[brotherman-5th floor]

No not sour grapes BM and I'll stand by what I said: Barnes and co has a history of making a lot of promises about when their products will be shipped compared to when they actually DO ship. And the Audio Review archives would tell the same story if still available. You've been posting on the internet audio boards for about as long as I have and know it's true. Barnes is a good salesman, however why not get the product finished, say that it's ready to ship, then deliver the product when you say you will? Tw ...

No one can argue with the fact that MB is always late and cannot keep a deadline for the life of him. If that was the sole reason of your post, i.e. to tell people, not in the know, not to get their hopes up as far as when they'll have their products then I can see your point.

[Rob Babcock]

Hey, I can take MB being fashionably late if the end result is a kick ass amp!

[hk29]

Don't you believe in just in time?

He delays his schedule, but he explains his reasons and its reasonable.

I'll gladly wait.

[Marbles]

To be honest, it's not just a nOrh problem...

I've been waiting for more than 6 months for the IRD PT-2  

[MaxCast]

To be honest, it's not just a nOrh problem...

I've been waiting for more than 6 months for the IRD PT-2  

Then it must be a Thai thing  

but wait...the outlaws did it too.  Maybe it is a direct sales thing??

[Tyson]

Yep, most direct sales audio companies I've dealt with tend to forget the primary rule of business - it always takes long and costs more than you plan for.

[hk29]

they're also probably getting a feeling of interest so they can plan their production capacity.

Or atleast that's what I would do

[ABEX]

Rocket Wrote:
in january i took a leap of faith and had built the aksa 100. i sought opinions from others, but in the end decided to take a chance and bought the amp kit. it was much better than i could have hoped for.

good luck with your purchase.
================================
I read the review of the AKSA amp at TNT which was tested against the HK Citation 22 which I had owned before and was not impressed with. It burned up and could not drive Magnepans so it was out as fast as it came in,but I found it to work with PSB's.  
After your suggestion I read the review ans was impressed by what was written. I do need alot of Power for my speakers with the ability to deliver to 2 ohm loads.
They can handle up to 300watts and should have a min. of 100 watts for high SPL levs along with enough in order to meet transients.

It was suggested that I look into the LeAmpII's and after asking several Engineers that are well respected their thoughts were chances were better than not that the LeAmpII's could do the job. After doing considerable research I decided to take the chance and try the LeAmps.  

As stated elsewhere I can always use my B&K for the Mid\Highs and the LeAmps for the Bass drivers if the LeAmps are not as clean and transparent as I hope for or what I am getting using the modified B&K. It has been a very reliable amp for years and the amps I have auditioned lately are veiled in comparsion(vocals). Is sure was not the cabling in one setup as they were using Transparent cable which cost $2800.The one fault that the B&K does have is it's Bass ability .I think Adcoms use to have outstanding Bass ability ,but were sterile and dry on the topend.The goal is to get the best of both worlds.Nice Clean Highs with Deep punchy Bass.

I now have NEAR 3-ways which I want to try to get the best out of as they will probably be the last set of speakers I will ever own ,they are that good.I originally wanted to do Vertical Amping ,but it was not feasible so I am going to try Horizontal with the XO's Outboard.At the moment the XO's are   on the floor .I am designingt the boxes tonight to be built this weekend .I will also be upgrading the XO parts with new Resistors,Inductors and Caps.By the end of the summer my system should be complete.

Anyways thanks for the suggestion on the AKSA as I am sure you are more than satisfied with the results.

BTW HK made some great Pre-Amps and Cassette decks also.One of the few components I wish I had back was an HK Cassette Deck as the Phillips I have pales in comparision. Also the HK amp is still going strong with Klipsch being driven(sold the PSBs)! Alittle overkill for power ,but my friend still has it with no problems after being fixed.  

The speakers in this article are the same with the exception of newer modified drivers.They are very revealing .For Rears I have a set of M15's and for CC Channel I will use a pair of NEAR M10's.The equivlent of $5K for a SS speaker package. I did not pay that,but they would have been worth it if I had.They no longer can be bought though.

http://www.soundstage.com/wrk_nr50.htm

[Rocket]

hello abex,

i wasn't suggesting that you buy an aksa.  i was just using my experience that i had earlier in the year ie. 'my leap of faith' and using it as an example for you.  specs don't really tell the full story and neither do other ppl's perception of sound quality of different products.  there are just too many variables involved with hifi.

let your ears be the judge, that being said i'm sure with norh's reputation that you can't go wrong with the leamp 2.  after all how good of an amp can you buy in the us for $400us.  at that price i'm almost tempted to buy one myself.

regards

rocket

btw i read the review in tnt audio also about the aksa 55.  the aksa amp sounded a lot better than what i imagined from that review.  i initially bought the amp as a back up for my n.e.w. dc-66 (powered by 4x panasonic lsa 12v 33 amp hours batteries) as i was having major problems with the recharge circuit.  the n.e.w. rrp was $3000us, the aksa was better in all areas compared to my previous amp. needless to say the n.e.w. is still waiting to be repaired.   not sure i want to pay $560 au to replace the batteries:(

[ABEX]

Nothing can replace synergy , realise that. That is why I am keeping my B&K till I hear what it can do. There are many options and I will see what works.

I have even run into occasions where changing an IC made a difference rather than selling a component so we shall see what happens.

The AKSA might even be a good amp for the Mids\Highs if I go that way. I will be  trying different combo's to see what might work best before making any permanent decisions. The thing I am hopeing for with the LeAmp is the blend of Clear Highs,Liquid Mids and Punchy Powerful Bass.

I will also be playing with the values of the XO's over the summer so I know that there will be alot of experimentation going on till I find the correct match.

I have my speaker designer who is working on his speakers looking into values.He also was impressed with what I told him and the lit. I sent him on the LeAmps and wants to know more after I get it.

So the playing field is open.

Thanks for the reply!

[mbarnes]

I met with our case provider yesterday and with the person doing the power supply and PCBs.  Here is the latest:

The power supplies and power boards are done.

The amp uses 3.5 killos of aluminum for the heat sinks. This is a surprise to us all and the reason why our costs are higher.

The ACA 2b is rated 200 watts. The new heat sinks are sufficient.

There will be both an XLR and a RCA connector.  The XLR circuit has a real buffer circuit so it will actually drive XLR cables better than a standard RCA. Many amps simply put the connector on without this.

I had wanted to do a slate or Tungsten color. If it were a stereo amp, I could. The problem is that the color consistancy for slate is not as good as black or white.  As Le Amp 2 is a monoblock. we need to pick a color that has complete color consistancy from unit to unit. We are going with aluminum.

I asked for the power switch to go up and down instead of side to side. I wanted a smaller power switch.

We will change the plastic speaker connectors to gold plated. This is not really a quality issue. Here in Thailand and in many countries, there is no ground and no polarization of the power connector. Therefore, they tend to want to have plastic to protect them from shock.

Each unit can be interanlly switched for 120 to 240 or back.  

The power switch will be recessed.  

Our original plan was to make the units power one with a signal and then power off if there is no signal. Some audiophiles don't want to power down thier units.  

We have asked (but don't know if we will get) a switch that activates this feature. For people who want their units to shut off without signal, they would switch to an "auto off" mode.  This might not be able to get in.

Because of the heat sinks, our costs have gone up quite a bit. We will loose money on each unit we sell at the $195.00 price.  We lost money on the first Le Amps as well because we shipped them by air.  For us, it is worth the cost if we get the positive reaction we expect.

For Le Amp 2, we have tried to pull out all the stops.  

We expect Le Amp 2 to be our flagship solid state power amplifier. We will now build lower priced units.

[ABEX]

Mike:
Everything you have done thus far has shown thru parts,design and specs that this is a quality unit. In the long run you will get back whatever might be lost in the first couple units sold so I would not think that you are sacrificeing much to get the word out being that these shall be your flagship model's for some time to come.

You could ask $1k comparable to what I have seen being put out by other Cos. if the sound quality is as good as stated. To tell the truth I have heard some of what is out there from $700 to $1700 which have failed to impress me for Transparency. That is not to say there is not quality units that exist ,but in my area there are not many HiFi Salons catering to experienced listeners. I'd have to travel to NYC or Mass. to hear good gear.

As noted I am impressed by the Design, Quality of the parts , the specs and the build quality of what I can see that you have put into this unit.If the sound is anywhere near what you have stated the units should be a successful flagship model.  

Good Job,glad to be one of the first to take them for a test drive!

[ABEX]

When can we expect them to be shipped?

The news page was not clear on that.  In one place it was the first week of June then it stated 2-3 weeks I think

[hk29]

I'm even more excited than before -  the LeAmp2 sound like they'll be a great amp.  I can't wait 2-3 weeks.

[ABEX]

Hang in there HK that bridge close to your house is not needed yet!

[azryan]

If there's any chance... I'd like to vote for a blue LED instead of the window.

I KNOW this is the totally 'trendy' thing right now... and I usually don't like follow trends, but it's just such a strikingly hi tech look. I just love it! Please consider it instead of the glowing window w/ the writing in it.

I know I will jsut cover that window when I get my Le Amps and I'd rather not do that.

Other than that I think all the things you've described for the final design sound very good.

I too thought that power switch should be recessed and certainly vertical, but better yet would have prefered it mounted under the unit.

Will the face still be getting a brushed finish?
That'd look so good, it'd be worth it IMO even if it raises the cost a little bit.
You clearly are trying to make a great looking amp as well as a great sounding one, and that'd make a big difference IMO.

"-We expect Le Amp 2 to be our flagship solid state power amplifier. We will now build lower priced units."

I'm not sure what you mean by this?

Are you saying next you'll be making cheap/lower powered versions of this design?

Also, will the Le Amp 2 retire the original Le Amp?
Normally I'd just assume it would, but they seem to be of so totally diff. designs and w/ the original not needing the large heat sinks I thought you might keep that one as well?

Thanks!! I can't wait to get a pair!

[someidiot]

I agree with azryan (and others) about the backlit screen; I too would much prefer just the minimalist LED.

Mike did say something about diagnostics so perhaps the screen has value. Having said that, the diagnostic-screen (or the backlight) is more likely to burn out before the amp has a problem, so I kinda' feel it adds nothing much more than additional cost. No offence Michael  

Also, the auto-standby is a really nice feature for some people, especially those with multiple units and/or who have them tucked away somewhere. Please, please, try to keep this capability in place -- even if it means using an internal jumper to enable/disable it.

Cheers!

[ABEX]

Not sure if I remember correctly ,but I think the unit might have a similar troubleshooting  system like those implemented with a series of LED's inside the unit itself.

I almost wish the blue display would give an indication of Digital Readout of Watts being used ,but that would be extra circuitry which would not be beneficial and might get in the way of the music the way some old amp meters do.

Either way whatever MB wants is fine with me as you are not going to find this kind of quality anywhere at this price.Some amps costing 3-4X this price do not have the quality being stated by MB.

[mbarnes]

What I mean by Le Amp 2 being the flagship is that we think that it will be our most expensive solid state amplifier and we see little need for a more expensive amplifier in our line.  It achieves all the goals we set out.

I am sorry for the people who prefer the LED.  After putting the photos, we have been averaging about 12 amp orders per day.  

We do plan to build other amplifiers.  Nothing firm yet.  I would like to have a 2 channel 150 watt per channel A/B amp for $295.00 with an introductory price of $195.00.

We are actively working on the 2.1 integrated.

[taketwo]

I too thought that power switch should be recessed and certainly vertical, but better yet would have prefered it mounted under the unit.

Oh please no. Not under. Front, OK. Back, yes.