[KevinW]

I have been rather quiet lately because I have had my head down, grinding out new engineering and products.  The good news is that the Fusion H1 amplifier has already been improved.  There are some slight improvements in the input circuitry, including a more liberal usage of black gate decoupling caps and a higher input impedance.  The results are stunning, with a dramatic increase in the emotional involvement factor.  Bass impact is still tremendous, and detail and transparency are further improved.

One customer who is also a member of AC just received his amp, and I expect he will be posting on his impressions soon.

I am very happy to have produced a product that meets my criteria of incredible sound quality, with an emphasis on creating an emotionally involving experience.  This is the ultimate reason why we go to such great lengths as audiophiles.  The new amp sounds so good, I had a veritable out-of-body experience listeing to Dvorak's 9th on Chesky last night.  

Additionally, I am very pleased to have a product that is energy efficient, good looking, and built locally in Portland OR.  That is the essence of sustainability in a nutshell... Better quality than the status quo mass marketed products, while also providing better value.

The new chassis design is done, using solid bamboo hardwoods and stainless steel.  I have included some photos from my workbench at the bottom.  The stainless is cut out by lasers, and the engraving of stainless and bamboo is also done with lasers. This allows for very high tolerance production and a very professional look.  The woodwork is done by a master craftsman, and is truly a work of art.  This chassis has no venting or visible heat sinks, as this is not necessary using the incredibly efficient class D amplifiers.  It barely gets warm to the touch.  RFI emissions are eliminated by lining the inside of the bamboo with copper foil.

The new chassis design has bamboo feet, which sound very good.  The physical structure of bamboo is very stiff and non-resonant.  This makes it outstanding for building speakers, but also very good for reducing vibration transmission into a chassis.  It is equivalent to hard maple, which is gaining popularity these days.  

However, I take the footer design one step further by including a set of Panda Feet sorbothane footers that fit into a recess in the bamboo footer.  This creates a marked further reduction of noise in the system, as the Panda Feet are a very smartly designed product.  My amp comes with one of the best resonance control tweaks I have seen as a standard item.  You can see them in the photos at the bottom of each foot.

I have also finalized the greenhouse gas offsets that come standard with the amp.  Now before you go thinking this is a non sequitor, I would have you know that I am scientist who until very recently worked in the Climate Change field.  One of the best ways to mitigate climate change is to use greenhouse gas offsets for all energy consumption.  In this regard, my products come with the first year of greenhouse gas emissions due to average electricity usage, offset by the purchase of biodiesel.  For each amp, I only need to purchase 3 gallons of biodiesel from the GoBiodiesel Cooperative in Portland, which I then donate back to the Co-op.  This is a small amount, thanks to my efficient design.  An analog solid state amp of equivalent power would need about 20-30 gallons to offset one year of emissions.  At $1.75/gal, this would add up to a significant cost, but on my amp, I am very happy to absorb the cost of the three gallons.

[Horsehead]

WOW! Looks great!  This is all very good news and worth the wait.  I cna't wait to receive my monoblocks. Kevin you are more than welcome to posts pictures of the monoblocks you are building for me so ACer's can see them as well.  Plus, I get a free preview before I receive them

Any increase in power with the new modules?  Could you explain in what areas the new module "theoretically" improved upon? Thanks!

[KevinW]

I forgot to mention that there is one more VERY significant improvement on this amp.  The input impedance is now 36000 ohms standard.  This totally eliminates any problems with system matching.  It is being tested with the Eastern Electric Minimax, with it's very high 1200 ohm output impedance, and there are no problems.

[DARTH AUDIO]

I'm the guy that was just shipped his amp.. I will post my impressions of the first 30 hours with his amp.. I will say this "VERY INVOLVING" even with just 28 hrs on the Fusion H1. But, I'm in the middle of watching my beloved Bears. I'm still listening to the stereo as the game is being played!!   And that says a lot for the amp!! Stay tuned it will be worth it.. And It works "GREAT" with the MiniMax Preamp. It's a match made in heaven..        

[DARTH AUDIO]

Well it’s halftime so here are my impressions of the Solar Fusion H1 digital Amp after 30 hours of constant playing. First let me start by saying this is not a comparison to any other amp. This is what I am hearing in my room with my equipment. I have in the past had a SS system and a Tube system. When I decided to make a change to my system, I went looking for a system that had the bass and highs of solid state and the midrange of tubes. I really wanted the sound to be about 30% to 40% tube sounding and the rest SS sounding. First, build quality of the amp is Excellent and a work of art.

Okay the sound. My first word was “Alive”. Then “Involving”. This amp is soooo “Smooth”. The highs are crisp, clean, detailed and sooo smooth. NO HARSHNESS at all. This amp is non-fatiguing. The bass, well I like bass but not over bearing bass that muddies the music. This bass is perfect for me. Deep, tight and authoritative. Midrange is very good and continues to get better (Kevin had explained to me ahead of time that it takes the upper midrange 30 to 60 hours to start coming around) I’m starting to hear the midrange bloom(Not tube sounding) but oh so beautiful. Piano and acoustic guitar are so real with this amp. I played a CD of Patricia Barber and a buddy of mine who has seen her live freaked out on how “Clear an Real”  it sounded. The soundstaging is to die for!!! Deep with instruments floating in there correct positions. This amp is a great match for my Von Schweikert VR-2’s. I really think Kevin @ Solar HiFi has hit a “Walk off home run” in my books. I told Kevin this morning that this amp is like a “Chameleon” It has this innate ability to match up with the music you are playing. I have played everything from King Crimson, Heart, Bowie, Neil Young, Gino Vanelli, and Jeff Beck to Miles, Coltrane Dexter Gordon, Tord Gustavsen trio, Paul Desmond, well you get the idea. Also, mostly vinyl. If you need a hard driving amp to pound out Rock & Roll like Led Zeppelin it does and does it very well. If you are playing acoustic trio music, it plays with a delicate intimacy that puts on stage with the players. I’m listening right now to Morelebaum/Sakamoto (the music of Jobim) Piano, Cello and vocals.. Beautiful music that sound so real.
Well more to come in time.. But for now I’m  VERY pleased with my purchase and the customer service from Kevin @ Solar is awesome.

My System & Room:
Room: 27’x 17’ w/ (2) Roomtune Room Paks. 12’ x 13 ‘ area rug. Brick and sheet rock walls
AMP: Solar HiFi Fusion H1
PREAMP: Eastern Electric MiniMax w/NOS tubes
PHONO STAGE: EAR 834P
DIGITAL: Jolida JD100
ANALOG: Nottingham Interspace TT w/ Hyperspace Platter(50lbs) Interspace Tonearm and Lyra Lydian Cart.
POWER. PS Audio Power Port and BPT BP2, BPT Power Cords
CABLES: I’m testing new cables. Right now I’m using the Audience Maestro Speaker Cable and Maestro IC from preamp to amp. Conductor from phono stage and CD player. I will also try the Jena Labs cables and Mapleshade cables.

[warnerwh]

That's a VERY nice looking amplifier! Congrats to you Kevin.

[audiojerry]

I was beginning to wonder where Kevin had gone; I guess he locked himself in the basement lab ala Dr. Frankenstein working on creating a new living and breathing life form!    

It looks very promising Kevin! Based on my brief experience with the
Solar at Jackman's, and now coupled with your significant improvements,
I would be remiss not to seriously consider if it could replace my 900 watts of power consuming tube amp; that is if you could actually deal with a person who is so environmentally abusive  

PS: Would it be possible to get a Bamboo top plate to have a completely wood looking exterior?

[JoshK]

Kevin,

Your amps look fantastic.  I much prefer this new look to the original, albeit a vanity thing.   I do think there is something to be said about amps with higher input impedance that don't have as many system matching problems.  I think this is good engineering.

[TheChairGuy]

Kevin,

That is an incredibly cool looking amp - you are definitely cut from a different pattern than most.  I am most intrigued by it....and you.

[KevinW]

Thanks for all the compliments on the chassis design.  I am very pleased with the looks, and I'm developing some new ideas to snazz it up for the H2 and H3.

Any increase in power with the new modules?  Could you explain in what areas the new module "theoretically" improved upon? Thanks!

No increase in power... is 250/500 watts not enough?     Well, the H3 will take care of that with around 1000 watts...  

I forgot to mention that I received a pre-release of the new LC Audio modules, and that they will be available to DIY'ers in mid-January.  The primary improvements are the higher input impedance, and better input circuitry using black gates and tighter voltage regulation.  This has made a BIG difference in SQ, based on my experience with a partially broken-in amp.

I would be remiss not to seriously consider if it could replace my 900 watts of power consuming tube amp; that is if you could actually deal with a person who is so environmentally abusive  

PS: Would it be possible to get a Bamboo top plate to have a completely wood looking exterior?

Jerry, I'm sorry but a full bamboo chassis would not be possible due to heat buildup.  A small amount of heat does radiate from the top plate, though just enough to be warm to the touch.  With a bamboo top plate, vent holes would be necessary, but then RF would be able to escape the chassis.

Regarding replacing your 900 watt space heater, that is *exactly* what I want to see happen.    I can also sell you some extra greenhouse gas offsets to eliminate your guilt from using it too  According to my ballpark calculations, your amp alone is repsonsible for emitting almost 3/4's of a ton of CO2 per year.  The average American emits about 22 tons/yr from all sources.

Your amps look fantastic. I much prefer this new look to the original, albeit a vanity thing. I do think there is something to be said about amps with higher input impedance that don't have as many system matching problems. I think this is good engineering.

The low input impedance of the previous version did have one benefit... it reduces noise pickup of EMI. Everything is a tradeoff, and requires some good engineering to make it all work properly.

[audiojerry]

The low input impedance of the previous version

Is this possibly why some of us had different results with different speakers, rather than the amp's output impedence?

[KevinW]

The low input impedance of the previous version

Is this possibly why some of us had different results with different speakers, rather than the amp's output impedence?

No, this shouldn't make much difference, although I'm glad this is fixed as it did certainly cause different problems matching with some preamps.

Regarding the problems that did occur with two of the demo's, there is a good explanation for both...  For Hantra, who didn't hear as much highs as he liked, it is partly personal preference, and partly a slight problem with the demo amp that went around.  When I finally got it home, I noticed a very small rolloff compared to my personal amp.  The changes that were made in the demo amp have been 'un-changed' in the production amps

Regarding Jackman's demo... there were several factors, not the least of which was the tiny power cord that could have starved the amp of power on inefficient speakers.  Also I never heard definitively, but Jack's speakers may have a series XO.  It is possible for digital amps to behave badly when a series XO is used on a bass driver at high power levels.  However, on the production amps, this potential for misbehavior has also been fixed with some clever engineering.  All of these factors make that test non-definitive, and the amp certainly performed well with the Dynaudio's.

I think that the so-called 'reputation' of my amps as being difficult to match with speakers will be proven to be unfounded in short order.  So far it is a beautiful match with VMPS and Von Schweikert as two customers can attest.  And as more customers receive incredible amps, I'm not too worried about my reputation being anything but stellar.  

[gme109]

I have been rather quiet lately because I have had my head down, grinding out new engineering and products.  The good news is that the Fusion H1 amplifier has already been improved.  There are some slight improvements in the input circuitry, including a more liberal usage of black gate decoupling caps and a higher input impedance.  The results are stunning, with a dramatic increase in the emotional involvement factor.  Bass impact is still tremendous, and detail and transparency are further improved.

One ...

Hi Kevin,

Well you be showing your amp at CES?

[KevinW]

I will not be showing my amp at CES.  The timing just wasn't right for my business, but perhaps next year.

[zybar]

Kevin,

When will you have the tubed units ready for audition?

Thanks,

GW

[Horsehead]

Hi Kevin,

I was just wondering how the new LC modules are working out?  Do you have an expected "ready" date for the monoblocks?  Just thought I would ask here as I already have some ACer's who are very interested in your amps also.  They're going to be knocking down my door after I receive them.  

[KevinW]

Horsehead,

I was planning on having the final 'new' engineering done and amps built on Friday, the 16th.  The engineering is done, however, the big ice storm in the PNW has stopped all deliveries of parts!  There's still a 4" thick layer of ice on the street in front of my house, and the prospects for melting are not too good until next week.  When the parts arrive, I can start to build amps.

I am as anxious to build amps as you are to get them, so it will happen as soon as possible.  It has been rather comical in a macabre sense of all the delays that have occured one after the other.  Holidays, Flu, CES, ICE, and I'm expecting the alien invasion to start any second now. :lol

[zybar]

Kevin,

What about my question above Horsehead's?

I can't wait to hear the Solar's at Horsehead's and when he wbrings them to my place.

GW

[KevinW]

Zybar,
Well, the tubed units are delayed as well.  Can't sell those until the H1 is in production!   So sometime in february is my current estimate.

The one good thing about the delays, as that everything I am adding only makes the amp sound better than before.

[JoshK]

Well I guess you can now call your amps ICE amps.  Except that might confuse people about the technology employed.