Distortion

[adam71 5,000+ posts]

I was doing some browsing the other day and went to the ARC Audio website and they list ratings for distortion as TRANSIENT distortion instead of TOTAL HARMONIC distortion.

Is there a difference between the two or are they essentially the same? My next system will consist of either ARC or ZAPCO so this is pertinent information to me so can anyone please shed some light on this??

PLEASE

Click to read more...

 

[ANeonRider 10+ year member]

Taken from:

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/audio/amp.html

All frequencies and all amplitudes within an amplifier's operating range must be amplified by the same factor to avoid distortion. An amplifier which satisfies this requirement is said to be perfectly linear. If the peaks of the waveform are clipped, this gives rise to what is called harmonic distortion. Another type of distortion is intermodulation distortion, which occurs when different frequencies in the signal mix to produce sum and difference frequencies which didn't exist in the signal. Transient distortion occurs when amplifier components cannot handle the rate of change of the signal, for example in rapid percussive attacks. There is also transient intermodulation distortion (TIM) to which modern integrated circuits are susceptible. Such circuits depend upon feedback for their linearity, but time delays in the feedback can cause intermodulation distortion on fast transients in the signal.

 

[3.5Max6spd 10+ year member]

I was doing some browsing the other day and went to the ARC Audio website and they list ratings for distortion as TRANSIENT distortion instead of TOTAL HARMONIC distortion.
Is there a difference between the two or are they essentially the same? My next system will consist of either ARC or ZAPCO so this is pertinent information to me so can anyone please shed some light on this??

PLEASE

Both Arc and Zapco are designed by Robert Zef-the 'Z' in Zapco(Nikola engineering) most being put into the Arc now that Zef sold Zapco and only designs for them now, he also designs the Diamond D3 line, some past Clarion designs, and Monitor 1 (very high end 7 yrs ago) which were sold throw same manufacturer and warrantied throgh Arc

You cannot go wrong with either- I say the Arcs shyt on the Reference series, yet are no way as flexible as the Zapco Competition line(obviously because they are designed for competition, to get into a specific power class- rated low at 4ohms, and astronomical at higher impedances)

Note: the Arc 4150 and 2500 are the only amps that Zef has designed, and perhaps available on the market, that yield a damping factor of 2000- higher than any Zapco design he's done- Thats primarily Arc' selling point, they are priced somewhere in between both Zapco lines, but Arc dealers are quite forgiving and

work with you- at least in my experience

No joke, I've had nearly a dozen people buy wether a cxl or xxk 4150 after hearing my fronstage- literally flawless

I'd say after reading the description of transient distortion above, 0.005 for the 4150 and 2500 is very impressive, and because of the high damping factor at lower impedances it maintains super low distortion levels (damping cuts in half/and distortion doubles as you drop impedances)

There are a few typo's on the Arc site also.....you may want to contact them for any specific questions- they are super nice and professional

Wether you choose a Zapco or Arc.....you are buying high end and you will most definitly be content, have a beautifully designed amp using the highest grade componentry -

 

[squeak9798 5,000+ posts]

Transient distortion occurs when amplifier components cannot handle the rate of change of the signal, for example in rapid percussive attacks.

Sounds like it is related to the Slew Rate of the amplifier.

 

[Depression 10+ year member]

Yea..ARC guys are SUPER helpful..before I finally got my amps I must have emailed "Steve@ARC" 5 times with NOOBIE style questions..I got proffesional and clear responses by the next morning!!!AND I DIDN'T EVEN BUY THE AMPS NEW FROM A DEALER AND THEY GAVE ADVICE ON ME BUYING USED....You can't go wrong with those guys

NOW Image Dynamics..that was a nightmare..still no real answers to a simple question!!

 

[adam71 5,000+ posts]

Thanx guys, I guess I still have alot of thinking before I make my decision on which ones to go with.

-Adam //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/nerd.gif.c6fa51ddf7ff75f1c0371fbc648f70ae.gif

 

[DBfan187 5,000+ posts]

Both Arc and Zapco are designed by Robert Zef-the 'Z' in Zapco(Nikola engineering) most being put into the Arc now that Zef sold Zapco and only designs for them now, he also designs the Diamond D3 line, some past Clarion designs, and Monitor 1 (very high end 7 yrs ago) which were sold throw same manufacturer and warrantied throgh Arc
You cannot go wrong with either- I say the Arcs shyt on the Reference series, yet are no way as flexible as the Zapco Competition line(obviously because they are designed for competition, to get into a specific power class- rated low at 4ohms, and astronomical at higher impedances)

Note: the Arc 4150 and 2500 are the only amps that Zef has designed, and perhaps available on the market, that yield a damping factor of 2000- higher than any Zapco design he's done- Thats primarily Arc' selling point, they are priced somewhere in between both Zapco lines, but Arc dealers are quite forgiving and

work with you- at least in my experience

No joke, I've had nearly a dozen people buy wether a cxl or xxk 4150 after hearing my fronstage- literally flawless

I'd say after reading the description of transient distortion above, 0.005 for the 4150 and 2500 is very impressive, and because of the high damping factor at lower impedances it maintains super low distortion levels (damping cuts in half/and distortion doubles as you drop impedances)

There are a few typo's on the Arc site also.....you may want to contact them for any specific questions- they are super nice and professional

Wether you choose a Zapco or Arc.....you are buying high end and you will most definitly be content, have a beautifully designed amp using the highest grade componentry -

I thought the dudes name was Zed?//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

Badass amps either way though!//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/thumbsupwink.gif.129404938effda6ad9cca39e7f4b58a3.gif

 

[squeak9798 5,000+ posts]

I thought the dudes name was Zed?//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

That's a different guy. There is Robert Zeff who did Zapco and such. Then there is Steve Mantz, who owns Zed Audio (who created a lot of the badass amps from back in the day; ESX, Hifonics series VII, the original badass Lanzar Optidrives, etc etc).

Actually, Zed is about to come out with their own line of amps.....keep an eye out for his webpage //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif