Bruno Strikes Again. Purifi 1ET7040SA VTV Amplifier.

[Lord Victor]

Maybe you are getting confused with the 1ET9040BA, which will be also available for the DIY market.

Never heard of it, but I’ll look into it, thank you!

 

[boXem]

THD is not the only cause of hiss though. Hiss at idle has more to do with power supply quality, and incoming AC power, and the quality of the rest of the circuit in the signal path. You won’t hear a difference in background noise between an amp with THD of .0025 and .005.

THD is not noise. Noise is N.
When you look at a THD+N vs power curve like the ones shown above, the straight line decreasing is the noise being dominant, once the curve starts increasing, it is the THD that is dominant.

 

[mocenigo]

THD is not the only cause of hiss though. Hiss at idle has more to do with power supply quality, and incoming AC power, and the quality of the rest of the circuit in the signal path. You won’t hear a difference in background noise between an amp with THD of .0025 and .005.

I do not see how THD can be cause of audible hiss, unless it is enormous. The level of distortion is dependent on the signal. It can be audible, but being it mostly masked by the signal it is perceived as coloration.

 

[dlaloum]

I do not see how THD can be cause of audible hiss, unless it is enormous. The level of distortion is dependent on the signal. It can be audible, but being it mostly masked by the signal it is perceived as coloration.

Lets not forget mis-matched gain.... a great way to amplify noise in ones system!

 

[Stephen Bayley]

My March Audio P501 monoblocks incorporating the 7040 have been in service now for 4 months (see post #121). No issues in the period to report. Very happy with the overall system which is very ASR-ish: Topping D90SE, Pre90 + Extender. Denon direct drive turntable that I purchased new in 1980 (and have personally fully overhauled including replacing all electrolytic caps), Hana ML moving coli and Shiite Mani 2.

 

[juliangst]

Is there any reason to get mono AHB2s when you get the same power (with presumably better low impedance stability and damping factor) for less money with those new purifi modules? Even the overpriced (but excellent looking) Apollon Audio PET 950 Monoblocks are way less expensive than Benchmark's offerings

 

[RichB]

Is there any reason to get mono AHB2s when you get the same power (with presumably better low impedance stability and damping factor) for less money with those new purifi modules? Even the overpriced (but excellent looking) Apollon Audio PET 950 Monoblocks are way less expensive than Benchmark's offerings

Here are some reasons (I endorse some but not necessarily all):

• Benchmark has excellent clip indicators and protect (this can be a big deal for expensive and out of production speakers like mine)
• Known build quality and 7-year track record (with no failures I am aware of)
• No ultrasonics that could *potentially* be modulated into the audible range.
• Some respected reviewer impressions of increased clarity (though not compared to Purifi).
• Damping factor is not much of a real-world issue and the Stereo.de measurements are a clear outlier. Soundstage has measurements that seem more reasonable.
• These tests are steady state and do not measure dynamic performance into reactive loads (speaker or simulated speaker) so there is a possibility for differences.

I have not directly A/B compared the Purifi amps to the AHB2 but have done so with the ATI AT525NC level matched using a MiniDSP SHD to use a single input and DSP level match to with .1 dB (verified with a multi-meter). I found slightly improved clarity and natural sound from the AHB2 compared to the Hypex.
Not blind but fast switching, which satisfies me, though I understand this is not sufficient evidence for ASR.

- Rich

 

[boXem]

Here are some reasons (I endorse some but not necessarily all):

• Benchmark has excellent clip indicators and protect (this can be a big deal for expensive and out of production speakers like mine)

I know at least one manufacturer offering a clip indicator with 7040 modules. The protections embedded in the Purifi modules are almost the same as the ones from Benchmark, at the exception of the distortion detection.

 

[poopy]

Is there any reason to get mono AHB2s when you get the same power (with presumably better low impedance stability and damping factor) for less money with those new purifi modules? Even the overpriced (but excellent looking) Apollon Audio PET 950 Monoblocks are way less expensive than Benchmark's offering.

You clearly have never dealt with Apollon Audio otherwise you wouldn’t even question and buy your amps from Benchmark.

 

[Matias]

You clearly have never dealt with Apollon Audio otherwise you wouldn’t even question and buy your amps from Benchmark.

Please enlighten us, as I am now on my 3rd amp from them.

 

[poopy]

Please enlighten us, as I am now on my 3rd amp from them.

Either you’re a very, very, very patient man or there is a difference of treatment.

My current experience: I was given a 2-week lead time for a job on my multichannel amp. It will be 8 weeks on Monday they have my amp, and it is still not shipped.
The job can be done in a couple of days. What is my amp used for for 8 weeks? Spare parts? Being lent to some people for demo? Ashtray?

Fantaisised lead times are also discussed here:

https://www.avsforum.com/threads/apollon-audio-custom-class-d-amplifiers.3203842/page-4

I don’t even want to talk about my first experience orderiing my multichannel amp…..

 

[Holmz]

Please enlighten us, as I am now on my 3rd amp from them.

So… did the first 2 fail?

 

[Matias]

Either you’re a very, very, very patient man or there is a difference of treatment.

My current experience: I was given a 2-week lead time for a job on my multichannel amp. It will be 8 weeks on Monday they have my amp, and it is still not shipped.
The job can be done in a couple of days. What is my amp used for for 8 weeks? Spare parts? Being lent to some people for demo? Ashtray?

Fantaisised lead times are also discussed here:

https://www.avsforum.com/threads/apollon-audio-custom-class-d-amplifiers.3203842/page-4

I don’t even want to talk about my first experience orderiing my multichannel amp…..

Well, yes, they took several weeks and I was impatient as well. But once delivered it was all worth it.

So… did the first 2 fail?

3 amps as the 2nd one I sold and bought the 3rd for a change in system: passive office became active, home theater got a multichannel power amp. 1st one is still in the main system. Again, happy owner here.

 

[poopy]

Well, yes, they took several weeks and I was impatient as well. But once delivered it was all worth it.



3 amps as the 2nd one I sold and bought the 3rd for a change in system: passive office became active, home theater got a multichannel power amp. 1st one is still in the main syste

Several weeks? You’re amongst the lucky ones then.

Took exactly 6 months for my multichannel amp. No time spent in customs since Europe.
Of course, everything paid day number 1.

If I were given from the beginning the true lead time, I would have walked away

 

[KMO]

Can't fault my multichannel Apollon amp - it's beautiful. But I can believe they're generally optimistic about lead times. My original estimate (ordered end of 2021) was 4-6 weeks, but it was more like double that.

Of course, everyone's having supply problems, but in that case not much point giving "best-case" estimates if you know something's likely to slip.

Only a temporary annoyance, though. The satisfaction is longer-lasting.

 

[SamR]

Received my Apollon 4-channel Purifi 7040 amp! Let me start by saying that it’s beautifully made. I don’t think anyone else offers custom paint and has such a solid chassis. The high end connectors are also a welcome upgrade over my previous McIntosh MI254 (which was junk - see below). My rack is against the wall and suspended from the ceiling, which makes connections tricky as I have to do them ‘blind’. Having nice solid connectors goes a long way to making the connections in these types of setups.

Being able to customize the paint is another nice touch. The paint quality is very good and I’m happy with the custom color. Since my components come from a variety of manufacturers (e.g., Trinnov, DarTZeel, and Nagra), they don’t look consistent. To mitigate that, I wanted all amplification to look similar, which meant coming close to the DarTZeel’s unique gold and red paint scheme. I knew it would never be a perfect match, largely because the DarTZeel is anodized, but this comes close, especially with the lights down.

Selectable gain is another important feature. Matching gain is crucial to maximize dynamic range in a system with a pre-amp and DAC from different vendors. Setting it to 20.5dB is quite close to the Trinnov amp’s 19dB. If your gain is not matched and optimized among the devices that amplify the signal you are reducing dynamic range to avoid clipping - it’s that simple.

More importantly, how does the amp sound? It’s just been a day, but immediate impressions are great. First of all, the power supply does not buzz like the McIntosh amp did. (McIntosh said it was “normal” and no, it was not audible from the listening position, but it still gave a poor first impression.) Secondly, there is absolutely zero background noise/hiss from my 94dB sensitive speakers. Given the amount of power available from the Purifi 7040 I thought there would be some noise… nope! (And just as Tibor said.)

Overall, I highly recommend Apollon — great products and Tibor is always professional and reachable.

Family photo

 

[SamR]

Somewhat off topic but felt it made sense to post here: my McIntosh experience with the MI254 (NC500 4 channel amp) was horrendous.
The power supply buzzes, as mentioned above. Not loud enough to hear it from the listening position, but it gives a first impression of low quality. McIntosh said it’s normal.

One of the four channels developed a crackling noise and intermittently cut in and out after a few days of use. Switched cables, speakers, etc. Sent it back to McIntosh HQ in Binghampton, NY. It came back and the workorder said “All new boards and cleaned”. Chassis was full of fingerprints and most screws were loose, including a few that were sticking out! Connected it and the problematic channel was still there, they had just moved it to a different channel #! WTF!
Defects are not a deal breaker. How they are handled is a potential deal-breaker. I said bye to McIntosh forever.

 

[fpitas]

Somewhat off topic but felt it made sense to post here: my McIntosh experience with the MI254 (NC500 4 channel amp) was horrendous.
The power supply buzzes, as mentioned above. Not loud enough to hear it from the listening position, but it gives a first impression of low quality. McIntosh said it’s normal.

One of the four channels developed a crackling noise and intermittently cut in and out after a few days of use. Switched cables, speakers, etc. Sent it back to McIntosh HQ in Binghampton, NY. It came back and the workorder said “All new boards and cleaned”. Chassis was full of fingerprints and most screws were loose, including a few that were sticking out! Connected it and the problematic channel was still there, they had just moved it to a different channel #! WTF!
Defects are not a deal breaker. How they are handled is a potential deal-breaker. I said bye to McIntosh forever.

Very disappointing. I think most customers expect exceptional quality and service from McIntosh.

 

[SamR]

Very disappointing. I think most customers expect exceptional quality and service from McIntosh.

Agreed. First and last experience with McIntosh.

 

[RDSChicago]

Received my Apollon 4-channel Purifi 7040 amp! Let me start by saying that it’s beautifully made. I don’t think anyone else offers custom paint and has such a solid chassis. The high end connectors are also a welcome upgrade over my previous McIntosh MI254 (which was junk - see below). My rack is against the wall and suspended from the ceiling, which makes connections tricky as I have to do them ‘blind’. Having nice solid connectors goes a long way to making the connections in these types of setups.

Being able to customize the paint is another nice touch. The paint quality is very good and I’m happy with the custom color. Since my components come from a variety of manufacturers (e.g., Trinnov, DarTZeel, and Nagra), they don’t look consistent. To mitigate that, I wanted all amplification to look similar, which meant coming close to the DarTZeel’s unique gold and red paint scheme. I knew it would never be a perfect match, largely because the DarTZeel is anodized, but this comes close, especially with the lights down.

Selectable gain is another important feature. Matching gain is crucial to maximize dynamic range in a system with a pre-amp and DAC from different vendors. Setting it to 20.5dB is quite close to the Trinnov amp’s 19dB. If your gain is not matched and optimized among the devices that amplify the signal you are reducing dynamic range to avoid clipping - it’s that simple.

More importantly, how does the amp sound? It’s just been a day, but immediate impressions are great. First of all, the power supply does not buzz like the McIntosh amp did. (McIntosh said it was “normal” and no, it was not audible from the listening position, but it still gave a poor first impression.) Secondly, there is absolutely zero background noise/hiss from my 94dB sensitive speakers. Given the amount of power available from the Purifi 7040 I thought there would be some noise… nope! (And just as Tibor said.)

Overall, I highly recommend Apollon — great products and Tibor is always professional and reachable.

Family photo

Which component is your new amp? And what speakers are you using? Nice setup.