Jeff Rowland 535 Stereo Amplifier Review

[andreasmaaan]

That's the module on its own.

The module includes a power supply so it is a complete amp on its own (sans enclosure).

Looks around the same to me? 0.01% from 10W to 100W.

Amir's measurements suggest noise is dominating at lower levels. Which may not be the S-Pro 2's fault.

Yeh, that's why I said the module itself measures somewhat better.

 

[magicscreen]

Go figure, another pretty case with subpar internals. We love gullible audiophiles!

You are mistaken. It is a scientific fact that an amp with a beautiful casing sounds better. You are paying for the great sound.

 

[Jukebox]

Wow! Wasn't expecting that from JR! Great work like always Amir! Seeing all these expensive stereo amps measurements, can't stop thinking how good of an investment the Nad M27 would be used in mix surround/stereo set-up

 

[Dialectic]

You are mistaken. It is a scientific fact that an amp with a beautiful casing sounds better. You are paying for the great sound.

In 2013, when I was speaker-shopping, a salesman at the Stereo Exchange told me, without irony, that "build quality" was more important in assessing sonic performance than measured performance was.

When the store disappeared from its old Broadway location, I hoped it was out of business, but alas, it had just moved a few blocks up.

 

[mhardy6647]

Personally, I prefer paper clips.

I tend to reserve those for RF applications (antenna hookups).

 

[Deleted member 4360]

View attachment 58412

I’ve experienced using these binding posts myself when I was playing around with some Nagra gear. I really like these kinds of screw terminals. Current Pass Labs gear also uses a similar style of connector. It can get awfully cramped awfully quick, though.

Speaking of... would be excellent to get some of the current Nagra Classic line in for review. Has anyone expressed interest in loaning in one of those?

Thanks for the review.

The Posts as made by Cardas...

 

[waynel]

Great review Amir, thanks.
Very sad measured performance but a beautifully machined case..
To think I could have 2 Benchmarks running bridged for the same money.
Disturbing

So are you saying I’d be better off with two AHB2’s for the same price?

 

[Deleted member 4360]

As a previous owner of their late 1990's integrated, the first Concentra, I guess I expected this result. The first Concentra was a fantastic sounding amp based on bridged LM3886's. I clearly don't know how it measured, but it was a great sounding design (had the audiophile sickness at the time and had to sell as I owned it for over a year). Early in the 2000's, they switched from their own custom designs to taking ICE reference designs and applying their tweaks. His theory at the time was "green design" / energy efficiency. From what it seems, that's still in play. So essentially, as you've all commented on, it's a pretty case for the money...

 

[dmac6419]

It's ain't about what's on the outside but what's on the insides, that's why ugly girls are the best.

 

[sergeauckland]

So are you saying I’d be better off with two AHB2’s for the same price?

I think you'd be better off with a Behringer A800 and have lots of money left over for music.

S.

 

[HammerSandwich]

Well, I am concerned about testing expensive amplifiers that way given what happened to Devialet!

Reasonable enough. As Sal pointed out, a pair of AHB2s would be the smart buy for this money.

One datasheet note I haven't seen mentioned is that 120V limits power output to 700W. Pascal's 490W spec is probably accurate for 1 channel or 230V operation.

 

[stunta]

Go figure, another pretty case with subpar internals. We love gullible audiophiles!

I would highly recommend spending some time in a high-end hi-fi dealership if you haven't already. Its especially educational following an "audiophile" customer who is being escorted by a salesperson. I have done this and I also have had friends who fit this profile. Solid build quality (including weight) and posh appearances go a long way in these purchasing decisions. When they are doing sighted A/B testing, its hard even for me to not believe that the more expensive unit sounds better. These customers also deliberately buy open racks to showcase their equipment at home.

This is the marketing model hi-fi companies follow. A Hypex-based DIY looking unit is simply not going to sell well in these stores to these types of customers. I am not passing judgment on this model, so its simply an observation.

 

[peng]

You're setting the bar pretty low. I am looking at the 90dB SINAD from NAD C 320BEE that could be had from a class-AB amp 15 years ago which wasn't even too expensive for its time.

AFAIK, typical big names (NAD, Yamaha, Pioneer, Teac, Marantz...) don't go too far from each other in terms of performance/price, after adjusting for home-turf / shipping advantages. Give or take 3 to 10dB. So it's ironic that we have audiophiles claiming their boutique products are better than those corporate money-grabbing stuff targeted at sheeple. And then poof, measurements show up.

Yes I am, even Amir himself often complained about the measured but would comment that it probably wouldn't be audible (something like that). I do have a C 326 BEE. It is the cheapest amp I have ever own but imo it is more than good enough for anyone who does not need more than 30-50 WPC.

 

[Billy Budapest]

There seem to be a few elephants in the room here. A near generic $200 class D amplifier for one. But there are a pair of Lundahl line level transformers. There I deeply suspect one will find almost the entire story. There is no transformer made that is really clean. I noticed on a quick look at the JeffRowlandDesign web page that there is pic of a seriously large discrete power amp, also with a pair of input transformers.

My suspicion is that the magic in their products is basically a house sound delivered by these transformers. Lundahl make very high quality transformers. Either theirs or Jensen are the go to if you need galvanic isolation. Studio gear is filled with them. Many times with the specific intent of using the inherent distortion characteristics to shape the sound. They are not cheap. Indeed they are probably the most expensive components.
But here, there is no sensible reason for them to be present except for delivering a product with a characteristic sound. Yes they provide balanced to unbalanced conversion, and are intrinsically ground loop free, but that isn't going to be it.

Overall, the selling price is about what you would expect. $200 for the class D amp. $200 for the pair of transformers. $100 for the other bits and pieces, including the binding posts. $300 for the case. USA assembly. Call it $1000 cost. By the time this makes it to the consumer via the usual high end markups, $6000 is about right.

Right. Given the BOM and the usual-for-hi-fi 5-10x markup, price is about right. You have to understand that these are basically ‘cottage industry’ products made by very small companies and they don’t enjoy the economies of scale of Sony. They don’t have the capacity to buy or produce in large volumes and therefore their markup is what it is.

 

[Thomas savage]

Right. Given the BOM and the usual-for-hi-fi 5-10x markup, price is about right. You have to understand that these are basically ‘cottage industry’ products made by very small companies and they don’t enjoy the economies of scale of Sony. They don’t have the capacity to buy or produce in large volumes and therefore their markup is what it is.

This is very fair , I'd ask if one was getting into the hifi game making amps now would one aim for barely average performance in a shinny box ? Because that's what's happening here. Do we really need Jeff Rowland , what's the point of their existence.

It's just more smoke and mirrors bullshit, being supported and promoted by hifi mags and kept afloat by misplaced Brand esteem.

 

[Rick Sykora]

Was always skeptical over not knowing what is inside the box (am about to buy)...

Amir's work here continues to demonstrate the value of healthy skepticism. This is why am reluctant over active speakers with electronics built-in too. I can readily get 4x100 watts/channel of class-D amplification for $60 (w/o power supply) for my dream 4-way speaker. In good faith, I would not build my speaker with this amp, but appears there are those that would not hesitate to do so (and charge $300 or more for it).

 

[Sal1950]

So are you saying I’d be better off with two AHB2’s for the same price?

Yes, I find that deduction to be fairly obvious. Only thing missing is the high end visual appeal.

 

[suttondesign]

The companies that make eye-candy for electronics are just wasting money and resources. To me, appearance of these things means almost nothing except when you're talking bottom-of-the-barrel stuff, where the flimsy tends to bespeak bad circuit design too. But even really inexpensive things like the little Topping DAC's are just fine. Besides, if what I really wanted were show-off pieces, why not just buy some fancy machined plates and whatnot, stick some glowing lights on 'em, and sell like those phony things at furniture stores? The Rowland piece is just decor.

 

[JRG]

I think I should build a Purifi module'd amp and build a beautiful, seamless, surface ground finished, stainless case around it. And charge US$10,000.

I'm pretty sure I will get quite a few bites and it will measure at least within arm's length of SoTA.

Anyone game for that ?

In the "audiophile hi-end" business, the brand name pedigree is everything.
Jeff Rowland can do this because of their brand name cache. Put in the market the exact same amp as the 535 but with an unknown name and you wouldn't sell a single one... unless you make a very strong marketing effort in magazines and influencers to buy good reviews and make your name known in the "audiophile circuit".

 

[waynel]

Yes, I find that deduction to be fairly obvious. Only thing missing is the high end visual appeal.

I think the benchmark looks ok but it’s a matter of taste. I should have added a smiley face to my post as I agree that it’s obvious.