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Post by jelosno on Aug 4, 2006 12:59:21 GMT
www.welbornelabs.com/ultra.htmllooks nice..... but more of a pre amp than a headphone thingy I guess. I like the remote controled SA which is available as a stand alone module in their lineup as well - bit pricy though.
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 4, 2006 13:51:58 GMT
Actually it will drive higher impedance headphones like Sennheisers Ok (if your source has good voltage drive,low gain circuit) but with an output trafos impedance of 150 ohms is not a good match for your Grados.
The way around this would be to add a low imedance follower stage on the output strictly for low impedance headphone use like on the borbely hybrid amp (see kit section of Welborne) which uses the same low voltage triode (6GM8).
Nice preamp all things considered,needs a "booster" stage for headphone duty
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Post by jelosno on Aug 4, 2006 14:54:57 GMT
But then one could go directly for the components they offer including the hybrid stage parts. How would that compare to a Mapletree EAR+HD then - from a Grado headphone point of view The components from Welbornelabs are certainly more expensive than the EAR+HD. Which one would make the Grado more happy? I am getting more and more confused. I really like the opennes of the tube amps. Not the warm sound some of them have. More the little extra in resolution and airyness (?) the good ones seem to have. On the other hand Grado himself choose a SS layout for his RA-1. A cost point only since a tube amp would have been much more expensive? Stefan
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 4, 2006 22:41:35 GMT
apples and oranges man. the Borbely uses a solid state CCS on the 6GM8 gain stage and a bipolar 24 VDC power supply,the Ultrapath is what is also known as a "parafeed" or "Western Electric" circuit and not only IS but must be a transformer coupled circuit. Ultrapath is the description of the triode connection to this transformer and places the coupling cap not in what would be the normal in series with the output connection but on the side of the transformer connection that would normally be the "common" or ground connection.All the benefits of both AC and DC coupling To the Ultrapath unassisted ? Mapletree is a clear winner.But NOT if you used the ultrapath as your system preamp then added a simple high current zero gain buffer on the output strictly for driving headphones.the the combination wins To the Borbely hybrid ? My taste says the Mapltree again wins easily even though specs say the Borbely is better.Both will drive the cans well,the Borbely better in the measuring (distortion,frequency response,etc) but the Mapletree will mate with the cans better in sonic profile.One of those "synergy" things that specs can't tell you. Exactly.Those who are easily conned always ask for "tube warmth" which is a very bad tube design,one to be avoided not desired.What tubes give you that for me no solid state approaches is a free sound.One where you hear the music flow instead of the electronics play.Call it a sense of space,an unrestricted openesss,resolution,whatever,it gets music more right than wrong for me. A good SS designer a tube designer does not make sp you go to talents and target market.I doubt you can find ANY tube amp worth a shit built,shipped,on the display shelf ready to audition/purchase for less than $500-$600 unless mass produced using marginal parts (why we have so much cool gear to upgrade ). Just too damn expensive to both make and have an on hand parts supply for so the opamp solution one that is very cost effective,easy to build and cheap enough to be within the reach of even an entry level Headphone Audiophile.Op Amp Solid State is way easier to get right and is a LOT cheaper to build with the hardest part of the design being parts identification (whaty works well together to achieve the desired end result) If you want to get a real handle on the Mapletree Ear+ ask Mark A.K.A. "Voodoochile" over at Head-fi his thoughts on the matchu or read the threads in the DIY forum on his mods which are very impressive
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 7, 2006 0:27:58 GMT
I'm looking at the HD83 page and thinking this puppy looks damn promising as a Grado driver on several levels,not the least of which is the pentode output combined with a multitap output transformer to adjust the gain/output impedance of the amplifier. No tube amp can drive Grado cans directly unless they are : A-a hybrid design-tube front end gain stage to a solid state output driver stage B-have multiple parallel tubes on the output to lower the impedance C-use a matching transformer which also drops the gain as you use lower impedance taps (perfect for Grado cans) The reason ? Output Impedance plain and simple ! Tubes are by no means a low output impedance device so need help to get down low enough to drive a 32 ohm headphone load such as the Grados,this output Z worst case 15 ohms with lower than 10 ohms even better. option "A" and option "B" will mean either a low gain headphone amp usable ONLY with Grados or a higher gain multican amp with either a built in "pad" or selectable high/low gain. Option "C" is best due to the nature of a coupling transformer attenuating more signal as the input to output impedance ratio is increased thus for low impedance/high sensitivity headphones you get a low output Z with reduced gain yet use another tap and you increase output levels while also increasing the output Z ! Perfect ! The WAD HD83 has just such an output transformer,one that can be used for 16-50 ohm headphones,50-125 ohm headphones,125-250 ohm headphones and finally over 300 ohm headphones with each level of increased impedance providing more voltage gain as is needed for high Z headphones www.world-designs.co.uk/acatalog/AmpKits.htmlI'm going to assume this schematic is not entirely complete- www.world-designs.co.uk/acatalog/HD83.pdfand on that assumption would recommend an upgrade path of a PIO input cap (stay clear of any plastics including polypropylene for Grados ! The Paper In Oil caps will retain all the detail you need but in a manner that mates well with the Grado mids-highs ),would replace R1 in the power supply with a choke (will marginally lower the B+ but more bad than good will result),would add a mute-maybe a muting relay,use a tant for R3 and R10,R9 and R16 and would add a multipole rotary switch to the output trafos for on the fly switching rahter than locking the amp in to just one set of headphones-just in case all in all I am convinced "trioded" pentodes in class-A with trafos coupling is the way to go with the RS-1 in particular so either something like the HD83 or a regular "loudspeaker amp" in the 2-4W class with the Grados driven from the 8 ohm tap amps of choice leaving all the rest for the Senn/beyer crew to play with.all about optimizing to what you have and since most all headphone amps are voiced to drive higher impedance headphones (and the out Z/Voltage gain reflects this) it is time to thing differently when looking for an amp for this class of headphone that when driven with the right source (no bright hashy crap digital please !) will to my taste whip the hell out of the MUZAK that Senns make and replace it with some actual dynamic life with the proper tonal shadings these cans deserve at least that is my opinion and I'm sticking to it DAMMIT
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Post by jelosno on Aug 7, 2006 11:52:15 GMT
I do like the term 'upgrade path' but what ist the PIO in the 'PIO input cap'? Ahemm..... A choke. Sure. If I might ask what it is... ;D The spare one of my old Honda will not do for sure. Why would I 'upgrade' to something thats 'more bad than good' Why a mute? I guess it's your personal tase to have one. Will not do much to the tonal capabilities of the amp would it? Well, here we are again - what a 'tent' does for me is clear. A 'tant' though..... That actually came to my mind when I was reading the products webpage but I would have no idea how to correctly wire that thing. Would have to measure through the switch with a mulimeter. Would I have to go through the swich with +&- or with only the +? Now again you know why I am looking for a well documented kit Even for the upgrades I would need to konw exactly what to shop for and what to replace in the existing system. Many thanks - again - for scanning the market Stefan
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Post by jelosno on Aug 7, 2006 12:02:59 GMT
PIO = Paper In Oil. Well I am learning. Slowly but....
Stefan
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 7, 2006 13:57:02 GMT
Paper In Oil- PIO pricey but totally avoids any hints of "plastic" sound or peakiness.Jensens,AudioNote,NOS Vitamin-Q caps....... Use these in a circuit with a rolled or mushy sonic profile then mate to dark cans and you have boring (this type of headphone NEEDS sharper edges) but use with Grado cans and you get music.In fact can save many solid state amps that would otherwise be unlistenable even though accurate. This is not to say you want mushy or soft caps which dull down the music but articulate accuracy without resonances or peaks.PIO caps are very revealing and have high resolution-they just don't ZING content at you which to be honest the Senns need or they fall to the side of dull (and why certain opamps that rule with senns sound like shit with Grados and also why you need to take "all inclusive" opinions with a grain oif salt.Buy/design to specifics not to generalities) The new Beeswax type caps (Jupiters) may also have this quality but I have never heard one though I have heard NOS wax caps culled from old TV console amps with variable results (may be the age of the caps ?). cut me some slack man it was late and i had insomnia A "Choke" in electrical terms= www.aikenamps.com/Chokes.htmlHype dude.I could write pages and pages on how many "upgrade" paths have no clue other than throwing parts at a design (read $$$$$$$$$) because someone somewhere said part "A" or part "B" sounds good in a particular circuit.The shotgun approach to sonic nirvana but like a shotgun is not accurate or good at any distance.I prefer to sit with a scoped rifle and snipe-On target every time with bad (in this case good) intent ALL headphone amps could use a muting relay or at the minimum a manual mute switch for turn on-turn off transients while the amp stabilises,some of which can damage headphones permanantly.Turning down the volume helps but tube gear can take up to 20 seconds before it stabilises so automatic muting a nice touch.Call it paranoia but I am not comfy with unprotected drivers when you only get one shot at making a mistake Tantalum resistor-"tant" again smoooooth unlike your typical (read most) metal film yet just as accurate being 1% tolerance.I also like to use NOS Allen-Bradley carbon composition resistors in selected positions (too many and you kill dynamics) but these puppies need to be hand matched since they are anything but precision parts.Great pulse response,great sound,not very stable and don't like a lot of heat so must be well thought out before just tossing them in the mix. I would have to actually see the wiring diagram of the actual transformer to know the "how" but offhand would say the switch needs to be a four pole (or better) rotary because the secondary will have both series and parallel connections determined by output Z always nice to know what you are getting rather than the "mystery amps" where a manufacturer claims he is protecting secrets when the truth is he is protecting him/her self because they don't even understand their own amp ;D all you would need is the schematic,the rest is "intuition" that comes with time and experience.something us old bastards have in abundance I have one of those fked up brains that is always thinking on parallel paths so when I am working on one thing and I come across something topical to recent dialog I tangent off or toss a shortcut to the page on my desktop for later reading while i finish up current work.Being a knowledge junkie working out someone elses projects also makes me focus thus THINK and we all know thinking occasionally is a good thing (one much out of practice in recent times ) so I actually enjoy the mental excercise/chase and especially so when the end results are good as i hope is the case here. I think the obscure if from a known source using well founded ideas that are known to work and that for many years is far too often overlooked and especailly so in these times of hype over substance and flash over sonics where wrapping a $10 circuit in a $500 chassis gets you a key to the executive bathroom at the High End Audio Club. The WAD amp has been around for a long time,has 90% of the schematics freely published and likely is only limited by certain parts vendor choices to save you from getting beat up on price up front but being a sound circuit has much room to take to the next level IF there is an actual target like here-melding with Grado headphones. I am also coming to the conclusion that pentodes or beam tetrodes may well be the way to go in this area because of the uncanny way they have of making my RS-1 and my MS-1 sing (presently screwing around with some 6F6GT in "trioded" single ended Class-a,Hi-MU octal front end,with promising results even though final power is like a piddling 1W per ch ). Again there is a "must" for below 15 ohms when talking about 32 ohm cans or you will lose all resemblence of ACTUAL bass playing real music so comes down to how do we get the 1-2K ohm output of a single ended amp or the 100-250 ohm of a cathode follwer/white follower down to that level. A Solid State output will work but brings its own set of problems.Multiple parallel output devices will work but you will not like the end result (or expense/amp size) with headphones which leaves transformer coupling,also expensive,but the way I see it a neccessary evil if you want to preserve the bass notes as music.Even here you have two ways to go : 1-Headphone amp with headphone specific transformer 2-low power speaker amp (1-4 watts into 8 ohms) with a speaker/headphone switch,maybe even an inline IHF resistor of 120 ohms but still simple since the 32 ohms will perform its own attenuation to a degree. Some almost good looking EL84 amps out there (most all sound good with Grados) but most have so little actual USEABLE information not something I could recommend with comfort preferring to either stick to the known or the known reputable rather than those guys who seem to come out with a different amp every other month because they have no clue how to design one good one Rickmongo
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Post by jelosno on Aug 8, 2006 13:15:27 GMT
Looked around a lot.
No so much to find regarding the HD83...
Compared to the EAR+ it seems pretty much unknown. Yes I know it's not but... The inside looks so - hmmm, how to say - empty. Not much there. Maybe due to the printed circuit board. In one post somewhere I've read that replacing that board with point2point wiring helped to improve the sound quite well.
So, where to go from here....?
The EAR+ has proved it's nice with Grados. The HD83 has to be tried. Most of the info on the HD83 I have found was based with Senns being plucked in that thing. In the 'basic' form it did cost less than half of what it is now in 2003...
Stefan
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 8, 2006 14:58:39 GMT
has been around at least seven years that i know of,probably more.you need to also realise info will be hard to find even on a search in an area where amps go in and out of fashion as quickly as some change their socks so this months must have killer amp that will be writen about to the "I wanna puke" level will be next months for sale amps more often than not before slipping into obscurity. Having a run over five years says the amp may have some staying power and that goes to satisfied customers.I beleive WAD had their own forum at one time (maybe still do) so if you can weasle out the archives that would be the place to get some meat and potatoes info. K.I.S.S. Bro-"Keep It Simple Stupid" Better to have an uncluttered "just do it" circuit than to have all the fancy trimmings just to sell a product.Here we have a single tune with both a triode and a pentode in the same glass envelope which along will save a lot of real estate over the typical dual triode front end to left and right channel pentode outputs while also keeping all supporting role parts close to the single tube socket. The upsaide is a tidy layout which always goes to relaibility and ease of servicing (some amps are not serviceable but are more total rebuilds if something goes wrong,noticeableonce you actually peek under the hood) which again goes to a small chassis thus reduced cost. The downside is tube rolling options are limited with such a tube which for many is death but for others no big deal if the circuit is actually designed to work with a particular tube.My attitude is the "tube rolling crew" spend more time trying to get a "sound" than they do actually listening to music which should be the main goal I do all point-to-point wiring but trust me,it is not for the newbie or the end result will usually be one sad sounding amp.PCB construction for a kit is an "anyone can build it" method while even the best layed out PTP construction kits usually need their own support forums when the inevitable happens and something goes wrong-usually due to rushing the construction and working on it way too long (tired=mistakes).You also need to run a much hotter soldering iron than most would use with modern electronic construction due to all the heavy metal connections which act as heat sinks sucking all the heat away from the actual joint. Once you have the right build equipment,have a plan of construction where you take regular breaks and quit when irritated or tired,have drawn up a proper wiring diagram (multicolor is best ) and have determined where and what your tie points are to be very doable - Hint : The tube sockets combined with terminal strips or turret boards to tie the parts to www.welbornelabs.com/turret.htmHint #2 : Watch that wire guage and insulation breakdown voltage !!!!!!!!! you don't want 250 VDC jumping from one wire to the next or melting the actual connection ! The difference in the two methods is in method A,the PCB construction you assemble the board outside the chassis then wire it in but with method B,the PTP method you are using the actual chassis on end as you base of construction unless you use a variant called "plate" construction.that is where you have a wood base and a metal top plate with everything mounted to the plate then bolted down to the base.Something like this www.welbornelabs.com/images/chpop1.jpggot me bub,just tossing out inexpensive "no bloat" options Yes it has and IS a bargain with room to upgrade any perceived weaknesses once "in system" not to mention an uncanny synergy with Grado cans.Likely a conbination of the output triode choice (the 12B4 drives low impedance cans with real power-in the 1.5 watt area) and good sound design work You will find that is the case with 99% of Euro or UK amps due to the access to sennheiser headphones at a good price and the ridiculously high price you folks pay for Grado cans ocross the big pond.head to head most look to pocket so not a mystery so since those will be the headphones of choice more often than not also the headphones you will find are used in the majority of reviews.Makes shit a bit tough to get a handle on until you know both and realise an amp weak in certain areas with senns may just be the ideal with Grados (sounded dark,sounded rolled or boring,was not very powerful or dynamic all of which if true with senns will give you ear bleed with Grados ) Cosmeticsman.The "basic" was a tool meant to perform a duty at a fair price yet overlooked by the "flash and dash" (as in dash with your loot) amps,especially the new wave of asian amps that have more going on in the cosmetics than in the design areas.tough to compete with that when you see over and over " looks good,i bet it sounds good" and " look how nice that looks for such a low price.I'm buying one" and "that is about the best l ooking amp I have ever seen.I want one" when visual wins in an area that is supposed to be aural eventually the message gets through and you update the cosmetics or you sell nothing.Those updates always come at a price (look at the early GS Solo amp reviews then compare the new look.no doubt they are damn close internally yet not taken serious until updated) All in all it is a tough call when you don't have access to various amps locally (any audio clubs in your area or high end salons ?) so it comes down to knowing the "flavor" of a thing,the tendencies certain parts or certain topologies have that no matter who the builder/designer is will have a bit of with the rest being the individual 'twist" each manufacturer puts on the amp to make it his own.These usualy little things that go more to voicing than against the true nature of and yes can be a real bitch until you have hours in doing the head to head. Bottom line is I could confortable live with the EAR+ playing music not because I have ever heard the amp itself but because it is uncannily close to an amp I designed and built and used as my main amp for a very long time so if anything will no doubt sound different in small areas. The WAD HD83 is an unknown but has all the features I currently am aligned with as being GOOD things in a Grado drive headphone amp which are : 1-Pentode drive 2-Pure Single Ended without resorting to cathode followers 3-True low impedance output due to the transformer coupling 4-Clean uncluttered signal path 5-Inuitive circuit upgrades due to the simple circuit design Not perfect by any stretch but that multi-tap output transformer to set both gain and impedance makes it very close to a "any headphones" amp depending on which tap is used and I personally like that (and why I like to use the Sowter 8650 in my own amps,high gain yet used with the 12-1 step down damn near perfect for high sensitivity cans then when used at 4-1 enough gain to drive even bitch to drive cans ) BTW-the day I pay more than $1K for a headphone amp I hope someone takes my ass out back and slaps me around until I either pass out from the pain or come to my senses and buy the guy a beer for doing me a favor.It's a damn HEADPHONE AMP for gods sake !!!!!!! Kiddin'.gotta have some fun with this ;D
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 8, 2006 18:57:38 GMT
Other Guy : In the 'basic' form it did cost less than half of what it is now in 2003...King Rickeraptor Supremus : when visual wins in an area that is supposed to be aural eventually the message gets through and you update the cosmetics or you sell nothing.Those updates always come at a price (look at the early GS Solo amp reviews then compare the new look.no doubt they are damn close internally yet not taken serious until updated)[/b] Exhibit A : www.zero-distortion.com/tests/soloheadpamp/solo-headamp.htmExhibit B : point made,next......................... ;D
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 8, 2006 20:21:57 GMT
More on the "you can't design for both" front and a nice little review of the EAR+ www.audioasylum.com/audio/tubes/messages/93064.htmlnotice the review with Grado cans is nothing but glowing yet when we come to the Senns : The Ear+ does a fine job with these as well. The Senneheisers are much more reserved in the upper octaves compared to the Grados. While not soft, there is much less apparent energy. In the bass region, the 600s seem to go lower but with not as much definition. And the midrange, the portion of the spectrum that the 600s’ reputation is built upon, is very natural and relaxed. The Ear+ is unflustered driving these higher impedance cans. I never felt at anytime that the 600s were being reserved due to inadequate power, which leads to my conclusions.the guy says the combination works fine yet I get the distinct impression he is not very impressed with the combination.If you flip that paragraph to an amp that mates well with the Sennheiser cans it would read "drove the Grados fine too but they were just a bit too bright for my taste and I preferred the much smoother and more accurate sound of the sennheisers" Why ? Synegy.Can't have it both ways even though most claim you can.Walking the middle means you never ever get the best out of either while designing for one with usability in combination with the other means you will never be happy with the "other" and why I get so amped up when I read headphone amp or headphone reviews KNOWING they have it all wrong right out of the gate because they refuse to aknowledge there are diferent requirements for each class of headphones and that even though you can make chicken soup out of chicken shit it will still taste like chicken shit
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Post by jelosno on Aug 10, 2006 12:46:23 GMT
Gave the whole idea some thoughts yesterday. Was a public holiday so we went to the wine country 'round Stellenbosch and I did spend way too much on some cases of reds... Seems to be my weak spot Although it might be easier and cheaper to have the HD83 kit shipped from the UK I will go for the Mapletree EAR+ HD if they will ship down to the Cape. I have been to the forum at the HD's website but have found no references to Grado headphones there. The EAR+ seems to have proven it's synergy with the Grados so that will be it. Looking forward to burned fingers from the soldering iron. If it will not work I bring in my welder from the garage that'll do the job with 165 Amps 'melting power' Yes, I will throw in a extra portion of caution regarding the powers running in the tube setup. Stefan, waiting for Mr. Peppard to reply...
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 10, 2006 15:02:01 GMT
Fair enough.sounds like a fine plan to go with the known instead of experimenting and maybe be displeased.The EAR has a proven record. rooting for a definitive YES on that one bub I have seen the kit manual pdf files (can send you them if you like for a preview of what is in store for you ) and can honestly say the biuld is about as straight forward as it gets.Very good instructions on what is really a simple point to point build that if you take your time-rushing a project is a recipe for disaster-I have no doubts will lead to a successful build,one that will give years of listening pleasure always been partial to a 28 0z framing hammer myself when shit don't go my way WHAMMO ! TAKE THAT PUKE !!!!!Best tool on the planet for either making or breaking there being not much that can stand up to it and when there is : time to break out Mr.Sledge Hammer rootin' for you BTW-What color you going with ? .
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Post by jelosno on Aug 10, 2006 15:44:40 GMT
OOOPS! Got a very quick reply from Lloyd Peppard. Where is he based? Must be East coast. Or more inland, Toronto maybe??? He has already shipped one to Cape Town last year. Now - hold on, don't let go - shipping cost by air (5 days) is a whooping $150. Snailmail is up to two months for $ 90.... Well... Always orange if there is but now most propably yellow if it is available in time. I do plan to do a custom case anyway but will order the complete set since I expect it to be easier to start with. Stefan
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 10, 2006 21:15:00 GMT
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Post by jelosno on Aug 10, 2006 21:49:51 GMT
'cause it goes to South AFRICAIt's a extra expensive shipping 'zone'. Might be cheaper so send it to Germany and from there down here.... Anyway - not unexpected
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 10, 2006 22:23:43 GMT
dude,I can ship my ASS there for that amount, and have drinks on the plane served by a fine wench (probably burn in hell for that last crack ) OK.Maybe an exaggeration but not by much.That is an damn lot of loot for a 2lb package the size of a loaf of bread to be shipped.Maybe have it shipped in spurts from one relative to another until it arrives for way less loot and a lot less time than two months,also crazy.Not like Africa is a backwater continent off all trade routes.................................
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Post by jelosno on Aug 11, 2006 9:06:39 GMT
No, it is just 'because'. Also the tracking option of the box is another thing to pay for and then it adds up I guess. When I used to ship Christmas cookies/ginger bread from Germany to South Africa the shipment cost was sometimes higher than the price of first grade Nurenberg super spiced stuff. They have categorized certain shipment areas and If you happen to be in one that is at a number 4 or higher (at least on euro ratings) it's gonna be expensive no matter what. We latetly ordered a ISDN primary rate card from Germany and it was 90 euros for a 5 day shipment to Cape Town for a PC card! No weight at all. And there are several planes going from either Frankfurt or Munich every day down here directly. Just one of those things.. If I put the prices for good wines and fresh food on the other half of the scale it is still fine Not to forget about the scenery which comes for free. Stefan
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Post by jelosno on Aug 11, 2006 12:21:40 GMT
Should I go for the HD model of the EAR+ or take the standard version and do other kind of upgrades? If I opt for the HD with its upgraded parts is there any other internals to change for more sound quality? The famous PIOs maybe - a timed mute - .... ... Stefan
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Post by jelosno on Aug 11, 2006 14:53:59 GMT
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 11, 2006 16:17:04 GMT
I would.saves on the hassle of sourcing some of the parts. C1 and C3 are prime candidates for upgrading.I am Sure the good Dr. could have built an all out assault "super amp" then sold zero the cost being so high so the choices made on a good cost/performance ratio as with most affordable audio must. C1 I would go either with the Jensen PIO,a Vitamin Q or a beeswax Jupiter Cap with the choice on which being thus : Mostly jazz,female vocals,small scale acoustic-Jensen or Vitamin-Q High energy rock,electronica,etc, the beeswax which has a bit more of an energetic presentation than the above which favor the mids.any of the three meld well with the sonic profile of the RS-1. For C3 I would go with an unbypassed BG (Black Gate) or other non polarised electrolytic there being a space constraint.If after listening you feel a need to bypass the BG then any good film and foil will work (Try Mundorf silver foil ). One thing you want to avoid is plastic in the signal path-polypropylene,polyester,etc.May sound good up front but over time will get on your nerves with Grados.you don't need to ADD detail,it is already there in spades. Relay protection-Again you have a tight layout so any protection circuits need to be equally tiny AND mount out of the way plus be powered from the Ear+HD heater supply trafos without sagging the power feed to the heaters.a tall order and to be honest I don't know if the stock trafos is up to it (you could ask directly). so initially what you could do is add a CLM-70 "inrush limiter" between the fuse and power on switch in combination with turning down the volume at start up/turn off to see if you get any pops or clicks before doing any major surgery.If it is determined you do need a muting relay bounce me an email and i will send you a layout of a cheap/easy/effective one of COURSE you can mention Head-fi here.Can be a very informative site once you get past the personal crap and the self proclaimed experts (Eric (Erix) and Mark (Voodoochile) are cool so not considered in the above category . Depends on who you talk to.If you talk to ME i will tell you go with the single best capacitor you can get for that position in the circuit and live with it because the signal integrity/timing can only be maintained when the signal that goes in comes out the other side at the same exact speed and with the same exact phase relationship not overlapped as in a loudspeaker crossover where each "band" goes to an individual driver rather than to one as in headphones and why single driver loudspeakers so as open as they do. Shottkeys or Hexfreds in the power suppy,no film caps,no polarised caps in the signal path,lose the crappy metal film caps in all audio section positions and replace them with Tants or NOS carbons (buy a shitload and hand match for left/right pairings ),Kiwame resistors in the power supply section and if there was room I would lose all the electrolytics in the power supply to be replaced with Solens but they ARE big bastards and the chassis is a smidge tight so not an option here.
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Post by jelosno on Aug 11, 2006 16:40:05 GMT
Rick, thanks. I have to go through this info in little steps with the EAR+ layout printed in front of me. The size of the amp is not a problem. When I do have the kit up and running and maybe some better parts sourced I will start on a custom enclosure anyway. Thinking about polished stainless but totally differnt from voodoochile's. Can't help it - I'm in the optical departement as well Now I have to figure out how to reactivate my old PayPal account.... Lloyd Peppard mentioned 2-3 weeks before shipment. Fine with me. Where do you source the parts you have mentioned above? Is there a one stop shop? Have to find my soldering iron and all related stuff. It's in one of those remaining 'moving' boxes. Can't be that hard to find. Only about 40 left... Stefan
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rickcr42
Fully Modded
Rest in peace my good friend.
Posts: 4,514
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 11, 2006 19:59:03 GMT
Eventually it will click in.Very basic high mu triode gain stage to low mu triode as a cathode follower with output transformer to both load the last triode plus drop the output impedance (and gain by lowering the voltage via the winding ratio) lower than the CF alone could ever hope to do. unfortunately no and that is the killer on prices.Paying shipping charges from a single source is always better than anther $25 for a single capacitor that retails for $10 Probably why so many "make do" rather than shoot for what they really want. Your problem and mine as I see it is location.Being in the U.S. I have many options and have never yet gone "off continent" for a part so have litle knowledge of sources outside of my arena other than word of mouth.The same joint that has the WAD headphone amp BTW also sells partsd-caps,resistors,etc,so you may want to check them out The good news for you also is that you are German and I KNOW there are many many Germans doing high end audio work so the parts must be readily available.I check various project pages but being "uni" linguil (if that,and yes-another "Rickism" ) read the circuit diagrams without having the ability to read the pages. All good but no doubt one day I will build something from a foreign language page that not being able to read the words will end up doing a project that said "Don't build this amp ! It sucks !" but won't know it until I plug 'er in and give a listen I normally recommend living with something in it bone stack form for a fairly long period to get the true nature of the amp after it is well burned in so you KNOW when a thing is either a true upgrade or just tossing money at pretty parts high in popularity. Every change will have an audible consequence but the weird part is we humans consider any change a GOOD just because it is different when the reality is many upgrades are actually a step back not forward so smart means know your own amp and that means spend time with it listening to music. It is a pretty bitch though not something I would build.Admired not copied (I have strange taste anyway,just ask Mike ) BTW-unless you have access to REAL machining tools be warned stainless steel is a major bitch to work.We are not talking about tiny little holes here but mongo holes for tube sockets and such no wimp 300 watters man ! 40-45 HEAT BABY ! A lot of heavy metal in those sockets and terminal strips. probably heard you were contemplating firing that baby up and is hiding in a dark corner somewhere shaking in fear cheers, Rickmongo
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rickcr42
Fully Modded
Rest in peace my good friend.
Posts: 4,514
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Post by rickcr42 on Aug 11, 2006 23:04:40 GMT
almost forgot to add what could be the best upgrade later which is the Sowter 8665 output trafos.Will allow you to use a much smaller output cap-no small thing since it is easier to find quality coupling caps in smaller sizes
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