Building 400 wpc Tube Monoblocks....

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  • disneyjoe7
    disneyjoe7 Posts: 11,435
    edited January 2011
    May I state it those are Looking Bad A$$

    Speakers
    Carver Amazing Fronts
    CS400i Center
    RT800i's Rears
    Sub Paradigm Servo 15

    Electronics
    Conrad Johnson PV-5 pre-amp
    Parasound Halo A23
    Pioneer 84TXSi AVR
    Pioneer 79Avi DVD
    Sony CX400 CD changer
    Panasonic 42-PX60U Plasma
    WMC Win7 32bit HD DVR


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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,448
    edited January 2011
    txcoastal1 wrote: »
    beautiful...do you have an estimated completion date...I think most of us are almost as excided as you are

    No completion date, as I would rather take my time and get them right. If I build more, the build time will be much less, but never rushed.

    disneyjoe7 wrote: »
    May I state it those are Looking Bad A$$

    Yes Joe, you may.:biggrin:


    Thanks!:cool:
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • FTGV
    FTGV Posts: 3,649
    edited January 2011
    Wow,very nice work and attention to detail..
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  • dorokusai
    dorokusai Posts: 25,577
    edited January 2011
    They look very nice, good luck. You should invest in a variac.
    CTC BBQ Amplifier, Sonic Frontiers Line3 Pre-Amplifier and Wadia 581 SACD player. Speakers? Always changing but for now, Mission Argonauts I picked up for $50 bucks, mint.
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  • ecod123
    ecod123 Posts: 379
    edited January 2011
    John,
    That's a real work of art! Can't wait for the day you finally start them up and let us know how they sound. Cheers!
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  • dorokusai
    dorokusai Posts: 25,577
    edited January 2011
    ecod123 wrote: »
    John,
    That's a real work of art! Can't wait for the day you finally start them up and let us know how they sound. Cheers!

    I'll take a wild guess and say that one, he won't say that they sound awful and two, due to the time and money time invested they will be the best amplifiers he's ever owned.
    CTC BBQ Amplifier, Sonic Frontiers Line3 Pre-Amplifier and Wadia 581 SACD player. Speakers? Always changing but for now, Mission Argonauts I picked up for $50 bucks, mint.
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,448
    edited January 2011
    dorokusai wrote: »
    I'll take a wild guess and say that one, he won't say that they sound awful and two, due to the time and money time invested they will be the best amplifiers he's ever owned.

    I knew there would be someone like you that would say this.:rolleyes: I have arraingements made for a fully independent review, which will be published, to take care of that one.:cool:
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • FTGV
    FTGV Posts: 3,649
    edited January 2011
    nooshinjohn wrote: »
    I knew there would be someone like you that would say this.:rolleyes:
    Dont worry It's just Manny being Manny.:wink::smile:
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  • EndersShadow
    EndersShadow Posts: 17,593
    edited January 2011
    Once they are completed I hope a couple of us Indy folks can get together to give them a listen (both on your LSi's and also SDA's).

    Never heard tubes and what better way to start :biggrin:
    "....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,448
    edited January 2011
    EndersShadow wrote: »
    Once they are completed I hope a couple of us Indy folks can get together to give them a listen (both on your LSi's and also SDA's).

    Never heard tubes and what better way to start :biggrin:

    You guys are welcome here any time!:cool:
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • thsmith
    thsmith Posts: 6,082
    edited January 2011
    John, What are the output tubes and what trannys ?

    Looking good BTW.
    Speakers: SDA-1C (most all the goodies)
    Preamp: Joule Electra LA-150 MKII SE
    Amp: Wright WPA 50-50 EAT KT88s
    Analog: Marantz TT-15S1 MBS Glider SL| Wright WPP100C Amperex BB 6er5 and 7316 & WPM-100 SUT
    Digital: Mac mini 2.3GHz dual-core i5 8g RAM 1.5 TB HDD Music Server Amarra (memory play) - USB - W4S DAC 2
    Cables: Mits S3 IC and Spk cables| PS Audio PCs
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  • Fongolio
    Fongolio Posts: 3,516
    edited January 2011
    jencdnhome reported
    SDA-1C (full mods)
    Carver TFM-55
    NAD 1130 Pre-amp
    Rega Planar 3 TT/Shelter 501 MkII
    The Clamp
    Revox A77 Mk IV Dolby reel to reel
    Thorens TD160/Mission 774 arm/Stanton 881S Shibata
    Nakamichi CR7 Cassette Deck
    Rotel RCD-855 with modified tube output stage
    Cambridge Audio DACmagic Plus
    ADC Soundshaper 3 EQ
    Ben's IC's
    Nitty Gritty 1.5FI RCM
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  • thsmith
    thsmith Posts: 6,082
    edited January 2011
    dorokusai wrote: »
    I'll take a wild guess and say that one, he won't say that they sound awful and two, due to the time and money time invested they will be the best amplifiers he's ever owned.

    Well, that would be my story and probably most peoples.
    Speakers: SDA-1C (most all the goodies)
    Preamp: Joule Electra LA-150 MKII SE
    Amp: Wright WPA 50-50 EAT KT88s
    Analog: Marantz TT-15S1 MBS Glider SL| Wright WPP100C Amperex BB 6er5 and 7316 & WPM-100 SUT
    Digital: Mac mini 2.3GHz dual-core i5 8g RAM 1.5 TB HDD Music Server Amarra (memory play) - USB - W4S DAC 2
    Cables: Mits S3 IC and Spk cables| PS Audio PCs
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,448
    edited January 2011
    thsmith wrote: »
    John, What are the output tubes and what trannys ?

    Looking good BTW.

    The output tubes are Tung-Sol KT120's and the transformers are being custom wound by Bob Carver.
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,448
    edited January 2011
    P2P = PIA...

    No better way of saying it. Point-to-Point wiring is a major pain in the ****! Thank God for the man that made the first circuit board!:cool:

    Here are a few pictures of the wiring in progress...
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,448
    edited January 2011
    Haven't gotten too much done this week. I am having a bit of trouble interpreting one of the tagboard connections. I have learned just why these amps can be so expensive, as they take a tremenous amount of time and brainpower to get them right. When you have a single functioning brain cell like I do, it can lead to synaptic meltdown.:cool:
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,448
    edited March 2011
    Sorry for the LOOOONG delay between updates...

    The long and short of it is that the schematics I had been given came from different dates, one as early as 2008 and another from 2010. This, combined with the dozens of pictures I have of the internals of these amps, led to a situation where Bob and I have been unable to effectively communicate about what to do next, and where parts should be located on the tagboards.

    I have redrawn the schematics and the tagboard plot drawings and have forwarded them to Bob to have the corrected values written in. Once I have these back from him, I will be removing all the work I have done thusfar, and reordering new parts based on the revised plans. They should go quickly once I have the new set of plans.

    The transformer covers are in primer right now and awaiting final paint, and the bottom plates are being powder coated. Thanks for the support guys and thanks for asking!



    John
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • Wardsweb
    Wardsweb Posts: 936
    edited March 2011
    Wow John this project speaks to my love of tubes, high power and OCD execution in build. While not at your level, here is a pic of my one off scratch built 2A3 power amp.

    complete.jpg
    2A3set.jpg
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,448
    edited March 2011
    That is truly some beautiful work. Where did you get he endcaps for your project?
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • Wardsweb
    Wardsweb Posts: 936
    edited March 2011
    nooshinjohn wrote: »
    That is truly some beautiful work. Where did you get he endcaps for your project?

    If you are referring to the chassis wood, they came with them from IAG Audio (Horace Atkinson) out of Killeen Texas. They are solid oak. I stained them and finished with Deft lacquer.
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,197
    edited March 2011
    Wardsweb wrote: »
    Wow John this project speaks to my love of tubes, high power and OCD execution in build. While not at your level, here is a pic of my one off scratch built 2A3 power amp.

    complete.jpg
    2A3set.jpg

    Absolutely gorgeous both the P2P and the visual finished product.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,448
    edited March 2011
    I got the bottom plates back from the powder coaters, and they look fantastic....


    Bob and I spoke tonight, and he almost has the new schematics sorted out. I have also decided to essentially start from scratch on the parts and wiring once I have the new drawings. I expect things will go more quickly however as I will be working from the same page as Bob. These schematics and tagboard layouts will also be made available to anyone wanting to do this for themselves, and I will provide as much support as I can for anyone wanting to give these a shot.
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • SolidSqual
    SolidSqual Posts: 5,218
    edited March 2011
    Labor of love john . . . labor of love. Good luck.
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  • EndersShadow
    EndersShadow Posts: 17,593
    edited March 2011
    SolidSqual wrote: »
    Labor of love john . . . labor of love. Good luck.

    with a bit of labor pains in there as well :wink:. Glad to see your pushing through it all. see you in a couple weeks....
    "....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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  • Toolfan66
    Toolfan66 Posts: 17,310
    edited March 2011
    John !!!!! Looks great!!!
    Polk Audio SDA 2.3tl Fully Hot Rodded. 😎

    SVS SB16 X2

    Cary SLP-05/Ultimate Upgrade.
    Cary SA-500.1 ES Amps
    Cary DMS 800PV Network
    OPPO UDP 205/ModWright Modification
    VPI Scout TT / Dynavector 20x2
    Jolida JD9 Fully Modified

    VPI MW-1 Cyclone RCM

    MIT Shotgun 3 cables throughout / Except TT, and PC’s
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,448
    edited March 2011
    Some updated pictures... I am still waiting for the transformers to make them work, but most of the other internal work is complete. The transformer covers are missing a piece of aluminum trim that will ring the bottom of them and the pinstriping work. The wood for the side panels also need to be finished, but the overall look is complete.:biggrin::cool: Every time I see them, I smile from ear to ear!:tongue:
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,448
    edited March 2011
    A few more...
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • thsmith
    thsmith Posts: 6,082
    edited March 2011
    sweet !
    Speakers: SDA-1C (most all the goodies)
    Preamp: Joule Electra LA-150 MKII SE
    Amp: Wright WPA 50-50 EAT KT88s
    Analog: Marantz TT-15S1 MBS Glider SL| Wright WPP100C Amperex BB 6er5 and 7316 & WPM-100 SUT
    Digital: Mac mini 2.3GHz dual-core i5 8g RAM 1.5 TB HDD Music Server Amarra (memory play) - USB - W4S DAC 2
    Cables: Mits S3 IC and Spk cables| PS Audio PCs
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  • ecod123
    ecod123 Posts: 379
    edited March 2011
    Absolutely stunning! Love the glass/crystal nameplate - very nice touch. Drooling . . .
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  • inspiredsports
    inspiredsports Posts: 5,501
    edited March 2011
    Sweet! So now you know what the guy who built this felt like :biggrin:
    VTL ST50 w/mods / RCA6L6GC / TlfnknECC801S
    Conrad Johnson PV-5 w/mods
    TT Conrad Johnson Sonographe SG3 Oak / Sumiko LMT / Grado Woodbody Platinum / Sumiko PIB2 / The Clamp
    Musical Fidelity A1 CDPro/ Bada DD-22 Tube CDP / Conrad Johnson SD-22 CDP
    Tuners w/mods Kenwood KT5020 / Fisher KM60
    MF x-DAC V8, HAInfo NG27
    Herbies Ti-9 / Vibrapods / MIT Shotgun AC1 IEC's / MIT Shotgun 2 IC's / MIT Shotgun 2 Speaker Cables
    PS Audio Cryo / PowerPort Premium Outlets / Exact Power EP15A Conditioner
    Walnut SDA 2B TL /Oak SDA SRS II TL (Sonicaps/Mills/Cardas/Custom SDA ICs / Dynamat Extreme / Larry's Rings/ FSB-2 Spikes
    NAD SS rigs w/mods
    GIK panels
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