Originally Posted by Peter

Hey wolf, apparently, the popping is an inherent problem in solid-state amps. The problem is that when you first start the amps, capacitors in the circuitry are in a discharged state, and they pop when power is applied to them. I tried two solid-state Yorkville Sound amps I own, and they both pop, albeit not too loudly, until they have been on for maybe 20 or 30 seconds, then you can turn them on, and since the caps are then fully charged, they don't pop. My Marshall AVT50 amp, on the other hand, has a power module (the main amplifier chip, which is connected directly to the speaker), that has a built-in standy feature, which delays output for a few seconds when it is powered up, so that the amp's capacitors don't pop audibly (great feature). Tube amps don't have this problem, because the power tubes don't amplify until they are heated up, during which time you are on standby anyways, so you don't ever hear any pop. Most amps with a solid state power amp come on right away, and therefore pop. Nothing much you can do about it. Do you like my explanation?

PETER THE TONE DOCTOR