What is Class A?
Without getting too technical, all you really need to know about Class A is that it’s a method of amplification that’s been blown out of proportion—mostly due to marketing hype. Whenever an amplifier is referred to by a class of amplification it is always assumed that we’re talking about the power amp, because all preamps are Class A. (Now it is certainly possible to set your preamp up as Class AB, but it would be so cumbersome no one has bothered to do so, nor will anyone ever bother.) I think the reason Class A has become so hyped is because laymen tend to think Class A is synonymous with “Grade A.” In other words, they believe Class A is somehow better because of the letter “A.” This is an incorrect assumption. The reason Class AB was developed was to make up for the inefficencies of Class A power amplifiers. The reason for the letter “A” was because it’s the first method of amplification that was developed, and therefore is also the simplest. This is why many old “student level” am
