Solid State Power Amp Reviews

Editor: We have been working on the Analog Module concept for the past 2½ years. We expected a good deal of controversy over this new product line, especially in the early stages of its introduction (and we got it). In response to your review:

Analog Module Security: The methods we are employing are for our protectior against unscrupulous individuals. This is not a game of "hide and seek." Theft of another manufacturer's proprietary concepts is both illegal and immoral. We are encouraged to see that recently the courts are taking a harder line against this type of theft.

Tube Product Availability: Although it really was not mentioned in your review, a limited number of our tube products will be available as long as there is sufficient demand. We realized that there would be those that would feel we had "gone backwards sonically" or "sold out". There should be a sufficient supply of our tube products to satisfy these customers.

Amplifier/Speaker Interface: In degree of importance, the amplifier/speaker interface is probably second only to the cartridge/arm combination. It is very risky for a speaker manufacturer to design around a given amplifier and vice versa. The D-100 was designed to drive any degree of inductive or capacitive reactance without any special techniques or circuits which would degrade the sound. The superiority of the D-100 in this area over our tube products can be easily demonstrated.

However, the interface of the D-100 with a given speaker design may or may not be what the consumer is looking for. Some speakers are more "amplifier sensitive" than others. The Magneplanar speakers have the ability to reveal sonic differences between amplifiers but at the same time are not "amplifier-sensitive" since they are well damped mechanically in relationship to the mass of the diaphragm and offer a simple, resistive load.

As a final thought, we appreciate your caution in reviewing the D-100. Since we do not consider the D-150 to be a "perfect" amplifier, we did not design the D-100 to be a "solid state version" of the D-150. Your caution about "going out on a limb" one way or the other is understood. At least one thing we can agree on, the D-100 is "rather unlike anything we had ever heard before".—Wendell Diller, Sales Manager
Audio Research Corp.

Reviewer's Afterthought

Though still unable to fault the performance of the D-100 in any respect, our long-term reaction to its sound is such that we cannot bring ourselves to rate it State of the Art. It is, thus, still listed as a "Recommended Component," but in Group B.—J. Gordon Holt