Spice
My cousin did. He suggested doubling the size of the output cap. That way it is flat to 20 Hz. He built one himself. He doesn't post here. I have the Boozhound and love it. Burning my LP's to vinyl. The end result with PIO's is a more analog sound. Less digital sounding. I don't notice any issue with the trebles. Use the CD's in the car or when to lazy to spin the vinyl pizza's.
My cousin did. He suggested doubling the size of the output cap. That way it is flat to 20 Hz. He built one himself. He doesn't post here. I have the Boozhound and love it. Burning my LP's to vinyl. The end result with PIO's is a more analog sound. Less digital sounding. I don't notice any issue with the trebles. Use the CD's in the car or when to lazy to spin the vinyl pizza's.
It's a bit rubbish really. You can't do passive RIAA equalisation when you only have ~+-12V of headroom to play with without severely degrading either the noise performance or the overload level.
Besides, the power supply rejection is virtually nonexistent, the distortion performance won't be very good and it's expensive. You are much better doing an all in one stage using a really good op-amp like the LM49720.
Besides, the power supply rejection is virtually nonexistent, the distortion performance won't be very good and it's expensive. You are much better doing an all in one stage using a really good op-amp like the LM49720.
The WHOLE POINT is that some are looking for a reasonably priced "DISCRETE" alternative to opamps. Sure this offering has technical defficiencies so what... its actually a good starting point if you want to research this more and take it further... I really like the simplicity 1st and foremost...
I purchased 2 PCBs only and Ill play with it choosing and matching my own components and progressive tweaks and see what I can get from it..
I also purchased the SALAS version so Im setting up to have some "FUN FUN FUN"....
A suggestion - if you dont like it move on to something that you do..
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My cousin did. He suggested doubling the size of the output cap. That way it is flat to 20 Hz. He built one himself. He doesn't post here. I have the Boozhound and love it. Burning my LP's to vinyl. The end result with PIO's is a more analog sound. Less digital sounding. I don't notice any issue with the trebles. Use the CD's in the car or when to lazy to spin the vinyl pizza's.
Thats a pity hes not posting.. Id love to see the modelling..
A quality "phono sound" pleasing to many may just be the holistic value of the TT and cartridge and the phono amp and how the "whole" works together... many MM carts have quite serious resonance issues in the 10 to 50kHz range and a softer mellow phono amp/capacitor setup may in fact act to make things sound better (compared to a state of the art high performance phono) regardless of its technical deficiencies (ie caps etc etc...).
If youre not experienced or confident in electronics then this build is a really good start and will teach you a lot especially if you research the subject thoroughly.
Heres a link to SALAS version and he takes this design to the limit - if you can handle the HUGE thread theres a lot you can learn in here about audio electronics - take your time and enjoy the ride..
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/analogue-source/129126-simplistic-njfet-riaa.html
Heres the link to the SALAS group buy - you may have to wait for another GB but I think the BHL JFET build is probably a really good start for you anyway and will give you a quick result that sounds pretty good (for the time being hahaha)... its pretty complex and Id recommend you practise on something simpler 1st..
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/private.php?do=showpm&pmid=908462
Just have fun..
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Still like to hear monty78pig further opinion, it ma be a valid one and would influence whether I purchase the Boozhound or something else better for a similar price.
I've always been under the impression that discretes were better than op-amps but if that's changed, I'd be interested in hearing.
I had considered buying the La Pacifica PCBs and/ or the Supa PCB but couldn't get my head around which matched FETs I would need and where to source them from
and the Boozhound seemed to solve the problems and, I thought, give a "top end" sound.
I'm currently buying Rudi_Ratlos LDR preamp and want something which is commensurate with the quality of that. Currently I am using the phono stage of a Naim pre-amp and would like to at least equal that.
I've always been under the impression that discretes were better than op-amps but if that's changed, I'd be interested in hearing.
I had considered buying the La Pacifica PCBs and/ or the Supa PCB but couldn't get my head around which matched FETs I would need and where to source them from
and the Boozhound seemed to solve the problems and, I thought, give a "top end" sound.
I'm currently buying Rudi_Ratlos LDR preamp and want something which is commensurate with the quality of that. Currently I am using the phono stage of a Naim pre-amp and would like to at least equal that.
I have the Boozhound moving coil pre-pre and it is pretty good. I just built it stock, and the supplied parts are pretty good. Is it the last word in fidelity? Nah, but it is a decent sounding piece of gear. Maybe I'll try transformers at some point, but this is keeping me happy with my new moving coil cartridge, the first I've ever owned and used. (I'm 60 now).
Exactly!!! If it sounds good then it probably is right....
Im 53... and been mucking around with HiFi electronics since the early 80s
anjump123, try this DIY Moving Magnet (MM) RIAA Phono Preamplifier Kit .
It will have good RF suppression, it's own power supply (a big plus for a beginner), variable gain, a much, much (I cannot over emphasise this) greater overload margin and even give you the option of different curves. It is also cheaper than the BHL kit which I believe is a complete rip-off for the very mediocre performance you get with it.
Let's face it guys, the person who designed the BHL preamp was looking at passive equalisation valve preamps and though 'I can swap out the valves for JFETs and lower the supply voltage'. Well no, not really because passive RIAA stages require obscene amounts of headroom (we're talking hundreds of volts here) that are only really available in valve equipment. The output impedance is also a rather shoddy 2K. It may be simple in terms of audio circuitry but it will require your own carefully designed supply as it will be extremely sensitive to power supply noise. Why do you think these guys are having to run it off batteries? No sensibly designed phonostage would have such poor power supply noise rejection.
Notice all the guys recommending this preamp to you are using subjective terms such as 'imaging' and improper/irrelevant use of technical terms. This should raise some red flags that you are being recommended some snake oil.
Sure it's simple. But do you want simple? Or do you want the best performance for value? For the handful of components you get that 79 dollars doesn't go very far now does it lads .
Albert Einstein once said 'everything should be as simple as possible, but no simpler'. This preamp is too simple. They should call it a power supply rail noise amplifier rather than a phono preamplifier .
Another design to steer clear of is the ESP phono stage. Too noisy and too much HF overload.
It will have good RF suppression, it's own power supply (a big plus for a beginner), variable gain, a much, much (I cannot over emphasise this) greater overload margin and even give you the option of different curves. It is also cheaper than the BHL kit which I believe is a complete rip-off for the very mediocre performance you get with it.
Let's face it guys, the person who designed the BHL preamp was looking at passive equalisation valve preamps and though 'I can swap out the valves for JFETs and lower the supply voltage'. Well no, not really because passive RIAA stages require obscene amounts of headroom (we're talking hundreds of volts here) that are only really available in valve equipment. The output impedance is also a rather shoddy 2K. It may be simple in terms of audio circuitry but it will require your own carefully designed supply as it will be extremely sensitive to power supply noise. Why do you think these guys are having to run it off batteries? No sensibly designed phonostage would have such poor power supply noise rejection.
Notice all the guys recommending this preamp to you are using subjective terms such as 'imaging' and improper/irrelevant use of technical terms. This should raise some red flags that you are being recommended some snake oil.
Sure it's simple. But do you want simple? Or do you want the best performance for value? For the handful of components you get that 79 dollars doesn't go very far now does it lads
.Albert Einstein once said 'everything should be as simple as possible, but no simpler'. This preamp is too simple. They should call it a power supply rail noise amplifier rather than a phono preamplifier
.Another design to steer clear of is the ESP phono stage. Too noisy and too much HF overload.
Look at all the electrolytics in the signal path and fbk networks.... Seriously youre offering this as an improvement - steer clear of this design its from the 80s and will have crappy capacitor distortions all over it.. I really suggest you research this subject a little more. W.Jung and JL.Hood and B.Duncan are some names to google if you have a serious interest in HiFi electronics...
The whole point is the BHL and LePacific et all are simple easy projects that can deliver a reasonable result that seems to be pleasing people.. read a whole lot simpler than complex opamp designs like this...
The whole point is the BHL and LePacific et all are simple easy projects that can deliver a reasonable result that seems to be pleasing people.. read a whole lot simpler than complex opamp designs like this...
Boo-hoo, electrolytics in the signal path . Douglas Self's measurements show that if they are made large enough (which they are in this case) then the effect of them is unmeasurable in the audio band. You are spouting an old audio myth that really has no basis in reality and comes from the days when power amplifiers were capacitively coupled to the speaker as they were single supply, to save costs manufacturers used capacitors with too small values which resulted in low frequency distortion. In this case the cut-off frequency is so low that no distortion can be produced in the audio band. Go figure.
What a load of rubbish, you don't think your single JFET stages without feedback create distortion.
They are simple, but too simple. Simple is not better in this case because it is too simple. Stay clear of the BHL, it's a poor rehash of a design from the 1940's .
Read 'Small Signal Audio Design' by Douglas Self.
. Douglas Self's measurements show that if they are made large enough (which they are in this case) then the effect of them is unmeasurable in the audio band. You are spouting an old audio myth that really has no basis in reality and comes from the days when power amplifiers were capacitively coupled to the speaker as they were single supply, to save costs manufacturers used capacitors with too small values which resulted in low frequency distortion. In this case the cut-off frequency is so low that no distortion can be produced in the audio band. Go figure.What a load of rubbish, you don't think your single JFET stages without feedback create distortion.
They are simple, but too simple. Simple is not better in this case because it is too simple. Stay clear of the BHL, it's a poor rehash of a design from the 1940's
.Read 'Small Signal Audio Design' by Douglas Self.
Capacitor distortions exist, but you can always find a way around them. With electrolytic capacitors you just make the cut-off frequency really low. Say 1Hz or so, then you have no problem as there is no audio voltage across the capacitor. Sorted. You have no idea what you're talking about.
How about instead of criticising the design I posted you tell us why you think the BHL is better than it? Preferably without using objectively undefinable vocabulary. I've explained very competently why capacitor distortion does not occur in this design. You've just glanced over it, seen electrolytic capacitors and thought to yourself 'hurr-durr electrolytics are bad mkay' without even considering how they are being used.
Tell me why the poor headroom in the BHL isn't a problem, why the high output impedance isn't a problem when driving 10K loads, why the exceptionally poor power rail rejection compared to op-amps isn't a problem. JLH is not modern HiFi electronics, btw. That would be the 1960's era now wouldn't it?
Modern HiFi electronics is, low noise, low distortion and lots of headroom. The BLH qualifies for none of these. You are nothing but an ignorant audiophool who doesn't understand how good objective performance is achieved.
How about instead of criticising the design I posted you tell us why you think the BHL is better than it? Preferably without using objectively undefinable vocabulary. I've explained very competently why capacitor distortion does not occur in this design. You've just glanced over it, seen electrolytic capacitors and thought to yourself 'hurr-durr electrolytics are bad mkay' without even considering how they are being used.
Tell me why the poor headroom in the BHL isn't a problem, why the high output impedance isn't a problem when driving 10K loads, why the exceptionally poor power rail rejection compared to op-amps isn't a problem. JLH is not modern HiFi electronics, btw. That would be the 1960's era now wouldn't it?
Modern HiFi electronics is, low noise, low distortion and lots of headroom. The BLH qualifies for none of these. You are nothing but an ignorant audiophool who doesn't understand how good objective performance is achieved.
Personal stuff removed. Don't make more work for me.
It's a decent phono. Way better than a Bugle.
But it only really starts to sound good when you replace the input resistors with LDR's. Say what you want about LDR's, it will never change the fact the preamp actually sounds good with them.
I got good kits from this guy, but he's busy or something. Build An Amp
They're an easy design however.
But it only really starts to sound good when you replace the input resistors with LDR's. Say what you want about LDR's, it will never change the fact the preamp actually sounds good with them.
I got good kits from this guy, but he's busy or something. Build An Amp
They're an easy design however.
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