which pass amp for ellis audio 1801b's?

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Can anyone offer advice on which pass amp to build to match with the Ellis Audio 1801b's? They are 83db @ 1w/1m efficient, and very accurate. Preferably I would rather one that sounds more "tube-like" to match with the 1801b's. Thanks 🙂
 
I would speculate that the most likely reason is that the Aleph 2 clones and discussion threads started first,
and this initiated quite a few projects... (thanks to the BrianGT PCB) Then transformer purchases for the 42V rails leads you down the Aleph 2 path.
Wouldn't you rather have 100W anyway? 😉

Here are some other PCB design threads in case anyone is interested and doesn't want to use the search.

Aleph 3
Aleph 5
Aleph 60

I have seen the one board/channel, and the 3 board/channel implementations.
What I have not yet seen is a 2 board mono-block, like on the actual Volksamps.
Putting the Active Current Source components on one board,
and the differential input and the output components one another board
would be a clean design, with only a few wires between them.

I used the 3 board approach... and the chassis does get full!
 
After some reading and studying, I may try to build an Aleph 30, and see how that comes out, learn a little, before trying to tackle an Aleph 2 or X.

Looks like the hardest part of building an amp is finding heatsinks and the mechanical assembly of the hardware.
 
ellis audio

I would suggest about 18V rails and 2.5 amps on an Aleph X. With this you stay in the sub-monster range (ease of construction and $$ is the issue)
Any time you want to really crank the volume, switch to an ordinary 100-120 w/ch amp.
 
How much power is the Aleph X with the 18 volt rails? I'm not sure there is a firm circuit design out there for the "X". or is there?

I'm sure the improvement that the "X" driver circuit provdes would be nice even in a lower powered amp.
 
Re: ellis audio

colwaiting said:
I would suggest about 18V rails and 2.5 amps on an Aleph X. With this you stay in the sub-monster range (ease of construction and $$ is the issue)
Any time you want to really crank the volume, switch to an ordinary 100-120 w/ch amp.

Due to space / money concerns (not currently having a 100-120 w/ch amp), I can only do one amp. The Aleph X looks interesting, but can it produce 100-120 watts? Also, is anyone making a PCB for the Aleph X at that power? Since this is my first solid state amplifier project (done tubes, but much fewer parts in those), I don't want to attempt P2P wiring.

Assuming there isn't an Aleph X board at that power, do I go Aleph 2 then? The Aleph 60 or 30 do not offer enough power for my application.
 
No, it's not firm, but that is part of the fun?!
Rough guess, 35-40W.
One thing about the "X" is that it is good for an eight-ohmer, because with the bridging topology, It can get the voltage without needing excessive class A amperage. ( perhaps I'm forgetting that excessive goes together with much about pass amps...)
 
No, it's not firm, but that is part of the fun?!

I could probably make tweaks to the Aleph-2 or 30 circuits. Power supply changes etc.. but I'm not sure I would like to burn up a pile of FETs every night, experimenting with circuit topologies.

I wonder if the existing "X" circuits sound better than the other Aleph circuits yet.

It can get the voltage without needing excessive class A amperage.

Does this mean better sound with smaller heat sinks for a given power output than other Aleph amps?
 
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