Power amp case faceplate, you like aluminium or wood ?
Hello
For commercials or diy amps, it's mostly made in aluminium and only few are made with woods. Things are changing ? or aluminium will continue to be the most popular ?
For a power amp case faceplate (or chassis front Panel), what do you prefer, aluminium or wood ?
For myself I like woods faceplate.
Thank
Gaetan
Hello
For commercials or diy amps, it's mostly made in aluminium and only few are made with woods. Things are changing ? or aluminium will continue to be the most popular ?
For a power amp case faceplate (or chassis front Panel), what do you prefer, aluminium or wood ?
For myself I like woods faceplate.
Thank
Gaetan
Black anodised aluminium.
Wood is 'pretty', and makes each item unique, but for a power amp I look for 'fade into the back-ground' black.
Now, pre-amps... Jarrah! And I'd like to replace the fromt panel of my Marantz tuner with reddish-blonde Tasmanian Oak...
But all my stuff is basic black except the afore-mentioned tuner.
Wood is 'pretty', and makes each item unique, but for a power amp I look for 'fade into the back-ground' black.
Now, pre-amps... Jarrah! And I'd like to replace the fromt panel of my Marantz tuner with reddish-blonde Tasmanian Oak...
But all my stuff is basic black except the afore-mentioned tuner.
Each can look nice in their own respect. For valve amplifiers, with exposed chassis on the top, I like natural wood sides or wooden base altogether, but for solid state with nothing pretty to see I suppose aluminum, anodised or brushed, is OK. I have made preamps with wooden ash front panel painted delicate black and it looks really nice. I've never seen a preamp with a natural wood front panel but it might look nice too.
Wade
Wade
Wood is probably questionable with regards to regulatory requirements on safety (flammable) in most countries. I can see commercial manufacturers avoiding it for that reason. Some years ago, it was common for receivers to have wooden covers, with just some metal perf screen for ventilation. Now even wood side panels are rare. My preference is for aluminum chassis' with standard 1/8" aluminum rack panels.
Yes you can..but that leaves ugly scratches and dents...😀
Anodised is the way I went http://www.par-metal.com/
Series 12.
Dave
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Hi,
there are a few up-market units with sculpted wood facias. They can look very good.
I do not see a safety problem other than fuel for a fire. By then your fusing has failed to do it's job.
there are a few up-market units with sculpted wood facias. They can look very good.
I do not see a safety problem other than fuel for a fire. By then your fusing has failed to do it's job.
Certainly risks are low for a wood front panel, but in today's regulatory and legal environment, any risk that can be reduced from low to non-existent, likely will be.
I_Forgot said:
Glass, plastic, ceramic - but each brings their own set of problems (eitehr with longevity or with the initial working with them).
who says it needs a front panel? google "josh stippich." His work transcends metalwork and becomes sculpture.
Think outside the box... (that terrible joke was maliciously and deliberately inflicted)
I saw a nice amp in a little wooden treasure chest a while ago.
I've even seen a timber box painted with hammered metal finish paint.
It all depends on the surrounding features really. do you want it to fade into the background? do you want it to be disguised as something else? do you want it to look like an amp?
For my next project I'm looking at a pair of 20W class A monoblocks with regulated power supply in a pair of recycled 3U heatsink sided rack cases, I was going to cut the rack "ears" off and glue some 1/4 inch ply to the 3mm aluminium front panel. then run around the edges with a router with a 45 degree chamfer that extends halfway though the 3mm aluminiuim. the cases would be stood on their backs on the floor next to the speakers on wooden plinths made from old skirting board, all cables exit the back (now the bottom) through a slot in the back of the plinth.
Think outside the box... (that terrible joke was maliciously and deliberately inflicted)
I saw a nice amp in a little wooden treasure chest a while ago.
I've even seen a timber box painted with hammered metal finish paint.
It all depends on the surrounding features really. do you want it to fade into the background? do you want it to be disguised as something else? do you want it to look like an amp?
For my next project I'm looking at a pair of 20W class A monoblocks with regulated power supply in a pair of recycled 3U heatsink sided rack cases, I was going to cut the rack "ears" off and glue some 1/4 inch ply to the 3mm aluminium front panel. then run around the edges with a router with a 45 degree chamfer that extends halfway though the 3mm aluminiuim. the cases would be stood on their backs on the floor next to the speakers on wooden plinths made from old skirting board, all cables exit the back (now the bottom) through a slot in the back of the plinth.
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