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Post by PinkFloyd on Jun 26, 2011 21:38:11 GMT
How would you describe the sound of the Sunrise compared to X-Can V2 or V3? Hi Lark. I "wouldn't" describe the sound quality after only having the amp up and running for 24 hours or so as I like to live with it for a few weeks before commenting / comparing to other amps. All I can say, at this juncture, is that is sounds absolutely fantastic from the get go and I am waiting to see how it pans out once a few hours are on it.... unlike Frans I "do" believe that caps need time to fully form and valves "do" require a period of time before they come on song fully. It would be irresponsible of me, after only having the amp up and running for 24 hours, to even "try" comparing it to other amps I know and love. All I "can" say (from my experience of amps) is that the Project Sunrise amp seems very promising (from what I have heard SO far) for an amp that has so few hours on it..... You kind of get to know the "feel" of things after a while and, let's just say, the initial "virgin" feel of this amp is extremely positive  I shall comment (fully) on the sound quality as soon as everything has cooked for a while, have got used to it's signature and have had an opportunity to listen to a lot of well known albums on it. One thing I CAN say from the "get go" is that the occasional mobile phone signal can come through so the amp still has that problem and probably always will as long as it remains an "open air" design. I only have the one phone in the house (Mobile) and it only interferes with the music when the signal drops and it is trying to find a signal (or whatever the hell it's doing!)..... you get that well known mobile phone interference over the music but it only lasts a few seconds and I have only heard it twice in over 7 hours of listening so far so not a problem. It could be the valve that's picking it up so I have fitted a valve shield and will monitor it but, really, it's not a worry for me. It could (however) be more of a niggle for people living in areas with high interference (such as those living near mobile phone masts etc.)..... I am possibly making too much of a couple of "mobile phone" interference noises in a seven hour period but feel it is my duty to report everything (good as well as not so good) but let me stress that I have only experienced TWO short (under 2 seconds) mobile phone bursts in 7 hours so (to any normal person) this will NOT be a problem  I'll let you know how my valve shield performs over the next few weeks....  Minor gremlins aside, I am listening to the amp as I type and it is making nice music..... will report back in a couple of weeks as soon as it blends in to my amp collection and I am in a position to fully evaluate it's abilities. Mike. |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2011 21:45:35 GMT
Mike, I can't remember if you have a "Frans style modified G2" or not? I think Mick is only one with one of those and a Sunrise, er, rising? It would be VERY interesting to know how the Sunrise, desinged with mods-in i.e. properly, competes against a G2 with retro-mods  |
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Post by PinkFloyd on Jun 26, 2011 22:01:53 GMT
No... all I have is a "PINKIE" modded G2, a modded Indeed and a modded Bravo... all of them IRL 510 etc..... Have patience Chris, I will get round to comparing them all.... very little "change / improvement" so far but will report back as soon as the PS has "fully" burnt in and has become a "known" box in my armoury..... At the moment it's "newness" makes it stand out from the crowd..... I'll be in a better position to evaluate it once it has a couple of "mm" of dust on top of it Mike. |
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Post by Garage1217 on Jun 26, 2011 23:48:41 GMT
Hey guys, as I have told many that have asked in PM... Should you buy a sunrise if you have a fully modified G2, bravo or similar? Not really unless you want to sell off the G2 and have all known upgrades plus other tweaks in a purpose built chassis / no components being stuck about via hot glue and so on. Also most all components in sunrise are better quality and overall design is much better than a fully modified G2. The sunrise also features a lot of tweakable features such as input cap bypass, and variable output resistance and a very nice PCB that is tuner friendly and can help teach you what you like or do not like. Will you hear a difference? That totally depends on how the sunrise is built, what valve is used, how it is setup and so forth. For example, my sunrise will be different than Mikes and cannot be compared as a general reference as well as the next guy that uses his own flavor of tube or components which is also the beauty of a kit. In reference design, I find my sunrise to be better than a fully modified bravo in multiple ways and I would never look back personally. There is absolutely no need to modify sunrise from her reference design unless you are an experienced tuner and like to tweak things to suit your tastes in which sunrise is very "tuner" friendly  Also to be blunt, Sunrise is a much better value in kit form vs a modified G2 period and she sounds fantastic out of the box or fresh from the build for not much more coin. I think most of you would be shocked on how much the bom costs vs what she sells for. In reference design, she is not a cheap build parts wise that is for sure! In one PM I was asked why I chose huge 2-3W resistors in the signal path for example lol, those are actually low noise 1/4w vishay / dale RN series and they are not cheap Frans and I both are very "straight to the point" when it comes to what things are and are not so never be afraid to ask questions as you will always get a straight answer and not a sales push. Others can vouch for that from answered questions in PM land. I am not the type to say this amp will blow that amp out of the water or any of that normal bs so no worries. Sunrise is very hard to compare to other valve hp amps on the market as she is quite unique in features, component quality and especially in cost. In short, she sounds DAMN GOOD and is an outstanding value and I will leave it at that. On Mikes observation of phone noise, I will try again to simulate it when I get back. I have not observed it on my verizon, t-mobile or att phones incoming or outgoing at my office which has 4 cell devices close to the amp, however I cannot simulate incoming off vodaphone, orange, batelco or similar in europe / the middle east. I can only simulate the output to those networks. My cell devices do however spike my cisco phones at my desk lol. I have a test room at work with around 100+ GPS / cellular based tracking devices running on all US based networks 24-7 transmitting data and voice as that is what I do for my living. I will check my sunrise out there in the room from hell noise wise as well and report back and see if the issue can be replicated, on what band and if it can be resolved If it cannot, I will note it in the manual and here. I have no doubt of Mikes claim, just have to figure out the cause and see if it can be taken care of for my euro friends! Mike, what carrier are you using and what type of phone? "shoot me a PM if you do not want it public" also let me know the extent of the spike volume wise such as "is it a low hiss, a hum, a loud pop or other" To note sunrise does have a little tweak on the input side to help eliminate radio interference as we looked into that issue with other similar designs. |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2011 0:20:20 GMT
I am waiting with baited breath to see a subjective assessment of Frans modified Indeed/Bravo and the Sunrise, by Frans himself!   I asume they are both meeting minimum required specifications for amplifiers, and therefore must sound the same during correctly performed AB testing ! ;D |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2011 0:57:11 GMT
Hey Alex, I found one of your childhood photos on the net! > . > > > . >  |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2011 1:03:51 GMT
That'll be good too, my G2 never got as far as Fransified, just a copy of the posted Pinkeroonies! Jeremy, points taken |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2011 1:33:31 GMT
Hey Alex, I found one of your childhood photos on the net! > . > > > . > Hey Chris, that can't possibly be me. He is using your toothbrush ! ;D |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2011 6:09:57 GMT
Technically it is not a slightly different G2.
a G2 has cathode pots and, in modded state, electros in parallel to that (don't like those in the signal path).
This one does not, more like the 12AU7 in that aspect.
Different output resistances (makes all the difference !) 10 and 68 Ohm compared to 30 or 47(bravo/miri thingies)
better (faster) MOSFET, no crosstalk (after PS mod G2 doesn't have it either)
different LED colors (only cosmetic)
better quality PCB with ground planes on both surfaces.
can handle even more tooobs than a G2 (wider current source range)
easier to adjust ... should I go on ?
and yes I already did compare my modded G2 (that meets the requirements after modding) to my other amps in real AB situation with equalised levels and equalised output resistances to my other amps...
Most amps can/will react to GSM, especially GSM.
That has to do with AM modulated (switched on an off actually) high power RF emitted by them when receiving a call or looking for a repeater.
This is why in hospitals and gas stations you are not allowed to use them, because they can interfere with delicate electronics.
Perfectly natural, and is why I included the 100pF caps Mike omitted.
If they actually do something has yet to be tested, but the option is there.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2011 7:39:07 GMT
....AND ? Did the modded G2 sound the same as your new I.C. based HA under strict AB testing ?  |
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Post by lark on Jun 27, 2011 8:54:42 GMT
I "wouldn't" describe the sound quality after only having the amp up and running for 24 hours or so as I like to live with it for a few weeks before commenting / comparing to other amps. Thanks Mike, I'll wait eagerly for your full assessment Lark. |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2011 10:50:20 GMT
I answered that in the appropriate thread. |
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Post by PinkFloyd on Jun 27, 2011 19:32:50 GMT
Sonically it's not a slightly different G2 either It is much more transparent, has greater depth and much better detail up top.... the G2 is a great little amp for the money but the Project Sunrise definitely has a bit more sonic class. Listening to Thomas Dolby "the ability to swing" (live) right now and the width of the headstage is very impressive.... with the G2 the instruments are all placed pretty close together on the stage but with the Project Sunrise there is a palpable space between them and it's easy to home on every individual component in the mix. I've had her burning in for a couple of days now and she is now starting to "fill out" nicely... it's a very musical listen, not at all fatuiging... so far, so good $184 for the complete kit (parts, board, chassis, valves, power supply) equates to £115 GBP and, in my opinion, this represents VERY good value for money. Top quality parts, stylish looking amp and superb sound quality.... you don't get much for £115 these days and you certainly don't get an amp of this quality for £115. Oh,,,, wait a minute..... you do! |
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Post by Garage1217 on Jun 29, 2011 10:53:44 GMT
Today is the day guys The production boards are coming in! Kits and fully built amps are shipping tomorrow! |
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Post by Garage1217 on Jul 1, 2011 17:07:37 GMT
The black PCBs are IN!!! Finally! They are stunning looking in person. Piano gloss black with gold wash! Some teaser pics. Full kits are now shipping as well as built amps.  Boards are .096 thick FR4 so no bending when inserting a tube!  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 1, 2011 20:14:47 GMT
Very Sexy, certainly look the business Mick. |
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Post by Garage1217 on Jul 2, 2011 6:42:10 GMT
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Post by PinkFloyd on Jul 2, 2011 9:39:07 GMT
Very nice quality boards Jeremy PM me your details and I'll send you over a couple of valves to try.... Mike. |
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Post by Garage1217 on Jul 3, 2011 3:52:53 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jul 3, 2011 5:29:08 GMT
A nice, well written manual, but why do you Yanks insist on getting the date arse up ? ! USER MANUAL 7-02-2011 ProjectSunrise To the Poms and us ex colonial lads, that suggests it was written way back on my birthday earlier this year .  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 3, 2011 7:11:43 GMT
simply call it July-02-2011 and this has been solved. But the date thing is annoying and confusing to me as well as 07-02-2011 can mean 2 dates depending on geographical location.  Kudos for the well written, informative and professionally looking manual. |
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Post by Garage1217 on Jul 4, 2011 0:38:32 GMT
If that is the 1 complaint on the manual then I feel I am doing pretty good! Will make sure the date us understandable to my overseas friends |
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Fully Modded
Pssst ! Got any spare capacitors ?
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Post by XTRProf on Jul 5, 2011 5:19:32 GMT
Aiyah,
Should be 4th of July 2011, US Independence Day. How can anyone mistook that from which ever part of the world? ;D
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Post by PinkFloyd on Jul 5, 2011 12:51:19 GMT
Independence from the limeys ;-) my god we used to rule the world, now look at us... Couldn't fight our way out of a paper bag!! I still reckon we could retake the USA though... They are too fat to fight these days....
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Post by Garage1217 on Jul 5, 2011 16:23:30 GMT
I think you may be surprised how trim and in shape some of us are ... Not talking about myself, but others hahaha |
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