Listening off grid with batteries


Finished the design phase for my new home which will be in a remote off grid location. The design and modeling process has taken over a year. Absolutely amazing what can be done by a talented architect, computer modeling, shading,virtual tour etc. Now it's down to the music room details before we start.

Electric Power will come from solar and micro hydro. Gen set for back up, but only as a last resort.
Does anyone here on Agon have any first hand experience with this kind of set up.
Thinking of a split electrical system where one grid is for the hifi and the other is for the home. Some say it's a waste of time and money but I want to get it right the first time.
Is this necessary when using a solar set up ?
Building homes for 25 years but this will be my first off grid home.
rugyboogie

Showing 1 response by atmasphere

You might also consider setting up a wind turbine to supplement the solar. Most of the people I know that run solar though have come to rely on the panels alone though, as there are no moving parts.

As to the system, Getting the most efficient speakers you can will make a huge difference in what you can get away with in the electronics. IMO tubes sound better but they consume more energy too. Its the constant loads that will be drawing the batteries down. But you might be able to do a smaller amplifier.

I have built several small amps recently that might have some possibility. One is a small OTL that needs a fairly high impedance speaker (32 ohms or more) but you can get a fair amount of power out of it if you can provide the the speaker.

The second is a push-pull amplifier that uses a pair of type 45 power tubes. You could also use 2A3s but the idea is a low power amp. This one I made makes about 5 watts but due to the low power has very good bandwidth, far more than you would get from an SET that size, but due to the 45s and no need for feedback, has much of the musicality of SETs combined with greater bandwidth and transparency.

Running such an amplifier directly off your batteries is not practical, due to the B+ voltages involved. You still have to make voltage conversion, so you will need an inverter somewhere. Its to your advantage to run the inverter elsewhere (as in your main power system), as AC power transmission is a lot easier than DC.

Sounds like a really cool setup!!