Are Buckeye Amps The Best You Can Buy? Dylan Thinks So! 

Same.

Why did you go with Purifi over Hypex for your 3ch? Debating which module to power my Arendal 1723 THX FRC and was leaning toward the 3ch NCX500

NcX 500 wasn’t available at time. Purifi Eigentacht measure better than the NC- Hypex line. For surround Hypex NC are still very good. Dylan recommended this configuration for my KEF setup.

They charge a stupid amount for the various options though.

Soon? We're already there man.

They’re definitely is a biased towards class D amplifiers. And I agree there are some great class D amplifiers out there that I wish more people would give a chance to.

The mic wasn't Audiophile enough. lol

Have you compared the nc500x and purifi amps side by side / back to back on the same speakers? Thoughts?

@@Artcore103 The NCoreX has somewhat more output capability per channel, but so much depends on if you really need it or not. Otherwise, they are very similar premium Bruno Putzey designs, just put out by different manufacturers.

You mean input not output I assume. There will be no impedance or noise issues. Your concerns are unfounded, buckeye amps have input gain/sensitivity settings, that include settings for a ~2v input. He discusses the RCA to XLR cable (not adapter) halfway through the video too. All that matters is the input gain/sensitivity, i.e what input voltage will drive the amp to max power, and his amps have multiple gain settings. XLR/RCA is of no concern here.

You just need the correct RCA to XLR adapter cable. Some are wired wrong. Buckeye Amps have XLR inputs, not outputs.

@@Artcore103 Sorry, typo I meant Buckeye only has XLR inputs.

Chronic great amplifiers. I use the XTI for my subwoofer duty. One thing to keep mine with the XLS series is that you do lose low end compared to other similar amplifiers. We talked about this at 1:20:04

For subs sure, for full range the difference in sound quality is audible, as is the noise floor, definitely audible. I have one. If you want a HiFi setup don't go with the entry level crown especially if you have sensitive speakers. They're good for the money, but these amps are on a whole 'nother level quality wise.

​@@Artcore103 I will say also the crown doesn't have a great history as far as reliability. I see tons and tons of these tossed to the side

Yes, they have a couple of different monoblocs.

@@Mark-rw3kw excellent, thank you

Trinnov's and Monoprice's D-Class Hypex variations are all built by ATI using the same base modules that Buckeye uses. The ONLY real differences are the use of linear toroidial power supplies and a fancier case... plus a fairly large dealer markup. Dylan also offers a step up Purifi version of Bruno Putzey's modules as well and the power supplies he uses are still ones recommended by Hypex and Purifi. His larger, multi-channel, higher current offerings also have heat sinks.

Funny, you say that. I was just telling Justin that after last weeks show. I’m not sure how good they are. Do you know much about them?

They have been selling them for maybe 10+ years now and will do custom ones which is where I saw 2 channel ncore ones. They have individual gain control on each channel on the best one they sell stock. I don’t know much about the custom 12v power supply they use. The amp is 250x4 for the nicest one. They are also very very small. The owner is very very friendly and I’m sure if you wanted to get him on a show with Justin it would be possible. It’s a family run business is my understanding which might be ideal for what your viewers really enjoy seeing. I’ve looked at building a ucd2k sub amp for the car and even if you source the amplifier modules and buy a Chinese 12v power supply there is a lot to consider in terms of wiring it correctly and having all the other features like a bass knob, clip indicators, etc. it would be pretty advanced diy still and cost a lot.

It's not a preamp. It's an amplifier. You need a preamp with subwoofer out and also speaker rca or xlr out.

@@NakeanWickliff I do have a denon receiver but I think it that case it's better to replace that with a stereo thing instead then like the audiolab 7000a or something like that

It depends on what receiver you have. I have a denon x3500h which has preouts so I use it with this amp and love it. @@Testfortest142

@@NakeanWickliff 3300w here

Ncore NC252 is fine. Does not have a sub out so you you will have to run line level from a preamp or high level off the amp if the sub has high level connections. High level means speaker wire off the amp to speaker wire connects on sub.

Who cares about a warranty? All of these amps will last decades. And written 7 year warranty or not, if there's an issue with your buckeye I'm sure he'd take care of you. But there will be no issue. Cars need warranties, simple power amplifiers do not. This is an indestructible extremely insanely reliable device.

@@Artcore103 You're 100% wrong! I have a 7 channel Krell Chorus amp that has just cost me $1800 to fix and it was inside f 7 years old. I own a ton of ARC, Esoteric, 5 x Theta Citadels, etc, etc and it's all heavy to ship and expensive as hell to fix when something goes wrong, unless of course you're an experienced technician and are willing to provide us all with free repairs when the sh1t breaks?

@@philstevens9914 that's a class a amp not at all comparable to the buckeye amps. MOST amps are ultra reliable long lasting devices. Maybe overpriced "audiophile" gear is less reliable on average, since so much of the cost is in markup and not engineering, that certainly seems plausible. He gets into the failure rate in the video, it's very small. Plus he does offer replacement. Unfounded concern, in that it's statistically extremely unlikely to have issues within 7 years. These amps are also better than your krell in every measurable way and more powerful. Only additional spec I'd like to see on a graph is thd at 1w and under. Class a amps are inherently very inefficient and run hot, these are the opposite. And objectively superior despite the subjective biases and flowery adjectives of the golden ears. Krells site is full of meaningless subjective terminology and even technical inaccuracies. I'm sure they're great amps, but not worth the money. I wonder what broke in your amp, was it an output stage, a transformer, or something digital relating to the controls/firmware etc... and I wonder how much it actually cost krell to fix it vs what they charged you. HiFi markup is traditionally insane, hence: Buckeye.

@@Artcore103 Don't care what you say. Warranty is warranty and a manufacturer that is prepared to put a 7 year warranty behind a product that they know their potential customer base is is still gun shy about buying shows confidence in their product and is putting their money where their mouth is. I've been in manufacturing for most of my 40 year career and I know how hard it is establishing new products in markets such as the US where people are closed minded and DON'T like change.

@@philstevens9914 he does warranty his products and stand behind them - he's only had to replace 3 out of over 1000. I understand why some are comforted by seeing a warranty, but to me it means nothing. And for a small outfit like this, it might just be impractical to make it a legal "warranty" in black and white, but by reading reviews and forums and hearing from other owners and the manufacturer, I can easily decide my confidence level in both the product and the seller without an official warranty - and maybe he has one, I don't know, and I don't care. These are inherently insanely reliable devices.

It seemed perfectly fine to me. I think it's your setup.

Interconnects do not add "richness", what an absurd subjectivist audiophile thing to say. That's in your mind my dude, sighted/price/brand bias. No measurements to support any such claim. In the most extreme cases of cable comparison, the only thing that could even theoretically take place is a tiny variation in the rolloff at very high frequencies. There is no mechanism by which an interconnect can add "richness" or affect the tone or timbre or anything of the sort. Use a tube preamp if you want to add "richness" and degrade your signal and fidelity.

Not a realistic test, plus the method of carrying out such tests is often problematic and has issues. These amps are in fact effectively perfect, period.

@@Artcore103 Sorry, I can prove to anyone who isn't deaf, other than for a sub woofer, Class D just sound bad! You need to use Purple book source, a wide bandwidth preamp and loudspeakers with pinpoint imaging. The mid range and imaging are muddy. Another proof is to do a null test which will audibly be noticeable; but I am sure you don't know what a null test is. As a final note, the only listenable Class D amps that I have heard use gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductors which have a much wider bandwidth. It seems that all other designs remind me of first generation CD players with brick wall filters.

@@Artcore103 These Buckeye kits are a rip-off! If you think Class D amps are any good... Crown XLs are HALF the price and produce TWICE the current into low impedance loads. Or the FOSI V2 monos at ONE third the price.

​@yinzer8192 When you say crown, I can tell you must be clown now Crack another joke.

@@yinzer8192 But the distortion levels and damping factor on those Crowns are not very good. They are cheap for a reason.

Then name an amplifier example please.

Yeah, about the first eight minutes I had over clipped my mike. The issue is when I use it with my digital camera. I have to have the gain set up higher. On the computer, the gain needs to be lowered. Thankfully, someone told me about eight minutes in and I fixed it.

Wrong

If you watch starting at 1:20:04 you will see teh difference in the low end of a Crown XLS versus something like this. The crown has a 30hz high pass and starts to roll off. That is not conducive to deep low end. ru-vid.comCe42HMzOM6w?si=mLCs70hxOU5D4N7B&t=4801

Informative conversation. Lots to digest. I enjoyed the conversation about cases. I sold high quality audio from the mid 80’s to the late 90,s and the fancy cases became a real focal point during that time. Most cases for gear before that time were a stamped steel base/ back stamped steel top/ sides, and maybe a thin aluminum faceplate. But faceplates were often steel as well. Plastic nobs and buttons were also common. But the guts inside were high quality at the time. But once the fancy chassis thing started, it was clear that if you dumped the same guts into one of those fancy boxes, you could get lots more money for the same amp. And the fancier the box the better the perceived performance would be as well. So every one building gear had to follow suit.

@@Toid I trust majority of you’re opinions. Thankyou for the link... i value your prompt and quite knowledgeable awncer to my concern. My refrance material will be reviewed shortly. And I wish to personally experience my comparisons with my tek. Another fine reason to visit my ol prior stomping grounds. And after one more I’ll have plenty time to complete my passions desires.

I've run Crowns in the past, I felt the XLS Drivecore II's were a good budget option for high power. But they are not on the same level as a Hypex Ncore, or Purifi. Ucd Hypex is even better. These Class D's are quite eye opening... especially for the money. Extremely quiet and powerful depending on the model.

Barringer ? You need to clean the shit out your ears ,my 10 year old won't run that crap in the rig for his punk rock band.