DF96,
Isn't "valve" the English term for "tube"?
I am kind of with Tinitus on the listening part... make the sound as neutral as possible, but to your liking. User bias is almost always there; I am comfortable with that.
BTW, not ot make this a flame war or a philosophical discussion, but is there 100% undistorted/uncolored sound? Rooms sound different, speakers sound different; sources sound different, amps sound different too. Cables and interconnects sometimes add to the chaos.
Looks like the solution to the problem won't be as simple as sticking a tube infront of the Class-D amp.
Isn't "valve" the English term for "tube"?
I am kind of with Tinitus on the listening part... make the sound as neutral as possible, but to your liking. User bias is almost always there; I am comfortable with that.
BTW, not ot make this a flame war or a philosophical discussion
, but is there 100% undistorted/uncolored sound? Rooms sound different, speakers sound different; sources sound different, amps sound different too. Cables and interconnects sometimes add to the chaos. Looks like the solution to the problem won't be as simple as sticking a tube infront of the Class-D amp.
BTW, not ot make this a flame war or a philosophical discussion
well, its your thread, only remember we are in tube amp forum
but if you plan to get on with building a good tube pre, I would try and stick to that subject
if its just a chit chat about crappy ebay stuff, you may have noticed we are bad company
Yes, valve is the British name for what some others call a tube.
Yes, no sound is completely undistorted. Some people prefer as little distortion as possible (accepting that zero distortion is not an option), while others prefer certain added distortions. If you look at the design of some tube buffers (but not all) it is clear that either they are intended to add distortion or the designer didn't know what he was doing. This is especially likely to be the case for cheap Chinese ones on ebay, but paying real money to a proper dealer does not guarantee you can avoid this. If you want to avoid this.
"Neutral" and "to your liking" are not the same thing unless you happen to be someone who happens to prefer 'neutral' sound. Many people dislike 'neutral' sound, describing it as 'clinical', 'cold'. Add a little second-order distortion and they are happy: it now sounds 'warm' and 'musical' to them. This is what some tube buffers do, but I suspect that some overdo it.
I remember reading on another website a few years ago a story from someone who had a well-known highly-regarded headphone amplifier. This was mainly SS, but included within it a valve cathode follower - essentially a built-in tube buffer. He was surprised to find that bypassing the CF made measured distortion drop from 0.7% to 0.4% (figures from my memory, so may be wrong). The manufacturer must have known this, or should have known this, so why did he add the CF? I can't remember whether the poster preferred the sound with or without the CF.
I think we can agree that if you don't like the sound of a Class D amp, then don't use a Class D amp. Find an amp you do like the sound of.
Yes, no sound is completely undistorted. Some people prefer as little distortion as possible (accepting that zero distortion is not an option), while others prefer certain added distortions. If you look at the design of some tube buffers (but not all) it is clear that either they are intended to add distortion or the designer didn't know what he was doing. This is especially likely to be the case for cheap Chinese ones on ebay, but paying real money to a proper dealer does not guarantee you can avoid this. If you want to avoid this.
"Neutral" and "to your liking" are not the same thing unless you happen to be someone who happens to prefer 'neutral' sound. Many people dislike 'neutral' sound, describing it as 'clinical', 'cold'. Add a little second-order distortion and they are happy: it now sounds 'warm' and 'musical' to them. This is what some tube buffers do, but I suspect that some overdo it.
I remember reading on another website a few years ago a story from someone who had a well-known highly-regarded headphone amplifier. This was mainly SS, but included within it a valve cathode follower - essentially a built-in tube buffer. He was surprised to find that bypassing the CF made measured distortion drop from 0.7% to 0.4% (figures from my memory, so may be wrong). The manufacturer must have known this, or should have known this, so why did he add the CF? I can't remember whether the poster preferred the sound with or without the CF.
I think we can agree that if you don't like the sound of a Class D amp, then don't use a Class D amp. Find an amp you do like the sound of.
Sure, rooms sound different as do many other things in the recording chain from performance to replay, none of which we normally have any control over,whereas, when we build an amplifier we then have control, within our budget/expertise, of distortion and noise performance. If we do not seek to minimise these then it is hard to see how we are not smoothing out differences between recordings (which may be interesting!) and creating a more generalised type of sound and in the most extreme cases this may be like putting ketchup on "filet de sole"
I have fallen into the habit of using terms like "tube" and "B+" myself. "Valve" does have the advantage of describing what it does.....
I have fallen into the habit of using terms like "tube" and "B+" myself. "Valve" does have the advantage of describing what it does.....
Last edited:
Brilliant! as usual with your smart comments.
Nobody better than you, clear, concise and correct, always straight to the point.
Now I see that we were not so at odds after all.
This is the best way I saw in my life, to explain the bad reputation of cathode follower.
In just four lines ! Chapeau !
Best regards
Johann
I actually bought the third one down (6n3 buffer) on a lark. Price was right at the time. I haven't tried it (yet) and I am trying to figure out exactly what it does/supposed to do. I have the schematic. It looks like Bronski's Split Load phase splitter. That is the input goes to the grid of V1and the output from the cathode of V1 with the plate going to grid of V2. So it doesn't look like there is any gain. There's a mix of smd and thru hole resistors. also LED's on the heater circuit under the tube socket to make a glow. B+ looks like it is about 200v. Thoughts?/Comments welcome.
Last edited:
I just don't see the circuit work as you draw it, unless R1 is connected to the cathode of the upper tube in your drawing in stead of to B+.
? Originally Posted by tinitus
seller of what ?
better rely on someone you can trust
I'll double check the schematic against the actual unit, and report back.
the seller of the unit. However, I checked, scratch R1, it is on the schematic sent to me, but not on the circuit. I'll redraw it an repost, but consider it not part of the circuit.
ah
why not try it, to see if it works
then I wouldn't have the intellectual exercise in trying to *predict* what it is going to do.
But OK, I will, and report back my findings. I've never seen something like this before (except as mentioned before, it does look like the broski circuit, )- Status
- This old topic is closed. If you want to reopen this topic, contact a moderator using the "Report Post" button.