[BadDNA]

Hi gang,

I own the M225 mono amps and was wondering what the input gain is on these from the factory.

I ask because a friend brought over a pair of the Orchard Audio StarKrimson 25 mono amps to compare. Those required the volume on the preamp to be boosted significantly to get the sensitivity to match. Those have a factory gain setting of 21.5db.

Any help is appreciated!

[Mary]

Hello BadDNA,

The M225 amplifier has a gain of about 33dB.

Mary

[Charles Xavier]

With a lower gain there is supposed to be less noise. Which sound do you like the 33db gain or the 21.5db regardless of being 2 different amps.

[BadDNA]

With a lower gain there is supposed to be less noise. Which sound do you like the 33db gain or the 21.5db regardless of being 2 different amps.

Well, we attempted to level match as much as possible via the volume knob on my Parasound P6 and an old analog Rat Shack SPL meter. I let my two buddies do most of the listening, playing the same track through both sets of amps. It dawned on me at the end of the session that, although we adjusted the main volume, that only affected the main speakers which are crossed at 80hz, then my dual Rythmik F12 subs take over. We hadn't accounted for the volume the subs were playing, so when we raised the pre volume it increased the volume of the subs per usual and we had a huge bass boost that no one realized.

I will say that vocals/midrange seemed more pronounced with the GanFet amps, "Maybe" more clarity? The guy who brought them had them on loan from Orchard as part of an audition tour list and shipped them off today to the next person. He loves how they do vocals and plans to purchase the bare amp modules to use in his own DIY tri-amp setup just to power the mids. He said as soon as I played vocals through the M225's right after the GanFet amps, he could easily tell the difference. He could pick out the Class A/B signature vs the GanFets. Mainly that there seemed to be "noise" around the vocals with my amps, but a black background with the GanFet amps. My other buddy is more focused on soundstaging/imaging and gave the M225's the easy win. Either way, they are impressive for how lightweight and small they are.

[BadDNA]

Hello BadDNA,

The M225 amplifier has a gain of about 33dB.

Mary

Thank you Mary! Has anyone ever requested having the gain lowered on the M225's? I wonder if that would remove any percieved noise my friend said he heard.

[Charles Xavier]

Well, we attempted to level match as much as possible via the volume knob on my Parasound P6 and an old analog Rat Shack SPL meter. I let my two buddies do most of the listening, playing the same track through both sets of amps. It dawned on me at the end of the session that, although we adjusted the main volume, that only affected the main speakers which are crossed at 80hz, then my dual Rythmik F12 subs take over. We hadn't accounted for the volume the subs were playing, so when we raised the pre volume it increased the volume of the subs per usual and we had a huge bass boost that no one realized.

I will say that vocals/midrange seemed more pronounced with the GanFet amps, "Maybe" more clarity? The guy who brought them had them on loan from Orchard as part of an audition tour list and shipped them off today to the next person. He loves how they do vocals and plans to purchase the bare amp modules to use in his own DIY tri-amp setup just to power the mids. He said as soon as I played vocals through the M225's right after the GanFet amps, he could easily tell the difference. He could pick out the Class A/B signature vs the GanFets. Mainly that there seemed to be "noise" around the vocals with my amps, but a black background with the GanFet amps. My other buddy is more focused on soundstaging/imaging and gave the M225's the easy win. Either way, they are impressive for how lightweight and small they are.

I know who you are talking about. He has a great build on these amps.

[SJ David]

Well, we attempted to level match as much as possible via the volume knob on my Parasound P6 and an old analog Rat Shack SPL meter. I let my two buddies do most of the listening, playing the same track through both sets of amps. It dawned on me at the end of the session that, although we adjusted the main volume, that only affected the main speakers which are crossed at 80hz, then my dual Rythmik F12 subs take over. We hadn't accounted for the volume the subs were playing, so when we raised the pre volume it increased the volume of the subs per usual and we had a huge bass boost that no one realized.

I will say that vocals/midrange seemed more pronounced with the GanFet amps, "Maybe" more clarity? The guy who brought them had them on loan from Orchard as part of an audition tour list and shipped them off today to the next person. He loves how they do vocals and plans to purchase the bare amp modules to use in his own DIY tri-amp setup just to power the mids. He said as soon as I played vocals through the M225's right after the GanFet amps, he could easily tell the difference. He could pick out the Class A/B signature vs the GanFets. Mainly that there seemed to be "noise" around the vocals with my amps, but a black background with the GanFet amps. My other buddy is more focused on soundstaging/imaging and gave the M225's the easy win. Either way, they are impressive for how lightweight and small they are.

So I understand, you had your sub's output balanced with the M225's higher gain at a fixed volume on the P6 per your usual listening preference. When the Orchard amp was installed, the lower gain required that you adjust the preamp volume up to approximate the same listening level as with the M225. But, you had not re-balanced the sub output level based upon the Orchard's lower gain and so you had the subs running too high compared to the mains? Then, when you installed the M225s back you had to lower the preamp volume but the overall output then was balanced with the sub output as before?