New Toys - Rogue Audio Apollo Monoblocks

toucanet
toucanet Posts: 580
edited June 2010 in 2 Channel Audio
My craving for tubes was too great to ignore. These are Rogue Audio Apollo tube monoblocks. With the assistance of beemers417 and Nick (at Rogue Audio), we realized that no AI-1 Interface was needed, nor the need to connect the negatives in order to connect my 1.2TLs. I've been listening to them most of the day. I have only had to bias the tubes twice since unpacking them from their box.

I am currently using a Carver Lightstar preamp, as I wait for my tube preamp to arrive.

I now know why people enjoy the sound of tubes.

At 250 watts per block, they make the Polks come alive. Very nice detailed music at a low volume. I thought Diana Krall was actually playing live in my home.
Post edited by toucanet on

Comments

  • inspiredsports
    inspiredsports Posts: 5,501
    edited June 2010
    Very nice, in fact, awesome! I'm curious as to how you are able to skip AI-1.

    (Maybe the blue line in your first photo is acting as a common ground :D:D)
    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
  • toucanet
    toucanet Posts: 580
    edited June 2010
    "Thou shall not tell a lie," I do not know how to explain the common ground (or non) details.
  • Ern Dog
    Ern Dog Posts: 2,237
    edited June 2010
    Nice grab. 250 watts is a **** load of tube love :eek:

    I had a Rogue 90 tube amp and loved it.

    Congrats!
  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,033
    edited June 2010
    :DThe first picture clearly shows a wireless AI-1 connection... Tesla would be proud!:D

    Awesome amps my friend. Congrats.


    I look forward to a full and complete review.


    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
  • inspiredsports
    inspiredsports Posts: 5,501
    edited June 2010
    toucanet wrote: »
    "Thou shall not tell a lie," I do not know how to explain the common ground (or non) details.

    Those amps are in a different league. I was curious and found their website and the specs are absolutely superlative. Let us know how it goes when the new preamp arrives and everything gets to season a bit.
    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
  • Face
    Face Posts: 14,340
    edited June 2010
    Nice toasters. Enjoy!
    "He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster. And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you." Friedrich Nietzsche
  • toucanet
    toucanet Posts: 580
    edited June 2010
    Here is a photo of the switches that are used to bias the six KT-90 tubes. I am new to tubes, however, they did a good job with the simplicity of biasing the tubes.

    I thought the bass was going to be relatively soft coming from tubes. I was dead wrong, the bass is very tight.

    So far, I'm loving the combination of the Rogue and Polks.
  • Deathjester
    Deathjester Posts: 24
    edited June 2010
    I am soooooo drooling over those.. Now if my Onkyo's could only make lightning!!!
    ~~Dj~~
    Main System:
    Onkyo TX-SV717PRO
    Onkyo Integra M-504
    Onkyo Integra EQ-540
    Pioneer CT-F1250
    Micro Seiki DD-40
    Polk Audio 5A's 10A's
  • toucanet
    toucanet Posts: 580
    edited June 2010
    I am soooooo drooling over those.. Now if my Onkyo's could only make lightning!!!

    I knew that 1st photo was going to be a hit:)

    I used the night feature on my camera.
  • zingo
    zingo Posts: 11,256
    edited June 2010
  • danz1906
    danz1906 Posts: 5,144
    edited June 2010
    Congrats!
    Linn AV5140 fronts
    Linn AV5120 Center
    Linn AV5140 Rears
    M&K MX-70 Sub for Music
    Odyssey Mono-Blocs
    SVS Ultra-13 Gloss Black:D
  • Ern Dog
    Ern Dog Posts: 2,237
    edited June 2010
    I would get a bunch of extra fuses. For whatever reason I went through lots of fuses with my Rogue.
  • Ricardo
    Ricardo Posts: 10,636
    edited June 2010
    Common ground is a requirement for the speakers to work properly. There is no way out of it. Either a common ground amp, tying together the negative outputs of the amp, tying together the negative posts of the speakers, or using the special AI-1 interconnect. If you're not doing this (and you are using the normal inteconnect between the speakers), the speakers are not working propperly, you are not getting the SDA effect as it should be, and you might fry something.

    Had to say it.

    Very nice amps by the way.
    _________________________________________________
    ***\\\\\........................... My Audio Journey ............................./////***

    2008 & 2010 Football Pool WINNER
    SOPA
    Thank God for different opinions. Imagine the world if we all wanted the same woman
  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,050
    edited June 2010
    Ricardo wrote: »
    Common ground is a requirement for the speakers to work properly. There is no way out of it. Either a common ground amp, tying together the negative outputs of the amp, tying together the negative posts of the speakers, or using the special AI-1 interconnect. If you're not doing this (and you are using the normal inteconnect between the speakers), the speakers are not working propperly, you are not getting the SDA effect as it should be, and you might fry something.

    Had to say it.

    Very nice amps by the way.

    Absolutely true...............I would be VERY interested to see how it was determined they didn't have to be common ground. You might not be doing damage instantly, but I bet some issues will crop up later with both the amps and/or speakers.

    There really is no way around it.

    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!
  • beemers417
    beemers417 Posts: 34
    edited June 2010
    Great amps, Chris!!!
  • toucanet
    toucanet Posts: 580
    edited June 2010
    Thanks for the advice inspiredsports, Ricardo, heiney9 (and all others). You guys are a wealth of knowledge! I took my equipment to a service shop and had them to run diagnostics just to be safe. No damage to anything.

    I've connected my RTi12s to these blocks while I await "written" correspondence from both manufacturers. They too, sound very nice with these blocks (much brighter than the 1.2TLs).

    In the meantime, to err on the side of caution, I will get an AI-1 made and go from there.

    Cheers
  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,050
    edited June 2010
    toucanet wrote: »
    Thanks for the advice inspiredsports, Ricardo, heiney9 (and all others). You guys are a wealth of knowledge! I took my equipment to a service shop and had them to run diagnostics just to be safe. No damage to anything.

    I've connected my RTi12s to these blocks while I await "written" correspondence from both manufacturers. They too, sound very nice with these blocks (much brighter than the 1.2TLs).

    In the meantime, to err on the side of caution, I will get an AI-1 made and go from there.

    Cheers

    Did you send the manufacturer's a FULL set of schematics both L and R channels so they understand what is going on? The term "common ground" can mean a few different things in the audio world. We are familiar with it in relation to SDA's, but many aren't.

    The schematics can be found here:

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=55888

    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!
  • madmax
    madmax Posts: 12,434
    edited June 2010
    Very nice!
    Vinyl, the final frontier...

    Avantgarde horns, 300b tubes, thats the kinda crap I want... :D
  • organ
    organ Posts: 4,969
    edited June 2010
    Awesome. Congrats on your new toys.
  • schwarcw
    schwarcw Posts: 7,328
    edited June 2010
    Get yourself a Rogue Model 99 Preamp with the Magnum upgrades. Then you'll really be cooking!
    Carl

  • GlennDog
    GlennDog Posts: 3,084
    Dead but not buried. The OP was last active Nov 23, so I hope Chris.sees this . . .

    Was the AI-1 mandatory, as suspected?
    AC Regenerator PS Audio PerfectWave Power Plant 10
    Source Lumin U1 Mini into Lampi Baltic 4
    Pre Cary SLP-05
    Power Rogue M180 Dark monos
    Mains Salk HT2-TL
    Rythmik F12
  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 18,230
    I was actually happy to see his moniker pop up. I don't recall seeing him post in quite some time.

    Tom
    ~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~
  • toucanet
    toucanet Posts: 580
    edited November 2021
    @GlennDog,

    Sorry for responding years later. I've been away for a minute, dealing with this thing called life... and its unexpected curves. The AI-1 was mandatory. Rogue was extremely helpful with assistance.

    I can't believe I posted the original post 11 years ago. Since then, Rogue Audio has performed the "DARK" upgrades to the monoblocks. The upgrades, albeit very expensive, made a significant difference in overall sound. Not too long ago, I had these monoblocks connected to a pair of Wilson Audio Sasha Series 2 speakers. I really liked the sound of those speakers, once they were properly dialed in. However, lately, they (monoblocks) have been connected to a pair of vintage Sony SS-M9 speakers since I am living in two states these days. My gear has been moved frequently as I travel back and forth. My pre-amplifier is a Rogue Audio Hera II that was also upgraded by Rogue Audio.

    The 1.2TL speakers have been connected to either a Carver TFM-55 or Carver A763 (switching them up occasionally) for a number of years. Trey (@VR3) recently upgraded the crossovers for me. Let's just say that I'm glad I had him to work his magic on my speakers' crossovers.

    I do foresee moving the 1.2TLs back in the main part of house and re-connecting them to the Rogue Audio monoblocks, or the McIntosh MC501 monoblocks, if my son does not decide to take the MC501's to his house, since I offered them (and some other audio gear) to him as a college graduation and home-buying present.
  • toucanet
    toucanet Posts: 580
    Sorry for responding almost 2 years later. The AI-1 was mandatory.
  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 24,474
    toucanet wrote: »
    Sorry for responding almost 2 years later. The AI-1 was mandatory.

    Dang !
    Welcome back 😂
  • VR3
    VR3 Posts: 27,964
    I had a chance to hear these on the Sonys, they do sound excellent!
    - Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit.