Seeking kit or design for amp to drive B&W Nautilus 802
Greetings everyone,
I am looking to build a high-current amplifier to drive my B&W Nautilus 802s. I plan to biamp, so I'll need a total of four channels of amplification. These particular speakers are known to be difficult to drive since their impedance can vary from 3 ohms to 20+ ohms, with significant reactance. These speakers are often driven by the likes of Krell, Mark Levinson, Classe, etc. Although the speakers will handle 500 watts (8 ohms), 100-200 per speaker will be sufficient for the volumes I typically use.
While posting in other forums (AA and audio circle) I came across several possibilities: AKSA 100N (kit), Borbely Millenium (kit), and Leach (schematic). The replies to these posts, plus my searches in this forum, tell me that I won't go wrong with the AKSA 100N. Before I take the plunge, are there any other designs/kits I should consider?
I have access to a full electronics lab w/ power supplies, o'scopes, and (yeah! ) soldering irons.
Thanks in advance for your replies. And if anyone with whom I communicated in other forums reads this post, please don't think I am second guessing you- I am just trying to get as many perspectives from different communities as possible!
Geof
Greetings everyone,
I am looking to build a high-current amplifier to drive my B&W Nautilus 802s. I plan to biamp, so I'll need a total of four channels of amplification. These particular speakers are known to be difficult to drive since their impedance can vary from 3 ohms to 20+ ohms, with significant reactance. These speakers are often driven by the likes of Krell, Mark Levinson, Classe, etc. Although the speakers will handle 500 watts (8 ohms), 100-200 per speaker will be sufficient for the volumes I typically use.
While posting in other forums (AA and audio circle) I came across several possibilities: AKSA 100N (kit), Borbely Millenium (kit), and Leach (schematic). The replies to these posts, plus my searches in this forum, tell me that I won't go wrong with the AKSA 100N. Before I take the plunge, are there any other designs/kits I should consider?
I have access to a full electronics lab w/ power supplies, o'scopes, and (yeah! ) soldering irons.
Thanks in advance for your replies. And if anyone with whom I communicated in other forums reads this post, please don't think I am second guessing you- I am just trying to get as many perspectives from different communities as possible!
Geof
If you don't mind the heat, I'll gladly recommend the high power version of the AlephX. I recall Nelson saying (not exactly ) that his amps laugh with difficult loads. I personally own a pair of old
802 series one and there very happy with the AlephX. They easily drive the 800 matrix as well.
/Hugo
Oh, and welcome to the forum BTW.
) that his amps laugh with difficult loads. I personally own a pair of old 802 series one and there very happy with the AlephX. They easily drive the 800 matrix as well.
/Hugo
Oh, and welcome to the forum BTW.
I also own a pair of the original 802s with the Fibrecrete heads. They still sound great with my Super Leach Amp with fully Dual Mono Regulated Power Supplies and all current limiting removed. I also have the Leach Low TIM3 also with regulated power supplies and current limiting removed.
The Super Leach is a little more transparent and dynamic. I took the trouble to used fully matched transistors and bypassed all caps. The leftover devices were used for the TIM3s.
The original 802s did not "come alive" until the regulated supplies were used. Before that they were too "laid back".
The Super Leach is a little more transparent and dynamic. I took the trouble to used fully matched transistors and bypassed all caps. The leftover devices were used for the TIM3s.
The original 802s did not "come alive" until the regulated supplies were used. Before that they were too "laid back".
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