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Post by PinkFloyd on Apr 11, 2006 16:39:26 GMT
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rickcr42
Fully Modded
Rest in peace my good friend.
Posts: 4,514
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Post by rickcr42 on Apr 11, 2006 22:44:16 GMT
About damn time Mike ! Time to do the "upgrade pack" for all the common UK amps that have a following.How you think the "big guys' got started ?  |
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Post by PinkFloyd on Apr 11, 2006 23:01:50 GMT
About damn time Mike ! Time to do the "upgrade pack" for all the common UK amps that have a following.How you think the "big guys' got started ? I'm working on manuals and upgrade kits for quite a few amps at the moment Rick and shall be introducing them into the line up over the next few months. I'll also be totally revamping the www.rock-grotto.co.uk website and will be incorporating a catalogue of carefully selected parts inkeeping with the rock grotto ethos of best quality sound at realistic, affordable, prices. Best possible sound for your pound type of thing without any "boutique technobabble" or added garnish, just plain honest to goodness parts that sound the best and have been selected for their sonics, not their looks. Mike. |
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rickcr42
Fully Modded
Rest in peace my good friend.
Posts: 4,514
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Post by rickcr42 on Apr 13, 2006 21:43:12 GMT
HELL YESSSSS !!!!!!!!! I love it man ! Capitalism from the bottom feeders (I include myself in that ) and in another two weeks or so should have something special for you to "display" with your wares if you are up to it |
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Post by PinkFloyd on Apr 13, 2006 22:34:21 GMT
HELL YESSSSS !!!!!!!!! I love it man ! Capitalism from the bottom feeders (I include myself in that ) and in another two weeks or so should have something special for you to "display" with your wares if you are up to it I'm well up for it Rickster, the more the merrier, just got to get my head round this "charging" for my time instead of giving it away for free..... a fair rate for a top quality job isn't too much to ask for! Bring your wares on Rick, there's plenty of room here for them. Mike. |
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rickcr42
Fully Modded
Rest in peace my good friend.
Posts: 4,514
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Post by rickcr42 on Apr 14, 2006 0:58:30 GMT
Guys like us Mike have always done this sharing of information for the sheer joy of the chase for better sound while those with no clue capitalise on the things freely shared and that sucks,
Time to take a slice of the pie while there is still pie to slice up is my thought
better a big fish in a small pond than a feeder fish in the ocean looking for shelter
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xerxes
Been here a while! 
Posts: 1,115
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Post by xerxes on Apr 14, 2006 18:17:59 GMT
What will you be selling?
Things I'd like to see:
hook up wire
solder
capacitors
resistors
I'd happily pay a little premium on the price for the ability to buy just one or two resistors or capacitors when that's all I want rather than having to buy them in multiples of 5 or 10 at places like RS. Of course, it would be nice to see a whole raft of reasonably priced, selected for quality items.
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Post by russellreising on Apr 22, 2006 17:23:28 GMT
Will you be putting together V3 upgrade kits soon??? My amp is on the way, and I can't wait to jazz it up as far as I can. Like many of us, I have more ears than money.
rrr
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Post by PinkFloyd on Apr 22, 2006 17:49:15 GMT
Will you be putting together V3 upgrade kits soon??? My amp is on the way, and I can't wait to jazz it up as far as I can. Like many of us, I have more ears than money. rrr Yes, probably early next week they will be available, just working on the upgrade tutorial now. Mike. |
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Post by kittenyberk on May 16, 2006 13:25:40 GMT
I received my kit this morning, along with new valves and a purple led.
took under an hour to put together (using a lousy soldering gun and no desoldering braid)
massive improvment, feels warm and comfortable.
all in, very pleased and sixty quid well spent :-)
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Post by PinkFloyd on May 16, 2006 20:48:05 GMT
I received my kit this morning, along with new valves and a purple led. took under an hour to put together (using a lousy soldering gun and no desoldering braid) massive improvment, feels warm and comfortable. all in, very pleased and sixty quid well spent :-) I can't believe you've done it already Alex, I only sent the parts yesterday afternoon  Give it a few days and it will get even better once the caps fully form and everything stabilises. I assume the Philips 6922 did cure the Right channel noise? What do you think of the purple as a change from the red? All the best. Mike. |
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Post by kittenyberk on May 16, 2006 21:39:08 GMT
I can't believe you've done it already Alex, I only sent the parts yesterday afternoon Give it a few days and it will get even better once the caps fully form and everything stabilises. I assume the Philips 6922 did cure the Right channel noise? What do you think of the purple as a change from the red? All the best. Mike. i couldn't wait, i'd been without her for going on 6 months  yup, the new valves cured the noise, shame really, the mullards were nice while they lasted. the purple is far nicer than the red, and is just the right brightness. (also, it stops it looking like a hal-9000, which is nice) |
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Post by martenot on Aug 16, 2007 20:13:13 GMT
Hello Mike,
I sent you an email, please check it out when you get a chance. I'm ordering a upgrade pack for my X-CAN V2! this will be fun.
Regards.
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Post by kittenyberk on Apr 2, 2008 17:07:30 GMT
I received my kit this morning, along with new valves and a purple led. took under an hour to put together (using a lousy soldering gun and no desoldering braid) massive improvment, feels warm and comfortable. all in, very pleased and sixty quid well spent :-) 2 year later... More new valves off pinky, jalco socket and the diode kit. I was kinda cynical about the diodes making much difference, but I was wrong, they do seem to make a noticeable difference, even to my crappy hearing. Very pleased, again. |
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Post by krisno on Mar 28, 2009 18:13:33 GMT
I need some help!
I have a modded V2. I need to make it less bright. I want to change the Suntan output caps which came with Mike's mod. I don't know the size of them but I guess they are 16volt 470uf.
1) I want to replace with either of these Blackgates, question is, the original x-can came with 6.3v rated output caps. Is 6.3v enough or must I go for a higher rated one?
2) Let's say I go for the 6.3v 470uf, its 12,5mm wide and 24mm tall. will it fit? or is it just the smallest 220uf which is 8mm wide and 11tall that will fit???
Nx 220uF 6.3V 8 x 11 radial wire £4.65 CAP-9320
N 470uF 16V 16 x 24 radial wire £9.47
N 470uF 6.3V 12.5 x 24 radial wire £6.90 CAP-9323
Would be very happy for answer! Regarding both size and voltage...
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Post by dejanm on Mar 28, 2009 20:12:12 GMT
I need some help! I have a modded V2. I need to make it less bright. I want to change the Suntan output caps which came with Mike's mod. I don't know the size of them but I guess they are 16volt 470uf. 1) I want to replace with either of these Blackgates, question is, the original x-can came with 6.3v rated output caps. Is 6.3v enough or must I go for a higher rated one? 2) Let's say I go for the 6.3v 470uf, its 12,5mm wide and 24mm tall. will it fit? or is it just the smallest 220uf which is 8mm wide and 11tall that will fit??? Nx 220uF 6.3V 8 x 11 radial wire £4.65 CAP-9320 N 470uF 16V 16 x 24 radial wire £9.47 N 470uF 6.3V 12.5 x 24 radial wire £6.90 CAP-9323 Would be very happy for answer! Regarding both size and voltage... 1.) 6,3V is ok. It was the original value ... 2.) You need 8 mm cap. Everything larger will produce placement problems. Basically you have the option to go for that BG Nx or to accept what Mike sent you ... |
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Post by PinkFloyd on Mar 28, 2009 20:22:52 GMT
I have a modded V2. I need to make it less bright. I want to change the Suntan output caps which came with Mike's mod. I don't know the size of them but I guess they are 16volt 470uf. If anything the Black Gates will make things MORE bright, those 16V / 470uF Suntan non polars are pretty damned good in that their insertion loss is very very low.... I tried a few in this position (including CapXon, Black Gate, Nitai, Panasonic) and the Suntans and Nitai were (to my ears) the best. I have the 470uF black gate non polars Kris and will gladly send you two free of charge so that you can hear them for yourself.... they will fit no problems at all. I'll say it again..... the X-CAN V2 should NOT be bright sounding... you are pissing in the wind and getting your leg wet, time after time, trying all these different things.... send the PCB's over to me (I don't need the PSU, the valves, the enclosure or the front and rear panel.... just the boards) I will go over everything to make sure there's not a problem and I will also do this free of charge.... If you still think it's bright when it returns then I suggest you get your ears checked Is this a deal? Mike. |
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Post by PinkFloyd on Mar 28, 2009 20:37:07 GMT
BTW the 6.3V / 470uF Black Gate is the exact same size as the suntan you already have on board..... these are the guys:  |
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Post by krisno on Mar 28, 2009 23:17:24 GMT
Mike.. excelelnt reply...
OK. I won't bother if these make it even more bright. I thought specially the red black gates had thsi warm 'fuzzy' sound which was very comfortable... Then I will listen to you and I won't order any blackgates. I will save the money and focus on the source.
btw the blackgates are expensive but not worth the money then..
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Post by dejanm on Mar 29, 2009 9:44:44 GMT
Please have in mind that Blackgates need awful a lot of time to burn-in ... 200 hours or sometimes even more ...
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Post by PinkFloyd on Mar 29, 2009 23:34:57 GMT
Please have in mind that Blackgates need awful a lot of time to burn-in ... 200 hours or sometimes even more ... Yes, they do seem to take a long time to form (or a long time to get used to the sound they make! ) I am absolutely LOVING them in the SCHA amp but find them way too "shouty" in the v2.... they are great in certain places but in other places not so great IMO. |
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Post by puffin on Apr 12, 2009 20:52:51 GMT
I had a problem with my X-Cans v2 in that on power-down I got a shrieking noise from the left hand channel. Not good for the old left ear. Suspected the PS caps.
Swopped them out today for some 2200uf Nichicon Muse's and some bi-polars in the 470uf position. Noise is gone and sound is much improved to boot.
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oldson
Been here a while!
Older than a well used glove
Posts: 414
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Post by oldson on Feb 17, 2013 16:17:47 GMT
just fitted the cap/diode kit, and it is working  BUT....... i lashed it up in a couple of ways. when removing one of the diodes things went pear shaped. i had snipped off the diodes and was in the process of removing the solder/ leg ends when for some reason i picked up a pair of pliers grabbed the leg and pulled. this removed the solder pad.  i had read of people repairing this by carefully scraping the track coating off and flowing solder over it. tried this and was making a hash of it due to my unsteady hands and poor eyesight ( oh and i was not in the best of moods either  ). luckily i remembered i had a spare diode from my x10-d kit so used one of those to do the following repair  it dont look pretty but will this be ok? |
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oldson
Been here a while!
Older than a well used glove
Posts: 414
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Post by oldson on Feb 17, 2013 16:32:51 GMT
forgot to post my second hitch.
while handling the amps main board i accidentally put too much pressure on one of it's components.
TR206 i think it was called.
i assume this is a transistor.
anyway there was a slight cracking sound and this component is now loose.
if i rock it, it appears that all the solder moves with the 3 legs.
i am assuming the pads have become loose and only attached to the track ends.
could not get a decent pic to show this.
At the moment it is working but i am unsure whether the connections will now further deteriorate with use.
anyway this kind of blew my confidence.
i decided to finish just the cap/diode upgrade and leave it at that for today.
i have got valve bases, vol pot and HP socket to fit but was reluctant to start these incase i further damage the board.
is there a particular technique for removing the more rigid multi-legged components?
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Crispy
500+
"Done me wrong," it's the same old song" - forever
Posts: 631 
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Post by Crispy on Feb 17, 2013 20:26:54 GMT
it dont look pretty but will this be ok? You want to see the bottom side of my V2 - much uglier than yours, but it sounds beautiful. The repair looks good to me but then again I really don't know much about electronics only what I have learned by modding my V2, so don't let a few little mishaps deter you, if I can do it anybody can. I am sure Mike will let you know if he sees something not right with it, he's a great guy and very helpful. |
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Give it a few days and it will get even better once the caps fully form and everything stabilises.
).
