Buckeye PURIFI 1ET9040BA Amp Review

[Julf]

Of course it is audible. We level match in controlled tests to 0.1 dB for that reason.

Yes, it is audible in the sense that it sounds slightly different (and usually the louder sounds "better"), but it doesn't really sound louder.

 

[amirm]

How do we know that all amplifiers over $50,000 perform much, much worse? Any company that makes expensive amplifiers, especially those in Class A and A/B, writes about magic, organics, and such? I don't think so.

Well, they do actually. That is what their audience wants to hear/read about. Scant few show any measurements let alone have it be good. I know many high-end customers who despise measurements as they don't want to see data that disputes their audio fidelity beliefs.

Here is a nearly $50K amplifier as measured by stereophile: https://www.stereophile.com/content/ch-precision-i1-universal-integrated-amplifier-measurements

This is with "max feedback." The thing can't produce more than 100 watts without clipping. Its SINAD at 5 watts is just 90 dB, well short of 111 dB we have here.

Here is Stereophile's measurements of the version 1 (?) of this Buckeye amp:

Notice he had to change the vertical scale and have it to 10 times smaller for Buckeye!

I am confident we are alone in having discovered products with state of the the art noise and performance. And plenty of them. The rest of the world is signing a different tune....

 

[delta76]

How do we know that all amplifiers over $50,000 perform much, much worse? Any company that makes expensive amplifiers, especially those in Class A and A/B, writes about magic, organics, and such? I don't think so.

who said all?
But it is simple - this is, by combination of SINAD and power, as good as it gets. You get amps which can provide more power, but much higher noise and distortions. You also get amps with higher SINAD, but also much less power. You can be quite sure that there is no amp that beats this on both matters, most likely worse on both matters, no matter expensive.
and when a company claims magic and any buzzwords and charges an absurdly amount of money for their amp, you can be sure SINAD and power are not their priorities

 

[Adi777]

who said all?

DonH56. So, we know, hmm, maybe once again – measurements of ALL amplifiers over $50,000. Okay, cool...

 

[delta76]

DonH56.

his exact quote was

look at all the $50k+ amps that fare far, far worse

which is not the same thing as "all $50k+ amps fare far far worse than this"
but either of his exact meaning has merit which I explained above. Show me a $50k+ amp that beats this comfortably, I will profusely apologize

 

[Adi777]

which is not the same thing as "all $50k+ amps fare far far worse than this"

Yes, my fault. I have no experience, so I can't say which amplifier is better, but maybe Boulder.

BTW, what about the user's PMA measurements for Class D? I remember him arguing with Amirm during those tests.

 

[Gorgonzola]

Well, they do actually. That is what their audience wants to hear/read about. Scant few show any measurements let alone have it be good. I know many high-end customers who despise measurements as they don't want to see data that disputes their audio fidelity beliefs.

Here is a nearly $50K amplifier as measured by stereophile: https://www.stereophile.com/content/ch-precision-i1-universal-integrated-amplifier-measurements

This is with "max feedback." The thing can't produce more than 100 watts without clipping. Its SINAD at 5 watts is just 90 dB, well short of 111 dB we have here.

Here is Stereophile's measurements of the version 1 (?) of this Buckeye amp:

Notice he had to change the vertical scale and have it to 10 times smaller for Buckeye!

I am confident we are alone in having discovered products with state of the the art noise and performance. And plenty of them. The rest of the world is signing a different tune....

Amir makes the excellent point that there is a category of audiophile -- many of them extremely well-heeled -- who "can't handle the truth" about their equipment. The just don't want to hear it.

They have a mythology of subjective and personal evaluation of sound quality and an plutocratic conception of value. Most of the "golden ears" also a have an unspoken desire for the bragging rights and exclusivity of owning astronomically expensive stuff. Sadly discussions I've had with them over decades have boiled down to "you, (who can't afford it), just can't know how good my high-end system is".

 

[Sokel]

We can't blanket and we don't have to go to $50k to find nice amps (although there are*)

Here's of the short that some people here think they're bad at about $9k :

McIntosh MC462 Stereo Amplifier Review

McIntosh MX100 A/V Processor Review

www.erinsaudiocorner.com

Both power and measurements are more than ok (I would personally like some more power but that's only me been me )


*here's one (at last lab measurements but sadly limited by the measuring system! )

(link)

 

[Sir Sanders Zingmore]

You guys realize a discussion on the difference between 1200W and 1400W is a little crazy right?

With a speaker efficiency of 85dB at 10 feet, a 1200W amp can achieve 115.79dB SPL while a 1400W amp can reach 116.46 db.

Couple of comments on this.
I think your numbers are a touch high. Are you getting an extra 3dB by assuming speakers are in a corner?

Second thing is I don’t think it’s correct to use the amp’s power into to 2ohms with a speaker efficiency which is generally understood to be at 8ohms. I think you should calculate your numbers as 382W into an 85dB speaker.

This gives you 107dB at 10 feet. We can debate whether that’s enough headroom for transient dynamic peaks but it’s certainly not the insanely loud levels that you quoted.

 

[Chagall]

With a speaker efficiency of 85dB at 10 feet, a 1200W amp can achieve 115.79dB SPL while a 1400W amp can reach 116.46 db.

Have to say, that is a very sensitive speaker.

I think no one is arguing listening at 116 dB, not sure what consumer speakers can even do that, but it's nice to know that the amp won't be a bottleneck in any case.

 

[Sir Sanders Zingmore]

Have to say, that is a very sensitive speaker.

I think it’s a misplaced comma!

It says “With a speaker efficiency of 85dB at 10 feet, a 1200W amp can achieve 115.79dB SPL ..”

I think it should say: “With a speaker efficiency of 85dB, at 10 feet a 1200W amp can achieve 115.79dB SPL….”

 

[Sokel]

Second thing is I don’t think it’s correct to use the amp’s power into to 2ohms with a speaker efficiency which is generally understood to be at 8ohms. I think you should calculate your numbers as 382W into an 85dB speaker.

Exactly.
Unless there's a pure resistive, double coiled (connected in parallel) sub out there, it's highly unlikely what we'll see this short of power at the binding posts of a normal speaker for more than ms, and even that is an "if" .

Mains monitors who are suppose to do high SPL (over 120dB (C), that's the mark for "big") use multiple kW amps to do it.

 

[Mort]

Yes, it is audible in the sense that it sounds slightly different (and usually the louder sounds "better"), but it doesn't really sound louder.

Man you just keep doubling down on a very very technical point.

 

[IngMishael]

Holy hell I get why some people read reviews here and rant about members cos wtf are these useless hypotheticals

 

[prerich]

Yes and no due to tariffs plus shipping being charged.

There are a few big reasons I have continued to stick with Protocase:
- They allow blanket orders, so I can quote (500) cases but only release x quantity at a time so I am not paying large upfront costs. This was absolutely paramount when I first started as I never wanted to take out a business loan and still have not had to do so.
- Their manufacturing time is as quick as (4) days but even their Economy timeline is 2-3wks
- They offer free 2-day shipping
- They are tariff free being an USMCA compliant product
- They are super easy to communicate with and work on any changes on the fly if needed

Very smart business man - seeing your process makes me understand your route.

 

[Mnyb]

Re high end you get nicer build exclusive service etc up to a point then some really "special" brands come into play ? How many Buckeye do you get for one DartZel ( which are bad ) or AudioNote (who are terrible ) Performance seems to peak before maximum price for some reason ?

 

[KL....]

Checkout two choices

AUDIOPHONICS LPA-S450ET Power Amplifier Stereo Purifi 1ET6525SA

We're proud to present the Audiophonics LPA-S450ET, a Class D stereo power amplifier based on two Purifi 1ET6525SA modules. Electronically similar to the HPA-S450ET, this version is housed in a more compact case...

www.audiophonics.fr

AUDIOPHONICS HPA-S450ET Power Amplifier Purifi 1ET6525SA

The Audiophonics HPA-S450ET power amplifier is based on a Class D architecture, using a pair of Purifi 1ET6525SA amplification modules, a Hypex SMPS1200A400 power supply and an Audiophonics custom buffer stage...

www.audiophonics.fr

Thank you, @daniboun, these also look nice, don't they?

 

[KL....]

Superb performance, but the price is prohibitive in my opinion, especially for a mono bloc....
As for the design, you either love it or you hate it.

BTW : I don't know if the choice of the Micro Audio SMPS1K-SN PSU was a deliberate one? I wonder what the results would be with the Hypex HYPEX SMPS1200A180 PSU.

About the Micro Audio PSU :

SMPS1K-SN – MicroAudio

www.micro-audio.com

Thank you @daniboun, nice PSUs to consider....

 

[daniboun]

Thank you @daniboun, nice PSUs to consider....

I used a Micro Audio one with my 3E Audio amp

"Micro Bamboo Project" : 3E Audio 260-2-29A Stereo amplifier + Micro-Audio PSU

Hi Amigos ) As promised, I remain faithful to my Diyer position ) After my dual Mono project "Bamboo" I return to the scene with a new project "Micro Bamboo" to pay tribute to Micro Audio and its audiophile grade SMPS630-SO PSU. (46V/13A or 51V/11,5A) Now that we know the measurements of the 3E...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[Power Pop 23]

Buckeye Amps says this amplifier weighs 7 pounds.

It is another performant addition to the 'GLP-1' class of power amplifiers.