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Hello all!
I wasn't sure where to put this within the forum but since it is somewhat of a DIY project I thought I'd post it in the Mission Possible DIY area, if this is the incorrect area mods please move it to the correct area.
I never intended to build my own amplifier and had spent several years reading various reviews on stereo amps and mono block amps. I had narrowed my search down the to Benchmark AHB2 and was fairly committed to going with that amplifier. The plan was to buy one and then at a later date purchase a second. What gravitated me towards the AHB2 was the low-distortion and noise along with small form factor and efficiency, oh and stellar reviews from owners and Jon Marsh.
So how on earth did I end up going DIY, well that started with my search for a stereo preamp. I wanted a very low distortion and low noise preamp. I had been considering the Schiit Freya for quite some time and was patiently awaiting Jon's review, but obviously he's got his hands full with other things. Anyway, I like the Freya because it was essentially 3 different types of preamps in one and that seemed like more fun than your typical tube or solid state amplifier. Then I started gravitating to something much more expensive, the Hegel P30, but that seemed like a massive investment for something I wouldn't be able to listen to before I purchased.
I started poking around the DIYAudio forums and reading threads on people building their own amps and preamps. Then I ran into the Doug Self Preamp thread and decided that it's a project I could accomplish, even though my soldering skills aren't great. Then by chance I saw the Modulus-686 thread and became very interested. However asking a few question I realized that populating the boards was probably well above my skill level and then learned that Tom was offering prepopulated boards, but at a premium. I have since purchased the boards and chassis from ModuShop. I didn't blindly purchased chassis, but worked with Tom on the layout and configuration.
So here are pictures of the modules I purchased. Originally was going to go with an SMPS, but reading through the thread some people were having issues. I could have gone with one that would give me less power in the end, but my watt greediness got the better of me. I'm not sure if I'll regret that decision or not.
So here are some pictures of the boards.
Modulus-696 * 2
360 W (4 Ω), 240 W (8 Ω) balanced composite amplifier achieving 0.00025 % THD+N.
High-power balanced composite audio amplifier featuring:
Mono construction.
m).
Power-686 * 2
ISS: Intelligent Soft Start * 1
Guardian-686 * 2
Speaker protection board (balanced, stereo, dual-mono).
Transformer * 1
AN-8225-88VA 25V
Chassis - Dissipante 04/400B 4U 10mm SILVER
All the other extra's were ordered from Mouser Electronics. I had a difficult time finding the right power switch and ended up with one that wasn't exactly what I wanted. I could have waited, but once things started arriving I grew impatient.
I could have made this amp full dual mono by buying 2 transformers and 2 ISS modules, but the cost added up quickly and I honestly doubt I would notice or hear the difference. In the end I'll have an amp with plenty of power and very respectable noise floor and distortion. Will I regret not going with the Benchmark amplifier, I'll know when I'm done.
Links
Chassis: https://modushop.biz
Transformer: http://www.antekinc.com/an-8225-800va-25v-transformer/
Boards: https://www.neurochrome.com/
686 thread: https://www.diyaudio.com/forums/vend...y-low-thd.html
I wasn't sure where to put this within the forum but since it is somewhat of a DIY project I thought I'd post it in the Mission Possible DIY area, if this is the incorrect area mods please move it to the correct area.
I never intended to build my own amplifier and had spent several years reading various reviews on stereo amps and mono block amps. I had narrowed my search down the to Benchmark AHB2 and was fairly committed to going with that amplifier. The plan was to buy one and then at a later date purchase a second. What gravitated me towards the AHB2 was the low-distortion and noise along with small form factor and efficiency, oh and stellar reviews from owners and Jon Marsh.
So how on earth did I end up going DIY, well that started with my search for a stereo preamp. I wanted a very low distortion and low noise preamp. I had been considering the Schiit Freya for quite some time and was patiently awaiting Jon's review, but obviously he's got his hands full with other things. Anyway, I like the Freya because it was essentially 3 different types of preamps in one and that seemed like more fun than your typical tube or solid state amplifier. Then I started gravitating to something much more expensive, the Hegel P30, but that seemed like a massive investment for something I wouldn't be able to listen to before I purchased.
I started poking around the DIYAudio forums and reading threads on people building their own amps and preamps. Then I ran into the Doug Self Preamp thread and decided that it's a project I could accomplish, even though my soldering skills aren't great. Then by chance I saw the Modulus-686 thread and became very interested. However asking a few question I realized that populating the boards was probably well above my skill level and then learned that Tom was offering prepopulated boards, but at a premium. I have since purchased the boards and chassis from ModuShop. I didn't blindly purchased chassis, but worked with Tom on the layout and configuration.
So here are pictures of the modules I purchased. Originally was going to go with an SMPS, but reading through the thread some people were having issues. I could have gone with one that would give me less power in the end, but my watt greediness got the better of me. I'm not sure if I'll regret that decision or not.
So here are some pictures of the boards.
Modulus-696 * 2
360 W (4 Ω), 240 W (8 Ω) balanced composite amplifier achieving 0.00025 % THD+N.
High-power balanced composite audio amplifier featuring:
Mono construction.
- Output power: 360 W (4 Ω) – 240 W (8 Ω).
- Ultra-low 0.00025 % THD+N (140 W, 8 Ω, 1 kHz).
- Ultra-low 0.00036 % THD+N (280 W, 4 Ω, 1 kHz).
- Ultra-low noise: 25.0 µV (RMS, A-weighted, 20 Hz – 20 kHz).
- Gain: +26 dB. Changeable by resistor option.
- Professionally assembled in Calgary.
- Board size: 8.25 × 2.30 inches (210 × 59 mm). The finished module measures 9.55 × 2.50 × 1.45 inches (Approx. 245 × 65 × 36 m
m).
Power-686 * 2
ISS: Intelligent Soft Start * 1
Guardian-686 * 2
Speaker protection board (balanced, stereo, dual-mono).
Transformer * 1
AN-8225-88VA 25V
Chassis - Dissipante 04/400B 4U 10mm SILVER
All the other extra's were ordered from Mouser Electronics. I had a difficult time finding the right power switch and ended up with one that wasn't exactly what I wanted. I could have waited, but once things started arriving I grew impatient.
I could have made this amp full dual mono by buying 2 transformers and 2 ISS modules, but the cost added up quickly and I honestly doubt I would notice or hear the difference. In the end I'll have an amp with plenty of power and very respectable noise floor and distortion. Will I regret not going with the Benchmark amplifier, I'll know when I'm done.
Links
Chassis: https://modushop.biz
Transformer: http://www.antekinc.com/an-8225-800va-25v-transformer/
Boards: https://www.neurochrome.com/
686 thread: https://www.diyaudio.com/forums/vend...y-low-thd.html
ops: (..piece-of-mind knowing the entire measurement setup has extremely low distortion.)
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