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Post by nairod156 on Nov 14, 2007 19:09:41 GMT
Hi Guys! You sound a friendly bunch and I was wondering if you would mind advising me on my faulty X-can v1. Finding myself living on my own again I dug my X-can out of the loft where it had sat for about 6 years. I gave it a day to acclimatise then fired it up full of anticipation. Sadly my ears were assaulted by a load of distortion over the music, much like what I imagine you would hear if the speakers in your headphones were blown.
I expect it could be any of many different possible faults but just perhaps the symptoms might suggest an obvious fault to someone who knows. I guess taking it for repair would be uneconomical so this is my one slim chance to get it working again.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
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mrarroyo
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Post by mrarroyo on Nov 14, 2007 21:11:53 GMT
nairod156, I hope mike comes and provides feedback on what to look for. If it was my unit the first thing I would do is open it up and: 1. Check the valves are properly seated by removing them and reinstalling. 2. Check op-amp is properly seated by removing and reinstalling 3. Using compressed air (or God forbid a hair dryer) blow over the board to make sure it is dry and w/o any dust 4. Try again by firing it up. Of course Mike will be the expert and I hope what I wrote does not damage your amp.  |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 14, 2007 22:54:03 GMT
"3. Using compressed air (or God forbid a hair dryer) blow over the board to make sure it is dry and w/o any dust"
I sometimes use a small soft bristle artist's paint brush and just blow. Haven't damaged anything yet. I certainly wouldn't recommend using a hair dryer to a newbie.
BTW, you can buy "compressed air cans" specificially for this purpose.
SandyK
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mrarroyo
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Post by mrarroyo on Nov 15, 2007 1:29:07 GMT
I have a few brushes as well as the compressed air. Just did no know which one to recommend. Sorry.
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Post by aurum on Nov 15, 2007 2:00:02 GMT
I would like to also suggest that if mrarroyo's suggestions produce no further improvement. Then it would be my guess that the power supply capacitors & others have dried out & gone to cap heaven, hence they will require replacement. If the caps are dead then you are basically listening to unfiltered music, sounds like crap doesn't it?  :oI just did a job on a mates 25 year old solid state amp that had that very problem. Did I just say solid state! Phew! Phew!  :)finally got the taste out of my mouth  kinda metallic & unnatural. Looks like you might be up for some of Mike's hot mod V1 |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2007 2:04:20 GMT
Miguel
A Hair Dryer may be of use if there is moisture involved,but extreme care is needed. Usually better to carefully brush out most of the gunk, and stand in the sun for a while. I once had a child tip over a vase of flowers into a TV ! Eventually managed to get it working again. The trick is not to apply power again until completely dried out.
Alex
Aurum
I agree with your suggestions.They seem to be a far more likely scenario, unless there has been intrusion by vermin or water.
Alex
SandyK
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Post by aurum on Nov 15, 2007 2:16:30 GMT
And I was hoping for a bite on the solid state comment ;D
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2007 2:39:46 GMT
" just did a job on a mates 25 year old solid state amp that had that very problem." Aurum Fortunately, Solid State amplifiers have come a long way in the last 25 years ! ;D Unfortunately, Valve Amplifiers haven't come a long way in the last 50 years ! Happy now ? ;D Geez, and here I have been trying hard not to poke too much fun at Valve amplifiers recently ! SandyK |
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mrarroyo
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Post by mrarroyo on Nov 15, 2007 2:51:05 GMT
We attack that which we do not understand! |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2007 3:12:01 GMT
"We attack that which we do not understand!" Miguel I was playing around with valve amplifiers when you were still wearing nappies ! You did wear nappies, didn't you ? I even had experience with them in Telecommunications equipment too. I reckon I would have replaced a helluva lot more clapped out valves than you have too! Perhaps I understand them even better than you do ? ;D Mr. Nasty returns. Thank you, Aurum !  |
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rickcr42
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Post by rickcr42 on Nov 15, 2007 3:18:00 GMT
We attack that which we do not understand! now I know why I have so many scars........ my vote goes to getting yourself a good electronic contact cleaner and using it on ALLthe contacts be they audio the connectors,IC sockets/pins,tube sockets/pins or any pcb connectors.Nothing worse than intermittent or high impedance (corroded/mucked up  ) contact points to ruin a persons day..................................OK,maybe a stick in the eye is worse but not by much ! |
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Post by aurum on Nov 15, 2007 3:56:54 GMT
Mr. Nasty returns. Thank you, Aurum !
AAAAHHHH! thats better, I thought you were getting soft on us tubeaholics. Nice one my fellow packing friend Miguel, it seems you pushed the right solid state button
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2007 4:06:38 GMT
Aurum NAAAAHHHH ! Miguel doesn't push my buttons. We understand each other pretty well these days. You eventually got the bite you were looking for, so can I now go back to being less aggro ? Besides you pack a a little too much firepower for my liking ! (Despite the best efforts of the PMs chief advisor) BTW, has Miguel ever told you what his main amplifier is ? Incidentally,an ETI477,100W/Ch. Mosfet power amplifier that I built >26 years ago, was rescued from a friend's garage a couple of months ago. The amplifier was then tested by a CSIRO engineer, and one channel still met the original design specifications. The other channel's distortion figures were higher due to a dried out feedback electrolytic capacitor. The faulty channel's distortion figures were still no worse than the average valve amplifier. SandyK |
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Post by aurum on Nov 15, 2007 8:42:51 GMT
Miguel you heathen you have gone to the dark side of audio! Just listen to your inner ear Miguel all will become clear "may the tubes be with you"  |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2007 9:12:26 GMT
"Miguel you heathen you have gone to the dark side of audio! Just listen to your inner ear Miguel all will become clear "may the tubes be with you" He told you? He didn't want to tell me ! Are you sure ? |
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Post by PinkFloyd on Nov 15, 2007 16:52:40 GMT
I've heard a couple like this and on both of them a few of the PSU board capacitors were bulging / dry especially the ones closest to the regulators and the ones closest to the valves. Not too expensive to fix, just desolder all the old caps and solder new ones in their place and I bet you a pork pie that distortion disappears If you have a spare set of valves kicking about you could also roll them in just to make sure it isn't something to do with the valves you already have in the amp. |
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Post by nairod156 on Nov 15, 2007 18:39:22 GMT
Many thanks for all the help. I took the valves out and replaced them. No difference. The unit has been stored in a box within a box and looks as clean as a whistle.
Now I'm having to play catch-up with the terminology but I'm guessing the PSU board is the smaller, upper, board and three of the capacitors (cylinders with black shrink wrap and a C printed on the board next to them?) do indeed have bulging upper faces. I assume this is what you were referring to Pink Floyd?
Can you advise me the best place to get new caps? Or would you recommend an upgrade kit? Or would I be better off investing in a newer version X-can - is the v3 much of an improvement on the v1? Sadly I am not blessed with the most acute hearing and I wonder if I would notice any difference. I would be interested to hear everyone's opinion and thanks again for the help!
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mrarroyo
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Post by mrarroyo on Nov 15, 2007 20:44:37 GMT
"We attack that which we do not understand!" Miguel I was playing around with valve amplifiers when you were still wearing nappies ! You did wear nappies, didn't you ? I even had experience with them in Telecommunications equipment too. I reckon I would have replaced a helluva lot more clapped out valves than you have too! Perhaps I understand them even better than you do ? ;D Mr. Nasty returns. Thank you, Aurum ! Nappies? I was to busy playing w/ the baby sitter baggies! |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2007 21:38:16 GMT
"Nappies? I was to busy playing w/ the baby sitter baggies!" A quick learner with some things ! Incidentally, how many of you valve afficionados have ever seen a Valve Emission tester, let alone used one ? SandyK "Sadly I am not blessed with the most acute hearing and I wonder if I would notice any difference. " Nairod156 Is you follow Mike's suggestions, I would be very surprised if you don't notice an improvement in soundstage and overall clarity. If nothing else, you will have improved it's longevity and reliability due to the new components. SandyK |
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mrarroyo
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Post by mrarroyo on Nov 16, 2007 0:52:30 GMT
My valve tester died. I am going to a Ham Radio Meet to get one!
I have emissions twice a day! ;D
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Post by Deleted on Nov 16, 2007 1:02:16 GMT
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mrarroyo
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Post by mrarroyo on Nov 16, 2007 1:42:56 GMT
After certain age, does it matter? ;D |
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Post by PinkFloyd on Nov 16, 2007 22:22:03 GMT
Now I'm having to play catch-up with the terminology but I'm guessing the PSU board is the smaller, upper, board Correct. Yes, these are causing the problem you will need to remove them and replace with fresh capacitors, you'd actually be best replacing all of them. I can send you stock caps free of charge, they are caps I have removed from relatively new X-Can amps and are as good as new..... if you cover the postage I will send you a set. Of course I would but I'm biased No. It's not a night and day improvement and I actually prefer the V1 to the v3 when it comes down to sheer "musicality" sure the v3 has a wider soundstage and is a bit more dynamic but the little X-cans (v1) is a great little amp with a very intimate, toe tapping delivery. It also responds very well to tweaks whether they be caps, diodes, valves or swapping the NE5532 opamps over to OPA2134...... it responds well. I certainly wouldn't bin it and it's well worth taking the effort to at least replace the old caps. A classic design and worth saving |
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Post by nairod156 on Nov 17, 2007 16:51:29 GMT
Hi,
thanks for the advice! I am particularly glad that the v1 is worthy of repair/upgrading. Very kind of you, Pink floyd, to offer free caps but now I know it is worth it I think shall go down the upgrade route. Cheers all!
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bullpup
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Post by bullpup on Nov 17, 2007 17:50:47 GMT
Hi, thanks for the advice! I am particularly glad that the v1 is worthy of repair/upgrading. Very kind of you, Pink floyd, to offer free caps but now I know it is worth it I think shall go down the upgrade route. Cheers all! Don' t delay just do it either yourself or send it to Mike. He did the Full Monty on my V1 and it is absolutely fantastic - so much so I really don't bother with anything else. Great with ipods but the better the source the better the sound even works well with a direct feed out of my PC - the expression "lost in Music" springs to mind. |
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:oI just did a job on a mates 25 year old solid state amp that had that very problem. Did I just say solid state! Phew! Phew! 
:)finally got the taste out of my mouth 
kinda metallic & unnatural.
) contact points to ruin a persons day..................................OK,maybe a stick in the eye is worse but not by much ! 
