Excuse my pedantry but class d isn't actually digital, quite analogue in fact.
Yes, the digital aspect would be the switching power supply that is similar to making waves in the water. I could not hear the noise itself, but the effects on the music were a harshness and sibilance in the highs and a perceived lack of bass. This essentially made the difference between listening on the system play or listening to the music play. If you have been there, you know what I mean.Excuse my pedantry but class d isn't actually digital, quite analogue in fact.
What did the noise sound like?
Well, the noise injected by the power supply could easily be measured and shown. I don't see how this could be wrong. There is quite a bit of literature on the distortion caused by switching transformers of LED lights, etc. Running a dedicated power cable from the fuse box will lessen the effect, but not, if the amp or DAC power supply injects it right where the music plays. Not saying it can't be eliminated through clever filters, but I have not heard it yet.
That was Dave Hadaway's thing. He led the Boston Audio Society for years. His preamp was modular, so you could add whatever you needed--base unit, tone controls, MC amp, and so forth. Not expensive, but not cheap. The tone control module had about anything and everything you could ask for. And some things you would never think to ask for.
I can believe
I can well believe he was happy with it. A very versatile little preamp and a real workhorse at that. Probably the best thing about it is its phono stage. Plays sufficiently loud against very low background noise, is both accurate and musical. All you need really.
So how did you establish this was anything to do with the smps? If you are suspicious of smps and you just switched it out for a linear supply and all the problems went away then your conclusion was almost certainly expectation bias.
I agree that it is quite easy to jump to conclusions, and yet you will agree that most people have never heard a proper system play and would rather kill sonic imbalances with DSP and sub. To me, signal integrity is more important than watts. My comment is based only on my own observations and evaluated through my own ears on a 2 channel system without sub or electronic helpers to flatten the curve. The tonal balance of my system has been correct ever since the switching Cambridge DAC power supply (tellingly made by a company called 'Golden Profit') was replaced by a linear one. This has made me distrust switching supplies.
I heard the sonic imbalance (an unpleasant leaning towards the higher spectrum) and thought it was the speakers, the amp, whatever. Some weeks later a friend came over to test for distortion on my dedicated power line and we found that some had remained. Most tellingly there were periodic spikes that my friend said were typical of phase cutting and asked me if I had a switching supply somewhere. I pointed to my Cambridge DAC, and pulling the plug, the spikes were gone. I bought a linear power supply instead. The sonic imbalance was gone. Not sure if it was the switching itself or that the new power supply is simply stronger.
Again Im afraid you are jumping to conclusions. Noise on your mains does not mean there is any effect happening in the audio output.
I think it's actually the inverse, I think you have never heard a proper dsp at work with subwoofer integration. Regardless of your speakers, a subwoofer will add good things. You are probably the victim of your own preconceptions. Unless you have your listening room treated like a studio and your loudspeakers are very good, your tonal balance is most likely a mess.
Sorry, but how am I to agree to that? By this you are implying that neither the unpleasantness I heard before, nor my satisfaction should be taken as measures. Instead it would be wise for me to accept your judgement from a distance that my experience is a figment of my imagination. That's a tough call.
Let's agree to disagree on this. In my understanding of systems the simple rule is 'garbage in = garbage out'. I am running two systems in completely different rooms (1. stone walls, boxy with high ceilings, big sofa; 2. plaster walls, under the roof of the building, hardly any cushions) following this simple rule of integrity. Both are very balanced sounding. It's old school, I know, but with diligence and practice it works. Each to his own. I am more of the fly fisher, I suppose.
