In the speaker-driving section of the amplifier, Technics has employed a high-speed GaN (gallium nitride) FET driver device with super-low resistance. This enables the construction of a high-power amp using a single push-pull configuration, allowing the length of the large current carrying signal path to be shortened, and resulting in outstanding linearity regardless of the sound level.

Technics SE-R1 At A Glance:

• JENO Engine
• GaN-FET Driver
• LAPC
• Technics Digital Link
• High-speed Silent Linear Power Supply
• Battery Driven Clock Generator
• Dual Mono Construction
• Signal Path Minimisation
• High Rigidity Metal Double Chassis

Jitter is a major cause of distortion in digital systems, and is caused by mis-timing in the master clocks used in digital-to-analogue conversion. To eliminate the degradation of sound caused by jitter, Technics has developed an original jitter reduction circuit, comprising a clock generator in the noise-shaping system to reduce jitter in the low-frequency range and a high-precision sample rate converter for suppressing jitter in the high-frequency range. Thus it reduces jitter in an ideal way over the entire frequency range.

The impedance of a speaker is not constant: it varies according to frequency, thus altering the loading on an amplifier and therefore potentially the sound. Technics is able to measure an amplifier’s frequency amplitude-phase characteristics with speakers connected, and has developed a speaker impedance adaptive optimisation algorithm using digital signal processing to achieve ideal impulse response. Correction processing based on the new algorithm achieves a flat frequency response for both amplitude and phase, not possible in conventional amps, and delivering a sound with rich spatial expression.

Some systems use a digital link between source component and pre-amplifier, keeping the digital signal pure as long as possible: Technics Digital Link goes further. It has eliminated the volume control function from the pre-amplifier, and instead transmits the volume control information, together with the audio signal, directly to the power amplifier in digital form.