping? In the audible bandwidth would it be flat? Is that a noteworthy difference in performance?
Anthem IMD 100watts per channel
Purifi IMD no pregain, unknown other parameters (I assume the same as Stereophile? Or it doesn’t matter? Or it’s there somewhere and I missed it?)
Here it looks like the IMD is about 20dB better in the Purifi amplifier. However, since the noise floor appears to be lower in the Anthem which doesn’t correlate to other measurements, assuming similar test conditions seems like a mistake. What does this mean to a consumer? Will I hear a difference?
There is a lot more information in both sets of measurements, but I don’t know how to compare the rest (if it is even possible). I could probably solve my problem by getting the Anthem STR Preamp with the Purifi monos, but that will blow past my budget unless anyone knows where I can get the preamp for a 65% discount. I realize also that several variations of the Hypex amps are available for less than the Purifi, but that would still be too much. The NAD M33 is interesting, but also too expensive and not much for measurements available.
If you read this far, thanks! I hope to learn something from this that I can use for more than just this one decision.