I spent a few days with the Ncore's prior to dropping them off for Rich's get together. The basics of my system includes Danley SH50 horns, DAC Stereo Cherry amp, DEQX, Wyred 4 Sound passive Pre-amp. My rig is a 2 channel/home theater combo system and I mostly use an Oppo BDP-95 SE for all digital media to keep things simple. If pressed I say I'd prefer tubes over SS but can't deal with all that goes into owning a truly worthwhile pair of tubes that ticks all the boxes. For several years I've been looking for that just right SS amp. I've tried a few of the ICE Power, Class D variants and enjoyed them all to varying degrees. I simply wish to find a competent, low maintenance, high power amp. So the Ncores are the latest to peak my interest based upon the Hypex reputation and the great word of mouth here. I echo much of what's been said already, nothing really new to report. I liked the Ncores even handedness from top to bottom. Very tight focused and articulate bass, transparent mid-range and clean non-exaggerated highs. A very reassuring amp to say the least. Great at all volumes and kept its composure when pushed hard. Kept pretty much the same character at whispering levels as at room filling levels. A very articulate amp all around, a nicely refined and focused sound stage with good instrument placement and separation. Again, nothing new here so I would say that the essence of the amp is pretty well documented and I agree with much of it.
On my high efficiency horns (100dB) I can say the Ncores were quiet and well composed and were a good match with no harshness or digital nastiness that was offensive to my ears but then again I'm not as sensitive to those things as others may be or maybe I'm just more forgiving. Very clean, crisp, refined and neutral sound. A pretty dynamic combo, excellent control, transient response and overall speed making for a controlled yet exciting presentation. If you like Class D then there's isn't much not to like. Exciting to think about bridging these for 1200 watts or so on my speakers, wow that would be nice in many ways.
As far as how the Ncores compare to my resident Cherry Amp, I did not do a lot of A-B evaluation, that's not my thing so much these days. I did it once or twice but mostly I dropped the Ncores in and just listened for a few days. It was one reason why I took my Cherry Amp to Richidoo's audio meet so more A-B listening could be done. Not as much time as I would have liked was slotted for that comparison but it seems a general opinion was gathered. Personally, I am very happy with the Cherry amp and it fits my system and tastes well. In my system I found the Cherry to be warmer, more robust through the bass and midrange, a bit more dynamic and vibrant sounding. The Ncores sounded cooler, a touch more refined and a bit more precise (monoblocks vs stereo?). The Cherry seemed to have a bit larger sound stage left to right to front, the Ncore a more defined sound stage and maybe a touch more depth. The Cherry may project into the room more and sound a little more forceful. Rich commented the Cherry sounded like a good clean Push Pull tube amp with massive balls and I can agree with that analogy in the context of Class D. I find the Cherry to be the best compromise I've heard between tubes and SS in my systems. My speakers have dual 12 inch bass drivers per side and both amps just pound in the low registers, the Ncores a bit leaner and cleaner and I pushed them ear hurtin' hard and they just kept their composure and played the music louder as it should be. The Cherry pounds a little harder and when pushed just keeps on pounding harder as if plenty of reserve is on tap. I could not get the Ncores to duplicate that to the same degree but then again in the different room and set up such a thing could be too much. The Ncores and Cherry seemed to sound pretty similar all in all and it may be a system synergy thing as to which one might fit best for people. If I did not own a Cherry amp, I would likely buy a Ncore, possibly bridge it and ride off into the sunset. It did pretty much everything I'd need for sound and practicality and mated well with my system.
Thanks Jason for squeezing me on tour and extending yourself in this way to allow us to spend some personal time with some really fine amps and for many could be the last amp they need to buy.
