Quote:


After writing the above, the thought came across of it's incomplete message.

The transfer switch that went bad was actually a companion switch used in series with the original factory installed transfer switch. The companion switch is used to safeguard protect an inverter that supplies 110vac from a 12v battery bank. It is always bypassing the inverter circuit when either grid power or generator power is supplied. The motor home is always plugged into the grid when idle so the companion transfer switch is on 24/7 all year long. To be clear the timing circuit is in continuous use and the new timing board is not up to the task. Most likely engineered for intermitted use in a short use application. So be careful in selection of a timing switch.

John

UPDATE 12/4/2022

In trying to solve the startup clicks and pops with certain tubes I got side tracked with delay on relays that became complicated and expensive.  Then I greatly improved the idea with a low voltage relay to short the speaker jacks during start up.  

This weekend I had an idea of how to solve the problem by loading the VR tubes differently.  I was able to eliminate the relays and power to drive them with a simple resistor.  That's a lot more Zen, I am a much happier.  The amplifier is now completed.

I am very pleased with the final result.  If you recall when I started this project I was a little concerned what other 300B amps would sound like... I am now at a place where I could care less what other 300B amps sound like.  I was concerned because I was worried what would happen if similarly priced 300B amps sound better.  Now I seriously doubt they will sound as good.  

I'll be working on the final pricing over the holidays.  The amp will be online for sale in January.

-Steve

Something we've never done with a wood base for our amplifiers is make one thicker than 3/4 inch. The exception is the black moulded base, but that is a 3/4 base with moulding wrapped around it. This time I thought I would start with 2 inch solid hardwood and so the journey begins.  Below is the profile I came up with.




Instead of a 5/16 to 3/8 lip around the top, I went with 1/2 inch to make it more meaty.

It didn't look terrible out here in the light, but be careful what you wish for... it's got mass alright!  It draws all your attention away from the amplifier to the base.

At this stage the only place I can see it looking right is in an 18th century stone castle with high ceilings and 4 inch thick oak doors.

Nevertheless I tried to get used to it for a bit, and took it in the listening room where it looked way worse.   I decided the top lip is too wide, the top 27 degree face is too long, the 90 degree face is too short and the base is overall too wide. That's not too many things...

Eventually it will look nice, I'm sure of it, and be distinctive. And cost more. It's going to be quite an amp!

I read through a lot of this development thread today and the conclusions you came to about its character and presentation were exciting. It was described just how I would want it to be. Wow, this is going to be something.

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I was hoping for a late Sunday update and you delivered.  And then some!

Love the new signature look of the 300b wood base.  Can’t wait for it to go online so we can view different wood finish options, though I have to say it does look gorgeous in African Padauk.

Congrats Steve—-what a journey! You must be a proud papa!

Damn, I was hoping for a ruby studded platinum base for the 300B😂. Great work on the new base design Steve. She's a real beauty for sure, worthy of a special reveal party complete with champagne.

HK

beautiful looking base ! I loved the larger one too , in fact Ive been "doodling" a bit for awhile now trying to come up with an over sized base design for my other Decware pieces to "jive" better with large base Idler drive turntables. TD124, 301's , Lenco etc .

UPDATE 12/10/2022

I have the amplifier priced and am now starting to work on the web page.

The following are introductory prices.

The amplifier without tubes will be $4128.00

With my hand selected tube compliment tested in the amp driving lower cost $150.00 300B tubes will put the price around $4758.00

With my hand selected tube compliment minus the $150 low cost 300B tubes and the anticipated coupon from Western Electric it should be possible to get into this amplifier with the Western Electric WE300B tubes for around $5958.00

Whohoo! I can finally stop thinking about that for awhile!

I am going to offer this amp fully pimped out meaning it was designed from the ground up with fully anniversary mods, chassis and hardware. It has been built to the same anniversary standard as the SE84UFO25.

There will be no choices except perhaps the VR tubes that you want.  The OA2 for more relaxed sound favoring high efficiency speakers, or OC2 for more neutral and cleaner sound favoring less efficient speakers.  I have both of these New Old Stock VR tubes on hand.

So now my attention shifts to the web page.





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Here is a teaser photo from the page.  It's Sarah taking a picture of Sarah.

Steve,

Thanks for the Sarah pricing information and options. Looks like all the bases are covered. Best wishes as you begin the builds on this new amplifier.

HK

OMG! My new screensaver is Sarah’s reflection in the tube

Talk about the proverbial mic drop with Sarah’s reflection in the rectifier tube. Wow—what a stroke of genius!

I think the pricing structure is very fair.  A tubeless option will be cheered by many who already have the requisite tubes and or who just want to go their own way of selecting tubes.  That said, I’m definitely going for Steve’s hand selected option.  Not sure if I am going to start with the WE300 just yet—I can always upgrade later and that way, I will have a spare fallback pair (but then I miss the discount).  Let’s see how much I can save up in the meantime.  I also need to revisit the thread and refresh my memory on how the $150 tubes fared against WE.

Looking forward to more information on the website soon.

$5958 is less than the figure I used sw Pa. math to cypher out, in@.
Decked out Decware 300B amp, $5000
WE 300B matched pair, $1500, less coupon, maybe $1350
So, $6350 was the number I was thinking, if not more by the time my turn comes up. With luck, I’ll be receiving some Wathen 300B’s to try out in my Willy at weeks end & an amp with a quad of WE 300B’s next month to hold me over till my dance with Sarah can begin. 300B amps just seem to be something special in general, but I can’t wait to hear the Decware, though I know I must.
 Best wishes to all, Ralph

Interesting. . .I enjoy rolling VR tubes and have all three types on hand, actually several brands of each, and I'll try your "sweet spot" combo first when I have the amp. It's amazing what a difference these tubes make in these revealing circuits. Yet another thing to look forward to!

Steve: Good call on not providing choices for rolling VR tubes.  Removes angst.  People can experiment on their own later on.

Lon: I’m with you on the obsession.  My biggest nightmare is one of these days, I’m going to mutter ‘Sarah’ in my sleep, my significant other will hear it, and I’m going to have a lot of explaining to do….

I’ve already started my monthly installments.  I prefer to have it paid off before it ships.  It’s kind of an indirect way to get 0% financing. Sarah (the real Sarah) can hook you up.

What’s the real wait time on this amp? Anybody guess? I’m too old for 3 years.

The most recent statement I've seen from Steve is "1.5 to 2 years" for a wait list.

Interestingly Ralph what you write makes me more inclined to trust your impressions of tube differences!

I'm hoping that especially with a coupon from Steve I might be able to start out with the Western Electric tubes. . . . We'll see. There are so many other options! Which is a good thing.

I hope not to sell any guitars but realistically for domestic tranquility and to not leave a huge mess for my wife if something happens to me I have a lot of downsizing of recordings, guitars and other instruments, equipment etc. to do in the coming years. I don't have any left-handed guitars though I do have three real Fender Strats and two (cherished, fantastic) "FrankenStrats." I can understand wanting to explore what the reversed bridge/nut phenomenom might reveal in a reversed setup.

Lon, I hope you are right about the wait time, as it sounds optimistic.  If you are #2000 in line, to get your amp in 2 years, Decware would have to distribute 85 units a month.  That's more than double their current levels of distribution.

Steve, the amp looks great and looking forward to seeing it on the website.

I did not ask that question very well. I am seeking a list of what tubes go into the 300b. I know there will be two 300b tubes. I think there will be one 75c1 tube. Others?

I can help with the hand selected tube compliment.  Every Decware amp has this, where the tubes are selected during QC while the amplifier is on the scope and distortion analyzer.  In this particular amp the compliment will be 6N6P driver tubes and a 12AU7 input tube.  The VR tubes I thought would be the 75C1, but frankly during the off days when the power sucks and radiation from cell towers and the sun itself is too much causing things to sound sharper, the OA2 is like jumping ahead in time to midnight when everything gains insane liquidity.

I will probably ship the amp with three OA2 now that I think about it, so that way it can't sound bad even handicapped, and no stress in getting the right tube in the right location.  All three are the same, just plug them in.




I am listening to the trio of OA2 tonight using my reference tape machine as the source and it's really been a holy shit moment.  The combination of Sarah, the new Fast 15 driver in the large baffles with network, and the tape machine as the source has more than melted my face off so many times I just can't believe how insanely good this sounds.  

For the first time I am getting the holy grail SE84UFO25 sound through my tape machine!  You see, 2.3 watts is not enough for tape.  The dynamic range of tape compared to LP or stream is 10dB more.  As great as it sounded you could always count on it clipping just when things started getting real...  Not any more.  The headroom of this amp even at four watts is enough to handle the dynamics of tape.  It is truly the best I've ever heard tape sound in my room.  ZF15L, SEWE300B, TAPEMACHINE.

I will make videos of this no worries.  Also I will be back on my tape kick until well after the holidays.  Now that it sounds this good I will have to listen to dozens of tapes again.  Speaking of which, I have a master copy from Columbia Studios in N.Y. of Dave Brubeck's Time Out calling me...

Steve