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Firstwatt F6 build


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Here are my pics for the Firstwatt F6.

AMAZING sounding... the schematic was wrong... killed 4 Jfets as a result but whois counting. 

The Kit for DIYaudio is no for the faint of heart but it is workable. 

I would not recommend there chassis... buy it elsewhere. 

 

That said, its the very best sounding SS amp Ive heard, followed by the Pass XA30 and the MC252. IMG_0618.JPG.d31b52f52e3b4ca0464a2682b6595874.JPG

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I’ll half to revisit my notes. I think the orientation of the jfets was backwards. But I’ll check my. It’s next week.  I did the pre drilled chassis too.  It didn’t line up so well. We used l-brackets to get everything snugged up and square.  

 

Id love to know the differences between the f6 and m2.  I went f6 as I had heard Dave Harris and loved. Also the use of input transformers was right up my alley. 

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Guest wdecho
1 hour ago, justinsweber said:

I’ll half to revisit my notes. I think the orientation of the jfets was backwards. But I’ll check my. It’s next week.  I did the pre drilled chassis too.  It didn’t line up so well. We used l-brackets to get everything snugged up and square.  

 

Id love to know the differences between the f6 and m2.  I went f6 as I had heard Dave Harris and loved. Also the use of input transformers was right up my alley. 

I've built both and like Full Range I prefer the M2 over the F6 with horns. The sweet part of building a Firstwatt clone is that you can now just purchase the M2 boards and stuff them and replace the F6 boards for very little money. Slightly over $100 being higher than some of the other designs because of the input transformer used in the M2. There are no culls in the Firstwatt line for diy'ers. All are great sounding class A amplifiers designed by the premier designer of amplifier circuits. Whether you would prefer the M2 over your F6 can and does depend on the music you enjoy. There is a new project designed around the M2 but not using those hard to find and expensive J-fets you may want to read about. It is hard to just build one.

 

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/pass-labs/321925-diyaudio-watt-m2x.html

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Guest wdecho
6 minutes ago, Ljk said:

Ok thanks!

There is a new amp camp full kit soon to be back in stock which I would suggest as your first build. 

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I would suggest not doing ACA kits unless doing regulated power supplies.

Ebay has many good options. The stock ACA is noisy/ bad but is a great starter kit.

To turn it into a reference level amp it needs the power supplies. 

With the power supplies, its a class winner just lower in output. 

 

 

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On 5/5/2018 at 7:57 PM, justinsweber said:

Id love to know the differences between the f6 and m2.  I went f6 as I had heard Dave Harris and loved. Also the use of input transformers was right up my alley. 

 

My review is below 

And it’s on this M2 build thread  —.https://community.klipsch.com/index.php?/topic/162981-first-watt-clone-the-diy-m2/&

A couple of us building the First Watt M2 at almost the same time 

 

 

My review of the M2 
Using Harris/Vishay Transistors and Audio-note non magnetic resistors in R1,R2,R3,R4 

This review is judged against my previous amp builds - the F5 from memory and the F6 

 

Components used in this test 
Pre - Nakamichi CA5 II
Source - Cyrus CD8 SE
Medium - CD 
Speakers - Klipsch La Scala ( Highly Modified ) 
Sensitivity min 104db 
Album - Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon, and my brutal mixed track test CD


Warm up  1 hour

The F6 is super sharp and precise and does all things nice 
In a word - Its very analytical and has excellent 3D presentation in high sensitivity speakers just like the F5 its very punchy but has more finesse than the more rugged F5 amp

 

The M2 is extremely precise, but with a presentation that has more reserved control with an emphasis on the instrument separation and vocal area 
In playback, its not holding anything back but only gives whats required to get the job done 
The M2 portrays the feeling and tempo of the music a little better, by emphasising a slightly more controlled and a warmer feel with a wider presentation 
Still very sharp on changing passages but with a little more warmth 

Treble -  is clean and clear with lots of hang time and controls the full spectrum until it trails off 
Midrange -  is where the M2 shines and it shines on vocals and softer instrumental passages  
Bass - is still abundant but with A little less thump but has more control 

 

To compare the sharpness scale of the F6 and M2 Amps with an example 
F6 = You have a cleaver and a piece of steak on a cutting board 
You have the cleaver raised at head level and strike - it cuts immediately and cleanly 
But you can't hit a precise spot to cut 

 

M2 = You have a sharp knife and a piece of steak on a cutting board
You have the knife placed exactly where you want it to cut - you push - it cuts immediately and cleanly but cuts in exactly the place you want it -- This is the M2

 

FR

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Guest wdecho
6 hours ago, justinsweber said:

The ACA was a ton of fun to build. 

Stuff some BA-2 boards with the BA-3 front end and replace the F6 ones. A few days ago on this forum I listed all the FW clones I have built and it surprised even me. The Aleph 30, F3, F4, F5, F6, a diy version of th F7, M2, BA-1, BA-2 and the NP V-fet amplifier project for diy'ers. I also have stuffed some F2 boards for a fellow member and listened to them in my test chassis before sending them the member. I will let you in on a secret not spoken about. The BA-2 project with the BA-3 boards is real close if not a clone of one of the Passlabs amplifiers. I just built the abbreviated versions using just 3 pairs of output mosfets. You can just replace the F6 boards with the abbreviated build in the case you already have. There are no culls in any of the projects but the BA-2 with the BA-3 is my favorite child. I chose to purchase 25 each of the IRFP240 and IRFP9240's and do the matching myself but the diyaudio store sells a kit of them that which eliminates the need for matching yourself. https://diyaudiostore.com/collections/parts/products/f4-ba3-transistor-kit  Illustrated build guide.   http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/pass-labs/258301-ba-3-amplifier-illustrated-build-guide.html

 

http://www.firstwatt.com/pdf/art_ba2.pdf

http://www.firstwatt.com/pdf/art_ba_3.pdf

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