NuPrime ST-10M Power Amplifier

Traditionally I have always stuck to Class A or Class A/B amplifiers. I decided to try out a few Class D amplifiers for my 2 channel listening. I typically prefer a clean, detailed, neutral sound. I like to hear the music exactly the way it was recorded, don't we all? The problem I found with the Class D amps was that the sound was too clean, bright, analytical, edgy. In essence, very clinical which meant very boring. My last few attempts at Class D amplification had buyer remorse set in quickly. I was ready to throw in the towel for Class D amps. I was wanting to try some new DAC's so I purchased the NuPrime DAC-9 from Summit Hifi. I was really impressed with the build quality and sound signature from this DAC so I purchased the NuPrime DAC-10 as well. The build quality and sound bar was raised once again. Now that NuPrime had me convinced that they were serious contenders, I decided to give their Class D amps a chance. I purchased the NuPrime ST-10M monoblocks from Summit Hifi and again, build quality is top notch. The ST-10M's and my DAC-10 are a perfect match and the smaller form factor look is stunning, very classy. So looks aside, how do the ST-10M's sound. In a word, amazing. Everything that I disliked about my previous Class D amp's quickly disappeared with these amps. They were not thin, dry, edgy and clinical like the others. The bass was deep, tight, and very controlled while the treble presented as airy, crisp and clean, not being edgy or overly bright like I was expecting. What floored me the most though was the midrange. My go-to tracks for vocal testing are Kirsti Huke's rendition of Wish You Were Here and Siri Gjaere's Loveless Cafe. Kirsti and Siri's vocals through the ST-10M's gave me chills up my spine, the best I have heard from any amplifier to date. Imaging, depth, and dimensionality, were fantastic. I am sold on the ST-10M's and am eager to start listening to my music all over again. As always, Aamir from Summit Hifi was a big help!

I started my search looking for the best of Class D amplifiers. NuPrime was one product that came up through my search, and after more research on all of their products as a whole, I decided that the ST-10M would be worth taking a look at. There are some glowing reviews on the web about their ST-10 and Evolution One amps, which was nice to see, but a lot of times these reviews need to be taken with a grain of salt (too much creative writing). During my research on NuPrime, the one factor that kept coming up was performance value, no need to spend big bucks for great performance. I contacted Aamir with Summit HiFi to discuss the ST-10M's and his 45 day in home trial period. Aamir was very helpful with any questions I had, and assured me if I wasn't satisfied with the product, I would receive a full refund during the trial period - so it became a no brainer, lets try them out! A week later the amps arrived, they have been burning in for three weeks now. They sounded pretty impressive right out of the box, but have improved greatly over the last 3 weeks. It would be a huge understatement to say that I'm very impressed with their performance. The following are my observations on sound quality in no particular order: Large holographic soundstage, 3D imaging, completely black background, very neutral and highly resolving, tight defined bass, superb mid-range (vocals are awesome), rich tone, smooth and dynamic. Excellent performance from top to bottom, very musical and engaging (toe tapping goodness!) I've been in this hobby for approx. 30 years, and at no time have I come across the price / performance value that NuPrime offers, it really is unbelievable. These amps are the real deal, and I will be keeping them.