luvdunhill
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Posts posted by luvdunhill
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in fact, this thing is starting to really interest me.
granodemostasa:
have you ever heard a non-oversampling DAC?
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You certainly could alter the circuit a bit and install different tubes but none of them sound as good as the EL34.
this is a rather ambiguous statement. do you mean:
a.) the EL34 is the best sounding pentode
b.) the EL34 is the best sounding pentode in the BH circuit
c.) the EL34 is the best sounding pentode in the BH circuit that is pinout compatible with the original circuit
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can circuit can handle only having half the transconductance of the EL34? This is the only spec that I cannot meet easily. see my concerns above.
none of the tubes I listed are drop-in replacements. That would be too easy... I agree about kt88, 6l6, etc... I won't be trying those.
EL360 are getting hard to find, but I have some sources. Again, not my first choice, but they look promising.
<flame suit on>I'm more tempted to play with the 3D21A after hearing these in Mikhail's ES amps (in direct comparison to the Mullard EL34 actually). Amazing tubes and the 3D21WB are pretty much indestructible... perfect for the BH + big heatsinks + IXYS current sources.</flame suit on>
Looks like there is only one way to find out...
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need a top-flight DAC with USB input? I'd recommend either of these designs:
NOS using direct interpolation ==
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I always preferred the 6bx7 to the 6bl7's, the bx7s are more linear and cleaner sounding which is what I like in an output tube. I want the input tube to do the coloring not the output tubes.
I go back and forth
I've owned three MPX3 SE and all sounded very different with these two tube families (three if you split the 6BL7GT/A). Seems like a solid recommendation considering Frihed89s preferences. One driver that definitely prefers the 6BL7GT/A tubes is the Amperex 7062. I can go either way on the 2c51. -
Thanks again for the tip on the 6BX7 series.
no problem! I bet you'll love 'em
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just curious, has anyone tried using other tubes in the Blue Hawaii than the 6CA7/EL34? I ended up with a set of boards, and was looking at some datasheets over the weekend. I started looking at the 6BG6GE, 3D21A/WB/7403, 12E1, EL360, 6146, etc....
I started looking more at the 3D21A, but noted that the one major concern is that the transconductance is about half that of the EL34 which means that the gain will probably be about 6dB lower than the EL34, and depending on headroom in the cathode drive circuit this could result in significantly higher distortion. (Also, I might not get enough voltage swing without making other changes that would raise the source impedance of the amplifier.) Other specifications seem reasonable, but I can at best make a guess as to its suitability as there are no triode curves provided for this type.
Then I looked at the 6BG6GE which seems like it might work, but has some of the same concerns as above....
Both of these two tubes look like good starting points...
anyways, has anyone gone down this path?
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Would there be any interest in a preamp with a sound signature very close to
the CTC blowtorch??? For about $5k (wild estimate)
Fully balanced, with unbalanced inputs that get converted to balanced before
the 512 step constant impedance relay attenuator (.25db steps), remote controlled
and with adjustable balance. Fully solid state.
Cause i'm working on one... Design almost done...
KG: sure! I'm about ready to build a preamp.... so good timing. I'm thinking about this one:
Any opinions on it?
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The RCA, GE, Sylvania, Tungsol, and Raytheon 6BL7GTAs are too warm for me. I really don't use the high power option any more.
If this is the case, the 6BX7-series of tubes on the high-power setting is calling your name. If even after listening to these (they're cheap, so pick up a pair) *then* perhaps the high-voltage setting isn't for you
Or maybe a trio of '51 Hytrons My MPX3 has a not-so-high voltage setting on it and it sounds wonderful with the 6BL7GT which on my other MPX3 SE with the standard high voltage setting sounded dark and surripy. I'd still look for a pair, as they're hard to find these days and worth trying (and hoarding).
I could never get the 7062 driving the 7119s to really work... it sounded like something was broken, so I quickly removed them
In addition to tkams idea, I'd try the 12bh7 (RCA or Brimar) driving a pair of Sylvania 5687s...
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I had the SDS-XLR, BAT VK-31SE and Ayre K-1XE for one day together. The BAT was on the way out. The Ayre just got here and Mikhail had the SDS-XLR here for a couple days. Didnt compare much to the BAT due to the fact I was replacing it with the Ayre K-1XE.
wow, sounds like a fun day! I've went though a handful of BAT preamps and I really liked them. If I had my choice, I'd go with the VTL 7.5 but I'm not sure the extra price tag is worth it these days. I really love the Ayre amps and maybe one day I'll pony up for Charles' new amps. They sounds amazing.
Yes I had the Ayre P-5XE phonostage. it was nice but I couldnt get rid of a noise problem talked to Ayre and they offered me some different options but decided to give up. Ended up with the Sim Audio LP5.3 and a holdover piece. Turns out this thing really works great with my system so its got a home. I will add the outboard power supply when they hit this spring and I'm good with my phonostage.
Right now I am really happy with the music I have. Three upgrades planned between now and summer and I dont see any reason to go any further.
I went through a similar journey with my Whest phono stage. At this point, it's just sitting there as I have fallen in love with another. I need to list it at some point. Anyways, it went back across the pond 3 times and finally they got rid of a few issues. At that point, several phono stages in my rig, a Klyne, Pass and an Herron. The Whest is very nice and was the first to convince me that solid-state is the way to go in a phono stage. I'd love to try the Ayre, and almost bought one a few times but I'm happy at this point. Just curious
Thanks for the reply. -
For output, I'd try the side getter RCA 6BL7GTA or (even better) the older CBS/Hytron 6BL7GT (non-A) tubes. For input, Tung-Sol 5670 or (even better) Ericsson 396A if you have the adapter needed for these two or pinched waist Amperex 7062. These combinations sound awesome on all headphones to me. I like detail and things a bit on the bright / hot side.
edit: I thought you were looking for a recommendation
Sorry, ignore the above as it looks like you have a combination that sounds great with your setup! enjoy! -
I have expressed myself badly. I meant that I cannot afford Blue Hawaii amp or OmegaII headphones. 0a2 tubes are not too expensive.
Karhu:
There are some "simpler" (i.e. cheaper) projects here:
http://high-amp.de/html/frame.html
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hes not sure on price yet. He did say it has about 50 hours on it so I'm thinking that the 32 blackgates in it are not close to opening up yet. Not sure how special the treatment is. But he did me a big favor kowing my family is in for T-day and I wanted to have my system sounding better than with MF preamp. Anyway since I am at the 7 month mark on the maestro and I already dropped big $$$ on the SDS and SDS-XLR, maybe that bought me a solid from Mikhail.
I talked to him this evening about opening up the treble on them if they go into prodution and he said no problem. Mikhail as absolutly nailed the midrange on this pre. I have owned and auditions a bunch of pres in my system over the last 2 years and this is at least as good if not the best I have heard the midrange sound in this system. Prices ranged from $4-14K on the others. My favorites being the SDS-XLR, VTL 7.5, and Ayre K-1xe.
Tom: Just curious, did you have the Ayre phono stage at some point? I think I might have say it on the auction block a few weeks (months?) ago. What did you replace it with? I'm thinking about a SP preamp as well. I have had BAT, Ayre and VTL preamps at some point or another... at this point, I'm thinking about going back to BAT or maybe trying a Pass preamp. shrug, lots of choices.
Also, does anyone know how much voltage gain the various Singlepower preamps have? Would they be enough to drive speakers through Nelson Pass's F4s (i.e. no voltage gain)?
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Howdy pabbi1! I've been lurking / stalking KGs posts to see if anything cool shows up over here ...
yup, I built a few JTs, I really like them. Only problem with the JT I've seen is playing the input / output impedance game with them. Haven't thrown one on the new KGSS. Nice segue though.
According to Russ, the input impedance of the JT attenuator ranges from approximately 2.2K to 10K and the output impedance is 750R (this is for the 50k "version" of the Joshua Tree, this obviously is not set in stone, and there are resistor calculators on diyaudio). The original KGSS schematic has 500K input resistor for Zin. I was wondering if this combination will "work", or if I should look at reconfiguring the JT? With the relatively high Zin of 500k that the KGSS/BH uses by default, is either output offset (I assume not) or noise a problem? By noise, I mean noise due to stray capacitance between the input terminals and the board inputs? I have heard that this can be a problem when using high values for Zin and that this could have an effect on the high frequency response.
Also, has anyone experimented with a RF filter (R+C) right off the jacks on headphone amplifiers such as these? Of course upstream impedance might have to be calculated and the filter "fiddled" with a bit...
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I just had the option of hearing a preamp with a Alps HQPro and then it was switched out with a standard stepped attenuator using Riken resistors. Yeah, I'd take the HQPro any day...
random, but I noticed that there's one for sale at diyaudio with pics
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=112437
I've owned three MPX3 SE and all sounded very different with these two tube families (three if you split the 6BL7GT/A). Seems like a solid recommendation considering Frihed89s preferences. One driver that definitely prefers the 6BL7GT/A tubes is the Amperex 7062. I can go either way on the 2c51.
The Great Dac search
in Home Source Components
Posted
well, if you ear leans towards the NOS "sound", check out the two DACs I posted a few days back in this thread (www.ecdesigns.nl). A pretty innovative approach IMHO...