The Gearhead

First Watt J2 Stereo Power Amplifier OK, at this point I’m starting to realize that I will fall in love with 100% of the First Watt amplifiers and preamps that come through The Music Room. So much so that it has me diving on a box marked Pass Labs or First Watt so my coworkers don’t grab it first. Oh, this is a competition, make no mistake about it. We see some of the coolest audio gear of the last 30 years roll through here, but often it’s the luck of the draw when it comes to who listens to what. Today must be my lucky day. I’m listening again to a First Watt, this time the J2. A different amplifier completely from the F4, the J2 has all of that same First Watt goodness: the speed, the detail, the pleasing character, the honesty. This one is perhaps a simpler circuit than the F4, featuring modern high power JFET transistors made available because of the electric car industry. As Nelson explains in the manual’s forward, this builds on a previously used approach of sing...

​First Watt F4 Power Amplifier When I read through the manual and Nelson’s descriptions of the First Watt F4 amplifier, I get a little dizzy, but I think I understand what he’s talking about. This amp is uses current gain — and not much, by the way — instead of voltage gain like most amps. It also features no negative feedback, which is very important to me. I’ve played around with different values of feedback on an amplifier I built, and could easily hear the collapsing of the magic when feedback was increased. Now, I’m simplifying this whole subject matter of course, and I’m only talking about global negative feedback. But I believe that’s what Nelson is talking about here, too. And the First Watt F4 is such a simple amplifier design, there’s no reason to expect local feedback around different parts of the circuit. There are no other parts of the circuit. Hail, Nelson. It’s commonplace to call him a wizard and say everything he makes sounds like one of the best amplifie...