Another day, another reference…

While this amplifier may look the same on the outside, I’ve actually built a brand-new amplifier to replace my Goldmund clone. It all started one day when, out of pure curiosity, I swapped the Goldmund clone with the Fetzilla, letting the Fetzilla power my main line array speakers. I had completely forgotten what a wonderful sound that amplifier is capable of producing. It does something to vocals that is truly difficult to put into words.

Following that experiment, I began to wonder what my next step should be. The Fetzilla is certainly no powerhouse, and I wanted a bit more headroom to drive my arrays. Yet, it was undeniably doing a better job than the Goldmund clone. To solve this dilemma, I turned to one of the co-creators of the Fetzilla: Mr. Hugh Dean from Australia. He has designed a whole lineup of amplifiers, and I figured there had to be one that fit the bill. That is how I discovered his top-of-the-line model: the Aspen Maya 200. This is a 200-watt into 8-ohm amplifier, usually configured as a dual-mono setup in a single chassis. It immediately triggered my curiosity.

I started searching long and hard, and was lucky enough to get an Aspen Maya amp on loan from a very kind fellow DIYaudio member. Having that Maya in my audio chain did not disappoint. It didn’t take long for me to decide to purchase two new Maya 200 modules, and I soon began accumulating all the necessary parts.

With the components sourced, it was time to fire up my favorite 3D design tool and start planning the build.

I wanted as much separation as possible between the primary/secondary power lines and the amplifier modules. To achieve this, I built an aluminum platform to mount the two 400VA transformers, each delivering the prescribed 2x 45V to the separate amplifier modules. Combined, this results in a rail voltage of around 63V DC to power the modules. As I’ve mentioned before, I think I’m becoming a true fan of MOSFET amplifiers in general—and this one certainly is no exception.

The end result has not disappointed. The sound is full, warm, sweet, and yet incredibly powerful. It instantly reminds me of a tube amp setup I owned years ago, but this time with power to spare. Paired with the Fetzilla for ambience duties, the system delivers a room-filling soundstage with palpable, 3D holographic imaging. I might tweak my EQ scheme here and there down the road, but first, I’m giving the amp some proper run-in time to let it settle—and to let my ears adjust.

So, how does it compare to the Goldmund clone? In some ways, they share common ground. The Fetzilla already did a great job filling the room too, but the Maya takes it a step further, creating a superior sense of space with genuine depth of imaging. This isn’t just a blunt ‘wall of sound’; it is far more refined. Notes seem to linger in the air, reconstructing the original musical event. That effortless decay is exactly what reminds me of a tube amplifier. If I had to guess, the rich harmonic content plays a major role here.

Don’t get me wrong: it remains highly accurate and detailed. When paired with phase-linear speakers, these qualities of a 3D holographic image are elevated even further. That’s what makes this amplifier and my arrays a good match.

I still had to do one more tweak on my Maya 200 build, the bottom still needed to be perforated to draw in cold air. It wasn’t a job I looked forward to, but today was a good day to tackle the rather unpleasant task of drilling all those little holes.
I had the pattern all figured out already.It will be the same as on a (future) prototype build I have planned:

Making sure the inside isn’t turning into a little oven. 😉

Here’s the end result on the bottom, about 20% open, right under the amplifier modules. There is an advantage in carefully planning a build like this:

 

I’ve kept everything sort of “modular” so I can remove any panel separately, making maintenance much easier if needed. That makes removing the bottom panel rather easy.

Everything is back together after an afternoon spent drilling and deburring each and every hole. Afterwards, I’ve tested the amplifier again and it’s up and I bet it’s running cooler this time.
I spent an entire afternoon and even stretching into part of the evening disassembling, drilling, and reassembling the unit. Even though there were no signs of the internals running hot so far, I planned this step to ensure cold air can easily enter the bottom of the enclosure for convection cooling. Basically acting like a chimney and keeping the inside components cooler this way. That should keep it running for ages.