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Post by inspired on Sept 7, 2009 17:14:17 GMT
I'm brand new here, but have been involved in solid state audio for a long time and am involved in several other audiophile forums. I am just introducing tubes into my system.
One foray into tubes is that I recently purchased a Musical Fidelity X-10v3 Tube Buffer (with cheap wall wort power) from a friend and am seeking to get the most out of it.
Yesterday I ordered the Little Pinkie v3i and a quite excited to receive it !!
The MF X-10v3 has a tiny blue LED to indicate when it the unit is powered on. It is an easy task to remove the 4 faceplate cap-screws and unplug the LED from the circuit board.
Does anyone have experience that this reduces noise in the circuit?
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Post by dejanm on Sept 7, 2009 18:28:21 GMT
Try it and listen to see if there is any change. Personally I think that there are more important things to improve upon the X-10 V3 than the LED. Good luck. I fully agree ... |
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Post by inspired on Sept 7, 2009 22:07:07 GMT
Try it and listen to see if there is any change. Personally I think that there are more important things to improve upon the X-10 V3 than the LED. Good luck. That piques my interest and I love to tweak and am pretty handy with a soldering iron and a roll of Cardas silver solder. Beyond adding the Little Pinkie Power supply which I will take to the mains with a Signal Cable 6' Magic Power Cable, I've not touched the X-10 buffer. Where to next. Capacitors? |
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Post by PinkFloyd on Sept 7, 2009 22:29:58 GMT
Welcome to the forum inspired. My advice would be to see how the Little Pinkie goes first of all.... give it a good couple of months in circuit...... "then", and only then ask yourself the question "can it get any better?" and, if the answer is "yes" then consider tweaking further. Ears are like fingerprints, each pair is unique, one man's "cryogenic cable" may be another man's poison.... you have to judge things with your own ears and one step at a time..... don't over egg the pudding or you may end up with an over elaborate NOISE. Cardas solder, IMO, is a waste of money..... go with a good quality 60 / 40 solder and spend the change on a few new CD's. I'll be building your Pinkie tomorrow, complete with new custom transformer, Class X2 across the line filtering and EPCOS 275AC MOV surge protection...... Give it a go (I guarantee you'll like it) and then decide if you need to go further  I will fit the Deltron Pro 3 pin chassis mount DIN (UK made and the best there is IMO) so you can try the cryogenic cable (if you wish) but, seriously man, as soon as you hook the Pinkie up you'll (hopefully) be more concerned with enjoying the music. All the best, Mike. |
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Post by inspired on Sept 7, 2009 23:32:52 GMT
I absolutely agree with the "hearing" versus "specs" philosophy. I don't diminish the value of quantitative specs and use them as a firm indicator, but always trust my ears (qualitative) in the end.
That's actually what prompted my acquisition of the MF X-10v3 and power supply.
I just purchased a new Yaquin CD-1 (not even here yet) and several NOS replacement valves (JAN Phillips/Telefunken/Siemens/Mullard) that I will burn in and audition.
As soon as I find the best combo after burn in, I am going to conduct a SIDE BY SIDE SHOOTOUT between the Musical Fidelity X-10v3 (with some of the best specifications in the industry) and the Yaquin CD-1 (with much "dirtier" specs).
Most listeners seem to feel the Yaqin Tube Buffer sounds better than the Musical Fidelity, and I wanted to find out for myself.
All in all with better valve and improved mains cable I will have just $200 USD (approx £125 GBP) in the Yaqin and $473 (approx. £296 GBP) in the Musical Fidelity with Power supply and improved mains cable. (mains cable for both will be a used 6' Signal Cable MagicPower cable that I own). All RCA IC connections will be MIT Shotgun 2 set at the proper impedance level.
Separately, I am going to determine if the Revelation Audio Labs Cryo-Silver Reference DIN Power Cable makes a difference, and that adds $125 USD/£200 GBP (used) to the Musical Fidelity side of the equation that is NOT included in my figures above.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 8, 2009 5:36:14 GMT
inspired
A LED is simply a diode with special doping of the materials used in the construction of the diode, to cause visible light emission. Most LEDs are quieter than typical low voltage Zener diodes. The LED itself will not introduce noise, whether radiated or otherwise, to a circuit when used as an indicator. In fact they are often used in low noise preamps and amplifiers to meet bias requirements of a stage.This kind of use can be seen in the SC HA thread.
However , if the voltage used to make the LED conduct has crap on it, the lead itself could concievably cause a degree of radiated "noise."
SandyK
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Post by inspired on Sept 8, 2009 16:49:37 GMT
inspired, the cables by RAL are fantastic! I have had the opportunity to test them both as an interconnect and as a headphone replacement cable. However be advise that for about 18-24 months the company was not delivering on the goods even after being paid. Perhaps things have changed for the better, if you bought your cable used then cheers. Thanks. I have a close friend in another forum who is selling me his gently used cryo cable that he no longer has in use. |
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Post by inspired on Sept 8, 2009 16:54:07 GMT
inspired A LED is simply a diode with special doping of the materials used in the construction of the diode, to cause visible light emission. Most LEDs are quieter than typical low voltage Zener diodes. The LED itself will not introduce noise, whether radiated or otherwise, to a circuit when used as an indicator. In fact they are often used in low noise preamps and amplifiers to meet bias requirements of a stage.This kind of use can be seen in the SC HA thread. However , if the voltage used to make the LED conduct has crap on it, the lead itself could concievably cause a degree of radiated "noise." SandyK Thanks. I think I will go ahead and unplug it for the same reason Mike gives for not using one in the Little Pinkie. When my Little Pinkie PSU on/off switch is showing its red colored rim, power will be flowing to my MF X-10v3 tube buffer. While there will be no empirical evidence that it was a problem, I will be 100% certain the diode is not contributing noise when it is disconnected  . |
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Post by dejanm on Sept 8, 2009 17:22:11 GMT
While there will be no empirical evidence that it was a problem, I will be 100% certain the diode is not contributing noise when it is disconnected . I fully agree ... |
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