astrostar59

Actually that IS funny. Like it. But, I am more a Honda kind of guy. Nice graphics though (not). Here is my effort (not as good). So, which amps are to go? Difficult decision I can imagine.

Interesting, I was discussing this subject yesterday. Does a Ground Plain (in theory) result in a better PCB in this application?

Very nice and high quality build. I also like the 2 x LEDs, I assume to show left and right side powered up. Neat.

Wonder how that parts failed?

I wonder if the sales logic (not technical logic) of 2 sockets was the 'wife' factor? It can be a reclusive hobby with one headphone I guess. But in my environment especially in the evenings headphones really works for me.

Nice, can't wait to see and hear it. Thanks for the great work Geoff. My KGSShv was really nice, but I think this has surpassed it on build quality.

Thanks that is great.

No just want to know the best method. For example is it best to mount the fets directly to the back of the heat sink? Many here mount on a bracket, I am assuming as the legs are not long enough.

I should have it in less than 2 weeks.

Purk, I think tubes in a DAC can do other things besides allow tube rolling. Some amplifiers and DACs use tubes in the regulation of the power supply as well. My pre-amp I used to have had tubed regulation and tubes on the line board as well. On tubed DAC design the Audio Note DACs and some of the Lampizator DACs are examples.

Thinking about the thermal requirements of the Carbon Fets, is there a tried and tested way you guys are fitting the fets to the heat sinks? If done incorrectly it could spell problems. I have been digging around for information but there seems to be a lot of contradictory information on the web. I found this guide that seems to make sense: http://application-notes.digchip.com/081/81-43573.pdf Any thoughts?

The discussions here on mA requirements and voltage swing are fascinating. Coming from a layman / audio fan not engineering perspective I think maybe a very powerful amp on tick over may sound better than one at it's limit in normal operation. Music has a huge dynamic range and fast paced signals, so I am thinking a amp that is more highly spec'ed and less stressed could sound more natural and realistic. I guess there are limits as regards heat and current tolerance. But regardless it seems KG keeps pushing out the envelope which is a gift IMO to the DIY community. Reading a post above, my incoming Carbon has the LV boards addition. Looking forward to hearing it. Purk, I have had tube based DACs for years driving my solid state speaker amps and later my KGSShv's. I do believe that you can tube roll a DAC / Source and get a great system synergy going. I m not talking tube roll off or rosy glow, more beautiful midrange and timbre, smooth treble response. Wether it is best to have a tube DAC or tube amp I have no idea, but my system seems to work well. I dropped my tube pre-amp (but kept my tube DAC) years back to go passive on my SS speaker amp with gains in pace and dynamics. I have no idea if it is best to tube roll in a DAC or amp. In the source the signals are tiny so 'may' be more sensitive to change there. God knows. For me it was more trail and error. When I was upgrading my DAC kit with different boards and parts, I rolled tubes a lot to get the sound where is sounded correct to me. For example when I changed the I/V transformers it was more transparent and open, so I went NOS Mullards on the driver tube. When I fitted Duelund caps on the line board, I changed the Mullards on there for Tungsols (less warm). Is this the correct way to do it? Maybe not, but it is a way an owner can tweak the sound without hacking the circuit. I know all amps should sound the same or at least be transparent 20hz - 20k hz. But we know they sound different as cars perform different round a race track.

Thanks sorenb, I will talk to him. I can test at his house and may end up setting it there at maybe 17mA or 18mA and leave it at that.

Crossed wires, I use the PS Audio for cleaning the mains only, not adjusting the voltage in any of my amps as such. I think my Carbon will have an mA adjuster. Thanks for the head up on the lethal aspects, I was aware and folk need to take care.

Dunno. I use a PS Audio P10 for my system which regenerates the mains power and wave form. The mains in my house is quite dirty so it has a big effect. I was in the mains is mains camp before I heard the effect. I also use a linear PS for my music server which also helped things. I guess all these things may help as elements outside of the amp design itself. The P10 was not cheap, but the fact it also helps with my speaker system is a bonus.

I read here and at the other place from owners, but here is an excerpt from KGs post today from HF: I will be able to stop reading and try myself in testing as my Carbon is coming in 2 weeks. It could be a positive IMO. I can tune to an extent with my tubed DAC, so if the bias does affect the HF sound balance, it may help some with solid state DACs. At this level of SQ the tiny tweaks can be the icing on the cake. Getting excited now.

There are many DACs with tubes in and that would allow an element of tube rolling to tweak the sound. In my (limited) experience I prefer to miss out the pre-amplifier as it is just another device that can change the sound, unless the DAC line stage really requires it to drive the next device. It is possible to get great results with a power amp driving speakers as well using a passive, though results can be mixed and it depend on the design of the line stage in the DAC and keeping the interconnects as short as possible helps.

Anyone heard this electrostatic amp by Dmitry? I don't remember reading about it anywhere on the forums. I spotted it on the MSB thread over at Head-fi. No idea what it sounds like. http://audio-tube.ru/

So it is illegal to own more than one amp now? Like how many on here have more than one amp? And it is technically correct in some cases to find a strength in one amp in a certain area (bass, vocals etc) and soundstage and slam in another. It has been documented on here. I still see the KGSShv has certain aspects I prefer over the BHSE (warmth, bass). I like soundstage, vocals and midrange on the BHSE. Both are great amps IMO, the BHSE overall the better amp.

Who is Mr Panure?

Spritzer, seen this? Spot the Wee. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NoslWFLt6Es&feature=youtu.be

No idea what the status is here, so I am wearing my hard hat just in case. I know someone who had an 009 repaired recently after channel imbalance. It was inside warranty (just) so Stax made 2 new drivers and they got fitted by the repair centre. Stax do state that the 009s and any of their headphones must not be used by a non Stax amplifier or they may be damaged. I have no idea if that is true, if Stax are simply saying non Stax amps are outside their warranty claim (understandable), or that non Stax amps can indeed damage the headphones? But I was thinking, how do they damage the headphone? If the current 727 amp is 400 volt rails (as the Carbon for example), and the bias is the same 580v how can they be damaged. Stax amps can and do go wrong, and so they could damage the headphone regardless. On the Carbon as an example, I have read here it is very accurate and stable even on switch on, so to me, it may be 'safer' than a current Stax amp especially the tube units that go out of whack. Any thought guys?

I read it may sound less forward / harsh if you drop the mA to 17?

No idea what caused the failure in my 009s. It was the left driver that started fading output. No distortion and the right driver was ok. I don't think it was the amp, but I will measure the bias value anyway from the pad on the PS board, and the DC offsets at the socket.Most probably it is the dreaded 009 imbalance thing again. The only thing in my car is it took 23 months to appear, most cases I have heard about happen inside 3 months. My input is actually an RCA line out of 2V standard into a convertor plug RCA/XLR so actually is less than the expected 5/6v of an XLR input. I ran the pot at around 12 o'clock for loud listening, 11oclock for normal.

I didn't. My KGSShv has a server so I am thinking it would be balanced (no DC). I thought about testing the bias but didn't know which pad to pick that up on. Have you heard of issues with over voltage in a KGSShv?