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Author Topic: Gainclone heaven ?  (Read 379946 times)
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Scroobius
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« Reply #240 on: December 18, 2012, 09:59:22 am »

Peter - Ah yes the traffo fixing well they are sitting on Blue Tack and you would be surprised at just how firmly they are in place. And NO FOR SURE I WOULD NOT CONSIDER courier transporting the amplifier anywhere with that arrangement (I thought I would say that before you ask ha ha). But they have been to visit Nick in my car like that without any problem. It was always (and still is) the intention to fit the securing bolts to the Traffo's but I just have not got round to it yet. I left them out because I was trying different locations for the traffos to see if I could hear any difference but I could not. I did not try one traffo on top of the other though and I will try that tonight.

So for everyone out there tempted to build a GC it is strongly recommended to fix your traffos in place with the supplied fixing kit.

I will try mounting one traffo on top of the other (just like in NOS1) but the amplifier case is not big enough to do that and get the lid back on. So I hope it makes no difference to SQ or I will be looking for a new case.

All the best

Paul

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« Reply #241 on: December 18, 2012, 10:07:41 am »

Nick - you mentioned using 4 traffo's and I guess that will be one traffo for each amp module. I considered doing just the same when I built mine and discussed it with Peter Daniel. He said that 2 traffos is a good idea (good for SQ for sure) but that 4 traffos would be a waste of resource and would not improve the SQ. In fact I seem to remember he mentioned that 4 traffos in his experience increases the chances of earth problems in a bi amped arrangement and he does not recommend it.

It was a while ago and you may wish to drop him an email to confirm that.

P
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« Reply #242 on: December 18, 2012, 10:20:13 am »

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So for everyone out there tempted to build a GC it is strongly recommended to fix your traffos in place with the supplied fixing kit.

I am not sure why you put this text here, but do notice that the bolt which is to be there in the middle IS part of the whole "construction". It can even be dangerous to leave it out. Think of the bolt acting like a coil. And for example, it is not allowed to fix that bolt to both the bottom and the top of the chassis (not that you would do that, but that will be esepcially dangeous).

Peter
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« Reply #243 on: December 18, 2012, 01:02:22 pm »

Nick - you mentioned using 4 traffo's and I guess that will be one traffo for each amp module. I considered doing just the same when I built mine and discussed it with Peter Daniel. He said that 2 traffos is a good idea (good for SQ for sure) but that 4 traffos would be a waste of resource and would not improve the SQ. In fact I seem to remember he mentioned that 4 traffos in his experience increases the chances of earth problems in a bi amped arrangement and he does not recommend it.

It was a while ago and you may wish to drop him an email to confirm that.

P

Paul,

Thanks for mentioning this, I was puzzled about how to tie the signal grounds using two transformers to power the modules for one channel (eg say left side speaker). Using PE it is possibly easy to establish a "good" sinal ground but poor for sound quality. In our setups with signal ground established by the PE back in the pc it could be more difficult to iron out any differences that two transformers in the same channel try to exert on the singnal ground.

I may just go for 2 x 500 va transformers to cater for the additional modules.

Cheers,

Nick.



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« Reply #244 on: December 18, 2012, 03:46:43 pm »

Quote
I may just go for 2 x 500 va transformers to cater for the additional modules.

Nick,

If this is going to be for a balanced setup, I think you will need separate secondaries for each "PSU" (plus separated from minus). Then still it may not work because the secundaries have to be isolated. I guess they normally are, but when not ... they should. With separate transformers for plus and minus it will always work.

Peter
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XXHighEnd Mach III Stealth LPS PC -> Xeon Scalable 14/28 core with Hyperthreading On (set to 14/28 cores in BIOS and set to 10/20 cores via Boot Menu) @~660MHz, 48GB, Windows 10 Pro 64 bit build 14393.0 from RAM, music on LAN / Engine#4 Adaptive Mode / Q1/-/3/4/5 = 14/-/0/0/*1*/ Q1Factor = *4* / Dev.Buffer = 4096 / ClockRes = *10ms* / Memory = Straight Contiguous / Include Garbage Collect / SFS = *10.13*  (max 10.13) / not Invert / Phase Alignment Off / Playerprio = Low / ThreadPrio = Realtime / Scheme = Core 3-5 / Not Switch Processors during Playback = Off/ Playback Drive none (see OS from RAM) / UnAttended (Just Start) / Always Copy to XX Drive (see OS from RAM) / Stop Desktop, Remaining, WASAPI and W10 services / Use Remote Desktop / Keep LAN - Not Persist / WallPaper On / OSD Off (!) / Running Time Off / Minimize OS / XTweaks : Balanced Load = *62* / Nervous Rate = *1* / Cool when Idle = n.a / Provide Stable Power = 1 / Utilize Cores always = 1 / Time Performance Index = Optimal / Time Stability = Stable / Custom Filtering *Low* (16x) / Always Clear Proxy before Playback = On -> USB3 from MoBo -> Lush^3
A: W-Y-R-G, B: *W-G* USB 1m00 -> Phisolator 24/768 Phasure NOS1a/G3 75B (BNC Out) async USB DAC, Driver v1.0.4b (16ms) -> B'ASS Current Amplifier -> Blaxius*^2.5* A:B-G, B:B-G Interlink -> Orelo MKII Active Open Baffle Horn Speakers. ET^2 Ethernet from Mach III to Music Server PC (RDC Control).
Removed Switching Supplies from everywhere (also from the PC).

For a general PC :
W10-10586.0 - May 2016 (2.05+)
*XXHighEnd PC -> I7 3930k with Hyperthreading On (12 cores)* @~500MHz, 16GB, Windows 10 Pro 64 bit build 10586.0 from RAM, music on LAN / Engine#4 Adaptive Mode / Q1/-/3/4/5 = 14/-/1/1/1 / Q1Factor = 1 / Dev.Buffer = 4096 / ClockRes = 1ms / Memory = Straight Contiguous / Include Garbage Collect / SFS = 0.10  (max 60) / not Invert / Phase Alignment Off / Playerprio = Low / ThreadPrio = Realtime / Scheme = Core 3-5 / Not Switch Processors during Playback = Off/ Playback Drive none (see OS from RAM) / UnAttended (Just Start) / Always Copy to XX Drive (see OS from RAM) / All Services Off / Keep LAN - Not Persist / WallPaper On / OSD On / Running Time Off / Minimize OS / XTweaks : Balanced Load = *43* / Nervous Rate = 1 / Cool when Idle = 1 / Provide Stable Power = 1 / Utilize Cores always = 1 / Time Performance Index = *Optimal* / Time Stability = *Stable* / Custom Filter *Low* 705600 / -> USB3 *from MoBo* -> Clairixa USB 15cm -> Intona Isolator -> Clairixa USB 1m80 -> 24/768 Phasure NOS1a 75B (BNC Out) async USB DAC, Driver v1.0.4b (4ms) -> Blaxius BNC interlink *-> B'ASS Current Amplifier /w Level4 -> Blaxius Interlink* -> Orelo MKII Active Open Baffle Horn Speakers.
Removed Switching Supplies from everywhere.

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« Reply #245 on: December 19, 2012, 02:36:00 pm »

I think Nick will be simply bi-amping but anyway my Airlinks had separate secondaries +22v  0v  0v  -22v  so would be good for balanced.

P
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« Reply #246 on: March 25, 2013, 11:30:17 pm »

I jumped on the bandwagon too and build up my first gainclone Wink. It's based on the integrated LM4780 chip with the hope that the specs of both amps are very near to each other. That works at least for the offset voltage that is exactly the same for both channels. It's done on the expense of channel separation but that's the decision. Input coupling capacitors are build up of 10 NOS WIMA MKS caps parallel soldered with a total value of 3,3 microFarad and the chip is connected with Dale instrument shunts. The power rails are fed by a  toroidal transformer build up with 4 Vishay Roederstein EYH Caps 6800 microFarad each, Elna Silmic 2 ROS caps 1000 MicroFarad and 100 MicroFarad Silimic 2 RFS near the chip. All signal cabling is silver (my wife is a part time silversmith  Happy) and power cables are of copper. The chip is cooled by two stripes of massive copper. All is build in an aluminium housing made for electrical installation.

The system is burning in but shows it's potential by now.  Cool

Georg
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-> WaveIO to dddac1794 or to Soekris DAM1021
-> SMSL SU-8 ES9038
-> 2x Gainclone -> TQWT 9710M/01 + BMS 4524 Horn
-> 2x Quad 405 rebuild as mono amps with Dada Electronics boards -> Quad ESL63 Pro
-> 2x Anaview ALC0300-1300 -> Original Celestion SL6 in concrete housing
-> 2x Neumann KH-120
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« Reply #247 on: March 26, 2013, 09:55:54 am »

Hey Georg

Sounds great and built with some nice components. A couple of things that came to light here that may be be of interest.

I changed the caps next to my modules from 1000uf to 1500uf and was supprised at the improvement in balance and control of the sound.

Also I suspected field interference from one of my transformers which are R-Core types and currently in the same box as the gainclone modules. The transformer was turned 180 degrees and the sound was really improved.

Might be worth playing about with these variables whilst the soldering iron is hot

keep is posted on how you system sounds as it runs in.

Cheers,

Nick.
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« Reply #248 on: March 26, 2013, 06:09:58 pm »

Hey Nick,

thanks for the hints  Happy - the soldering iron will be hot for a while. I will change the caps after burn in. Eventually I can get some blackgates for a while, the next weeks will be thrilling!

Cheers,
Georg
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USB3 from MoBo -> 2m Belkin -> Intona (Standard) with external power supply -> Clairixia cable
USB3 from MoBo -> 0,5m Belkin USB3 -> ALLDAQ ADQ-USB 3.0-ISO-PS with external power supply -> 2m Belkin USB2 cable

-> WaveIO to dddac1794 or to Soekris DAM1021
-> SMSL SU-8 ES9038
-> 2x Gainclone -> TQWT 9710M/01 + BMS 4524 Horn
-> 2x Quad 405 rebuild as mono amps with Dada Electronics boards -> Quad ESL63 Pro
-> 2x Anaview ALC0300-1300 -> Original Celestion SL6 in concrete housing
-> 2x Neumann KH-120
-> Funk MTX Monitor -> AKG K701
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« Reply #249 on: April 11, 2013, 07:56:31 pm »

Hi,

I finally got around to starting a gainclone MK II build and thought I'd post some pics of the build so far.

As you can see the modules and rectifiers are built (sourced from Peter Daniel) and I'm close to completing the case fit out. Next stage is wiring up then testing.

The final result will have balanced inputs and bridged and bi amped outputs, so it used 8 gainclone modules in all driving 4 output channels with each output having a pair of bridged modules. It's dual mono back as far as the mains input lead.

Really looking forwards to seeing how it all sounds.

Cheers,

Nick



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 w10 14393 RAM OS => XX V2.10 / adaptive mode / XX buffer 4096 / NOS USB driver v 1.02 buffer 16ms / Q1,2,3,4,5 = 10,-,1,1,1 / xQ1 =15 / unattended / SFS 0.69Mb / memory straight continuous / system clock 15.0ms / Threadprio RealTime / Playerprio Low / CPU scheme 3-5 / 16x Arc Prediction / Peak Extend off / Phase alignment off / Phase off  / XTweaks : Balanced Load 35 / Nervous Rate 10 (or15) / Cool when Idle n/a / Provide Stable Power 0 / Utilize Cores always 1 / Time Performance Index = Optimal / Time Stability  On =>  Lush USB cable => modified NOS1 USB DAC => no pre amp => Orelo active horn loudspeakers with modified bass channel DSPs.

Music server: X99, Xeon 28 thread PC.

System power two 3kva balanced tranformers with dedicated earth spur.
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« Reply #250 on: April 12, 2013, 11:46:36 pm »

Hey Nick - Looking great so far - those lumps of copper (?) look good!!  Balanced amps should be better from a noise point of view. When finished maybe you could bring them here and we could have another session.

I have spare 4 amp modules so I have all the parts (also the same amp cases) to build a balanced myself. Perhaps you could bring them here when you are finished and we could compare balanced versus the stock version?

P

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« Reply #251 on: April 13, 2013, 12:45:25 am »

Interesting pci card on the top picture!

How is the power going to enter the amplifier module? Theresoes not seem to be a lot of space left on the "backpanel"?

Nice wrk btw!

Regards, Coen
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« Reply #252 on: April 13, 2013, 11:33:42 am »

Hey Nick, nice !!

Maybe a possibly important tip for you :

We already know about the necessary matching for DC offset between the chips. Well, I think that when setup differentially this is even more important. Besides that, equality of the level (output) of both plus and minus will also be crucial. So :

Either DC Offset which is not the same, or the output level which is not the same, will create anomalies which may let fail everything. Not only you'd have distortion but also the noise cancellation will act strange (when both signals are not exactly equal).

When you can get it done, the improvement should be vast. At least it is totally easily measurable, so it should be audible just the same.

Jaleous Peter


PS: Do I see 8 secundaries in total in there ?
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Nick
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« Reply #253 on: April 13, 2013, 12:08:20 pm »

PS: Do I see 8 secundaries in total in there ?

Hi Peter,

Thanks for the encouragement and the advise on offsets. I had been giving them some thought it looks like i have to setup a test harness to power up each module measure offsets and match pairs of modules.

Yes there are 8 seconderies overall, I was keen on having each output electricly a monoblock as far back as the transformer iron. The ratio of two modules to a supply seems to work very well so to keep to this and limit the transformer count to 2 I had these custom wound with four secondaries. They are 625va which keeps the ratio of 300 va for each pair of modules.

Of course this is just a load of theory until i can take a listen dntknw

Cheers
Nick.
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 w10 14393 RAM OS => XX V2.10 / adaptive mode / XX buffer 4096 / NOS USB driver v 1.02 buffer 16ms / Q1,2,3,4,5 = 10,-,1,1,1 / xQ1 =15 / unattended / SFS 0.69Mb / memory straight continuous / system clock 15.0ms / Threadprio RealTime / Playerprio Low / CPU scheme 3-5 / 16x Arc Prediction / Peak Extend off / Phase alignment off / Phase off  / XTweaks : Balanced Load 35 / Nervous Rate 10 (or15) / Cool when Idle n/a / Provide Stable Power 0 / Utilize Cores always 1 / Time Performance Index = Optimal / Time Stability  On =>  Lush USB cable => modified NOS1 USB DAC => no pre amp => Orelo active horn loudspeakers with modified bass channel DSPs.

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« Reply #254 on: April 13, 2013, 12:13:36 pm »

Hey Nick - Looking great so far - those lumps of copper (?) look good!!  Balanced amps should be better from a noise point of view. When finished maybe you could bring them here and we could have another session.

I have spare 4 amp modules so I have all the parts (also the same amp cases) to build a balanced myself. Perhaps you could bring them here when you are finished and we could compare balanced versus the stock version?

P



Paul,

Im definathy up for a visit when the amp is finished. It would be great to try it though your system, provided it dosen't sound awful, there are a lot of assumptions in the design right now Happy

Nick.
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Audio PC

C621 motherboard, Xeon 40 thread CPU.

 w10 14393 RAM OS => XX V2.10 / adaptive mode / XX buffer 4096 / NOS USB driver v 1.02 buffer 16ms / Q1,2,3,4,5 = 10,-,1,1,1 / xQ1 =15 / unattended / SFS 0.69Mb / memory straight continuous / system clock 15.0ms / Threadprio RealTime / Playerprio Low / CPU scheme 3-5 / 16x Arc Prediction / Peak Extend off / Phase alignment off / Phase off  / XTweaks : Balanced Load 35 / Nervous Rate 10 (or15) / Cool when Idle n/a / Provide Stable Power 0 / Utilize Cores always 1 / Time Performance Index = Optimal / Time Stability  On =>  Lush USB cable => modified NOS1 USB DAC => no pre amp => Orelo active horn loudspeakers with modified bass channel DSPs.

Music server: X99, Xeon 28 thread PC.

System power two 3kva balanced tranformers with dedicated earth spur.
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