[I.Greyhound Fan]

You can add D'Agastino to that list.

[wushuliu]

All I can say is I think Papa Pass would prefer to not be included in some 'who's greatest' and rather we focus on 'the more the merrier'.

[rotarius]

James Bongiorno - RIP.

I'm seeing a few of these pro-Carver posts pop up here and there. I wonder why 

Hmm...I wonder if it had something to do with folks questioning his genius, like why doesn't the 275 have a safety ground?  I also see some efforts to silence critics online with threads being shut down.   

[twitch54]

Lets not pick on the Op too much, he's new around here (as well as all the other audio forums he's joined recently), but if he wants to see just what kind of garbage 'ole BC tried to push, go out and get one of those 'cube' turds that was be touted back 30--40 years ago and see how well it drives a pair of Maggies......... LMAO !!

[rooze]

Lets not pick on the Op too much, he's new around here (as well as all the other audio forums he's joined recently), but if he wants to see just what kind of garbage 'ole BC tried to push, go out and get one of those 'cube' turds that was be touted back 30--40 years ago and see how well it drives a pair of Maggies......... LMAO !!

Cube Turds? LOL. Were they a precursor to Sonic Holyography?

Seriously though, gotta love BC. I hope this latest spat doesn't tarnish his legacy too much. He's still one of the good guys, me thinks.

[RDavidson]

nelson pass, his work at adcom, nak, usher, threshold and now, with his own outfit bearing his name and the first watt offshoot, speaks a lot of his designs his thinking his evolution... but he has never tried to bull shit anyone

Agree with you, but be careful here. Nelson never worked with Usher. Here's what he says on diyAudio (copied and pasted). I'm sure the Usher amps are decent, but if you want to hear a Threshold, then buy a Threshold. Don't buy an altered copy.

"The output stage is the same as some of the Threshold, but they look to have stuck an additional gain stage in the middle.

In any case, the patent has expired and belongs to someone else. Usher doen't appear to be shy about copying popular circuits, but it's too bad if they run it at half bias, as the performance was very dependent on full bias."

Regarding the thread, I believe Pass would say there's no best designer and no best amp. The best amp is what is best to the listener's ears and system.

[Philip J Fry]

I'd add John Iverson- Electron Kinetics, who disappeared though mysterious circumstances,and the Spectral Audio design team.

[Freo-1]

A couple of important designers that should be acknowledged are David Hafler and Stuart Hegman.

[S Clark]

Gary Dodd was no slouch with his amp and preamp designs.  Being a one man shop, he doesn't have the wide spread customer base of a Carver, but I've heard a couple of Carver amps and they don't compare. 

[sunnydaze]

Ralph Karsten --  Atma-Sphere.       

Not saying he's the greatest, just a real good amp designer.  Certainly in league with most mentioned here. 

[rotarius]

This thread is clearly straying from the original intent of the OP to glorify BC 

[Doublej]

This thread is clearly straying from the original intent of the OP to glorify BC 

How does one know it's not Bob glorifying himself?

[rotarius]

How does one know it's not Bob glorifying himself?

Gosh, I hope he has better things to do.  Seems like one dealer of his has taken the lead on the online cleanup operation.

[dB Cooper]

A couple of important designers that should be acknowledged are David Hafler and Stuart Hegman.

I mentioned Hafler; Hegeman is a good suggestion.

[Freo-1]

I mentioned Hafler; Hegeman is a good suggestion.

So you did.  My bad.


Gordon Gow from McIntosh is yet another designer worth mentioning. 

[rotarius]

Let's include some giants of the past.
Marantz
Peter Walker

[Doublej]

Gosh, I hope he has better things to do.  Seems like one dealer of his has taken the lead on the online cleanup operation.

What forum is the cleanup occurring? The only thing I saw is one of the dealers calling a poster a bottledick on one of the forums.

[rotarius]

There a couple of forums where the thread was sent to the graveyard.  If I drop names, I might get banned.

[tull skull]

Gary Dodd was no slouch with his amp and preamp designs.  Being a one man shop, he doesn't have the wide spread customer base of a Carver, but I've heard a couple of Carver amps and they don't compare. 

 I will never sell my Dodd amps.


Rodger Modjeski was a giant. His amps are legendary. Some owners have enjoyed their Music Reference amps for close to 20 years and have yet to change out the tubes.

[Scroof Neachy]

Don’t forget the legendary Biff Pocoroba when discussing the greatest amp designer.