Yeah, I get that. I really felt like I was listening to different "flavors", where neither one is wrong. I should say, if you value resolution, you may prefer the Nichicons. If you like it creamy, you may prefer OSCONs. To me the Nichicon is a more hi-fi sound. Granted, none of these caps are remotely burned in. And I do still need to get some decent batteries lol.
But...I retried all cap combos I have, and for my 50ohm headphones, and I still come back to 470uF Nichicon AK series electrolytic output caps with 2.2uF WIMA film bypass.
Just posted the following on Head-Fi. I love this amp. Sorry if I drool on you...
"Bass has excellent weight and texture. Mids are rich and electrifying. Vocals are wonderfully engaging--right in my face--in a beautiful, hyper-real way that is totally addictive. Treble is not quite as transparent nor as extended as the Class D amp circuits I am used to, but treble detail is still magically present, with a gorgeous euphonic sparkle. Overall the sound is full-bodied, detailed, attention-grabbing, and just downright sweet. ...And mine isn't even entirely soldered together yet, let alone burned in!
Everything else sounds boring now. X, you've made a true believer out of me. SE Class A magic is real."
Thanks for glowing review StellarElephant!
I went back and added 2200uF rail caps to my original hand made PCB prototype. Also added cheap RVT 330uF SMT caps to the audio output (has 47uF OSCONS and 0.47uF film cap) and the amp now is now one of my best measuring coming in with 94.3dB dynamic range, 0.045% THD, 0.042% IMD, -70.8dB stereo crosstalk, -126dB noise floor. Listening to it now - very very nice. Hand drawn with a Sharpie marker PCB' can work very well too.
FFT for 1kHz 700mV into 270R load:
Freq response and THD vs frequency:
I went back and added 2200uF rail caps to my original hand made PCB prototype. Also added cheap RVT 330uF SMT caps to the audio output (has 47uF OSCONS and 0.47uF film cap) and the amp now is now one of my best measuring coming in with 94.3dB dynamic range, 0.045% THD, 0.042% IMD, -70.8dB stereo crosstalk, -126dB noise floor. Listening to it now - very very nice. Hand drawn with a Sharpie marker PCB' can work very well too.
FFT for 1kHz 700mV into 270R load:
Freq response and THD vs frequency:
Attachments
i'm happy to report that i've been able to fix my first board (replaced the right channel mosfet) and also finished building my second board! both work fine now.
this thing really sounds awesome, i can't have enough of it. thanks X for a great design and for your effort to send me the boards, @BabyDontHertzMe for the PCB design and @stellarelephant for opening the thread about this on head-fi.
this thing really sounds awesome, i can't have enough of it. thanks X for a great design and for your effort to send me the boards, @BabyDontHertzMe for the PCB design and @stellarelephant for opening the thread about this on head-fi.
Attachments
That's great news Bogde! So glad they are singing nicely for you. Likeyou, I can't stop listening to these little amps!
Very nice work, btw. If you get a chance, try the 2200uF 16v power rail cap upgrade. Better stereo separation (-70dB!) and imaging, and no turn off thump.
This one works well and fits perfectly: (or any 2200uF that is 10mm dia x 20mm long)
http://www.mouser.com/Search/Produc...PDvirtualkey64700000virtualkey647-UVK1C222MPD
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