Kone & Kabinet Q&A

  • Here is how I wired mine up:


    power: connector P1: Pins 1 and 2 go to the AC feed line (IEC connector) This is not polarity sensitive. Although it's not part of this connector on the power amp, be sure to connect the ground pin on your AC IEC connector to the ground lug on the power amp board.


    Speaker: connector J2: Pin 1 to + on the speaker, Pin 2 to - on speaker


    input: connector J3: Pins 6 and 7 tied together and both connected to ground/shield of the signal coming from the kemper.

    Pins 8 goes to hot of the signal cable coming from the kemper. All of the other leads can be taped off, not needed.


    can use connector J5 to connect LEDs if you want, but not required.

  • Do the icepower amps sound any better due to them having no EQ?I have a bam200 which is great but would love to hear opinion on those who have tried both, seeing as they seem fairly easy to install

  • Also, 200ASC

    Earlier on this GIANT thread someone mentioned heat and the 200ASC.

    It is my understanding that Seymour Duncan PowerStage utilizes ICEPower.

    Note: It has a fan!

    Maybe this is due to the small form factor of the SD PowerStage?


    ICEPower based power plates (like the miniDSP PWR-ICE250) have a heat sink. Also the miniDP PWR-ICE250 manual states:

    '

    Ventilation and heat sink

    The heat sink is provided to ensure reliable operation of the Amplifier Unit and to protect it from overheating. The heat sink must not be blocked or covered. This product should not be installed unless proper ventilation is provided or manufacturer’s instructions have been adhered to.

    '


    This would lead me to believe that thermal overload is very possible on a hot stage in a hot club with an ICEPower ASC200 stuffed into such a small un-vented cabinet as the Kemper Kab.


    I can only assume that the SD Power Stage probably does not have a heat sink (therefore the fan) and the PWR-ICE250 has a heat sink but requires static ventilation.


    Crap!

    I am raining on my own parade!


    I started reading this thread as I thought I would build my own powered cabinet (Hobbyist wood worker here) for a Kemper Kone as I have an unpowered profiler and am tired of lugging my 70Lb+powered Mission Gemini II around. But thermal dissipation bothers me. If I could find a plate that was punched for a 1/4" jack, IEC320 C14 Rocker Switch / Male power inlet and fan opening I would attempt it, but good luck to me in that endeavor!


    If I did find a satisfactory way to mount a fan, I would then need to 'vent' my cabinet in order to produce air flow. If I did that I would have to hear from those who know better than I and would say the cabinet needs to be air tight!


    So, $480.00 for a Kemper Kab and $178.00 for a TC BAM 200 is no longer sounding that unreasonable to me.


    Opinions are of course invited.



    Cheers.



    .

  • Some stuff from ICEPower200ASC manuals relating to heat:


    Even with the high efficiency of the ICEpower200ASC module, proper thermal design is very important.

    When doing the thermal design and tests it is important to note that the amplifiers are to be used for

    music signal reproduction. Thorough investigations have shown that the RMS level of any music signal

    does not normally exceed 1/8th of the peak value. Consequently, pink noise with an RMS level corresponding

    to 1/8th of the rated maximum power should be used as the worst-case signal along with various music signals.

    The ICEpower200ASC module has full onboard thermal protection for both the power supply and amplifier section.

    This protection circuitry shuts down the module if the temperature reaches critical levels.

    Please note that in case of thermal shutdown the module must be reset by disconnecting the mains.

    And:


    Thermal design is generally a great challenge in power amplifier systems. Linear amplifier designs operating

    in class A or AB are normally very inefficient and therefore equipped with extensive heat sinking to keep the

    transistor junction temperature low. The ICEpower200ASC is based on highly efficient ICEpower switching technology

    providing high overall efficiency characteristics at all levels of operation.

    Part of the “component” philosophy of the ASC–series is to provide a self-cooled component thus eliminating the

    need for special attention to thermal design.

    The ICEpower200ASC module is designed for music reproduction, which means that the output power of the amplifier

    will never be continuous. If the average power exceeds 40W @ 4Ω (typical) for a long time at 25°C ambient temperature,

    the module will reach its maximum allowable temperature and the temperature protection will be activated. At 50°C ambient

    temperature more than 25W @ 4Ω (typical) average power will activate the temperature protection.

    //========================================================

    25 Celsius = 77 Fahrenheit

    50 Celsius = 122 Fahrenheit

    //========================================================


    I only have a crude understanding of Class D amplification.

    Amplification occurs ONLY when their is a signal at the input. Amplification=heat.

    Class A the amplification is always occurring whether or not a signal is present.

    Class A/B the amplification about half of a class A.


    The ICEPower200ASC does not contain a heat sink.

    Larger ICEPower amplifiers (500,1000) do contain built in heat sinks and contain plenty of thermal

    testing / warnings in their manuals along with suggestions for fans under 'severe' conditions and additional heat sinks.


    So, to be honest, I have no idea what any of this means in the real world!


    To bad Whippinpost does not have a thermal probe he could insert into his cabinet which would allow

    him to produce a log of ambient temperature / time for us!

    :)