Post your Solid State pics here

Last edited:
Doing the hardware first (2 identical units) and then deciding what to actually stick in them. Still need cleaning up and anodizing. Sinks should be good for up to around 80W per channel class-A
 

Attachments

  • amps.jpg
    amps.jpg
    302.3 KB · Views: 1,487
New Enclosures

Thx for the comments. Inside view. Enclosure only at the moment. Have mill in the garage so can do some milling (I am fitter by trade from another life) Need to finish off venting in the lid and base as well.
Probably put a design based on the blameless/badger in one of these and something else in another (SKA??) so I can truly compare.
Will also integrate a CS4398 DAC, so will end up to be really a "digital only" integrated amp (not interested in analog inputs since everything I own is SPDIF)

I now own a company that designs/manufacturers audio equipment for tourism, but haven't built a decent amp from myself in 20 yrs. Have plenty of experience in PCB design/layout and also with DAC's, but not much recently with true analog design, so learning quite a bit all over again (Thx Cordell and Self)

Have some Tannoy DC8T's and an old-ish Denon AVC-A1SE which is in serious need of an upgrade to match my speakers!!

Jas
 

Attachments

  • P1020232.JPG
    P1020232.JPG
    400.6 KB · Views: 780
Thx for the comments. Inside view. Enclosure only at the moment. Have mill in the garage so can do some milling (I am fitter by trade from another life) Need to finish off venting in the lid and base as well.
Probably put a design based on the blameless/badger in one of these and something else in another (SKA??) so I can truly compare.
Will also integrate a CS4398 DAC, so will end up to be really a "digital only" integrated amp (not interested in analog inputs since everything I own is SPDIF)

I now own a company that designs/manufacturers audio equipment for tourism, but haven't built a decent amp from myself in 20 yrs. Have plenty of experience in PCB design/layout and also with DAC's, but not much recently with true analog design, so learning quite a bit all over again (Thx Cordell and Self)

Have some Tannoy DC8T's and an old-ish Denon AVC-A1SE which is in serious need of an upgrade to match my speakers!!

Jas

When I bought plate aluminum cut to size from Capral it all came with bows in it, do you have that issue?

David

PS Nice case buy the way, I had mine powder coated with Interpon Asteroid looks great cost a bit though. I got lucky as the powder coater had just enough left to do my cases otherwise it would have cost a LOT more.
 
When I bought plate aluminum cut to size from Capral it all came with bows in it, do you have that issue?

David

PS Nice case buy the way, I had mine powder coated with Interpon Asteroid looks great cost a bit though. I got lucky as the powder coater had just enough left to do my cases otherwise it would have cost a LOT more.


Heatsinks came from Conrad. I had to machine them as they weren't exactly square. They aren't extrusions but instead are high pressure injected aluminium. Plate came from Action Aluminium in Brisvegas and they cut to size which was great as many places won't and instead want you to buy 2.4m x 1.2m sheets! I plan to get the all the silver parts linished and anodized.
The front is also to have a LCD graphic display as I am planning a few neat features for this design using a STM32 processor (ARM cortex M3)
 
Heatsinks came from Conrad. I had to machine them as they weren't exactly square. They aren't extrusions but instead are high pressure injected aluminium. Plate came from Action Aluminium in Brisvegas and they cut to size which was great as many places won't and instead want you to buy 2.4m x 1.2m sheets! I plan to get the all the silver parts linished and anodized.
The front is also to have a LCD graphic display as I am planning a few neat features for this design using a STM32 processor (ARM cortex M3)

Was the aluminum from Action Aluminum flat & true when you got it?
 
Bit strange, as one would expect Conrad to linish three sides.

What I meant was that to bolt the heatsinks to the front panel, they weren't 100% square on the ends, so when you flip another heatsink around to bolt to the other side, you end up with twice the error, so I had to machine the ends so it squared up when both were bolted to the front panel.
Conrad machines the face flat for the components, the remainder is how it comes out of the die.

They are good heatsinks although I would have liked them bigger for even more class-A!!
 
Arduino controlled Pre-Amp and Amplifier

Here's a few pics of what I have been up to for the last few months (Pre-amp and Power Amp).

Each unit has it's own Arduino Uno board.These micros are dirt cheap and in my opinion you would be hard pressed to find a cheaper alternative for DIY electronic projects.

A few details:
The pre-amp is based on a TI stereo volume control chip (PGA2320),it utilizes
a 3.2 inch resistive touch display from 4D Systems,this company has provided
a lot of free development tools to facilitate working with their displays.Input source selection uses an Analog Devices SSM2404 analog switch,2 line level sources can be switched in.Both chips are controlled by the Uno board,you can use the touch screen to set the volume or use the knob.

The Pre-amp/Amp also have capacitive touch capability from the front panel,The brass rods connect to a 12 channel capacitive sense controller from Sparkfun(MPR121),I realize this is redundant but I wanted the ability to develop with both methods from one box. I am treating both units as development tools for future projects.

The Sure 250 watt Class D amp has really exceeded my expectations, (aside from the PWM frequency adjustment issue).The Amp runs very cool even at High listening levels.I added a temperature sensor(LM35) to the Amp to monitor the heat sink temperature,this info is displayed on the screen.Since this unit is micro controlled I could easily add code to activate a cooling fan if desired.

I designed both the boxes in the "Arts and Crafts" style,I wanted to achieve a sense of depth from any viewing angle so I offset most of the joinery.

The very rare 3 string acoustic guitars were an afterthought...BTW I used genuine Martin guitar strings!

Here is a link to more photos:
robertcottiers's Album: Arduino Audio Projects


Bob C.
 

Attachments

  • sureamp 227.jpg
    sureamp 227.jpg
    259.4 KB · Views: 1,516
  • sureamp 221.jpg
    sureamp 221.jpg
    238.4 KB · Views: 1,448
  • sureamp 237.jpg
    sureamp 237.jpg
    203 KB · Views: 1,400
  • IMAG0184.jpg
    IMAG0184.jpg
    204.9 KB · Views: 1,329
  • IMG_0983.JPG
    IMG_0983.JPG
    238.8 KB · Views: 1,310
Hello Mark: I took a look at your tube amps I really like the "Arabella"....That Acacia base is just stunning!....Your other projects are top notch also.

I used a 4D systems Display(Australian based) in both units.Great support along with Cutting edge Software support.

Best Regards
Bob C.
Thanks for taking the time to look at my blog and for the nice comments. I'm about to start a 6V6 amp using some very old Australian made 6V6s, 80 rec. tube and 6SN7. I'm glad an Ozzie company 4D is making a mark.