TriVista 21 DAC Modification

[yogistardust]

Hi all!

I have been using MF gear for a few years and thought it was time for some modifications. Haven't got the money now to buy some new stuff, so...

I am using a Sony CDP-X779ES (New laser, Tentlabs XO3 Low jitter clock with new SPDIF output. Removed all the cards inside I didn't use anymore, Disconnected the Digital PSU; runs on 16Mhz now i.s.o. 45Mhz). So now I use an almost empty standalone player with the outstanding drive. Connected to my Trivista 21 DAC with an Apogee Wyde-Eye digital cable.

Pre: Musical Fidelity A3.2cr (removed all the crappy Jamicons and replaced them with Panasonic FC's and the PSU with Panasonic TSHA caps, all the signal wiring replaced with JK acoustics wiring. (Dutch brand which makes outstanding speakers, hardware for some time now, http://www.jkacoustics.nl). What an amazing improvement!! The bass and trebles are there, everything is on its place. This Pre was and stays my absolute favorite for a long time.

Power: Musical Fidelity A3.2cr. About the same replacements as the pre-amp. Looks like the Jamicons couldn't deliver the power this baby wants to give to my KEF reference 3-two's. Now with the Panasonics it DOES and how. Crazy that such easy modifications can make the difference between day and night.

Now the trivista21: I heard this DAC with it's 5703 tubes had a lot of potential, Looked inside and started to think to make this heavy piece of equipment rock and roll! It uses already a great PSU with two chokes and 6 different powerlines. Replaced all the Jamicon PSU caps. 6 x 15.000uf and 4 x 2200 uf with Panasonic TSHA. Result: Everything was more open and detailed. All the signal wiring changed to JK acoustics silverwire!
Changed all the Jamicon caps on the main board with Elna Cerafine's. Replaced the two 10uf non-polairs output caps with two ENORMOUS Audyn-plus Foil Caps. These ones make the thing rock, for sure.
The final thing.... Those NE5532's. Crazy they still use them in their A5 cd-player's and even KW's
I changed them almost directly with some OPA2107's and LM4562's. The OPA2107 for filtering (4x) and LM4562 for the output. This LM4562 is .

I think this modification brings my DAC to a totally different level. Compaired it an ML Dac, Bel canto DAC and some more exotic expensive stuff. This Dac connected to my Sony player from 1993 is now truly a superb combination.

Pictures will follow soon, but I just wanted to share this with you guys.
Jochgem, the Netherlands

[Deleted]

NICE POST !
Have you tried the OPA2134 instead of the OPA2107? The DACs seem to like the wider bandwidth ICs like the LM4562, AD8066 better in the O/P stages.
SandyK

[yogistardust]

Yep, tried the OPA2134, but I thought it was missing detail and sounds pretty warm and laidback (BB) Same like the OPA2604. I like this one better though! Used this one before for I/V.
I used a lot of opamps, the 2107 is my favorite BB. Silky detailed and just right. The OPA2134 is great for 'normal' CD-player modifications. (my opinion anyway!). and cheap...

[Deleted]

The trouble with audio I.C.s is that no particular I.C. can be universally used in every type of equipment , and necessarily sound best . There are far too many other variables like feedback resistor values ,PSU, types of capacitors used,interconnect quality and length etc. It often takes a lot of experimentation to select what is best for the individual piece of equipment. That, and what is used after it , too.
SandyK

[jelosno]

CDP-X779ES (New laser, Tentlabs XO3

Is the new laser the VAM 1202? Maybe not since this is a Philips part?

The VAM 122 could be the 'snap in' (control chip compatible with previous version) upgrade for my CDP.

I also have the XO3 here but had no time to heat up the soldering iron. My CDP is a LUA Cantilena/Jolida

[yogistardust]

When I bought my player in 1993 I bought three spare lasers. (Sony KSS-272A). Someone told me that these players could easily play for many years, but the lasers wouldn't. Luckily I had to replace the first laser this year. So 14 years for a laser is a good thing.

I sold the other ones for loads of money last year. (Out of stock everywhere ). Wish I had bought more in 1993!!

The XO3 gives your player more juice and more musicality. At least your DAC does, because this one is used for an external DAC and a new SPDIF output.
If you do it for the first time, it can be frustrating to get it in. Be careful with the sensitive parts.

[PinkFloyd]

yogistardust said:

Yep, tried the OPA2134, but I thought it was missing detail and sounds pretty warm and laidback (BB) Same like the OPA2604. I like this one better though! Used this one before for I/V.
I used a lot of opamps, the 2107 is my favorite BB. Silky detailed and just right. The OPA2134 is great for 'normal' CD-player modifications. (my opinion anyway!). and cheap...

I also find the OPA2134 to be rather chocolaty / syrupy sounding and the OPA2604 even more so! Great opamps in certain applications but you can spot that burr brown house sound a mile away. 2107 is a superb chip and IMO as close to OPA627 as you can get and with the added convenience of being a dual. An often overlooked TI (BB) chip is the OPA2111 ..... a superb chip IMO and if implemented correctly can prove to be a stunning sounding chip (spec sheet here: focus.ti.com/docs/prod/folders/print/opa2111.html) I raved about this chip years ago but nobody listened, the "trend" at that time was OPA627 or nothing.... OPA2111KP is a much nicer sounding opamp IMO (and a dual too) and not a hint of the classic BB chocolaty signature.........

Have you tried the LM4562 yet? may well fit in superbly in your application others to try are AD-823AN, AD843 (on browndog) or what about an AD797 / 811 hybrid or AD823 / 815 hybrid? Walt Jung used to rave about these but I can't find out much about them on the web.... there's mention of the AD797 / 811 hybrid in AD's 797 datasheet:

" A General Purpose ATE/Instrumentation Input/Output Driver
The ultralow noise and distortion of the AD797 may be combined with the wide bandwidth, slew rate, and load drive of a current feedback amplifier to yield a very wide dynamic range general purpose driver. The circuit of Figure 49 combines the AD797 with the AD811 in just such an application. Using the component values shown, this circuit is capable of better than −90 dB THD with a ±5 V, 500 kHz output signal. The circuit is therefore suitable for driving high resolution A/D converters and as an output driver in automatic test equipment (ATE) systems. Using a 100 kHz sine wave, the circuit drives a 600 Ù load to a level of 7 V rms with less than −109 dB THD and a 10 kÙ load at less than −117 dB THD."

PDF here: www.analog.com/UploadedFiles/Data_Sheets/AD797.pdf

IIRC the AD823/815 makes an even better hybrid.