This is a review and detailed measurements of the Carver PT-2400 dual mono power amplifier. It is on kind loan from a member and cost US $2,400 when announced in 1991.
The amplifier came in both consumer (TFM-75) and professional versions. This pro version seems to have taken the consumer version and encased in thick sheet metal. I expected it to be light like my Carver amplifier but it is quite heavy. It has all the features of a pro amplifier include a fan that runs all the time:
As you see, it has dual 12-amp IEC inputs. I only have one circuit on my bench so resorted to testing just channel 1.
The amp was professionally restored by a Carver employee. It worked solidly in my testing, with case temps remaining at room temperature. The aforementioned fan makes a low frequency hum that is not too loud due to its large size.
Carver PT-2400 Amplifier Measurements
At max sensitivity, it delivers 33 dB of gain. To make things more of a level playing field, I dialed that down to about 22 dB:
I was disappointed by the spray of harmonics which delivers performance below the bottom quartile of all amplifiers tested:
Noise performance is not great at 5 watts but gets much better at full power (meaning noise is mostly static):
The rail switching architecture likely requires an output filter which may be responsible for some frequency roll off and small load dependency:
Distortion as expected, hurts multitone performance:
Although not too bad compared to today's Pro amps.
Name of the game here is power and the PT-2400 delivers a ton of it:
We can see the jump in distortion when the output transistor rail voltages are increased. Keeping the voltage low at lower power levels reduces idle power consumption and hence heat generated but has that price.
Good to see some headroom still:
Peak power at 40 Hz breaks records:
Sweeping at different frequencies we see that high frequencies get even more distorted, similar to class D amps:
The amp is essentially stable on power up:
Power on noise is the highest I have measured so expect some noise when turning it on:
Conclusions
The PT-2400 lacks linearity as evidenced by high distortion. It is however, quite powerful and keeps up with modern professional amplifiers. I don't know how much it costs to get it refurbished on top of purchase price -- likely much higher than today's pro amplifier. In that regard, it only makes sense if you value its nostalgic value. Performance wise it doesn't bring much to the table.
------------
As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.
Any donations are much appreciated using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/
The amplifier came in both consumer (TFM-75) and professional versions. This pro version seems to have taken the consumer version and encased in thick sheet metal. I expected it to be light like my Carver amplifier but it is quite heavy. It has all the features of a pro amplifier include a fan that runs all the time:
As you see, it has dual 12-amp IEC inputs. I only have one circuit on my bench so resorted to testing just channel 1.
The amp was professionally restored by a Carver employee. It worked solidly in my testing, with case temps remaining at room temperature. The aforementioned fan makes a low frequency hum that is not too loud due to its large size.
Carver PT-2400 Amplifier Measurements
At max sensitivity, it delivers 33 dB of gain. To make things more of a level playing field, I dialed that down to about 22 dB:
I was disappointed by the spray of harmonics which delivers performance below the bottom quartile of all amplifiers tested:
Noise performance is not great at 5 watts but gets much better at full power (meaning noise is mostly static):
The rail switching architecture likely requires an output filter which may be responsible for some frequency roll off and small load dependency:
Distortion as expected, hurts multitone performance:
Although not too bad compared to today's Pro amps.
Name of the game here is power and the PT-2400 delivers a ton of it:
We can see the jump in distortion when the output transistor rail voltages are increased. Keeping the voltage low at lower power levels reduces idle power consumption and hence heat generated but has that price.
Good to see some headroom still:
Peak power at 40 Hz breaks records:
Sweeping at different frequencies we see that high frequencies get even more distorted, similar to class D amps:
The amp is essentially stable on power up:
Power on noise is the highest I have measured so expect some noise when turning it on:
Conclusions
The PT-2400 lacks linearity as evidenced by high distortion. It is however, quite powerful and keeps up with modern professional amplifiers. I don't know how much it costs to get it refurbished on top of purchase price -- likely much higher than today's pro amplifier. In that regard, it only makes sense if you value its nostalgic value. Performance wise it doesn't bring much to the table.
------------
As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.
Any donations are much appreciated using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/
