Roam
Banned - aka aerius
- Joined
- Mar 1, 2007
- Posts
- 476
- Likes
- 21
A tube output stage would solve the problem of slewing, but it can create problems of its own. For one thing, all that MHz range noise is now getting dumped into the rest of the system as RF noise, it's amplified by the tubes and radiates into the rest of the DAC through both the air and wiring. That RF is going into the next stage of the system through the interconnects, which will likely also serve as antennas, further spreading the noise through the air. This noise then arrives at the preamp or amp, yet another chance for slewing distortion to set in, and this continues through the rest of the amplification chain.
The best result is an amplification system which is being unduly taxed by amplifying all this high frequency noise which we can't hear, the results of which may include softened dynamics along with a feeling of strain. In a worst case scenario, the amplifier will actually self-destruct from trying & failing to amplify RF range signals. Somewhere in the middle, we have the common case of the RF noise modulating with the signal and introducing distortion, this is usually perceived as a glare or fatiguing quality to the sound.
This is why I believe in killing the noise at the source with a passive filter. It greatly eases the requirements of the analog output stage on the DAC and makes everything else a lot more straightforward.
The best result is an amplification system which is being unduly taxed by amplifying all this high frequency noise which we can't hear, the results of which may include softened dynamics along with a feeling of strain. In a worst case scenario, the amplifier will actually self-destruct from trying & failing to amplify RF range signals. Somewhere in the middle, we have the common case of the RF noise modulating with the signal and introducing distortion, this is usually perceived as a glare or fatiguing quality to the sound.
This is why I believe in killing the noise at the source with a passive filter. It greatly eases the requirements of the analog output stage on the DAC and makes everything else a lot more straightforward.