Benchmark AHB2 Stereo Power Amplifier

Benchmark built the AHB2 around one argument: amplifier noise and distortion are solved problems if you're willing to do the engineering. The THX AAA (Achromatic Audio Amplifier) circuit uses a feed-forward error correction topology that cancels distortion before it reaches the output — the result is a noise floor of –132 dBFS and THD+N measuring at 0.00003%. These are laboratory numbers in a production amplifier. 100 watts into 8 ohms, 190 into 4. Bridge two units to mono and you have 380 watts into 8 ohms from an amplifier that still measures cleaner than most equipment in the chain feeding it. Class H operation keeps the efficiency high and the chassis cool. Balanced XLR inputs preferred; gain adjustable at 9.5, 14, or 17 dB to match the sensitivity of whatever's driving it. Made in Syracuse, New York. The AHB2 doesn't have a sound in the conventional sense — it has an absence of sound that reveals what the rest of your system actually sounds like. That's either exactly what you want or exactly what you don't, depending on what's upstream. $3,995 MSRP