Today I received some last items to put all the the things together again. Meanwhile I modded my Klipsch KG4.2 too with the Bob Crites crossover DIY (of course) 
kit, Titanium diaphragm for the horn tweeter, internal bitumen inlay and upgraded wiring. Then I put my T4 together in the setup I had in mind (with the Arjen Helder pre-tube), but this still gave me a headache. So I decided to het rid of the pre and use only a ALPS volume pot. Oh btw I bought the T4 without the MCAPS and soldered two Jantzen Superiour Z caps onto the T4. The whole set is burning (in) I really like the sound already.
My only concern is without the pre the volume is a bit low. Anyone a audiophile idea?
kit, Titanium diaphragm for the horn tweeter, internal bitumen inlay and upgraded wiring. Then I put my T4 together in the setup I had in mind (with the Arjen Helder pre-tube), but this still gave me a headache. So I decided to het rid of the pre and use only a ALPS volume pot. Oh btw I bought the T4 without the MCAPS and soldered two Jantzen Superiour Z caps onto the T4. The whole set is burning (in) I really like the sound already.My only concern is without the pre the volume is a bit low. Anyone a audiophile idea?
Today I received some last items to put all the the things together again. Meanwhile I modded my Klipsch KG4.2 too with the Bob Crites crossover DIY (of course)
My only concern is without the pre the volume is a bit low. Anyone a audiophile idea?
It should be quite loud, I actually had to put some resistors in to tame it down just using the Alps pot. If it is really a problem, you can change the input resistors on the board, but you'll need guidance from hifimediy on it. The Klipsch should give you plenty of volume and the Crites stuff is excellent.
Maybe its the source. I'm using a mac Mini with a ebay dac as a source. had the same problem when I started with the Arjan Helder T2050's. That's why I bought his tube preamp. But that was causing all the problem trying to use it in one case with the same power supply. Well the sound is good anyway. And I'm thinking of buying a Beresford Caiman 7520SE DAC. It can also be used as a preamp. I might use the T4 as a power amp only.
Yes it has protections...for me once they entered in actionHello everyone.
I'd like to know if the T4 board has a speaker protection against DC current.
I don't mean power on delay to prevent tump; I mean the detachment of the speakers in case a failure of the PSU or the T4 board could cause a DC current flow into the speakers.
I think that the phrase:
*Speaker protection: DC/error and power on delay, power down immediately off (when transformer powered)"
gave an answer to my question. But I'd like to have a confirmation from T4 owners.
Thank you very much.
Hi, we compared the T4 (battery supply) against a classic Rotel 1412 and I have to admit that the rotel sounded smoother and the bass was more punchy and deep. I know this is not a fair comparison because it also depended on the speakers (JBL L 100) and the rotel was in these days (70s !!) a flagship in the audio scene. 23 kg weight and current delivering capable. Further it was restored by an experienced technician including the powercaps certainly ...
The T4 is nevertheless a very speedful amp with a wide soundstage. We look for other moddings besides changing input caps.
This has been exactly my experience and since I am a bass loving person, I've had to go back to the discrete amps for the smoothness that you talk about and the bass. The loss there is that at low volumes, the T amps have the advantage for sure. I tried as much as possible to bring out the bottom end on the T amps replacing the input cap, my brother went as far as using an equalizer, but that only gets you so far. So agree, need a little more development to bring out the bottom end.
Put the mundorf superior caps in. first thing to note is the superior caps are much larger than the originals maybe 4x the size. Initial impressions are good. there is a greater level of clarity and attack. kick drums have more snap, cymbals are clearer without being harsh. vocals sound clear. Bass is crisp but no more depth than before.
The only problem is that now there is a low level SSSHHHH. sound coimg out of both speakers when idle. this stays constant and does not increse with volume.
this was not evident with the old caps even at high volumes. how can i get rid of this background noise?
I can just repeat myself. The bass extension needs a bit treatment. The tonal balance can be easily modded with input caps depending your wishes, imho.
On the other hand I got the impression like you that in lower volume levels the T4 delivers much more information from the source. This is also valid for T2 and seems to be a common character reasoned by the TC2000 controller.
If you want more bass and smoothness: go for the TA3020 with Mos-FETs. I have one here and it is my favoured T-amp. Ask hifimediy if he still has one board. But attention ! I read about some oscillation issues regarding the TA3020 controller chip and I made some experiences in the past with it's childhood illnesses.
But again: depending on the speakers you use the T4 could sound better than very good solid states. Mainly high sensitive fullrange are best match with T-amps and that's why you cannot recognize a shy-bass firstly. On the other hand: taking a 100 dB sensitivity speaker - who needs a 180 W per channel amp ...?
Hello everyone.
I'd like to know if the T4 board has a speaker protection against DC current.
I don't mean power on delay to prevent tump; I mean the detachment of the speakers in case a failure of the PSU or the T4 board could cause a DC current flow into the speakers.
I think that the phrase:
*Speaker protection: DC/error and power on delay, power down immediately off (when transformer powered)"
gave an answer to my question. But I'd like to have a confirmation from T4 owners.
Thank you very much.
Hi, yes T4 has features as you list.
PS: new version will come soon.
Attachments
Hi, yes T4 has features as you list.
PS: new version will come soon.
New version of speaker protection, or of amplifier? Would appreciate your clarification.
Thanks,
Rod
I used Jantzen Superior Z caps, but as it cam out a bit too much bass for my taste.
CrashHouse, you mentioned that these caps resulted in too much bass for your liking. Did you revert to default caps?
Hi.
When will the new version be available? And what are the changes made (do you have a photo of the new version)? The board dimensions are the same as the original board?
I'm looking forward to buy this amp in the next few months but I'm wondering if I should hold the purchase back just to get the new version.
Best regards.
We tried several caps also in combo with silver mica bypasses. It is nearly impossible to increase the T4 bass performance only with input caps ...
I meanwhile got the impression that Hifimediy built in something like a current break or the output filters have to be changed into better quality ones.
I suspect also the STA517B which cannot push same current as a MOS-FET. Just my 50 cents. Anybody better explanation ... ??
- Status
- This old topic is closed. If you want to reopen this topic, contact a moderator using the "Report Post" button.