Vitus Master Stereo MP-S 201 ... Munich 2014 Debut
- Thread starter Jazzhead
- Start date
Thanks for the correction.These are not anodised , more a paint finish . I believe the thickness of the front plate does not permit anodising, or so I am told . I" ll take it in the buff please
Except that the Boulder 2060 is specified to consume a quite believable 5000W peak to deliver 600W+600W and the 3060 6000W to deliver 1000W + 1000W vs a specified 10 times lower consumption on the Vitus for similar power delivery. If we assume a typo and the Vitus power consumption at max is a more believable 5500W then the 2x 2kVA power transformers must be slightly inadequite?
If the quoted consumption of 550W at max is correct,the Vitus is even more efficient than a Crown Macrotech amplifier. The Crown is a long, long way from class A,no matter how it slides.
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Jdza, well Vitus UI-core transformers are much more efficient than traditional toroids which lose up to 25% voltage. For the MP-S201, vitus quote <2% loss. In saying that, I just made reference to a comment made by Hans Ole Vitus in which he only briefly described the biasing of the MP-S201. The commentary did not include a detailed technical explanation of the MP-S201's design or topology, so it would be wrong of me to make make broad assumptions without having something like a technical white paper in my hands.
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Those input sensitivity numbers look delicious
Delicious, why so ? Is it cause you would require lesser gain to derive full output power , lower level gain so lesser noise , does it add up ?
Yessir. You get a wider range of preamplifiers to choose from including passive units. For example my line stage only does .75v making it an iffy match with most amps except those with lower input sensitivities like those made by the same manufacturer.
I suspect however that owners of these amps will most likely opt to partner them with Vitus' own Master line stage.
Gotta love the look of pride on the faces of the guys in the factory.
I suspect however that owners of these amps will most likely opt to partner them with Vitus' own Master line stage.
Gotta love the look of pride on the faces of the guys in the factory.
I may very well have missed this (won't be the first time
), but is the 700/1400 watts output in Class A/B and if so, then how much of this output is in Class A?? Anyone?Looks fantastic, but I'll stay pat with my Mephisto for the foreseeable future.
Currently, I'm very intrigued by Spectral and will be venturing to Goodwin's to check it out.
I wish Vitus well with his new baby.
I may very well have missed this (won't be the first time
Looks fantastic, but I'll stay pat with my Mephisto for the foreseeable future.
Currently, I'm very intrigued by Spectral and will be venturing to Goodwin's to check it out.
I wish Vitus well with his new baby.
If that power consumption max is correct then the answer is, not too much. Maybe about 50 watts or so...still enough for most speakers while running in Class A. I put my hand on a running amp at the Munich show and the heat sinks were merely warm to the touch, definitely not hot like I have seen for other real class A amplifiers.
Look at the power consumption of an amp like the Musical Fidelity AMS100 as a comparison. It uses 1200 watts to make 100 watts class A. My NAT Symbiosis is a 100 Watts Class A and it consumes 800 watts (and it has an adaptive bias as well) and the heat sinks get HOT.
Thanks jdza.Ithought I was the only one to notice this.... This is pure marleting BS.An amplifer is Clas A ,thus run hot , consume a lot of power or it is not then all kind of marketing BS comes up , Sliding Class A, Intelligent Class, etc... This amp based on the specs on the quoted pdf, cannot be Class A.
Thanks jdza.Ithought I was the only one to notice this.... This is pure marleting BS.An amplifer is Clas A ,thus run hot , consume a lot of power or it is not then all kind of marketing BS comes up , Sliding Class A, Intelligent Class, etc... This amp based on the specs on the quoted pdf, cannot be Class A.
In electronics, class A just means the amplifying devices conduct over the entire range of the input cycle. Although the brute force and more often used system of achieving this is just having an high constant bias, many manufacturers have clever schemes that increase the bias just before it is needed, "predicting" it. In technical terms these amplifiers are class A, however as this modulated bias current can create artifacts that have a different sound signature from the classical class A, audiophiles do not like the use of the designation class A for amplifiers that do not heat a lot. But engineers should accept that these amplifier are class A and do not suffer from crossover distortion.
Perhaps understandably being a brand new amp, there are many misconceptions and errors floating around about the specs for the MP-S201.
Here are the simple facts:
Firstly, the MP-S201 is using 2 x 2.25kVa transformers. Also keep in mind Vitus use a unique UI-core design which is very efficient and only suffers about 1.5% loss max vs traditional toroids which lose up to 25% voltage, therefore that 4.5kVa of tranny is really a huge amount of power.
The Gryphon Mephisto which was mentioned earlier is for sure another great amp, though Vitus is using a 1.200.000uF capacitor bank compared to the Mephisto's 500,000uF (2 1/2 times the capacitance!)
The 700/1400W are the specs for peak power. No surprises there, as most manufacturers quote peak power figures in data sheets. But there is one important difference, Vitus quote their power figures in "true RMS" which is a more correct, but tougher spec. In true RMS the MP-S201 puts out about 200 Watts Class A @ 8ohms and 400W Class A @ 4ohms, then changes to Class A/B which delivers 500W @ 8 ohms and 1000W @ 4 ohms. Also, the 550W power consumption figure @ max power drawn in class A mode is also true RMS and with zero music/load on the amp.
Anyway, people get too caught up in power ratings in class A - what is a pure class A amp? – what really matters is the sound. Not marketing bs! What Vitus's research has shown – is that when the transistors they use has a core temperature of about 70degrees C then the music becomes REAL. Liquid – listenable for hours – not the usual solid state sound “bleeding” ears after 30min. Some call it dynamics, “air” in the high freq – Hans simply calls it a headache…
But this comes down to personal preferences – Vitus builds his products to HIS liking.
Intelligent class A control means:
Vitus measures the temperature on the output devices – and adjust bias slightly – to maintain a temperature on the output devices within +/- 2 degrees. This way he ensures that the temperature is stable and the sound he wants is maintained at all loads.
But again, it's easy to lose sight of the end game - the sound - by endlessly debating specs. In fact within the next 12 months their website will change and all specs will go away…
Btw from speaking to Hans, VA had a very successful Munich show and got great feedback. They sold several of the new MP-S201 amps & many more of the new SM-011 mono's. Interest was also strong in the new RCD-101 sacd player. VA as a company continue to grow despite the trend of bricks and mortar stores closing down, including even some established high end brands like Audio Aero. In fact, they are looking for a bigger building to expand production levels and increase the already high content of components designed & built in-house. In many ways, their story is just beginning...
Here are the simple facts:
Firstly, the MP-S201 is using 2 x 2.25kVa transformers. Also keep in mind Vitus use a unique UI-core design which is very efficient and only suffers about 1.5% loss max vs traditional toroids which lose up to 25% voltage, therefore that 4.5kVa of tranny is really a huge amount of power.
The Gryphon Mephisto which was mentioned earlier is for sure another great amp, though Vitus is using a 1.200.000uF capacitor bank compared to the Mephisto's 500,000uF (2 1/2 times the capacitance!)
The 700/1400W are the specs for peak power. No surprises there, as most manufacturers quote peak power figures in data sheets. But there is one important difference, Vitus quote their power figures in "true RMS" which is a more correct, but tougher spec. In true RMS the MP-S201 puts out about 200 Watts Class A @ 8ohms and 400W Class A @ 4ohms, then changes to Class A/B which delivers 500W @ 8 ohms and 1000W @ 4 ohms. Also, the 550W power consumption figure @ max power drawn in class A mode is also true RMS and with zero music/load on the amp.
Anyway, people get too caught up in power ratings in class A - what is a pure class A amp? – what really matters is the sound. Not marketing bs! What Vitus's research has shown – is that when the transistors they use has a core temperature of about 70degrees C then the music becomes REAL. Liquid – listenable for hours – not the usual solid state sound “bleeding” ears after 30min. Some call it dynamics, “air” in the high freq – Hans simply calls it a headache…
But this comes down to personal preferences – Vitus builds his products to HIS liking.
Intelligent class A control means:
Vitus measures the temperature on the output devices – and adjust bias slightly – to maintain a temperature on the output devices within +/- 2 degrees. This way he ensures that the temperature is stable and the sound he wants is maintained at all loads.
But again, it's easy to lose sight of the end game - the sound - by endlessly debating specs. In fact within the next 12 months their website will change and all specs will go away…
Btw from speaking to Hans, VA had a very successful Munich show and got great feedback. They sold several of the new MP-S201 amps & many more of the new SM-011 mono's. Interest was also strong in the new RCD-101 sacd player. VA as a company continue to grow despite the trend of bricks and mortar stores closing down, including even some established high end brands like Audio Aero. In fact, they are looking for a bigger building to expand production levels and increase the already high content of components designed & built in-house. In many ways, their story is just beginning...
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Nothing personal . Just a correction in comparison. Gryphon mephisto stereo retail for 1/2 the price of Vitus MPS. So Mephisto solo is a more appropriate comparison
Sorry, this could be intelligent but does not imply class A! Classe does the same in the M600 - in a also intelligent way using a tunnel heatsink with a fan controlled by a microprocessor, but also not in class A. BTW, a good friend of mine did it long ago to his original Krell KSA 100 - although his idea was keeping fan noise to a minimum.
BTW, there is surely a technical mistake in their specification flyer - a class A power amplifier delivering 2x700W (even peak) can not have a power consumption of 550W RMS at full power.
Although I agree with you in one aspect - what matters most is the sound.
Yes that is true, though I don't really think you can compare a stereo amp to mono's at this level since a customer who has the money to buy such a creation would likely buy the mono's if that's what they wanted. I even heard of one client at Munich who wanted an MP-S201 custom made as an integrated...which Vitus was happy to oblige.
Thanks Jazz, i've gone back and edited my post. That was my fault as it was the one spec I didn't double check.
Hi Morricab,
No sooner had I posted my question then the answer was posted on Wizard's blog...Apparently, it's up to 200w/8 ohms and 400w/4 ohms of Class A. Also, as mentioned all over this thread is Vitus' "intelligent Class A"....be that as it may.
It'll be interesting to see how it pans out over time.
No sooner had I posted my question then the answer was posted on Wizard's blog...Apparently, it's up to 200w/8 ohms and 400w/4 ohms of Class A. Also, as mentioned all over this thread is Vitus' "intelligent Class A"....be that as it may.
It'll be interesting to see how it pans out over time.
That's the first time i've seen a full Vitus spec sheet. I recently gave Vitus feedback I think they need to offer more technical info, so that's good to see. And yes, superlative figures indicating excellent engineering
+1
They need to clean up their website too. The products are worth it.
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