I have had a pair of Penultimate Zen boards for quite some time and and have never really tried them. They’ve been stuffed with premium parts and ready to be installed onto a heatsink to see if they still work.
I’m wondering if a DIYAudio standard issue ‘universal power supply’ including a 300va transformer with dual 18 volt secondaries would be sufficient to safely run these amps.
Do you have any experience with this version of Zen amp? If so, do you have any comments or advice?
Thanks
I’m wondering if a DIYAudio standard issue ‘universal power supply’ including a 300va transformer with dual 18 volt secondaries would be sufficient to safely run these amps.
Do you have any experience with this version of Zen amp? If so, do you have any comments or advice?
Thanks
Some of the boards from a certain EBay seller will not work when assembled according to their schematics. I found this out the hard way after building a set with premium components. Now I’m slowly reclaiming the components for other projects.
I bought these boards more than 10 years ago, I’m sure. I’ve carried them around with me everywhere I’ve gone and only once have I tried to test them. The power supply portion was very crude and scared me so I quit. I’ve since scrapped everything but the boards you see here.
Attachments
Finish it.
There are plenty of cases on ebay these days.
If you need help with anything just ask.
You owe it to yourself to finish it.
Assuming you build it for 2A bias, I would go with dual 300VA transformers. If you wanted to go with a single transformer, a 500VA would be ok.
Once you have a chassis and power supply built you can virtually then build anything without much additional effort.
There are plenty of cases on ebay these days.
If you need help with anything just ask.
You owe it to yourself to finish it.
Assuming you build it for 2A bias, I would go with dual 300VA transformers. If you wanted to go with a single transformer, a 500VA would be ok.
Once you have a chassis and power supply built you can virtually then build anything without much additional effort.
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To be clear, I can’t take credit for populating the boards, I bought them second hand which were inside of a very scary build. I only salvaged the boards and scraped what was left.
I’m still wondering if the DIYAudio universal power supply is appropriate to use here...
2 picoDumbs, I read your post from 2016(although I don’t understand electronics very well) and now I’m more excited than ever.
On close examination I noticed one large cap has a slight bubble on the top of its case. I think I’ll start by replacing that 10,000uf cap and change out the other while I’m at it. I should ask before placing an order, are there any other components you would recommend I change?
I’m still wondering if the DIYAudio universal power supply is appropriate to use here...
2 picoDumbs, I read your post from 2016(although I don’t understand electronics very well) and now I’m more excited than ever.
On close examination I noticed one large cap has a slight bubble on the top of its case. I think I’ll start by replacing that 10,000uf cap and change out the other while I’m at it. I should ask before placing an order, are there any other components you would recommend I change?
First off you should definitely have spares for all semiconductors.
4 of each of these
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/diodes-incorporated/ZVP3310A/ZVP3310A-ND/92627
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/diodes-incorporated/ZTX450/ZTX450-ND/92530
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/vishay-siliconix/IRFP054PBF/IRFP054PBF-ND/811616
2 of theses
http://www.digikey.com/product-deta...nics-cde/380LX103M050J052/338-2412-ND/1699321
10 of these Caps
http://www.digikey.com/product-deta...-components/EEU-FC1H221SB/P19655CT-ND/6109553
10 of these Zeners
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/on-semiconductor/1N4739A/1N4739A-ND/977242
10 of these diodes (cheap and useful for future projects)
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/on-semiconductor/1N4004/1N4004FSCT-ND/1626118
M3 Standoffs anything between 5mm and 10mm long should be good. Buy a stack of them maybe 30
M3 hex socket bolts, 5mm long for mounting pcbs
M3 washers
M3 spring washers
Thermal pads, the ones sold in the diyaudio store are extremely good.
Caps, bridge rectifier, thermistors, for psu.
You might like to wait till you have your chassis to decide on IEC connector, rca, binding post, etc.
First build the power supply, then wire it up in the chassis.
Test with a light bulb tester.
Then test psu voltages.
If all that looks good mount amp to heatsink, and wire it all up
4 of each of these
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/diodes-incorporated/ZVP3310A/ZVP3310A-ND/92627
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/diodes-incorporated/ZTX450/ZTX450-ND/92530
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/vishay-siliconix/IRFP054PBF/IRFP054PBF-ND/811616
2 of theses
http://www.digikey.com/product-deta...nics-cde/380LX103M050J052/338-2412-ND/1699321
10 of these Caps
http://www.digikey.com/product-deta...-components/EEU-FC1H221SB/P19655CT-ND/6109553
10 of these Zeners
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/on-semiconductor/1N4739A/1N4739A-ND/977242
10 of these diodes (cheap and useful for future projects)
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/on-semiconductor/1N4004/1N4004FSCT-ND/1626118
M3 Standoffs anything between 5mm and 10mm long should be good. Buy a stack of them maybe 30
M3 hex socket bolts, 5mm long for mounting pcbs
M3 washers
M3 spring washers
Thermal pads, the ones sold in the diyaudio store are extremely good.
Caps, bridge rectifier, thermistors, for psu.
You might like to wait till you have your chassis to decide on IEC connector, rca, binding post, etc.
First build the power supply, then wire it up in the chassis.
Test with a light bulb tester.
Then test psu voltages.
If all that looks good mount amp to heatsink, and wire it all up
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Nice to see some real Zen v4 boards. The Zen amplifier is designed to use a capacitance multiplier on the positive power rail, and connect to ground as the negative rail. The output voltage of the cap mx is set by a string of Zener diodes, and is also adjusted dynamically when music is playing. The Zen v4 is somewhat unique in this aspect.
A transformer with dual 18V secondaries (connected in series) can be used to provide a raw, unregulated supply from about 47V to 50V, depending on the size of the transformer and the quiescent current that the output stage is configured for. Standard Iq will range from about 1.8A to 2.0A depending on the resistors selected for the current source.
The PSU boards from the store are normally configured for positive and negative supply rails. It is possible to split them apart to get a pair of positive supplies, but that would need to be done carefully by reversing the polarity of the bulk capacitors on the negative side. The chassis and heatsinks will need to be able to dissipate about 100W per channel.
A transformer with dual 18V secondaries (connected in series) can be used to provide a raw, unregulated supply from about 47V to 50V, depending on the size of the transformer and the quiescent current that the output stage is configured for. Standard Iq will range from about 1.8A to 2.0A depending on the resistors selected for the current source.
The PSU boards from the store are normally configured for positive and negative supply rails. It is possible to split them apart to get a pair of positive supplies, but that would need to be done carefully by reversing the polarity of the bulk capacitors on the negative side. The chassis and heatsinks will need to be able to dissipate about 100W per channel.
The cap multiplier is on the amp pcb, so you won't need to add that, just in case that is worrying you.
Using the exact transformer
Would you mind pointing out the exact model I should use? I’m in the Philippines so I’ll need dual primaries in series to utilize the 230 volt grid here. I’m planning to have family send me a care package from Canada including items from Digi-Key etc. Buying supplies in Canada saves me a lot of money. Cross boarder shipping, not to mention over seas shipping can get costly and I’m on a super tight budget. Buying parts local to me, is a gamble. You never know if you’re getting quality or fake junk made in China.
Would you mind pointing out the exact model I should use? I’m in the Philippines so I’ll need dual primaries in series to utilize the 230 volt grid here. I’m planning to have family send me a care package from Canada including items from Digi-Key etc. Buying supplies in Canada saves me a lot of money. Cross boarder shipping, not to mention over seas shipping can get costly and I’m on a super tight budget. Buying parts local to me, is a gamble. You never know if you’re getting quality or fake junk made in China.
You could check out the Antek website.
Either 2 of these AS-3218 - 300VA 18V Transformer - AnTek Products Corp
Or one of these AN-5218 - 500VA 18V Transformer - AnTek Products Corp
Going with dual 300VA transformers would be better, they have a magnetic shield and an electrostatic screen. The 500VA transformer doesn't have these features.
If you want to get better quality then either Plitron, Nuvotem Talema, or Sumr transformers.
Richard is Canadian SumR - Richard Sumner Technology
Either 2 of these AS-3218 - 300VA 18V Transformer - AnTek Products Corp
Or one of these AN-5218 - 500VA 18V Transformer - AnTek Products Corp
Going with dual 300VA transformers would be better, they have a magnetic shield and an electrostatic screen. The 500VA transformer doesn't have these features.
If you want to get better quality then either Plitron, Nuvotem Talema, or Sumr transformers.
Richard is Canadian SumR - Richard Sumner Technology
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Digikey offers free shipping to Australia on orders over a certain value, maybe they also offer this to the Philippines.
Check it out.
Check it out.
The power supply has me a little confused.
TungstenAudio = “The PSU boards from the store are normally configured for positive and negative supply rails. It is possible to split them apart to get a pair of positive supplies, but that would need to be done carefully by reversing the polarity of the bulk capacitors on the negative side.” Me = I think I understand. Creating 2 supplies using one board. One supply for each amp.
RS Components here, sells an equivalent 300va/18v secondarily for $140, each. I’ll go with the AnTek.
I’ll look into Digi-Key about shipping. I don’t really like to bother family with shipping stuff for me but it could save some money if I can’t find another method.
I have a Digi-Key account and have almost a complete BOM but I’ll have to search a bit harder for a few parts that are unavailable though them though. I’ll check out their shipping policy as you suggested. Good idea, thanks.
I also want integrate a Mezmerize DCB1 into the case. I have the latest board from the store. I thought I would add the parts to the same order and have it all shipped at the same time.
I guess I should ask, is the Mez a good match the Zen amp?
TungstenAudio = “The PSU boards from the store are normally configured for positive and negative supply rails. It is possible to split them apart to get a pair of positive supplies, but that would need to be done carefully by reversing the polarity of the bulk capacitors on the negative side.” Me = I think I understand. Creating 2 supplies using one board. One supply for each amp.
RS Components here, sells an equivalent 300va/18v secondarily for $140, each. I’ll go with the AnTek.
I’ll look into Digi-Key about shipping. I don’t really like to bother family with shipping stuff for me but it could save some money if I can’t find another method.
I have a Digi-Key account and have almost a complete BOM but I’ll have to search a bit harder for a few parts that are unavailable though them though. I’ll check out their shipping policy as you suggested. Good idea, thanks.
I also want integrate a Mezmerize DCB1 into the case. I have the latest board from the store. I thought I would add the parts to the same order and have it all shipped at the same time.
I guess I should ask, is the Mez a good match the Zen amp?
That would be a good match.
Or a B1 Rev 2 but you would probably need to wire it up on proto board as I don't think there is a pcb for it.
Or a B1 Rev 2 but you would probably need to wire it up on proto board as I don't think there is a pcb for it.