Quote Originally Posted by E-Stat View Post
You are mistaken. Other feedback-free designs exist that are not such as the Ayre MX-R.

rw
Can you clear this up - John Atkinson claims that it [MX-R's] circuit uses a low level of overall loop negative feedback. Which is more than zero.

There is more to the game than this anyway since class D amps have yet to impress me and some or maybe all have no feedback and run class A. So there is more to the game than either or element. No feedback is one, although even there I have liked amps with a little feedback more than others with zero. For instance I love the Sugden A21a which is both a SET and no feedback - but I like the AN OTO more which is a SEP and uses a little bit of feedback.

I have not auditioned Ayre extensively - Soundhounds did pick up the line and I did like their conversion from streamed sources quite a lot.

Wes Phillips was the big reviewer of this amp and ran his Dynaudio's on it. But since then he's heard what a big time SET amp can do. So I am not convinced that the sonic aesthetic offered up by Ayre is going to do it for me. As the Ayre dealer notes - "it sounds great...for solid state." I'd like to try a complete Ayre system at some point - Charles seems like an interesting fellow and has a passionate viewpoint on audio. And his prices are not insane for the most part.