VOLT+D class D amp , dual mono 2x 60W

[Chinquapin]

Too low. You want 5+amps to prevent brown out.

[SMen]

I've been using a 24v 5amp power supply for a while, but just for interests sake, I thought that I would try a Gophert NPS1601. It can be bought for 50 usd / euros or so. It is the upgraded version of one recommended on HiMeDIY. Reviewed and tested on YouTube showing consistently 8mv peak to peak noise.

The ifi Audio  Elite mentioned a couple of posts ago quotes less than 1mv, but the ifi literature on their site also says that an audiophile supply is typically 100mv.

There is an audioscience review of the allo Volt D which suggests that it stretches 3 amps... but the readout on my Gophert never exceeds (even reaches) the 200 - 400 ma mentioned by Allo at the very start of this post!

I might post this question on the audioscience review site, but no matter.

I am running the Gophert on 25.5, because this equates to 24v (the capacitance multiplier reduces the voltage reaching the circuit by 1.5) which is in the Allo Volt D comfort zone, and less than the maximum suggested by an Allo contributor on othe audioscience site, and by the audioscience reviewer (tested at 30v).

It is significantly better than my previous 24volt supply (which in my set up was much better than the 19v supplied by Allo).

I attribute this to the low noise. I have much better depth and breadth, across the board detail and bass articulation. I am being understated as I write this. I have in fact been fairly amazed. I'd be interested if anyone else has tried this, but it might be worth a punt...

I'd hazard a guess that the Volt D capacitance multiplier gets the noise down to ifi Elite levels. Allo say any power supply will be brought down to less than less than 5mV. So how on earth I am hearing such an improvement is anyone's guess, but a starting point of 8mv as opposed to 100, or even 1000 has to be pretty good!

Just thought I'd share.

One question though. How do you measure the power output of a Volt D in really easy math speak / formula?!! The readout on my Gopert never exceeds just a few watts! I've heard this before ... that in fact we only use a few watts and it is only on peaks we need more (watts and amps)!

and indeed into 8 or 4 ohm speakers etc. So . 24volts would be what into 8 or 4 ohm speakers? On the site Allo say 23v comes about 60W per channel ... but is that 60 into 8ohms and almost double into 4? Very confusing.

[ampularity]

On 2/27/2019 at 4:26 AM, allo.com said:

Working on a 2/100W 8Ohm. 3 months around

It's been quite a while since you posted this. Any update on the monoblocks?

[deekdeek]

I bought the Volt+d to see how it would power my totem arrows (for lower listening in a small room) and i am disappointed. sounds very empty and IF i do crank it up a bit it gets shreiky real fast. Im going to try to pair it up with some small paradigm bookshelf's over the next few days and see how that does.

[SMen]

10 hours ago, deekdeek said:

I bought the Volt+d to see how it would power my totem arrows (for lower listening in a small room) and i am disappointed. sounds very empty and IF i do crank it up a bit it gets shreiky real fast. Im going to try to pair it up with some small paradigm bookshelf's over the next few days and see how that does.

"Shreiky and empty" sounds far removed from the sound I get from the Volt+d. Make sure you are using 24v with less efficient speakers, and depending on what you have feeding it, maybe try the gain switches underneath (turn it off and on when switching). Maybe it just needs a couple of days...

I'm using with small Kef Reference 98db efficiency speakers

[happypappy]

17 hours ago, deekdeek said:

I bought the Volt+d to see how it would power my totem arrows (for lower listening in a small room) and i am disappointed. sounds very empty and IF i do crank it up a bit it gets shreiky real fast. Im going to try to pair it up with some small paradigm bookshelf's over the next few days and see how that does.

Sounds like something is amiss.  The Arro is not an easy load to drive, at 4 ohms nominal, dips below that, and modest sensitivity.  This may be a bit demanding for the Volt+d.

 

Be sure your power supply is up to snuff, 24 volts and at least 4 amps potential.  The 19 volt power supply that Allo offers with the amp does it a disservice.  I've tried both and the difference is significant.    

[deekdeek]

Wondering why the AC adapters don't even seem to be getting slightly warm , i would assume that the adapter was supplying even low wattage to the amp that it would get somewhat warm but this is not the case. Do you have the same experience?

[SMen]

38 minutes ago, deekdeek said:

Wondering why the AC adapters don't even seem to be getting slightly warm , i would assume that the adapter was supplying even low wattage to the amp that it would get somewhat warm but this is not the case. Do you have the same experience?

Does not run warm - it's very efficient. On the Gophert which gives me a readout - there is not much stress on the power supply.
But - the move up to 24v makes a significant difference - and those speakers of yours are demanding.

[deekdeek]

Well i just ordered a 24v 5A supply so will see how that goes. How many amps is it pulling in your case. Just wondering why we need such a hefty supply if it does not seem to use it? I would think in my case with the arrows it would try to pull close to max amps to power these sleeping monsters . Maybe im not understanding something.

 

[SMen]

8 minutes ago, deekdeek said:

Well i just ordered a 24v 5A supply so will see how that goes. How many amps is it pulling in your case. Just wondering why we need such a hefty supply if it does not seem to use it? I would think in my case with the arrows it would try to pull close to max amps to power these sleeping monsters . Maybe im not understanding something.

 

Tiny amount - < 2 into my speakers  - but yours may well be a very different matter. I am no expert, but I will be very interested to hear about your 24v 5A. It may well be that the noise is relatively lower with the greater power in. If you find it is better, then (I am not joking) the Gophert for me with its lower noise was genuinely significant. My experience has since made me buy ALLO's 5v supplies for my dacs etc ... really useful with their usb out as well. I am just a punter! Love the Volt D

A 24v 5A will give you the pointer you need - no difference stop - big difference ... let us know either way!

[SMen]

I wish Allo would follow up about any higher powered version though ... hello Allo?

[deekdeek]

You actually reminded me that i had a desktop power supply in my basement , so i hooked it up to check the V + A . And again i'm surprised how little power is being drawn PSU @ 30Volts.

 

I used Santana black magic woman as my reference, Volt+D to max power and volume at 90 via Moode player using boss 2 and the peak amperage according to my PS is 0.4 Amps . That's 30v x 0.4 = only 12watts.

 

I also dropped the voltage to 19v as to use the recommended voltage from Allo and got the same results of 0.4 amps, that's only 7.5watts so yes the 24volts does seem to result in more power output.

I checked out some of the forum posts on audio science review regarding this amp and it does seem that 24-30 volts might be ideal but in my case it wont really be enough for my arrows, so i might look at a preamp or just buy something else with much more juice.

 

Also since i just received it im going to break it in for a few days and re-test.

[happypappy]

32 minutes ago, deekdeek said:

....Volt+D to max power and volume at 90 via Moode player....

If you're turning the volume control all the way up and still not getting enough power, the problem is not a lack of amplifier power, it's a lack of input voltage from your source.  The low amperage figures you're seeing on your power supply indicate this as well. 

 

An active pre-amp adds considerable gain (voltage) to the source signal.  A couple of things you can try, short of putting a pre-amp in the system:  1)  Turn your player up to 100.  2)  There is a small switch on the bottom of the Volt+D that makes the amp more sensitive to the input signal.  Flip it and see what you get.

 

Try those ideas and see if you get adequate volume.

[deekdeek]

I've tried most of that, its not really that the volume isn't adequate, more so that at lower volumes its too quiet and there is no real depth to the sound as not enough power is being delivered. If i use my tests as a baseline with amp maxed and volume to 90 and i'm only seeing 12watts peak power draw. im not sure what the amp is actually delivering to the speakers (maybe i can find a way to test that) but im not sure why we need 60watt AC adapter when its not drawing anything near that. maybe allo can answer? I wonder maybe to bridge it?

 

the arrows need at least  20 REAL watts just to get started. Im not sure why the VoltD just can't do it.

I've used this power supply in the past to charge 18650 lithium cells at 5amps @30volts without a problem so i know it can supply more than enough power.

[SMen]

It might be worth directly asking Allo just in case there is a problem with a new question on here.  I need mine on the higher gain settings with 88db efficiency speakers.

 

There are a couple of more powerful amplifier models using the TI TAS5624A chip for example, but not from Allo, that are well reviewed on the Audio Science site. I'd been mulling trying one of these to see, even with Allo's capacitance multiplier.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[happypappy]

9 hours ago, deekdeek said:

....at lower volumes its too quiet and there is no real depth to the sound as not enough power is being delivered....

This is a confusing contradiction.  The power being delivered is a direct function of the power being demanded based on the input voltage, the sensitivity and impedance of the speakers, and the ebb and flow of the musical dynamics.  A gigantic Krell amp will also deliver only a few milliwatts at low volumes.  

 

Do you have previous experience with the Arro speakers on a different amplifier(s), or are you using them for the first time on the Volt+D?  Some speakers are disappointing at low volume, and only come to life at higher listening levels.  If you've had better luck with another amplifier, this would indicate that your disappointment with the Volt+D may be caused by the fact that the Arros are a demanding load impedance wise, and that the Volt+D is simply not capable of driving the impedance load adequately.  Allo doesn't say much about the low impedance performance of their amps.  Maybe it's not up to the challenge here, so comparing the Arro's performance with other amplifiers would be useful.  It would also be useful to try the Allos with more amp friendly (8 ohm nominal) speakers to be sure there's nothing wrong with the amp.

 

I've compared my Volt+D to an Adcom GFA-535ii power amp of 60 watts per channel (8 ohms) driving several different speakers, all 8 ohms nominal and with sensitivities from 86db to 90 db.  The Volt+D with a 24 volt brick type power supply is clearly better sounding and subjectively no less powerful than the Adcom with all of these speakers.  I've NEVER heard the Volt+D clip.

 

Again, though, the low impedance of the Arros MAY be a limiting factor.  Allo isn't forthcoming with those specs.   

[happypappy]

45 minutes ago, happypappy said:

....It would also be useful to try the Allos...

Typo, instead of "Allos", I mean to to write "Volt+D".

[Climber]

Does anyone know where I can get one of the power supply adapter tips that fit the Volt+ D?  It does not seem to be a common size and I'm struggling to find one.  Thanks!

[KingRex]

Anyone want to purchase my volt+d.  It has the 19 volt stock PS.  I have bypassed the volume put using a wire nut across the 2 wires.  I also carved away some of the plastic frame to allow use of spade connectors.  I also have a nylon washer on the speaker terminal so the screw does not rip the finish on a spade terminal.  Unit works fine.  Last time I drove it was breaking in a speaker in my basement.  I let it run 24x7 for a week.  I'm trying to clean mess out of my house.  Not that it takes up space.  Its just unused.  $50 plus shipping.   USA.  

[Jayanth]

3 hours ago, KingRex said:

Anyone want to purchase my volt+d.  It has the 19 volt stock PS.  I have bypassed the volume put using a wire nut across the 2 wires.  I also carved away some of the plastic frame to allow use of spade connectors.  I also have a nylon washer on the speaker terminal so the screw does not rip the finish on a spade terminal.  Unit works fine.  Last time I drove it was breaking in a speaker in my basement.  I let it run 24x7 for a week.  I'm trying to clean mess out of my house.  Not that it takes up space.  Its just unused.  $50 plus shipping.   USA.  

I would love to take it off your hands …

[KingRex]

2 hours ago, Jayanth said:

I would love to take it off your hands …

PM me at [email protected]  We can work out the details there.

Thanks

Rex