Just to keep people in the loop -- we have almost all of the parts in hand and the rest should be shipping to us this week. So, it is just a matter of dotting i's and crossing t's ...

Some more up to date pics here: http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/552473/dsavitsk-beezar-torpedo-amp-or

For those following this thread, short kits are available ...

http://beezar.com/ca...products_id=142

Edited December 15, 201114 yr by dsavitsk

Shouldn't I get some royalties or anything for that amp's name?

I think you and are going to have to fight it out.

I can always claim I inspired him

And I thought that only anacondas are long and strong! Seems like good kit from Beezar. I'll wait for some impressions from around here until I pull the trigger. Also by that time my wallet will recover after Christmas.

P.S. I like the layout! Long amps let me save on cables!

Gain is what it is. It is slightly adjustable depending on the impedance of the bias and the amount of current, but not enough here that you'd ever notice. I have my doubts that this is appropriate for orthos, though there is no reason to not turn the dial up to 70 or 100%.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]3386[/ATTACH]

just for my reference, what is the gain approximately for this amplifier?

I can't find where I wrote down the measured values, but gain is approximately 2 into the 32 Ohm tap and 5 into the 300 Ohm tap. I'll see if I can get a more precise value later tonight.

5 is exactly what I was going to guess. I remember listening to the K1000 at full blast and it was just loud enough. I also remember using the F5 which has gain just less than 6 with the K1000 and thinking the same.

Not at all related to this amp in any form or fashion, just wanted to have a baseline. Thanks!

It's no surprise I'm a huge fan of the gain config on this amp.

i scoured the thread and could only find tom's opinions on the amp with hd650. not that i dont trust him, but has anyone else tried this amp with 650s? if so, any thoughts? anyone build both this and the crack (only amp i currently have)? any thoughts between the two?

the build log over on the other site seems simple enough to where i could try it since everything is on a pcb but i just wanted to know how it played with the 650s before going ahead. i dont intend on getting any other headphones any time soon and while i enjoy the crack very much with the 650s, the high praise from others makes me want to try something that is relatively easy to build as i do find myself with a little bit of time these days during winter break.

Edited December 19, 201114 yr by crappyjones123

I've not heard the combination, so I can't even give a biased opinion. There is a 300R tap on the transformer, so it is designed to pair well. There are also technical things I do not like about the Bottlehead, which I have voiced elsewhere. However, everyone has a different opinion as to what sounds good, and there are certainly people who like what the BH offers. So, there is my bland, noncommittal response.

found what i was looking for.

Edited December 23, 201114 yr by crappyjones123

I guess you found the answer, but I have listened to the Torpedo production model extensively with the HD580 and HD600's. To tell the truth, after hearing Dsavitsk talk a lot about the disadvantages of more metal windings to have to go through at 300 ohms (in the OT's), I wasn't expecting much.

Needless to say, I was very pleasantly surprised. It drives 580's and 600's very, very well - almost as good as Grados, and that's saying a lot. (I don't have 650's yet, but they're obviously in the same family.)

The first production batch has been on sale at Beezar for a couple of weeks, now. I finally got the website finished today: Torpedo

Edited December 31, 201114 yr by TomB

Looks great Tom! My brother still likes his proto unit. Not sure I would be directing twerps here from the website though... seems to be a rash of them lately

Looks great Tom! My brother still likes his proto unit. Not sure I would be directing twerps here from the website though... seems to be a rash of them lately

Yeah, I sort of wondered about that. My natural tendency is to include everyone who was involved and to try to give credit where credit is due. You're probably right, though. It wouldn't do to have someone come over here and ask whether their Beats would sound better with this or an O2. Not sure they'd like the answers they'd get.

The twerp call has been removed. If that was too harsh a reaction on my part, please let me know and I can restore it.

The box from tom is finally in my possession as of 15 minutes ago. Holy mother of all things well packaged...Tom, I hope you don't take this the wrong way but you are insane brother man. i used to think I was a fairly cautious packer but you put me to shame and swept the floor with me.

Still waiting on the parts from Mouser but put whatever I have so far together to see how it all fit and am quite pleased so far.

I haven't had any financial dealings with Tom in the past but I can definitely see where he gets his good name from, and deservedly so.

Hopefully the mouser stuff will arrive tomorrow otherwise I have to wait till Tuesday to stuff this puppy. Any tips before I do anything in terms of grounding or noise/hum reduction?

Tom is *the* kit guy. Period.

Tom is *the* kit guy. Period.

Truth. Between the crazy packing skills and his willingness to label everything I've yet to encounter his equal.

I figured SMD would have scared him off, but nope

I figured SMD would have scared him off, but nope

Yeah, what really hurts is when you use the scissors to cut a strip of 600 805-series capacitors into 100, 6-part strips. Cutting through that thick paper/pseudo-cardboard really gets to your hands after a while.

Seriously though, many thanks for the kind words. You guys are embarrassing me.

Tom, have you considered using one of your big paper cutters with the wooden base and a big blade pivoted at one corner. Comes down in an arc like you are pulling a lever. We have em down here in office depot and FedEx kinkos stores. Cut the original 600 into 6 strips. Then feed all 6 at the same time and keep pulling the lever. Postpone joint pain for a few years you know and cut your cutting action down 6 fold.

Good idea, other than the math. He would wind up with 6 strips of 4 ea. at the end

Yeah, what really hurts is when you use the scissors

I use lead cutters. I'm not sure if this is helpful, but it's what I use

Good idea, other than the math. He would wind up with 6 strips of 4 ea. at the end

Yeah but that would require just two more cuts to fix.

Whoever said I was any good at math...