Усилители мощности моно — Audionet Schrödinger

The Schrödinger is a mono power amplifier from Audionet of Germany and belongs to the Scientist series, where it sits below the Heisenberg monoblock and was launched together with the Mach preamplifier. It follows the same principle of absolute channel separation, with one chassis per channel. Pricing was set at USD 71,050 per pair in the US and AUD 92,500 per pair in Australia, and the warranty lasts two years from purchase.

Key specs that matter

Rated output is 400 W into 8 ohm, 750 W into 4 ohm and 1,200 W into 2 ohm. Audionet gives a bandwidth of 0 Hz to 600 kHz at -3 dB, a noise distance of more than 128 dB and THD plus noise below -106 dB at 1 kHz between 25 W and 750 W into 4 ohm. The damping factor is above 10,000 at 100 Hz and above 2,000 at 10 kHz. Input impedance is 50 kOhm with 100 pF on RCA and 7 kOhm with 100 pF on XLR. The case measures 270 mm wide, 450 mm deep (490 mm with connectors) and 355 mm high, one unit weighs about 51 kg, and maximum consumption is 1,200 W from 120 V or 230 V mains at 50 to 60 Hz.

Engineering and use context

Circuitry is built around Audionet ULA, the Ultra Linear Amplifier technology that the brand uses for real-time linearisation, with DC coupling throughout the signal path. The circuit and case avoid ferromagnetic materials and are laid out to reduce magnetic and capacitive effects. The power stage draws on two encapsulated and decoupled toroidal transformers of 1,200 VA each, backed by 160,000 microfarads of total capacitance, and four separate supplies feed the current channels. Two further supplies run device control and detection and monitor the zero crossing of the mains. Galvanic separation isolates the circuit sections, a microprocessor handles protection, and the chassis is milled from aluminium on CNC machines. The Floating Pane Design decouples the chassis panels to keep resonance and vibration away from the circuit.

Pairing

Stereo playback requires a pair. The Mach preamplifier arrived at the same time, and the Stern preamplifier is the other Scientist line stage. When the driving preamplifier offers balanced outputs, the lower XLR input impedance should be checked against the source output impedance, while the RCA input presents a much higher load to single-ended sources. The very high damping figure and the rating into very low loads allow the amplifier to drive difficult low-impedance loudspeakers.

Alternatives

The Audionet Heisenberg is the larger Scientist series monoblock, measuring 27 x 50 x 50 cm and weighing 70 kg.