REVIEW: Hypex Electronics Nilai500DIY 250W stereo power amplifier kit Amplifier (SS)

Model:	Nilai500DIY 250W stereo power amplifier kit
Category:	Amplifier (SS)
Suggested Retail Price:	$1324
Description:	stereo class D amplifier kit
Manufacturer URL:	Hypex Electronics
Model Picture:	View

Review by kh6idf on May 29, 2024 at 09:57:22
IP Address: 96.8.253.59 Add Your Review
for the Nilai500DIY 250W stereo power amplifier kit

This is an easy-to-assemble kit from Hypex sold through their diyclassd.com website or authorized resellers. Note that it doesn't show on the regular Hypex Electronics website link above, but there is a link to the diyclassd.com website on that page.

I say easy to assemble because no soldering is required, no cutting wires or installing terminations. Both amplifier modules and the power supply are completely prebuilt. All wiring is pre-cut with connectors installed. Comparisons have been made to assembling IKEA furniture and it really is just about that easy. Most tools needed are supplied with the kit, only requiring the user to supply a few common household tools such as pliers and a small bladed screwdriver.

The well thought out instructions are pictorial with little to no text. Where language is used, it's in English. There are several excellent videos on YouTube showing the complete kit building process, and one or more of these should be watched before assembly of the kit (but not strictly necessary).

My advice for kit builders is to first make sure all parts are included and lay them out on a paper towel, labeling each group of parts with what they are called in the instructions, such as "MC-2" for the pile of M4x10 machine screws. Then it is easy to find the required parts for each step and keep track of how many are left for succeeding steps.

Building the entire kit may take between 30 minutes and several hours, I took my time and took about an hour and a half. I could probably build another one in 30 minutes.

Features / specs? Now that the kit building description is out of the way, what have you built? It's a 2 channel stereo amplifier with 260 Watts per channel (at 1% THD) driving an 8 Ohm load and 300 Watts driving 4 Ohms. Why no doubling of power into 4 Ohms? Because a single 500 Watt power supply is shared by the 2 amplifier modules. Want more power than that? Build two of the monoblock versions which each have their own power supply. In my case 260 Watts is more than sufficient.

Distortion and noise are extremely low, 0.0005% THD between 20 and 20k Hz at 100W or less, and Signal to noise ratio of 134 dB (depends slightly on amplifier gain setting). This becomes evident in listening tests.

Inputs are balanced XLR only, but XLR to RCA adapters/cables can be used. There are three gain settings, selected by a jumper on the amplifier modules, for low, medium and high gain. High gain is for consumer level 2V input, medium gain for 4V XLR, and low gain for pro audio XLR level (12V). This make the amplifier very versatile, able to interface with just about any preamp.

Complete specifications are available in the downloadable datasheets on both the amp module and power supply from the product website.

And now, how does it sound? In my experience so far, very, very good. For reference, it is replacing a class A/B amp (Linn LK280) which itself was a fine sounding amplifier. After about a 2 day breakin, this class D amplifier is clearly better. Music springs from an absolutely dead background. The ambient hall / studio noise can usually be heard first. Pianist's rustling sleeves and breathing are heard (along with a few that like to hum along). Piano is one of my favorites, sounding nearly like it is in the room live. Low notes have weight and authority and dynamics are impressive due to the power in reserve. There is no hint of harsh, lean, thin, etc sound as some have described class D sound in the past. Sound is full range, dynamic, clean and clear. So clear that with eyes closed during a good symphonic recording it is not difficult to imagine you are actually sitting in the concert hall. Soundstaging or whatever you call it is nicely revealed on recordings where it wasn't so evident before with other amplifiers. With nearly every recording, including ones I've heard many times and might skip over in the past, the music becomes compelling, requiring the whole album be listened to and leaving the listener wanting more.

Suffice to say I think most people will enjoy the sound from this amplifier. A good low distortion/noise preamp is needed to get the most out of it. It seems to just reveal the sound of whatever components are upstream and how well recorded the music is.

Highly recommended, and if you really don't want to assemble the kit, there are a few dealers who will do it for you for a reasonable extra charge. I ordered my kit from Deer Creek Audio in Colorado.

Product Weakness:	Inputs are balanced XLR only (but can use adapter cables for RCA).
Product Strengths:	Excellent sound quality, frequency response independent of speaker load, very easy kit assembly and overall high quality.

Associated Equipment for this Review:

Amplifier: Nilai500DIY stereo kit (250W/ch)
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): Schiit Kara
Sources (CDP/Turntable): Raspberry Pi 4 to Bryston BDA-2 DAC
Speakers: Focal Sopra 3 (91.5 dB)
Cables/Interconnects: Mogami gold XLR / BJC Belden 10 Ga speaker cables
Music Used (Genre/Selections): mostly classical
Room Size (LxWxH): 19 x 14 x 10
Room Comments/Treatments: GIK acoustics corner / wall treatments
Time Period/Length of Audition: 2 months
Other (Power Conditioner etc.): Furman PL8 series II
Type of Audition/Review: Product Owner

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Amplifier:	Nilai500DIY stereo kit (250W/ch)
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	Schiit Kara
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Raspberry Pi 4 to Bryston BDA-2 DAC
Speakers:	Focal Sopra 3 (91.5 dB)
Cables/Interconnects:	Mogami gold XLR / BJC Belden 10 Ga speaker cables
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	mostly classical
Room Size (LxWxH):	19 x 14 x 10
Room Comments/Treatments:	GIK acoustics corner / wall treatments
Time Period/Length of Audition:	2 months
Other (Power Conditioner etc.):	Furman PL8 series II
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner

REVIEW: Hypex Electronics Nilai500DIY 250W stereo power amplifier kit Amplifier (SS)

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