The Outerlimit ,

The poor mans version construction notes ,

Intro :

Congratulations on the purchase of this amp , this amp was designed very carefully and with total quality in my mind , i personally think this amp is the best ever made by mankind , no one has ever dared to go this far , I hope you will agree once it is completed .

Version 3,0

What has changed , compared to version 1,0 & 2,0
New is that I supply pcb ( even if they are made in my workshop ) for all things
This is an extra 2 days of work for me .
With extra costs in component supply as all connectors are extra .
And the powerstart pcb is made professionally as it is a complicated pcb .
The powerstart is included , this is normally not the case !!!!!
Also I included 1 extra transformer for the filament supply of the 845 and all its extra components = mos rectifier and extra coil .
Previously also only 3 10000µF/channel know 4 pieces .
Previously 470µF/450v capacitors supplied instead of 1000µF/500v.
This design also uses newly wound power transformers , for full wave rectification and not half wave .
A cd is included with pictures of original construction , schematics , and comments .

I hope this is all appreciated as it costs a lot of extra money , and profit really goes down ,
This again demonstrates that here at Aquablue it is not all about profit .

Safety :

As usual all tube circuits run at a higher then normal voltage then the average transistor radio
But this amp runs at unusual voltages compared to regular tube amps , it is absolutely vital you understand you're life is at risk here , a shock will kill you , so impregnate you'reself with the following safety recommendations every time you work on this amp

1 allways remove the 230vac powersupply when working inside
2 make sure the high voltage capacitors are discharged to a reasonable voltage , there is enough energy to kill a horse ( 270 joules required for that )
3 allways keep one hand in you're pocket when measuring
4 after measuring discharge all and wait 3-5 minutes
5 ground you're measuring clip for the negative by using a crocodile or other type of clip so you use only one hand
6 measure slowly , don't rush and before you measure make sure you know what to expect .
7 this amp uses to high voltage supplies , one at 440vdc and one that floats on top of that so total voltage to ground at max is 1780vdc
8 if anything,g goes in smoke , step back and kill the power switch and wait at a safe distance .

I cannot stress all these points enough , you only have 1 life and caution will let you enjoy it a little longer .

Construction :

The evident things :

Coax HF cable is supplied for cabling everything , you need to strip it to use it , the idea is that the isolation is more then enough for 2kv ( actually it is good for about 20kv .
Easiest way to strip cut 50 cm at a time , use a good metal plier and strip 5 cm off ( meaning just strip the shield and twist the plier around the conductor with the insulation around it , then you can pull out both together from the whole sleeve , leaving you with just the conductor and its shield .

All pcb are pre drilled except for fixing holes to chassis
First mount them , solder all on it .

For the chassis , some logic is needed , also for wiring , keep each channel nicely together
The high voltage is common for both and the bias as well and the power start circuit as well .

Usual problems :

The transformer coils that need to be connected in series , it is like a battery , each coil has a polarity
If you connect in series you can add the 2 voltages , if not then you get less voltage then 1 coil alone
( this is called substraction )
the solution to this is : A change the polarity on 1 primary side ( if using 2 transformers ), or on one of the secondarys .
how to measure above 1000 volts , for this you need to make a probe , use shrinking tube and a few resistors to make a divider say a 1/10 divider :
measured voltage : 470K-470K-470K-150K : gnd point
you measure between 150K and gnd point this gives approx 1/10 voltage
so a 1000 volts will read 100volts on you're meter .

to discharge capacitors use a candescent light bulb of 100 watts / 230 vac , preferably use 3 in series
also use one as a fuse when powering up for the first time .
( if the light stays on then something is wrong )

you can also wait as capacitors will discharge across resistors over them , but this takes several minutes .

Construction :

Have a good look at the circuit layout , analyse the building blocks
Then print the 4 pages of the circuit diagram out , draw the connecting cables for the high voltage with a red pen , the +440v with a blue pen , the ground connections with a green pen and the bias connections with a purple pen and the filament connections with a yellow pen .

The amp is similarily connected ,

The high voltage & +440volts + bias lines : use stripped coax cables
Filaments + Output transformer secondary : use speaker cable 1,5mm2 at least
All primarys powersupply transformers use blue brown 1mm2 or 1,5mm2 twisted cable
Output Transformer primary use thin 0,22mm2 hook up cable ( supplied ) but use coax to connect from capacitor .

Please note : all paper in oil capacitors have to be mounted vertically
The 4µF has to be isolated from the chassis .

Good luck , email questions and we will help as much as possible .
Thanks for choosing aquablue

Benny Glass

Construction of the 845 " Outer Limit "
What has been previously done for you :

All aluminium plates 3 mm have been pre drilled , pre cut
The alu plates have been degreased , pearlcoated , and have a special lacquer
(same as used by rolls Royce ) for protection
all holes M5 have been sinked in .

for identification : (only 1 mono blok described : the other is identical )

bottomplate
middleplate
side 1
side 2 = other side
topplate
front
back = rear

see drawings

The beginning : European version ( 230vac 50Hz)

You need the following to complete this step :

Bottomplate :

2 alu bars (the longest ones)
2 alu bars medium size
4 alu bars the smallest
6 rubbers 11,6 cm
transformers :
1n242
2 pcs 7b649
160va 2x15v
torobar 8,2mH
8 rubber feet

hardware :
7 M3x10
1 M3x10 verzonken kop
8 rondellen M3 + 8 moeiers M3 + 16 getande waaierveerring M3
8 M3 15mm afstandsbussen

M8x85 + 2 M8x80 + 2 M6 60
3 moeiers M8 + 2 moeiers M6 + 6 getande waaierveerring M8 en 4 M6
20 M5x10 verzonken

mount rubber feet : insert M3 rondel + screw M3x15 into rubber
on chassis side : use getande rondel + moeier M3

mount alu bars

mount transformers with wires as on plan
you'll have to use a drill to make the wholes bigger in the transformer counterplates

Middle plate :

Prepare the following :

2 alu bars (the longest ones)
2 alu bars medium size
2 erea chokes
50µF/ 2kv paper in oil can
20µF/ 2kv paper in oil can
32µF/630 paper in oil can
6,3µF/2 Kv paper in oil can
2 4µF/850v paper in oil can
1000µF/500v siemens long life cap
pcb empty
pcb bias

hardware :
8 M3x10
8 moeiers M3 + 8 getande waaierveerring M3 + 8 antislip M3
4 M3 15mm afstandsbussen
4 M3 20 mm afstandsbussen

8 M5x15mm + 8 M5 getande waaierveerring
4 M4hex x10 + 4 getande waaierveerring M4 + 4 moeiers M4
20 M5x10 verzonken

1 erea chokes see drawing of middleplate for placing
2 6,3µF on pcb
3 clamp on 1000µF/500v
4 all M3 screws other side the getande waaierveerring + 15 mm afstandsbussen for pcb bias
and the 20mm afstandsbussen for 6,3µF/2 kv
5 mount the 4µF/850v
6 mount the 1000µF/500v (mount as on diagram )
7 mount pcb with 6,3µF/2kv
8 mount 32µF/630v
9 mount pcb bias with bias connections close to side
10 do not mount 50 or 20µF temporarily