This all started three years ago. Having not upgraded my hifi for years I became infected with the upgrade disease on the Cyrusunofficial forum and upgraded my 8vs integrated to a pair of Mono X. Influenced by a member on there and here, Ian MacDonald, I then bought a Benchmark DAC1 HDR then soon after heard about the NCores. I’ve always like making things so this appealed. So I sold the Mono Xs and used the proceeds to buy the NC400 amplifier modules and matching SMPS600 power supplies. (I’ve since upgraded the DAC1 HDR to a DAC2 HGC but have kept the DAC1 for a second system).
I always intended to use nice cases, originally planning on a aluminium panel based design. This got as far as drawings and mock-up cases were made out of MDF. I have been using these mock-ups since!
The guy who was helping with the original design had some work done by the machine shop he intended using and it wasn’t great. He lost interest.
I then discussed the project with a friend of mine who’s a precision engineer. We discussed an inverted CNC design and he said that if I gave him proper drawings he would make them for me. I didn’t have the time to learn how to use CAD programs properly but a member of Cyrus Unofficial, Steve, kindly offered to help me out with the CNC design. Having drafted basic drawings I went back to my friend and well let’s just say he had a change of heart (we’re still friends though). Unfortunately the company Steve works for has been so busy, so his company making them was not viable plus Scotland is too far away for me to have been as closely involved as I have been. I then noticed a thread where Adam mentioned he could CNC cases and got in touch.
The design was refined and finalised and now they’ve been made.
Adam and I visited the anodising company, Alpha Anodising in High Wycombe. It was a journey of over three house for me but with the finish being so important I was keen to see samples before deciding on the chosen finish and Adam was keen to meet the company he is likely to use for various work in the future. It turns out they have been working with Naim for over 20 years, do work for Chord and also DCS. We viewed parts from the £125,000 Naim Statement amplifier, the Chord Chordette and the DCS Vivaldi. We agreed on a bead blasted, brightened and anodised finish for the cases and contrasting polished and anodised finish for the feet. I really struggled with my decision on colour but settled on black rather than silver in the end as the majority of my other components are black and it should go with anything I buy in future plus it should look great in either colour.
From a cost perspective I did consider getting a group together to make a batch but there are problems with this. People like to see a finished product as it’s a lot of money to risk; it makes sense to make one to check form and fit etc etc.
So this thread is to document the build for those who are interested in reading about projects and assist anyone who is considering going down the same route. Adam would be happy to make more and I believe it only right he gets to make a bit for his efforts as this first pair have been more of a labour of love given the time he’s put in.
From what I understand, these amplifiers are fantastic at any price and offer great value for money. Yes they’ll work well in a basic case but I think the outlay on some special cases is justified for use for what are clearly very special amps.
What do they cost you ask? Well the final total price is around £2,500 of which £1,300 (plus postage if applicable) is for the cases. Adam would be prepared to make more for around this price but a batch would be required to make it worthwhile with upfront commitment (deposit). To put this in context, my calculations suggest that this is about the same as the Kraemer Designs cases when duty, VAT and postage are taken into account. I’m happy to help with organising this but any dealings would be direct with Adam. The finish would be as mine but with choice of black or silver. Perhaps once mine are complete Adam will confirm details on the Vendor's section.
Original design and mock-ups
The photo below shows my mock-ups. I believe the orientation and layout to have been optimised. Signal wire length has been minimised. Distance between signal wire and SMPS maximised. Shielded mains cable is used. A mains filter has been built in. Biwiring has been facilitated with separate posts and wires as advised. Note that though not the case with these mock-ups, the link between the SMPS and NC400 shall be twisted as advised. They have of course been set up as balanced. This is recommended whether or not a balanced pre-amp is used (with an adapter if necessary).
Final specifications
The final case specifications are:
Dimensions:
Height including feet: 81 mm
Height without feet: 70 mm
Width: 225 mm
Depth excluding binding posts: 267 mm
Depth including binding posts: 312 mm (approx)
Weight: TBA
And the component specifications, some of which could be changed:
Drawings
Case Build
Images and videos of the progress. Bear in mind that they're being checked as they're made being the first pair.
Click on the following image to view a video:
And also this image for another video:
Final assembly - (the fun part)
To be updated once I have the cases back from Alpha Anondising and make a start which should be early next week.
I always intended to use nice cases, originally planning on a aluminium panel based design. This got as far as drawings and mock-up cases were made out of MDF. I have been using these mock-ups since!
The guy who was helping with the original design had some work done by the machine shop he intended using and it wasn’t great. He lost interest.
I then discussed the project with a friend of mine who’s a precision engineer. We discussed an inverted CNC design and he said that if I gave him proper drawings he would make them for me. I didn’t have the time to learn how to use CAD programs properly but a member of Cyrus Unofficial, Steve, kindly offered to help me out with the CNC design. Having drafted basic drawings I went back to my friend and well let’s just say he had a change of heart (we’re still friends though). Unfortunately the company Steve works for has been so busy, so his company making them was not viable plus Scotland is too far away for me to have been as closely involved as I have been. I then noticed a thread where Adam mentioned he could CNC cases and got in touch.
The design was refined and finalised and now they’ve been made.
Adam and I visited the anodising company, Alpha Anodising in High Wycombe. It was a journey of over three house for me but with the finish being so important I was keen to see samples before deciding on the chosen finish and Adam was keen to meet the company he is likely to use for various work in the future. It turns out they have been working with Naim for over 20 years, do work for Chord and also DCS. We viewed parts from the £125,000 Naim Statement amplifier, the Chord Chordette and the DCS Vivaldi. We agreed on a bead blasted, brightened and anodised finish for the cases and contrasting polished and anodised finish for the feet. I really struggled with my decision on colour but settled on black rather than silver in the end as the majority of my other components are black and it should go with anything I buy in future plus it should look great in either colour.
From a cost perspective I did consider getting a group together to make a batch but there are problems with this. People like to see a finished product as it’s a lot of money to risk; it makes sense to make one to check form and fit etc etc.
So this thread is to document the build for those who are interested in reading about projects and assist anyone who is considering going down the same route. Adam would be happy to make more and I believe it only right he gets to make a bit for his efforts as this first pair have been more of a labour of love given the time he’s put in.
From what I understand, these amplifiers are fantastic at any price and offer great value for money. Yes they’ll work well in a basic case but I think the outlay on some special cases is justified for use for what are clearly very special amps.
What do they cost you ask? Well the final total price is around £2,500 of which £1,300 (plus postage if applicable) is for the cases. Adam would be prepared to make more for around this price but a batch would be required to make it worthwhile with upfront commitment (deposit). To put this in context, my calculations suggest that this is about the same as the Kraemer Designs cases when duty, VAT and postage are taken into account. I’m happy to help with organising this but any dealings would be direct with Adam. The finish would be as mine but with choice of black or silver. Perhaps once mine are complete Adam will confirm details on the Vendor's section.
Original design and mock-ups
The photo below shows my mock-ups. I believe the orientation and layout to have been optimised. Signal wire length has been minimised. Distance between signal wire and SMPS maximised. Shielded mains cable is used. A mains filter has been built in. Biwiring has been facilitated with separate posts and wires as advised. Note that though not the case with these mock-ups, the link between the SMPS and NC400 shall be twisted as advised. They have of course been set up as balanced. This is recommended whether or not a balanced pre-amp is used (with an adapter if necessary).
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
Final specifications
The final case specifications are:
- Discrete machined logo on rear
- Components mounted upside down for clean look
- Bespoke machined feet
- 20mm Side, front and internal wall thicknesses
- Shielding walls between power, NCore module and SMPS compartments
- Raised earth points
- Built in earthed stand-off for SMPS earthed corner
- Contact points between bottom cover and case for Faraday cage effect
- Venting slots under power supply
- 3mm front LED whole with flush light pipe
- Balanced input (RCA convertor may be used with non-balanced pre-amps)
- 2 pairs of speaker outputs for bi (or tri) wiring
- IEC mains input – will fit Schaffner filter or standard IEC socket
- High quality stainless steel push button latching power switch
Dimensions:
Height including feet: 81 mm
Height without feet: 70 mm
Width: 225 mm
Depth excluding binding posts: 267 mm
Depth including binding posts: 312 mm (approx)
Weight: TBA
And the component specifications, some of which could be changed:
- Designed to fit WBT 0703-Cu (others may fit)
- Designed to fit Schaffner mains filter but standard IEC input will fit
- Designed to fit Schurter latching switch
- 3mm front LED hole with light pipe designed with 3mm blue LED in mind but easily changed
- Resistor chosen to reduce LED brightness
- Designed to fit Neutrik XLR input socket (others may fit)
- Supplied power lead replaced with custom shielded twin 1.5mm core internal mains wiring
- Mains connections using gold plated spade connectors (alternatively may be soldered)
- Stainless steel machine screws throughout
- 2.5 mm2 or 4 mm2 OFC litz internal speaker wires (depending how thick will fit)
- Supplied SMPS to NCore ‘umbilical’ fits without cutting when tightly twisted
- Supplied signal wire
Drawings
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
Case Build
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
Images and videos of the progress. Bear in mind that they're being checked as they're made being the first pair.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
Click on the following image to view a video:
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
And also this image for another video:
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
Final assembly - (the fun part)
To be updated once I have the cases back from Alpha Anondising and make a start which should be early next week.
I've just checked and they should be ok although they are being stretched for some reason but fine when clicked on. I'll try and sort them out when I get a chance.
Any marks you can see are finger print residue I missed.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
- Status
- Not open for further replies.