In the R&D laboratories PASO recently used gallium nitride to create the new modular amplifiers in class D Paso PMG 1000-V. A state-of-the-art solution, premiered at ISE 2020, which opens up new boundaries to the world of audio amplification.
What do artificial satellites orbiting the Earth and the new Paso PMG 1000-V modular amplifier range have in common? The answer lies in three letters: GAN A signature – to many it is unknown – indicating a semiconductor, the gallium nitride. This material is becoming widely established, instead of silicon, in the design of circuits used in technologically advanced solutions, which is why the aerospace industry has recently made it a pillar of its technological production. It is in the R&D department of Paso to Lainate plant that the Paso engineers have used GAN to create a new series of modular amplifiers in class “D”. An innovation that is already opening new frontiers to the world of audio design and beyond; why was the gallium nitride used instead of the classic silicon used to make traditional circuits?
This new technology allows to create ‘cascode’ circuits that, for the extreme speed and the simplicity of piloting, far exceed the performance provided by the silicon technology.
In addition to the high performances, the compactness, the reduced energy consumption and the possibility to work at 300 volts with frequencies of 400 kHz are achieved with performance far more advanced than those of the equivalent traditional circuits.
Applied to the audio world, this solution makes it possible to produce compact but very powerful amplifiers, such as the new 1000-V PMG. These modular amplifiers in class “D” are also equipped with a double output circuit with separate control (A and B); a redundant solution that, in case of a short circuit with just one line, automatically disconnects it to allow the operation of the other.
Inside each PMG 1000 there are four amplifiers capable of delivering 250W of power each and, if connected to the CR8506-V controller via CAT5 shielded cable, they can reach high power areas.
An ideal product in all situations where compactness, reliability and in particular high control are required, the latter guaranteed both by the dip-switch placed on the back side of the device, and through a simple RS485 communication protocol.