Icepower 125ASX2 C&C!

HT cOz · « **on:** 5 Nov 2011, 12:55 pm »

I recently purchased a complete Ice Power amp with the 125ASX2 module for $266 delivered to the US. These are available from a guy named Ghent who has been very nice to buy from. He is located in China which is always somewhat worrisome due to language barriers and distance. I will say that is English is excellent and he is very timely with his communication.

The amps ship and arrived within 5 days which is remarkable. I ordered 3 amps and two arrived in perfect order. One amp had one of the signal wires come loose which required a touch up with the soldering iron. I sold two of the amps and am keeping the one I touched up.

So how do they sound? Well not like a $250 amp that is for sure. They are fast, articulate, effortless, and very quiet. They run warm to the touch after days of playing. I have to admit they do things that my tube amp can't do such as the shimmer on top and a vice grip on the bass. The tube amp excels in the presence you are at the venue better and has better tone.

If I was building a Cheap and Cheerful system these little guys would be top of my list for amps. I give them a big

I would love to have had the chance to run two of them as mono-blocks but I don't have the correct equipment to do that.

Enjoy
Robert

timind · « **Reply #1 on:** 5 Nov 2011, 02:53 pm »

I bought one of Robert's amps and yes they do sound excellent for the money.
I also bought just one of the modules from Ghent but have yet to receive it. This is the same module used in Bel Canto's Ref500S. They use two of them run in BTL mode to get a stereo amp which they rate at 250 watts into 8 ohms per channel. The Bel Canto lists for $2500, definitely not "cheap and cheerful."
here's a pic of the Bel Canto inside:

I.Greyhound Fan · « **Reply #2 on:** 5 Nov 2011, 02:59 pm »

So whats the web address?

timind · « **Reply #3 on:** 5 Nov 2011, 03:33 pm »

Here's a link to his Audiogon ad
http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?ampstran&1325009790&/B-O-Icepower-125ASX2-amplifier

timind · « **Reply #4 on:** 5 Nov 2011, 03:40 pm »

I have a Linn Wakonda pre amp that I'm thinking about mounting one of these inside (pretty sure there's room). I'd have to get A/C to the module as well as mount some speaker binding posts to the Linn. Once finished I'd have a nice little integrated amp.

I.Greyhound Fan · « **Reply #5 on:** 5 Nov 2011, 10:34 pm »

Give us more details on the sound. What is the general tone like? Is it warmer sounding, neutral or on the sunny side? Why should I buy one of these vs a Class D audio amp?

persisting1 · « **Reply #6 on:** 5 Nov 2011, 10:49 pm »

I've been waiting for a review on this amp. Thanks guys

HT cOz · « **Reply #7 on:** 6 Nov 2011, 04:32 am »

I can't compare to a Class D amp so I have no idea which one I would prefer.

The strength of this amp is that it is a complete package that does not require any additional work. All those finishing steps become expensive and this is C&C.

What I have here to compare to is a Denon 4310 and my tube amp. This destroys the Denon and runs with the tube amp but they are like a yen and yang. The strengths of the Ice are the weaknesses of the tube amp. That being super clarity and shimmer up top. The tube amp also runs out of steam in a different way. You basically have a sweet spot on the volume where as the Ice just gets louder when asked but is never soft.

It is truly cool in its own right. I guess that a Dodd Buffer would be a great companion to this amp.

I guess you could sum it up as just plain fun.

Cheers
Robert

Sonny · « **Reply #8 on:** 6 Nov 2011, 04:51 am »

Here's a pic of inside the EVS M100 which uses the Ice Power Module (ICEpower® 200ASC)
These are modded by Ric Shultz and they are just amazing! They are much more than the $260 offered from China though. Different module than what's discuss in the thread but I thought I share...

Pic of the upgraded additional power cap

T

persisting1 · « **Reply #9 on:** 6 Nov 2011, 07:56 am »

I had a Hypex UcD400 for years and I really want to compare it to the ICEpower sound.

shep · « **Reply #10 on:** 6 Nov 2011, 08:22 am »

It's not often I get a chance

but this topic is definitely up my alley. I have the same 125 module (from another source) in a not dissimilar case. It's running as an integrated, with a stepped ladder/Vishay pot. The guts were totally re-worked, mostly by Wyred4sound (very nice people to work with). The implementation is rather different from the Rick Schutz version but I suspect the results are similar. All the caps were changed for BG, resistors for the new Vishay foils and there's a Wyred-designed buffer and a few other tweaks. It's a jewel of an amp and as for the sound... well it's been compared at length with two tube designs, both very good and in every respect is their equal and in some superior (bass obviously and treble extension). There's a lot of negative comment about ICE amps. Don't believe a word of it.

I.Greyhound Fan · « **Reply #11 on:** 6 Nov 2011, 09:17 am »

What's the 4ohm rms power rating and at what distortion? Also, does any one know the specs for the headroom? I have a Class D audio amp and I am looking for another digital amp to run with a tube pre and tube dac, probably a Van Alstine T-8 preamp and Maverick DAC-01 or a Grant Fidelity DAC-11 DAC/Pre as double duty. These are for my secondary systems. Or I may just go with a BADA-22 integrated hybrid tube amp.

Thanks!

timind · « **Reply #12 on:** 6 Nov 2011, 11:15 am »

Here's a link to the ICE module tech info:
http://www.icepower.bang-olufsen.com/en/solutions/speaker/ASX2_SERIES

I.Greyhound Fan · « **Reply #13 on:** 6 Nov 2011, 06:02 pm »

Thanks for the info guys. The little amp might work well with my Monitor Audio S1's or my son's PSB B6's (christmas is coming and he is currently using my vintage 1976 Technics SU7600 integrated amp and a Maverick DAC-01). The Class D audio amps seem like they may be better suited for more demanding 4 ohm speakers due to the distortion specs. But I don't know how that translates into real world listening.

Do you guys know if RFI/EMI is a problem with the ICE amp and Tuners?

Lyndon · « **Reply #14 on:** 6 Nov 2011, 06:07 pm »

Robert,
Those look very nice.
If anyone finds a similar deal using Hypex modules, let me know!

HT cOz · « **Reply #15 on:** 6 Nov 2011, 07:24 pm »

I'm not sure about the RFI/EMI specs but in the documents that I've seen online state that passing the tests for those things is relative easy if you follow the basic builds.

I am very excited for Hypex Ncore. Maybe the older Ucd modules will go on sale sometime because of the new technology coming out. I could really use 5 Ucd400 modules as I have a trafo, power supply,mounting plate and heat sinks from Kevin for those. Maybe the Euro will go back to parity with the dollar. Otherwise it seems Hypex is just more expensive than the asx2 series.

I am thinking I will end up with either mono ASX2 series or Ncore for my 2 channel amp. These amps give a nice taste of what ClassD is about.

The tube amp will likely stay no matter what as it was my first piece of Highfi gear

Lyndon · « **Reply #16 on:** 6 Nov 2011, 07:50 pm »

Quote

Maybe the older Ucd modules will go on sale sometime because of the new technology coming out.

Robert,
This is what I'm hoping for as well. It is probably a testament to how happy people are with the Hypex modules with so few used units on the market.

Here is a thread on the Ncore modules.
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/class-d/190434-hypex-ncore-62.html
But they really have not been released on the market, and I would like to wait until enough people have built them up and made some observations.
Kevin at diycable has always been a proponent of these.

Rclark · « **Reply #17 on:** 8 Nov 2011, 10:35 pm »

Looks interesting. Was about to start looking for a reasonable yet good quality amp for my second system.

LejfK · « **Reply #18 on:** 10 Nov 2011, 02:35 am »

So, these can be run as mono blocks? Do you have to use an actual balanced connection, or will an unbalanced to balanced connection work?

Letitroll98 · « **Reply #19 on:** 10 Nov 2011, 02:50 am »

Now I know nothing more than what I've read about ICE power amps, both good and bad, but from what I read supposedly the ASX2 series is a real advancement in sound quality? Is this the case and does anyone know why it may be so?

Additionally, the ad linked by the OP is for a kit version that is slightly cheaper, I assume the guy will ship an assembled amp for the price stated here?