The right stuff: Nelson Pass' droolworthy parts stash
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.ย. 2019
- This is Part 6 of a seven part Nelson Pass interview series (it was supposed to be six parts, but I couldn't resist going for one extra one).
Best Nelson line, when referring to DIYers, "These are the happiest audiophiles, people building their own stuff."
Part 1 • Nelson Pass’ ‘perfect’...
Part 2 • Nelson Pass on learnin...
Part 3
• Nelson Pass on his fav...
Part 4 • Take a tour of Nelson ...
Part 5 • Nelson Pass and his $3...
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www.passlabs.com/
www.firstwatt.com/
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After watching these videos, I wished I lived next door to Nelson and could wander over and see what he’s working on each day.
Completed an F6 build last month....probably my fav audiophile experience so far. Really respect Nelson...and great video series, Steve!
I love listening to Nelson speak, and he’s got a great sense of humor and so me great sayings too. I was just laughing aloud by myself. “The dog that pisses on his food when he’s not hungry” That’s some f’n funny stuff! Anyway, I loved seeing him go through his stash and then showing those crazy parts.
Thanks again, Steve!
Fascinating Nelson is a true genius and so enjoyable to listen to him share his wisdom with the audio and diy community
Even though I wouldn't know half of what he's talking about I could sit and listen to him talk amplifiers forever
Seems like a really nice guy , half this stuff I don’t know but it was still really interesting
Thanks again for this. Nelson is one of the great minds of our time. Could listen to him for hours. And wow that's a stunning collection of parts.
First time I've seen a transistor hoarder. Usually it's tube hoarders on the audio channels. Thanks for the upload I'm really enjoying your chats with Nelson 😄
@Club Soda the best sounding fuzz boxes use gallium transistors ie; tone bender.
Listened to this with my Nelson Pass-designed Amp Camp Amp. Love it. Thanks Nelson.
Great interviewer AND interviewee!!! So great to feel Mr. Pass' sharing, as well as protecting from whatever might take bread from his table. Congratulations.
Nelson thank you for your support of diy, I have made a few of your designs. Still have a phono preamp which sounds wonderful. Note I have never called you so you can keep designing. 😀
Almost finished building Nelson’s BA - 3 preamp DIY after that build Nelson’s Alpha -J AMP mono blocks
Thx SG Audiophiliac...great to hear from such an icon in the audio design world
Thanks Nelson for all your shares!
I like this guy. Back when I started in this hobby the amps that I wanted but could not afford were the Threshold Stasis line. Nelson Pass was the first audio designer name I learned.
Nelson loving the t-shirt ;-) Steve you have outdone yourself, on these videos. I have conversed with Nelson on diy audio in the past and built a few of his designs. Diy audio and Nelson in particular opened my world to a level of audio unattainable to 99.9% of the population
I'm in electronics, and I find I learn something new or a different look at things after listening to Nelson Pass, a learning experience. His stock of parts is impressive and very rare.
I really like that man. Thanks Steve.
I LOVE this video series!!
"the dog that pisses ...." I did laff out loud 😂
Nelson is a real hero!
Thank you for this awesome video.
For sure the best job around! Not too many people are able to make a living out of something they love to do. Or a hobby, for that matter. Nelson seems like a very nice gentleman. Interesting to listen to.
A great treat. Thanks!
Boy what a nice guy you too Steve
'JFETs... about 250,000 of them. Enough for the rest of my life.'
Or until you build The Beast Of 100,000 JFETs pair of monoblocks. So sometime next year. LULZ
Steve WOW!! Really appreciate your video series with NELSON PASS GREAT INSIGHT INTO HIS WORLD AND THANK YOU NELSON FOR LETTING EVERYBODY INTO YOUR WORLD THROUGH STEVE'S VIDEOS GREAT JOB.... I MUST SAY I'M VERY INTERESTED IN THE DIY
KIT WITH FULL INSTRUCTIONS (GOOF PROOF)? I think I might make that my project in DEC WHILE ON VAC. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK STEVE APPRECIATE IT VERY MUCH 👍
Nelson, what an awesome guy. Respect!
And we thank Papa for all his time, attention and toys on DIYAudio
wow ! Nelson Pass, "… to Boldly Go, Where No one else, has Gone Before !" ;-)
Love this
WOW, just WOW!
Great interview!!
Very interesting video ! Great job Steve and Nelson for sharing . I'm guessing Nelson's buying power is some what of an advantage over cloners who are trying to compete . Of course the overhead is not equal but looking at the actual prices for components in these amplifiers the margin can't be anything to retire on for a cloner. And....of course , there is the customer support issue. I would love a diy amp , more substantial perhaps just under the 1,000$ mark.
The diy site as fantastic , amazing people and of course Nelson's input freely interacting is highly unique. Top notch this whole video series..
I heard Pass amps many years ago and while they sounded very good I never felt compelled to own one. I once wanted a big Belles A amp but I did get some amps I was interested in like the Electrocompaniet Ampliwire II which is a low power class A amp that is I think the sweetest sounding amp I ever heard. It has BD british bipolar transistors.
BDs are nice bipolar transistors indeed.
Waiting for Part 7 ---- Nelson and Steve --- Great Interview.... Wow, all the different transistors, too bad First Watt can't make more SIT 3's.
He is one nerdy audiophile who I would love to get to know and talk to, even become friends with, and learn from!
in our first band the drummer was my buddy who as a college system got Magnaplanar Tympanii IIIBs, an Oracle turntable, a moving coil with pre & another pre, & Threshhold power - so we could listen to Mahavishnu Orchestra - the listening spot was no bigger than, well, a lotus petal, but unreal once you got situated there.
Odd in all because our band covered Little Walter, Jimmy Reid, J Geils heavily, & Wet Willie.
Ouch a missing comma after J Geils - anyway it seemed like John McLaughlin had the most exciting mix of anyone out there, set in sub-continental intervals & psychedelic shredding. N never gotten over it and sad that in 2017 he retired from the stage. How JM featured drummers in those arrangements, lets lone, mixes, & likewise onstage where I watched him battle it out with Tony Smith October 78 Rainbow Theatre. OMG the mix of that show - transporting. Shankar shook the seats with simple tambourine SM58 and thumb-slaps. Crescendi of guitar and violin were like a Blue Origin lift-off - if that outfit called themselves, Emerald Beyond..
Meanwhile, winter of '75, me and my two brothers built Philips kit speakers, 3-way incl 12 and a passive (at rear out of phase); We had made the walls of flake particle baord so thick that we needed to regain woofer air suspension volume. Likewise via mail order I got South West Technical lab-style kit mono bloc transistor class A power amps. And all assembled, a Dynaco PAT 5 pre-amp and AR IA turntable with N91 ED from classified ads, that once landed in people's driveways, with glass bottles of milk.
As I recall the whole thing was under 500 bucks in mid-70s CDN currency values. Speaker wire to this day is that flat green 100 amp contractors' style 10-gauge.
He's such a dude. I'd love to own a Papa Pass piece.
I could listen to nelson all day long
Very enjoyable!!
No wonder why Digikey is always out of stock on my stuff.
As a guitarist it's well documented that Germanium is the best sounding transistor. (Dons flame proof undies) 😀
Nelson pass needs to make a germanium poweramp, I'd buy it in a heartbeat
Awesome!
You are real hero.
10:46 "I don't even know what these are."
Love it. You should do one of these with the Soundsmith.
Yes! 100% agree!
looks like jay leno has a soulmate, he’s the einstein of audio science 😂
Nelson Pass, ------------------- THE--------------- Amp guru!!!
I have some older stereo equipment (KLH) that have germanium outputs and I think they have a warmer more pleasant sound because they roll off at about 15 KHZ
Sure would like to see the SOA of the THF51S.
Nelson seems like a really cool dude, would love to share a bottle of wine with him and Steve Guttenberg🍷🍷🍷
Do any viewers here have any experience listening to
the Pass Labs XP-20 Preamplifier? It's a combination of a preamp & power source...So, 2 seperate consoles
Thanks!
Some men collect fine wines. Others collect rare cars. Nelson collects transistors. He reminds me of furniture makers who hoard old growth wood. They are the only ones who can make something beautiful out of raw materials.
It is real treasure down there 😁
I have some of those Germanium transistors. Wonder how to send them to Nelson Pass?
I have a gfa 555, love it❤
The only component that he showed that I have are the 2sk170 J-Fets. They are used a lot on his DYI site.
Johnny Toobad I have a pile of them too :-)
Fantastic piece! Hey what's the cool looking red meter/tool with a couple of electrical outlets on the workbench?
variac?
That looks liker a metered 18a variac. 40 years ago I built a 10a variac that fed a 1000w isolation transformer with volt and ammeter, all in a slope faced cabinet. The 150v meter had to be replaced a couple of years ago because the old one opened up
Most contemporary modern consumer electronics are built with surface mounted devices and digital signal processing robotically assembled which makes the manufacturing process very efficient at lower manufacturing cost and maximum profitability. Difficult to repair faulty individual component parts so it’s basically swapping boards -out with the bad, plug in a good one. But, there’s something very cool about the older analog electronics that can be repaired and can last almost indefinitely with good care and proper maintenance. Look at some of the quality Brands of the past like McIntosh for instance. So many very dedicated owners of McIntosh Audio Equipment still use those devices purchased decades ago and where the equipment has outlasted the lives of their human owners have been passed down to a new generation of loyal audiophiles and continues to impress and amaze a new generation.
Aswaguespack industrial equipment and test instruments is also made to be repairable; outside a few companies, consumer electronics is the garbage can, lots of compromises, made cheap for scale
ThinkLearnSolve also it seems that there is planned obsolescence designed into much of the modern
Electronic devices available on today’s market. My first TV was American made and lasted 34 years. My second Non-American built TV didn’t make 10 years. Old technology was built to last.
Ok time to move up the Nelson line. I have an original gfa555 that I upgraded the capacitors in. What amp in the Nelson line (used) would you guys recommend I move up to? I don’t have millions to spend either!!
I'v got a gfa 555 prototype amp. It's white with round rackmount handles. I have never seen another like it. Good that you replaced the caps as they tend to leak over time and ruin the pcb they are connected to. If you don't mind low watts consider an amp camp amp. (I did).
@Lynn Poole
Funny u mention the amp camp amp I was considering one! 👍🏻
Carl Smith, I just recently took my time completing DIY Audio’s stereo Amp Camp Amp Kit. It is simply brilliant sound wise and in appearance. Unfortunately being designed to drive high efficiency 8 ohm speakers, it is a poor match for my beloved 4 ohm speakers. Sadly, I had to set it aside and put the Vidar back in my system.
@Michael Schroeder
My monitor speakers are rated to be 96db @ 1 watt so I’d think maybe the little amp might do well with them.
Carl Smith, if they are 8 ohm rated, absolutely. If they are 4 ohm nominal impedance, the ACA’s rating is reduced to 5 watt per channel from 8 watts, which substantially limits dynamic headroom. My Tektons being 4 ohm, DID work with the Pass amp, just not “let’s party” loud.
Question to Nelson: Why SITs are so rare? Given their remarkable characteristics, shouldn't there be more of them around? Do they perform less reliably outside the audio world? Are they just too expensive to manufacture at a mass scale?
Jhan Jar because they don't have remarkable characteristics, and they are not meant to be used in audio and don't make sense to be used in audio; they are for power regulation, if you don't have very high current drive, don't use them
@Dave Micolichek Thanks Dave.
Steve, stop interrupting! :D
Great video otherwise, thank you for doing this!
What’s that red box with the big knob sitting on his desk ?
probably a Variac.
variac
Very nice video off the subject i have a sealed introducing the Beatles with the songs i saw her standing there and ps I love you any comments on this copy thanks and keep the videos coming
frank mcguckin What can I say, I’m a huge Beatles fan! If you need the money see what they’re going for on eBay, or slice that puppy open and enjoy!
He was the S.I.T.!!
Wow
Like Radio Shack on steroids!!!!
5:11 -
Steve: "Do transistors ever just age out?"
Nelson: "I suppose, it's a concept they do, but I haven't seen it. They do if they've been working hard, then they do get some thermal stress and you can see them break at some future date........"
Well, the transistors in my original gfa555 still going strong! Recapped with fresh caps, amp will out live me.
Small signal trannies (TO-92) are more exposed to stresses, though. A lot of them fails or get noisy, leaky, etc...
@@Carl-bd1rf
Is that an Adcom amp?
Did Nelson Pass design those?
I used to work in a store that sold them, but didn't know about him back then.
@Hare deLune
Yep his design. I also believe it holds the record for most sales as a transistor amp. I’ve bought and sold 4 of them over the years. Prefer the sound of the original vs mkII.
@@Carl-bd1rf
Have you heard the story behind the "GFA" designation? : D
I have owned several Pass amps…
fets are like vales
I bought my Sony TAN-5550 in 1978. The protection circuits surrounding and supporting Sony V-FETs are complex. It's time for a re-cap before I use it any more. There is a varactor diode that controls bias; if it fails, so do the outputs. I've only used the amp to drive tweeters 1250 Hz and up. I use bipolar amps for bass and midrange.
The problem with germanium power transistors is that they go into thermal runaway faster than silicon. They also are frequently noisier than silicon. I had a TEAK reel-to-reel that was all germanium. It took some maintenance, not just mechanical, to keep it happy.
Cool stash! Btw the transistor was invented in the late 40’s so it could be from the 50’s
I personally believe that it was invented by sprague or Siemens under orders of nazi Germany... along with MANY other world changing technologies.
It's believed that Hitler made deals with the devil (literally) in exchange for knowledge on futuristic technology's in Hope's of world totalitarianism.
(He clearly has never red God's word or if he had, didn't take it seriously)
Transistors rule 💪
great video. i think a lot of audiophiles need knowledge about nos tubes. think about all these people buying peachtree and schiit relatively cheap tube preamps .a lot of them never had tube gear before .even if you bought the top of the line grand integrated in 2012 and payed 4500$, between the galvanically isolated usb input and the super linear ultra quiet volume youve got 2 chinese 10$ at best crappy noisy tonally challenged 12au7 tubes! on the other hand if you buy the ifi tube preamp/buffer for 300$ you get a nos ge tube .what i don't like about schiit is that they are trying to persuade everyone(at their website) that nos tubes \pricey cables don't matter because they don't use them.it's bullshit(bullschiit?). whoever reads this and has tube gear with modern tubes(china/russian) please try at least one nos tube even if you like the sound as it is .anything is better than chinese tubes and nothing is worse (till they start making them in korea and taiwan)
No 2SK92?
Show us your secret blackgate stash... I won't tell anyone ;))
Such an inspirational treat listening to Nelson. My DIY experience is all tube based but seeing his stash takes me back to the days of scouring the aisles of Apex Surplus for big electrolytics and usable transformers. Now I see that even the SS stuff is getting to be unobtanium. Would love to try a simpler circuit using an interstage transformer. Any recommendations?
@@andrewt902 My only experience is just upgrading my Sun Audio 300b with as good components as possible. At some point it became so far that a man in a trench coat would only meet me at midnight under a bridge smoking cigarettes... Sold it just recently and looking for a Pass amp. So if you find one let mé know!
Why not make it an eight ..or nine? or...?
That's a problem with solid state. You can have an amp with obsolete transistors that can be difficult to replace. Its easy to find a 12AX7 tube that was first released in 1947.
Tha Greedyboiz
what are the chances of that happening? where's a Bill Gates audiophile when ya need one?
This guy is so fckn cool.
Surprised he didn't mention Tim Rawson clones,but I'm sure you won't respond Mr Guttenberg cause you don't seem to
I do when I can add something, but you didn't ask a question.
@@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac my question was/is Nelson says he don't piss on good food but he came down pretty hard on Lawson making clones.I mean come on the guy is s multi millionaire .And you take a pass amp and price the parts it's a 1000 percent markup
There will be zero audiophile gear in the world without Japan!
It's kind of disgusting that his business model is intentionally creating amps around scarce deprecated components, as if they were some NOS 1920s diode.
Whos going to start making 800ohm speaker coils for full range? Higher voltage, easier to control and induce magnetic fields.
Then people can use otl triodes which is probably best.
The cones would be the only things needing to be sold really..., and finished sets of specifically engineered speakers.
Something 12 or 15 inch point source with the appropriate surrounds and suspension, the whizzer cones that philips used or similar.., Full Range only, and something that will fit a cheap and popular neodymium speaker basket and magnet. I dont know how those enormous standard subwoofer magnets and frames would do (probably trash for full range) but if those bigger more powerful magnets work, it would be best... Along with the 800 ohm or higher field coil, You could use smaller transistors and probably 120v Straight.
That would be powerful. instead of inducing amps youre inducing voltage which is most comparable to pressure. SO why noty?