My 1st Aleph Amp - Page 3

hifimaker · 16th March 2006, 06:43 AM

Well I'm finally done... almost. The Antek transformer buzzes something aweful, you can hear it across the room and the right channel hums at the same resonance as the transformer.

Other then this last item, everything is working perfectly. The sound is more laid back like a tube system. The imaging is unbelievable. It sounds like there is a large monoral speaker in the center of my listening room.

The front panel is 1" thick lexan that I frosted with an orbital sander using 120 grit paper. The recessed holes are drilled with a forstner bit on my drill press.

Here are a couple more pics:

hifimaker · 16th March 2006, 06:45 AM

Inside...

hifimaker · 16th March 2006, 06:47 AM

Driver board close-up

hifimaker · 16th March 2006, 06:48 AM

Close-up of the front panel...

steenoe · 16th March 2006, 07:28 AM

Quote:

Here are a couple more pics:

Just beautiful. Very nice work, David

Steen

jacco vermeulen · 16th March 2006, 09:39 AM

David,

don´t bother telling people this is a DIY amp, no one is going to believe you !
The bumper sticker is not going to help.
All those socket head screws makes me scent a metal mechanical man, my kind of bolts. Very sturdy and very nice.

hifimaker · 16th March 2006, 08:38 PM

Thanks guys for the compliments! Jacco I got a good chuckle from the bumper sticker comment, thanks.

I found the source of the loud buzz. I traced it back to my front porch light. Who would have thought!

I still have a slight hum on the right channel. I'm trying to trace back to the offending part or a possible ground loop.

The sound is out of this world. The sound stage is just as incredible as the imaging. In the last song on Sargent Pepper, Day in a life, a little more than half way through the decaying piano you hear someone in the studio rocking on a chair or stool, then followed by someone whistering "SSShhhhh". Awesome detail.

The remander of the system is a Marantz CD63 driving an Adcom GDA-700 balanced DAC, a basic BOSOZ, and the Aleph30. The speakers are Vandersteen 2ce's with Audio Magic speaker wire in a bi-wired configuration. Also the interconnects are the top end cables from DIYCable.com.

I really liked the 200w per channel ROTEL 550bx the Aleph30 replaces, but the Aleph in a whole level better. The Aleph30 just grabs the speaker cones by the horns and demonstrates it authority over the whole audio range.

I was concerned that 30 watts per channel would not be enough for the Vandersteen's, but the system actually plays loud enough with enough authority for my enjoyment.

The bumper sticker on the back says it all: THANK YOU Nelson for your generousity and support!

-David

eapavant · 17th March 2006, 10:56 PM

Very nice job! I really like the front panel. It gives me something to aim for in my aleph in progress. What is your transformer rated at? It looks like you switched from two to one?

hifimaker · 18th March 2006, 05:14 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by eapavant
Very nice job! I really like the front panel. It gives me something to aim for in my aleph in progress. What is your transformer rated at? It looks like you switched from two to one?

Yes I switched from 2 transformers to 1 based on recommendations here in the forum. I think I have gotten good advise which is if you are using 2 transformers you need 2 bridges, and I only planned on using 1 PSU.

The transformer is an Antek 45+45 at 800VA. I hooked up the primaries for 230VAC to run off 120VAC to get 22.5+22.5VAC. The transformer is not very expensive on eBay. It does hum however, enough so that you can hear it in a silent room about a foot away.

I was so excited at getting the amp working I couldn't even remember what it replaced. Yes it is that good!

The Aleph replaced a Rotel 990bx and not the 550bx.

-David

lscangus · 20th March 2006, 08:39 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by dw8083

Yes I switched from 2 transformers to 1 based on recommendations here in the forum. I think I have gotten good advise which is if you are using 2 transformers you need 2 bridges, and I only planned on using 1 PSU.

The transformer is an Antek 45+45 at 800VA. I hooked up the primaries for 230VAC to run off 120VAC to get 22.5+22.5VAC. The transformer is not very expensive on eBay. It does hum however, enough so that you can hear it in a silent room about a foot away.

I was so excited at getting the amp working I couldn't even remember what it replaced. Yes it is that good!

The Aleph replaced a Rotel 990bx and not the 550bx.

-David

What is the BIAS current and the rail voltage of your amp?

16th March 2006, 09:39 AM	#26
jacco vermeulen diyAudio Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: At the sea front, Rotterdam or Curaçao	David, don´t bother telling people this is a DIY amp, no one is going to believe you ! The bumper sticker is not going to help. All those socket head screws makes me scent a metal mechanical man, my kind of bolts. Very sturdy and very nice. __________________ Not so much,.......if it says "ZM" in the corner.

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16th March 2006, 08:38 PM	#27
hifimaker diyAudio Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: San Jose	Thanks guys for the compliments! Jacco I got a good chuckle from the bumper sticker comment, thanks. I found the source of the loud buzz. I traced it back to my front porch light. Who would have thought! I still have a slight hum on the right channel. I'm trying to trace back to the offending part or a possible ground loop. The sound is out of this world. The sound stage is just as incredible as the imaging. In the last song on Sargent Pepper, Day in a life, a little more than half way through the decaying piano you hear someone in the studio rocking on a chair or stool, then followed by someone whistering "SSShhhhh". Awesome detail. The remander of the system is a Marantz CD63 driving an Adcom GDA-700 balanced DAC, a basic BOSOZ, and the Aleph30. The speakers are Vandersteen 2ce's with Audio Magic speaker wire in a bi-wired configuration. Also the interconnects are the top end cables from DIYCable.com. I really liked the 200w per channel ROTEL 550bx the Aleph30 replaces, but the Aleph in a whole level better. The Aleph30 just grabs the speaker cones by the horns and demonstrates it authority over the whole audio range. I was concerned that 30 watts per channel would not be enough for the Vandersteen's, but the system actually plays loud enough with enough authority for my enjoyment. The bumper sticker on the back says it all: THANK YOU Nelson for your generousity and support! -David

17th March 2006, 10:56 PM	#28
eapavant diyAudio Member Join Date: Aug 2005	Very nice job! I really like the front panel. It gives me something to aim for in my aleph in progress. What is your transformer rated at? It looks like you switched from two to one?