I think that the whole "low negative feedback" or even NO FEEDBACK thing is a marketing bullet-point aimed at high-end buyers who don't have a clue what feedback is, how it works, etc. They just "know" it's bad. After all how can negative feedback be GOOD if it's NEGATIVE?
I also think there's another more subtle reason for this. Seems some listeners PREFER a certain kind of coloration which is added by a certain distortion profile. It's one of things that makes the amplifier sound somewhat different from other amps. If all amps were like the Benchmark, they'd all sound the same for the most part. And many high-end buyers will listen to a product and end up believing that DIFFERENT is BETTER.
And maybe the distortion profile of this amp is meant to be similar to the euphonic distortion of Audio Research's tubed amps? I'd be curious to know if it has rather high-ish output source impedance, which would lend it more "tube character."
I also think there's another more subtle reason for this. Seems some listeners PREFER a certain kind of coloration which is added by a certain distortion profile. It's one of things that makes the amplifier sound somewhat different from other amps. If all amps were like the Benchmark, they'd all sound the same for the most part. And many high-end buyers will listen to a product and end up believing that DIFFERENT is BETTER.
And maybe the distortion profile of this amp is meant to be similar to the euphonic distortion of Audio Research's tubed amps? I'd be curious to know if it has rather high-ish output source impedance, which would lend it more "tube character."