This is an oldie but a goodie. Defending the high THD in the DS, with Mulveling's response:
"and, by the way bcg27, knowing technicalities does not qualify one to comment on an amp they've never heard.
i don't go around in the beta 22 theads knocking that amp.
i'm sure it's a great amp.
but since you brought up THD, i'll illustrate something for you about the 2% figure.
2dB is the sound of someone rubbing the skin on their fingers together.
go ahead, try it. it's awfully quiet. try it in a noisy environment, and you won't hear it.
100 dB is the sound of standing next to a car with its engine revving.
now stand next to a car with its engine revving, and rub your fingers together.
that is the sound of the distortion products of the dark star."
Mulveling:
"Here's a quick brush up on high school math:
2% distortion means that the power of the distortion signal divided by the power of the full signal is 0.02
By definition:
delta in decibels = 10 * log_base_10 (power factor) =>
10*log(0.02) = -16.99 dB
So the 2% distortion signal in your 100dB revved engine analogy would actually be at 83dB, not 2dB. THAT would be more like the sound of a vexed girlfriend/wife trying to get your attention to turn the damn thing off (at least, for the first couple tries). Note that many tube amps (not all) will have a similar levels of distortion, except that it tends to be more aesthetically pleasing than that of their solid-state counterparts. So back to your car analogy - a tube amp's distortion would be like a hot single babe going "hey hon, wanna take me for a ride?"
"
