Looks like a nice amp. I built the Eigentact Stereo with Hypex SMPS and Purfi Eval1 unit, plus a Ghent case. It seems utterly transparent. I'm sure this version of the Hypex will work as well. Love how everything is available in one kit. I had to source everything including the screws myself, and it was a PIA.
Thank you for this. I ordered and build the amp with the help of your video. This KIT makes DIY possible for SIY(Screw It Yourself) people like me lol. One thing that bothered me though is the 3 out of 4 screws needed for the XLR connectors were missing form the KIT. Luckily i asked a local technician and he was able to scavenge them for me from old machines. The amplifier is dead silent with no noise coming from the speaker twitter.
A very nice amp, i replaced my Rega Elex-R with it. Assembly went easy. First test i did was using the Elex-R as preamp and the source i used was my Ayre QB-9 DAC: It's a very nice upgrade from the Elex-R which is a best buy in its price range! This amp feels like it has a perfect control over the speakers, completely transparent, very nice balanced sound, tight bass, very detailed and neutral mids and highs. My speaker are the very fine Ryan R610, them too are best in their price range, better than many speakers that costs twice as much en even more! I just added the DIY Class D preamp and started to use XLR to hook up the amp and my DAC: It plays really wonderful!
The Shiny Bottom . . . The power amplifier is polished not for appearance, but for coplanarity. In other words, it is a very flat and even surface so that the thermal impedance is reduced from the power amplifier to the chassis. The power amplifier is mounted to the chassi and both surfaces have to be flat to minimize thermal impedance or heat transfer. This reduces operating temperature of the amplifier for a given power output. What would be helpful is to apply a very thin coat of thermal compound. This will also reduce thermal impedance, therefore enhancing thermal conductivity to the chassi reducing the operating temperature and increasing reliability.
I just ordered one of these. Objectively it is beyond impressive but your subjective takes (video) on the latest Hypex & Purifi modules is what got me to pay the little extra price for the Nilai. I've tried UCD & Hypex in the past so im excited to see how Class D has improved in the last 3 years. Even the older models were not bad. Especially for the price. They could be a little hard but i found coloring them with a softer type tube preamp was a good mix. I'll probably push the Nilai straight from a RME dac for streaming. If the Nilai is as good as described I'll up the ante with a better or an appropriate preamp. Thanks for the video... I'll be using it when the amp arrives.
I finished the amp the night it arrived. Used this video as a guide. Took me a little longer than I thought due to the small parts vs big man hands. My tip to any future builders..don't over tighten the enclosure or more importantly the feet. The top won't slide on if everything is overtightened. Loosening the feet helped tremendously. Best to do the final torquing when completed. On a side note the amp really does sound wonderful. Handles speakers equally as well at lower volumes. A lot of Class D haters cry about the topology being emotionless or no soul...too dry or analytical. I don't think anyone will say that about the Nilai. It is transparent & resolving so if your upstream components are weak or distorted the amp will amplify those aspects. I feel this Nilai just made amp buying real easy. The price to performance is ridiculous...this amp is a great buy imo. I ran it straight from dac for a few days but now using a single ended no feedback 6sn7 tube preamp & I'm very happy with the combo. Fantastic amp. Had I known I would like it this much I would have ordered the mono blocks
Thanks for the vid Jaap, I followed this when assembling my Nilai 250w stereo amp last night - very handy thanks. It's a very elegant design isn't it and I agree re the stunning polished amplifier modules, one sorta wishes they were on show somehow.
The Nilai 500 is utterly linear. The NCoreX 500 produces harmonic distortion that is -120dB from the reference tone, which is provably inaudible with virtually any speaker.. The Nilai 500 produces harmonic distortion that is -140dB. At that level of distortion, the only undesirable effect is the background noise, which remains about -113dB. The only more linear amplifier is the Topping LA90 which has lower power and lower gain. Today, the problem is with sources that don't supply enough signal to reach full power from the amplifier, and then you have to switch in the buffer stage which amplifies the sound but also the incoming noise.
My kit arrived 2 days ago and I built it that night. Yesterday afternoon I went to test it and it seemed dead. After a few hours of checking my build and testing input voltage and wiring, I realised it has a tiny power button on the front... Doh! In my defence, for many years I have been using a Sunfire amp that only has a single power switch on the back which is where I went wrong.
Wonderful video, Thanks !! Can't wait to see your review of its sound quality, and mostly... how will it compare to the Purifi Eigentakt ??? I was about to order an Eigentakt kit, now I'm holding my breath...
Wow! Seen this after your live review. This is a power amp. Do they do integrated amp version of this ( preamp built in) ? Plus do you test the preamp, how did it do? Great channel keep up the excellent work!
The ATI Hypex amp has a huge power supply that this amp does not. This amp would still perform well but would not have much add'l peak power it seems, which may not be needed often.
Great build! You have done your Lego/Airfix as young? Would a second power supply fit into the case? Dual mono would be better, or would it be overkill?
Purify has latest versions of Bruno Putzeys designs, if you like that flavour, and ICE power 2000as2 is a true kW capable fully balanced design at less cost and with similarly inaudible distortion (no, even if you could hear the difference in the last digits, THD is not the most important criterion for a musical amp, as any designer could just apply more negative feedback to make it measure better - far below the human hearing threshold in all cases) but with significantly higher bus voltage = improved dynamics and the subjective experience of truly infinite power.
The Hypex computer animation of the assembly showed a film on the base plate of the amplifier module that needed to be removed before mounting it in the chassis. I didn't see this film being removed in your video.
@@TheAlphaAudio Sounds good. I only mentioned it because the Hypex UA-cam channel put out a computer animation video of the assembly of this amp (ua-cam.com/video/tEVyDF5xW2M/v-deo.html). At about the 1:50 mark, they show a film being peeled off the metal plate of the amp module. I figured if it was there and not removed, it might interfere with heat transfer. If it's not listed in the instruction manual, maybe the kit ships with that film already removed. Anyway, the amp kit looks great! I've been eagerly awaiting some reviews and a full set of measurements.
today i build a set Nilai500 mono blocks. Never thought it would sound so good. From now on I am into three-amping with Audio Note Ginrei 211 for the low and mid/high and the Nilai500 for the sub-low. You can get an impression of these speakers on my YT channel
It looks like the Nilai 500 stereo kit uses the same power supply as the 500 monoblocks. This means that the stereo one shares one power supply between both channels, while the monos have a dedicated power supply per channel. Does this compromise the sound of the stereo one in any way; do the monoblocks sound better because of this?
This build looks a helluva lot simpler than the Eigentakt amp kit if memory serves me well, though that amp took up less real estate in the amp case. Have far can Class D keep on improving, and becoming more cost-efficient?
Ordered a kit last night based on this video and the ASR review of the mono version. Do you think this amp would benefit with shielding fitted between the PSU and the amp modules?
The Purify looks more powerful based on specs (2x400 in 4 ohm), nearly same price bought as “plug and play”, so what is the deal here focusing on Hypex?
@@TheAlphaAudio my point is, unless this product has better specs or sounds better, then why buying it? I assume your review will cover this aspect or?
5-10 year lifespan, after that the small caps will pop / bulge because they get trashed with HF ripple. Been there, done that. Even the 105*C computer grade Nippons go pop and these multilayer boards are a nightmare to solder on. No class-D for me unless with a big linear PSU and the manufacturer offering a trade-in on worn amp boards.
@@DoeBoy999 I have build UcD400 with both SMPS and linear PSUs, and the linear sounded the best. I can´t say if that always is the case, but I believe so.
Ys, have it too..., and the Sound is not very good in my Opinion..., my 2x 12w Tube Amp is much better, wider, bigger STage, more Details... will switch soon to this Nilai Version, shuld be much much better...., i hope so"
Pues ya tendrá que sonar bien dicho aparato por el abusivo precio que tiene el mismo.....El precio de dicho amplificador me parece un robo a mano armada....Solo está al alcance de unos pocos privilegiados....Un saludo cordial....🥵
Way over priced. IMO this is not a kit. The PCB's are completely assembled and flow soldered. Placing hardware etc. on the chassis and screwing a power supply and two amplifier PCB's into place is not a kit.
It's arguably "cheap" for the performance. And while it's not a kit in comparison to say a Dynakit or Tubes4Hifi kit it is definitely not fully assembled and must be put together to work. It's pretty much a kit or DIY project.
I love the solderless amplifier like this, hope it's the milestone of future amplifier and other audio/video equipment.
Looks like a nice amp. I built the Eigentact Stereo with Hypex SMPS and Purfi Eval1 unit, plus a Ghent case. It seems utterly transparent. I'm sure this version of the Hypex will work as well. Love how everything is available in one kit. I had to source everything including the screws myself, and it was a PIA.
Thank you for this. I ordered and build the amp with the help of your video. This KIT makes DIY possible for SIY(Screw It Yourself) people like me lol. One thing that bothered me though is the 3 out of 4 screws needed for the XLR connectors were missing form the KIT. Luckily i asked a local technician and he was able to scavenge them for me from old machines. The amplifier is dead silent with no noise coming from the speaker twitter.
Looking forward to the review, I have been eyeing the mono-block version up for a while!
A very nice amp, i replaced my Rega Elex-R with it. Assembly went easy. First test i did was using the Elex-R as preamp and the source i used was my Ayre QB-9 DAC: It's a very nice upgrade from the Elex-R which is a best buy in its price range! This amp feels like it has a perfect control over the speakers, completely transparent, very nice balanced sound, tight bass, very detailed and neutral mids and highs. My speaker are the very fine Ryan R610, them too are best in their price range, better than many speakers that costs twice as much en even more! I just added the DIY Class D preamp and started to use XLR to hook up the amp and my DAC: It plays really wonderful!
The Shiny Bottom . . . The power amplifier is polished not for appearance, but for coplanarity. In other words, it is a very flat and even surface so that the thermal impedance is reduced from the power amplifier to the chassis. The power amplifier is mounted to the chassi and both surfaces have to be flat to minimize thermal impedance or heat transfer. This reduces operating temperature of the amplifier for a given power output. What would be helpful is to apply a very thin coat of thermal compound. This will also reduce thermal impedance, therefore enhancing thermal conductivity to the chassi reducing the operating temperature and increasing reliability.
Thanks!
Yea, you should definitely use some thermal grease between them.
I just ordered one of these. Objectively it is beyond impressive but your subjective takes (video) on the latest Hypex & Purifi modules is what got me to pay the little extra price for the Nilai. I've tried UCD & Hypex in the past so im excited to see how Class D has improved in the last 3 years. Even the older models were not bad. Especially for the price. They could be a little hard but i found coloring them with a softer type tube preamp was a good mix. I'll probably push the Nilai straight from a RME dac for streaming. If the Nilai is as good as described I'll up the ante with a better or an appropriate preamp. Thanks for the video... I'll be using it when the amp arrives.
I finished the amp the night it arrived. Used this video as a guide. Took me a little longer than I thought due to the small parts vs big man hands. My tip to any future builders..don't over tighten the enclosure or more importantly the feet. The top won't slide on if everything is overtightened. Loosening the feet helped tremendously. Best to do the final torquing when completed.
On a side note the amp really does sound wonderful. Handles speakers equally as well at lower volumes. A lot of Class D haters cry about the topology being emotionless or no soul...too dry or analytical. I don't think anyone will say that about the Nilai. It is transparent & resolving so if your upstream components are weak or distorted the amp will amplify those aspects. I feel this Nilai just made amp buying real easy. The price to performance is ridiculous...this amp is a great buy imo. I ran it straight from dac for a few days but now using a single ended no feedback 6sn7 tube preamp & I'm very happy with the combo.
Fantastic amp. Had I known I would like it this much I would have ordered the mono blocks
Looks fun, and no soldering! 👍🏼
It is!
Tip:Keep your parts inside the ESD bags. The outer surface provides no static discharge protection.
Should he be wearing some kind of gloves and/or a wrist strap?
Exactly, ESD damage can happen quickly.
This should be really good, interested in comparison to purifi modules
Thanks for the vid Jaap, I followed this when assembling my Nilai 250w stereo amp last night - very handy thanks. It's a very elegant design isn't it and I agree re the stunning polished amplifier modules, one sorta wishes they were on show somehow.
Thanks!
Fantastic video thank you so much you make it seem so easy I love that there was no soldering involved. I will definitely consider this.❤
Nicely done. BTW that thingy is a lock washer. Your welcome. 😎
Haha... Thanks!
The Nilai 500 is utterly linear. The NCoreX 500 produces harmonic distortion that is -120dB from the reference tone, which is provably inaudible with virtually any speaker.. The Nilai 500 produces harmonic distortion that is -140dB. At that level of distortion, the only undesirable effect is the background noise, which remains about -113dB. The only more linear amplifier is the Topping LA90 which has lower power and lower gain. Today, the problem is with sources that don't supply enough signal to reach full power from the amplifier, and then you have to switch in the buffer stage which amplifies the sound but also the incoming noise.
My kit arrived 2 days ago and I built it that night. Yesterday afternoon I went to test it and it seemed dead. After a few hours of checking my build and testing input voltage and wiring, I realised it has a tiny power button on the front... Doh! In my defence, for many years I have been using a Sunfire amp that only has a single power switch on the back which is where I went wrong.
Oh man lol...that would have drove me crazy. And then I would have had a good laugh at myself 😂
1,500 Euros plus postage is really quite expensive compared to other offerings, so I hope they are REALLY good
They are.
Wonderful video, Thanks !! Can't wait to see your review of its sound quality, and mostly... how will it compare to the Purifi Eigentakt ??? I was about to order an Eigentakt kit, now I'm holding my breath...
We are planning a live test end of this month
Incredible !
Thank you for doing the video. Treat yourself to a driver set.
Haha... Thanks. Just bought it!
Wow! Seen this after your live review. This is a power amp. Do they do integrated amp version of this ( preamp built in) ? Plus do you test the preamp, how did it do?
Great channel keep up the excellent work!
They don't have an integrated amp. The pre-amp is very nice as well. Have a tutorial on the channel as well.
That was fun 😀
The ATI Hypex amp has a huge power supply that this amp does not. This amp would still perform well but would not have much add'l peak power it seems, which may not be needed often.
Great build! You have done your Lego/Airfix as young? Would a second power supply fit into the case? Dual mono would be better, or would it be overkill?
Ive seen some class D offerings with dual mono.
Independent PSUs would be better for headroom and dynamics I would think.
Purify has latest versions of Bruno Putzeys designs, if you like that flavour, and ICE power 2000as2 is a true kW capable fully balanced design at less cost and with similarly inaudible distortion (no, even if you could hear the difference in the last digits, THD is not the most important criterion for a musical amp, as any designer could just apply more negative feedback to make it measure better - far below the human hearing threshold in all cases) but with significantly higher bus voltage = improved dynamics and the subjective experience of truly infinite power.
I remember from my younger audio days that negative feedback is a "double edge sword" not a panacea.
i like hypex, a lot of power for not many euro's , i bought the eversolo class-d but that one has too few power
i have the eversolo f2 class but i sell that one and buy this hypex kit, it has more power and i like a bit diy (tiny bit)kit
The Hypex computer animation of the assembly showed a film on the base plate of the amplifier module that needed to be removed before mounting it in the chassis. I didn't see this film being removed in your video.
The guide doesn't say anything about that as far as In can remember.
@@TheAlphaAudio Sounds good. I only mentioned it because the Hypex UA-cam channel put out a computer animation video of the assembly of this amp (ua-cam.com/video/tEVyDF5xW2M/v-deo.html). At about the 1:50 mark, they show a film being peeled off the metal plate of the amp module. I figured if it was there and not removed, it might interfere with heat transfer. If it's not listed in the instruction manual, maybe the kit ships with that film already removed. Anyway, the amp kit looks great! I've been eagerly awaiting some reviews and a full set of measurements.
today i build a set Nilai500 mono blocks. Never thought it would sound so good. From now on I am into three-amping with Audio Note Ginrei 211 for the low and mid/high and the Nilai500 for the sub-low. You can get an impression of these speakers on my YT channel
Circuit boards arrived in anti static bags and no antistatic procedures followed.
It looks like the Nilai 500 stereo kit uses the same power supply as the 500 monoblocks. This means that the stereo one shares one power supply between both channels, while the monos have a dedicated power supply per channel. Does this compromise the sound of the stereo one in any way; do the monoblocks sound better because of this?
I haven't tested the monos. But i guess the monos have more headroom.
It's a different power supply on the Nilai...PS500DIY. Supposed to be the quietest PS of the Hypex & Purifi models. That's what I read anyway.
Thanks for the great video! Speaker contacts were incorrectly connected during assembly. Have you fixed this yet?
Yes
This build looks a helluva lot simpler than the Eigentakt amp kit if memory serves me well, though that amp took up less real estate in the amp case. Have far can Class D keep on improving, and becoming more cost-efficient?
Are there any parts that I can roll to experiment with the sound?
I expected that a kit you also have to solder it yourself, which also results in a cheaper price especially at a price of € 1,499.95 !
Why doesnt have volume knob? (begginer question)
This is a power amplifier. You need a pre-amplifier for volume control.
It seems there is enough room in the case to place a second power supply - making it essentially dual mono, correct?
Maybe. Yes.
Amazing ❤❤
Ordered a kit last night based on this video and the ASR review of the mono version. Do you think this amp would benefit with shielding fitted between the PSU and the amp modules?
I havent tested it. But i guess it would. PSU noise is never good.
There is a lot of empty space left in the case. It is possible to fit a 320 mm wide case.
Yes
Subscribed!
Are you using any special kind of power cable with this?
We use Yeti Standard cables.
🙏
Technisch lego 3.0❤
Hello, new subscriber here. How are these when compared to the NcX series?
Does anyone have any suggestions for a diy preamp to match with this power amp?
Well... Hypex does have a very nice DIY amp. Check our channel.
Is this the Ncorex or is this something new from hypex
It's new... it's called Nilai.
The Purify looks more powerful based on specs (2x400 in 4 ohm), nearly same price bought as “plug and play”, so what is the deal here focusing on Hypex?
I do not understand your question.
@@TheAlphaAudio my point is, unless this product has better specs or sounds better, then why buying it? I assume your review will cover this aspect or?
@@Nickhifi88 yes. We will measure and review it. We will compare it to eigentakt and Icepower.
Where can we PURCHASE?
@@LexusAllTerrain1 link in the description.
No sub port?
It has multiple line outs...
prices?
1250€ for the kit.
@_kardus omg... but serious money, i think i can go with a Emotiva for that amount. 550w/ch x 2 at 4ohms
Any idea what Max output current is? And if compared with similar Purify solution?
1499€ at Soundimport. Where can I buy this to a better price, within EU?
@@mikepawntee2425 Well, I did say it was inaudible
5-10 year lifespan, after that the small caps will pop / bulge because they get trashed with HF ripple. Been there, done that. Even the 105*C computer grade Nippons go pop and these multilayer boards are a nightmare to solder on.
No class-D for me unless with a big linear PSU and the manufacturer offering a trade-in on worn amp boards.
Evidence?
Interesting. But couldn't one just do lpsu mod (easily) ? I suspect price target does not allow for such extravaganza
@@DoeBoy999 I have build UcD400 with both SMPS and linear PSUs, and the linear sounded the best. I can´t say if that always is the case, but I believe so.
5 year warranty on these..and this is a new tech PS compared to old. Allisione makes Hypex amps with toroidal linear PSU's.
Leuk,,,
Ik heb een diy hypex ncore nc252mp.
Nice!
Ys, have it too..., and the Sound is not very good in my Opinion...,
my 2x 12w Tube Amp is much better, wider, bigger STage, more Details...
will switch soon to this Nilai Version, shuld be much much better...., i hope so"
@@faithhopelove6945 Let me know how they compare, i"m curious.
since when is wima good???? they're small, but not good
play some music to show us how well it works
Check our live streams... er have it in a multi test.
why don't you solder everything instead of put them together........better connection
You can do that if you want. I choose to follow the guide in this tutorial.
Well that kit is € 1.499 which is just not funny anymore
Depends on your perspective.
Pues ya tendrá que sonar bien dicho aparato por el abusivo precio que tiene el mismo.....El precio de dicho amplificador me parece un robo a mano armada....Solo está al alcance de unos pocos privilegiados....Un saludo cordial....🥵
@@JuanManuel123ify la calidad de los componentes tiene su precio. Robo a mano armada son los amps de marcas conocidas (no las mencionaré aqui)
1500 euros for a kit? Not exactly in the spirit of DIY.
Get a proper spanner please
Way over priced. IMO this is not a kit. The PCB's are completely assembled and flow soldered. Placing hardware etc. on the chassis and screwing a power supply and two amplifier PCB's into place is not a kit.
Okay
Well, everyone ain’t Lego or AirFix guys.
Cutting edge technology is not going to be cheap.
It's arguably "cheap" for the performance. And while it's not a kit in comparison to say a Dynakit or Tubes4Hifi kit it is definitely not fully assembled and must be put together to work. It's pretty much a kit or DIY project.