News

Sharp Electronics has announced a new lineup of "one-bit" digital amplifiers that may herald a new generation of audio products.

The new amplifiers are based on Sharp's one-bit technology, introduced two years ago, and include two high-end designs: the SM-SX1 ($4500), and the DX-SX1 ($3000), both available now. Two one-bit compact systems, the SD-NX10 and the SD-SG11, each priced at around $1800, will appear in September.

Announced July 24, the digital amplifiers are similar to the top-of-the-line $16,000 SD-SX100, reviewed by Michael Fremer in the July 2000 issue of Stereophile. As Michael pointed out, digital amps are inherently "compact, cool-running, and energy efficient." The concept is fairly straightforward: feed an audio data stream to a MOSFET output stage, switched at SACD's high sampling rate of 2.822MHz. Sharp isn't a company with much of a track record in the high-end, but the SD-SX100 impressed MF mightily; he stated that it takes full advantage of all that "DSD technology was intended to accomplish."

Of course, $16,000 for a two-channel amp isn't exactly chump change. Will Sharp's new generation of less expensive designs live up to the standard established by the SX100? Company executives think so, going so far as to state that digital amplification is the next stage in the evolution of audio technology. "Sharp believes digital amplification will shape the future of audio formats," said company marketing manager Art McKinnon. "The one-bit product line, with its exceptional performance, high style, and overall efficiency, is truly representative of next generation audio here today . . . . The expansion of the one-bit product line is an exciting step towards Sharp's goal of converting its entire audio line to one-bit digital amplification technology."

Keeping the audio signal in the digital domain all the way to the speakers "virtually eliminates sound deterioration that normally occurs during the transmission and amplification process of conventional analog amplifiers," according to the Sharp announcement.

The SM-SX1 and DX-SX are combination CD/SACD players/integrated amplifiers with "direct bitstream coupling" capability. The SD-NX10 and SD-SG11 will be personal shelf systems with 25 watts of output power per channel. Both will feature CD, MiniDisc, and AM/FM tuner. One novel touch is the compact systems' illuminated display, whose color can be altered to change the room's décor. The brushed-aluminum NX10 will be bundled with a pair of two-way speakers; the graphite-colored SG11 will be marketed to those who prefer to mate it to speakers of their own choice.