DIY Class A stereo power amp build - ideas etc

HiFi
1

Winter’s coming, and I can only wear so many watches, so summat to play music on would be nice, but this is AA, so some faff is needed.

I’ve had a gutful of valves - ever-more-expensive and unreliable consumables, and me, are going our separate ways…

And I’ve had a gutful of badly-designed and badly built Chinese crap with underspec’d transformers and general “fuck-you-roundeyes” shittyness.

So I am starting to fancy ASSEMBLING something.

I DO WANT :

  1. Stereo power amp
  2. One box
  3. Class A
  4. At least 30 WPC of actual Class A, not Musical Fidelity Class A…
  5. Easily obtained output transistors
  6. Plenty of current
  7. Linear PSU with discrete-diode rectifiers, toroidal transformer/s, perhaps with scope to go 2nd-box dual-mono PSU at a later date if the build justifies it…
  8. discrete regulation

I DON’T WANT :
Your old project that you’re bored with
Your incomplete project that you’re bored with (PLENTY of my own)
To have to reinvent the wheel
To have to learn anything - I am old and lazy and stupid
To think for myself in any way shape or form…
To go anywhere near the twatfest that is DIYaudio if I can avoid it…
A complete ready-to-build kit
Unobtanium anything, esp. transistors

I want something for which the PCBs are readily available - don’t want to twat-about getting them made.

Pass clone of some sort? Or Hiraga? Or what?

Be ages before I get my finger out, but good to get some ideas moving.

1 Like
2

Contact Rabski.

12 Likes
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Get a Pass Labs Clone @Mrs_Maureen_OPinion. There are loads of details about. An F5 should be just the thing.

4

Unlikely that either of us will live long enough :joy:

1 Like
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That is one of any number of options, but it’s the nuts and bolts stuff I want to get down to - e.g. are decent PCBs available (lots on ebay claim to be, but are any kosher?), as the idea is to build-up from PCB using quality non-foo components, box it up, and then stand it in a corner and never listen to it, as per tradition :+1:

2 Likes
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@edd9000 should be able to answer those questions. I obviously avoid DIY strenuously myself.

1 Like
7

Kosher PCBs are available from Diyaudio for most of them.

I have a bunch of Aleph boards I had made up.

It’s boring but nothing touches the Pass stuff for ease of build/pets availability.

2 Likes
8

Boring’s fine, I’m only gonna be bunging stuff in holes and nailing it in a box, last thing I want is excitement. Good sound would be nice, tho. Which of the Aleph designs are the boards derived from?

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You can just get fully populated Aleph boards from eBay if you’re as lazy as I think you are

10

:roll_eyes:

11

I have a set of F5 boards you can have.

3 Likes
12

The alephs are essentially all the same, just voltage and number of output devices differ. The one I use are the The diyAudio Store - DIY amplifier kits, chassis, and parts boards.

You can build any aleph with them other than the J. Well you can do that too but it’s a bodge.

2 Likes
13

Look, they even have Nikon capacitors :heart_eyes::kissing_heart:

14

This is where

classic-painting-gifs-kiszkiloszki-9-5811b134ae003__605
classic-painting-gifs-kiszkiloszki-9-5811b134ae003__605475×602 1.86 MB

this happened

4 Likes
15

Aaaand onto the “ignore” list you go…

16

Something isn’t right there. The Aleph 30 has 6 output devices, not 2.

17

This is whole idea is missing Duelund & Slagle

…A FUCKING WHEELBARROW OF DUELUND & SLAGLE.

5 Likes
18

Uncle Joe

2 Likes
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Apologies for the common sense, I will return to the business at hand

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tumblr_m6ptcqAStR1rt28efo1_500450×562 605 KB

7 Likes
20

Well, you could use some Hammond chokes.