Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1   Report Post  
Paul
 
Posts: n/a
Default Book Review: High-Power Audio Amplifier Construction Manual, Randy Slone

Poor attempt to slag High End audio dominates stinky book

This book is not a systematic or comprehensive guide to anything. It's
a two part collection of the author's dislike for High End audio, and
the people that build it, the people that buy it: and a semi-coherent
collection of designs he favors which he seems to have cobbled up from
Doug Self and Ben Duncan books, commercial PA/MI designs he has
probably serviced, and 70s and 80s semiconductor app manuals.

Want to build a solid state amp for quality domestic listening? Look
at designs by Borbely, Pass, Thagard, and other authors in Audio
Amateur/AudioXPress or Elektor magazines. Slone's amp will work, in
fact it will provide reasonable efficiency and measure pretty well
(though nowhere near as well as a McIntosh, if you want to impress
friends with a HP 339 and a dummy load), but it will sound just like
all the Class B high feedback inexpensive amps, whether marketed for
home or pro use. Listen in a quiet room through good efficient
speakers to quiet passages in good music, well recorded, and despite
what the aforementioned HP 339-or 8903 or AP or Potomac or (yecch)
Sound Tech box- says, an eight watt WE 300B amp with choke filtered
plate supply and oil caps will make it sound dull, lifeless, and
wrong.

Is one better than another? Horses for courses! Is either one really
good compared to what's possible? Not really. But Slone is either too
deaf or stubborn to understand. And that's why this book basically
stinks. My advice is let it smell up someone else's bookshelf, as with
most other lame, ill-edited TAB titles.
Reply
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules

Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
The Art of Bose Bashing and Amar's Supposed Descent into Mediocrity Wylie Williams General 3 September 27th 04 03:16 AM
Power Filtration Lucas Tam Audio Opinions 58 September 20th 04 05:25 AM
rec.audio.car FAQ (Part 1/5) Ian D. Bjorhovde Car Audio 0 March 6th 04 07:54 AM
Clean Power? Dylan X Car Audio 99 January 7th 04 05:02 PM
FS: SOUNDSTREAM CLOSEOUTS AND MORE!! Nexxon Car Audio 0 November 21st 03 03:59 AM


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 07:35 PM.

Powered by: vBulletin
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004-2024 AudioBanter.com.
The comments are property of their posters.
 

About Us

"It's about Audio and hi-fi"