Hello all,
I am just curious ... I have finished an ESP 88-based preamp and am building a single board, 90 w/ch P3A amp. I haven't had the pleasure of auditioning many high-end amps, so I don't have a feel for where the P3a stands in the great scheme of things.
Assuming a P3A is well-built with quality (but not outrageous "boutique") parts, what sort of commercial offerings would it compete with, and what would be the price range?
Thanks all!
I am just curious ... I have finished an ESP 88-based preamp and am building a single board, 90 w/ch P3A amp. I haven't had the pleasure of auditioning many high-end amps, so I don't have a feel for where the P3a stands in the great scheme of things.
Assuming a P3A is well-built with quality (but not outrageous "boutique") parts, what sort of commercial offerings would it compete with, and what would be the price range?
Thanks all!
Wrong question. Which would give you greater satisfaction,
the amp you built yourself, or the Krell Reference Standard?
the amp you built yourself, or the Krell Reference Standard?
I have compared the P3A with various stock commercial units, and it can rival amps costing around $400-600.
Since I have low impedance, relatively inefficient speakers (4 ohm, 86dB with 1W @ 1m), I was able to add an extra set of output devices, and a large heatsink / active cooling arrangement. With this load my P3A runs much cooler than my Dad's Arcam Alpha 6 amp - which has a similar power rating and a large power supply, but a much lighter duty output stage / heatsinking arrangement. When you build it yourself you can afford to tailor the amp to your needs!
I say go for it, you won't be disappointed
Tim.
Since I have low impedance, relatively inefficient speakers (4 ohm, 86dB with 1W @ 1m), I was able to add an extra set of output devices, and a large heatsink / active cooling arrangement. With this load my P3A runs much cooler than my Dad's Arcam Alpha 6 amp - which has a similar power rating and a large power supply, but a much lighter duty output stage / heatsinking arrangement. When you build it yourself you can afford to tailor the amp to your needs!
I say go for it, you won't be disappointed
Tim.
Hello Tim,
How did you change the output stage with more transistors on
p3a amp ? I have mine completed 90%, just waiting on mica washers (ordered wrong style by mistake).
Jean.
How did you change the output stage with more transistors on
p3a amp ? I have mine completed 90%, just waiting on mica washers (ordered wrong style by mistake).
Jean.
Parallel output transistors
Have a look at Rod's artile on heatsinking (http://sound.westhost.com/heatsinks.htm). Look for Figure 4 about halfway down the page on how to do this. Hope this helps.
Martin
Have a look at Rod's artile on heatsinking (http://sound.westhost.com/heatsinks.htm). Look for Figure 4 about halfway down the page on how to do this. Hope this helps.
Martin
I liked the P3A a lot. Not enough to trade in my heat-generating JLH 🙂 but i definitely could live with it if i needed more power. As i said before, easily one of the best AB amps i've heard.
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