Some questions about ALEPH SAGA...

[gionag]

Hi guys

i've just finished the F3 and i'm very pleased by "HIS" sound but now i'm looking for something with more power.

I ever heard about Aleph and its marvlous performance, but, which model ?
i know :
Aleph 1.2/2/3/4/5
Aleph 30/75
Aleph L/P
Aleph X
What is the cronological order ?

what are the performances of these amps ? i'm looking for something at around 75/100W.

Aleph 2 is very different from aleph 4 ? and on what are based aleph 30 and 75 ?


THANKS !

[gionag]

I thought that was a simple question
there are million people that had build the aleph and no one know the diffeference between them ?

i'll try with more difficult question
How much DC current draw the Aleph 2 on the +VCC and on -VCC (P/channel) ?

[Manu]

Originally posted by gionag

Aleph 1.2/2/3/4/5
Aleph 30/75
Aleph L/P
Aleph X

Hi,
Aleph L / P are preamps.
L is unbalanced, P is balanced (unbalanced operation possible though)

Aleph 1.2/2/3/4/5 are power amps.
In order of decreasing power : Aleph 1.2 - 2 / 4 - 5 - 3
Aleph 75 doesn't exist but there is an power amp called A75 (see Passdiy.com)

Aleph X is Aleph X
(several versions with different output power rating)
There are lot of thread on this matter. Just bother the search ...

Hope it helps a little

Manu

[gionag]

yeah ! thanks.... but, what is the main difference between the aleph 2 and the aleph 4 ??

thanks

[Manu]

A4 could be considered as a stereo version of A2.
Only few ppl (afaik) have build it, I guess because it request mucho huge Heatsinks.
Considering the schematic there are marginal differences between the 2.
My guess is that A2 has little more bias and would better fit with lower impedance speakers...

Manu

BTW : generally A5 is prefered because of good balance between availlable power and heat dissipation (means hardware) (with somewhat lower rail and a little more bias you can drive easilly most of 4R speakers)
And if you need more power, more bass control, you'll go A2, but need also bigger hardware.

Of course it is not just a question of power etc, there are some subtile differences in sonic signature too...
(Papa stated somewhere that he prefered A2 ...)

Manu

[dms]

Hi Gionag,
I built an Aleph 4, because I needed at least 100 watts per channel. I have large heatsinks, but more importantly I have a large blower in the next room running at 1/2 voltage to quiet it down to an acceptable level. The air enters a cabinet under the amp and blows up through slots and keeps the amp warm but not hot. As to the sound, I have used the aleph to drive my 4 ohm dynaudio geminis crossed over above 100 hz, and I thought the sound was very detailed, but my source impedance is not happy driving a 10K attenuator and the 10K amp. Now I am using the aleph to drive my 4 ohm NHT woofers below 100 Hz. I am very happy with the bass. It is subterraneous, and I have added about 1/2 octave to familiar music. There seems to be plenty of snap and transients are very good. I can't comment on other alephs since I have only listened to the 4. However, I am building 30s to run the dynaudios. Some have commented that the 30 is an 8 ohm speaker amplifier. Nelson has said the aleph circuitry is not that sensitive to loading. I am planning to build a preamp and crossover next which will eliminate any loading issues. My overall impression of the Aleph is state of the art detail with slight softening of dynamics. Very revealing of recordings though, any distortion present is in your face. Clean recordings make my feet jump and heart sing. If tone and harmonics and reality are important to you, you will probably like the result. My source is usually an Ayre 7xe CD player and a VPI/Grado $300/Pearl combination. The Pearl needs help driving the passive volume aleph combination. The Crossover is a single capacitor/resister for the high end and an opamp 24 db/octave for the low end. The different slopes don't bother me.
Don
Don

[Stefano]

Hi Gionag!
I think that the A75 (http://www.passdiy.com/pdf/A75p1.pdf) may be an interestin option if you need more power!
Tanti saluti e a presto!
Ste

[gionag]

in your opinion what is the best amp... the aleph75 or the Aleph2....

thanks

[Stefano]

They are very different, the Aleph 2 is an aleph-ccs, single-ended amplifier, the a75 is a more conventional (!) push-pull amplifier made to drive best more difficoult loads then the Aleph series, I think that the pdf file of the project is a very interesting lecture!

[gionag]

yeah ! i've read entire pdf and i'm enjoyed lecture.

but in terms of sound... which is for you the more pleasant ?

i'm looking for opinions about the sound.

I'm still oriented along the aleph2