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Sugden Masterclass MPA-4 (pair)

Monoblocks

Relative price

typical

Among the 25 monoblockss in the catalogue, this one is typical.

A band places a component against its peers and carries no price. It is deliberately the only price indicator on this page: a second one, measured against a different set, would narrow the two together far enough to give the figure away.

What it is

Sugden Masterclass monoblock pair; hand-built Heckmondwike, West Yorkshire. Pure Class A circuit shared with SPA-4 stereo version. 17+ years in continuous production with running-incremental upgrades.

CRITICAL ELECTRICAL FIT: XLR balanced ONLY input. Same constraint as Naim NAP 350. Pre must have XLR output to drive directly.

Competition record

Assessed against 13 rivals across the sixty systems: 2 head-to-heads won, 30 lost.

Where it gives ground

The dimension the engine names as the weakest link, counted across every head-to-head it lost.

  • bass control ×12
  • quietness at rest ×10
  • timing and drive ×4
  • vocal presence ×4
  • midrange truth ×3

Who it comes up against

Longdog Audio P6100M Biamp 2x2 (4 units)

9 lost · Anchored, Characterful, PRaT, Romantic

Against the Anchored brief, the Longdog Audio P6100M Biamp 2x2 (4 units) keeps the slot decisively.

With the Emmae Reginae (custom), the pairing gives up most on bass control.

With the Audiolab 9000Q, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.

On its own merits the Sugden Masterclass MPA-4 (pair) is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

low grain/noisePROXY: Sugden Masterclass house
not very controlled bassAudiophilepure 2014

EAR Yoshino V12

3 lost · BBC Sound, Vocals-First

No completion of this shape fits that slot's budget.

Audiolab 9000P

3 lost · Characterful, PRaT, Romantic

Against the Characterful brief, the Audiolab 9000P keeps the slot decisively.

With the Audiolab 9000Q, the pairing gives up most on vocal presence.

With the Neat Petite Classic, the pairing gives up most on bass control.

On its own merits the Sugden Masterclass MPA-4 (pair) is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

not very controlled bassAudiophilepure 2014

Sugden ANV 50

2 lost· 2 won · BBC Sound, Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Sugden ANV 50 keeps the slot by a whisker.

EAR Yoshino 890

2 lost · Intimate

Against the Intimate brief, the EAR Yoshino 890 keeps the slot decisively.

With the EAR Yoshino 868L (Line), the pairing gives up most on midrange truth.

On its own merits the Sugden Masterclass MPA-4 (pair) is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

Sugden Class A monoblock pairSugden Masterclass MPA-4 monoblocks

Leema Hydra II

2 lost · Characterful, Romantic

Against the Characterful brief, the Leema Hydra II keeps the slot decisively.

With the Emmae Reginae (custom), the pairing gives up most on bass control.

With the Leema Neutron, the pairing gives up most on vocal presence.

On its own merits the Sugden Masterclass MPA-4 (pair) is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

not very controlled bassAudiophilepure 2014

Longdog Audio P6100M (pair)

1 lost · Anchored

Against the Anchored brief, the Longdog Audio P6100M (pair) keeps the slot decisively.

With the Neat Petite Classic, the pairing gives up most on bass control.

With the NVA P50SA MKII, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.

On its own merits the Sugden Masterclass MPA-4 (pair) is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

low grain/noisePROXY: Sugden Masterclass house
not very controlled bassAudiophilepure 2014

NVA S300 Stereo (Artisan)

1 lost · Intimate

Against the Intimate brief, the NVA S300 Stereo (Artisan) keeps the slot decisively.

With the NVA P50SA MKII, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.

On its own merits the Sugden Masterclass MPA-4 (pair) is the stronger pair of monoblocks — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the NVA P50SA MKII gives up quietness at rest under the Intimate weighting.

low grain/noisePROXY: Sugden Masterclass house

Exposure 3510

1 lost · Twin Arms

No completion of this shape fits that slot's budget.

Audio Note P1 SE

1 lost · Intimate

Against the Intimate brief, the Audio Note P1 SE keeps the slot decisively.

With the Audio Note M2 Phono, the pairing gives up most on midrange truth.

With the Emmae Reginae (custom), the pairing gains most on timing and drive.

On its own merits the Sugden Masterclass MPA-4 (pair) is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

Sugden Class A monoblock pairSugden Masterclass MPA-4 monoblocks
not very thrilling dynamicsAudiophilepure 2014

Exposure XM9 Biamp 2x2 (4 units)

1 lost · PRaT

Against the PRaT brief, the Exposure XM9 Biamp 2x2 (4 units) keeps the slot decisively.

With the Emmae Reginae (custom), the pairing gives up most on timing and drive.

With the NVA P50SA MKII, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.

On its own merits the Sugden Masterclass MPA-4 (pair) is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

low grain/noisePROXY: Sugden Masterclass house
not very thrilling dynamicsAudiophilepure 2014

What the reviewers said

Sugden Class A monoblock pair Sugden Masterclass MPA-4 monoblocks· Harmonic texture
not very controlled bass Audiophilepure 2014· Bass control
not very thrilling dynamics Audiophilepure 2014· Dynamic coherence
grain-free, sweet richness PROXY: Sugden Masterclass Class A house· Tonal body
low grain/noise PROXY: Sugden Masterclass house· Electrical noise floor

How it scores

Clarity

  • Electrical noise floor 72 from listening evidence

Voice

  • Tonal body 72 from listening evidence
  • Harmonic texture 72 from listening evidence

Bass

  • Bass control 64 from listening evidence
  • Physical impact 66 from specification
  • Bass extension 66 from specification

LowerVolume

  • Low-level noise floor 78 from specification
  • Micro-dynamic resolution 76 from specification
  • Tonal consistency 76 from specification

Specifications

is monoblockTrue
is balanced internalTrue
power classA
power 8ohm w165.0
power 4ohm w250.0
damping factor100.0
accepts rcaFalse
accepts xlrTrue
accepts dinFalse
input impedance rca kohm47.0
input sensitivity rca mv110.0
input sensitivity xlr mv1000.0
speaker terminal typebinding post
speaker terminal count1
gain db32.0
snr db85.0
frequency response hz15/30000
dimensions mm430/250/360
weight kg25.0
sold as pairTrue
notes