Delta 1010 Mods: op-Amps, Caps, power supply, clock

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Hopefully I am not breaking with convention in starting a new thread about mods to M-Audio's Delta 1010. I know there have been several threads that have dealt with portions of this topic, but I am hoping to possibly create a new thread with references back to some of the old threads because it has been quite difficult finding the information that I have been looking for.

I have a couple of 1010's and I have been working with them pretty much without incident since 2000. Recently I have been experiencing sounds like bad cable distortion on input of some of the channels. After power cycling the system, the problem goes away and then comes back intermittently after a certain amount of time. This sounds like the bad cap problem that many have alluded to here. On inspection, I also noticed bulging on some of the power caps as well. I will send the offending unit back to M-Audio to let them fix the problem. I dotted all of the caps in the box to see what they actually replace and what they leave alone.

Now that I have opened one, I want to improve the units.

I understand that the mods basically consist of the following:

1) Power Supply Mods. At least replacing caps to firm up the power supply. Many have recommended higher quality caps with higher values to stiffen or stabilize the power. (Thanks to mtl777 for asking many of the questions already! http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?postid=1429935#post1429935
)

2) Replacing Op-amps with Burr Brown (TI Now) op-amps [OPA2604AU-ND]. There seems to be some consensus that this is the right thing to do.

Do the pins from the two different op-amps match up?

3) Replacing the caps in the analog audio path with nicer higher-quality versions of the same value with equal or greater voltages

4) Adding an improved clock, either via Wordclock with a master clock or by adding an improved clock onto the PCI card. Personally I will probably buy a Black Lion Microclock.

I am trying to come up with a parts list to mod a single 1010 and bringing up the analog part of the interface to a higher level of quality.

Any and All Help Appreciated!
 
What I have learned so far...

There seems to be somewhat of a consensus that the filter caps in the power supply can be replaced with caps with greater values and that the caps in the audio signal chain should be replaced with caps of higher quality but with the same values.

I will post a video to YouTube cracking the chassis open. I sent one of my 1010's back to M-Audio for them to replace bad caps before I start to rip the little guy apart. I marked all the caps with a black dot so I could see which ones they replace.

Best,
Hendrik
 
Re: caps diode regulators

Hi folks I have read a lot of the posts on here about modifications to the delta 1010 just wanted to add in what I have done with great success. I have upgraded the psu caps to high quality 63v 470uf I used Panasonic gold series the same with all of the 2200uf caps to. I also changed the diodes for low drop out plastic type and moved all the regulators onto the black metal panel inside the unit with wires extended from the board silicone pads and plastic surrounds on the screws. I also upgraded the caps on the output board these were the 10uf low voltage I used 25v 10uf high quality audio caps Panasonic. I did not perform the upgrade on the clock mainly due to cost of the new clocks I have tried shorter cable with some success but reverted back due to additional noise seen on inputs mainly due to poor quality cable and nothing else. I did my upgrades in stages with moving the regulators being last. I did see a little diference with early changes non audible on the low drop out diode change but scope saw less ripple on the scope but moving the regulators both 5v and the -15 & +15 made a huge difference more than any other the unit runs significantly cooler even after 10 hour test session. I could hear audible difference on all three audio spectrum's which really surprised me I expected to see more in the high range. The bass is more defined and all seem to have more space in the mix in test I was running current linux 3.** kernel with jack audio connection kit I tested at 48khz and 96khz both saw significant gains on both DAC & ADC. The reason is simple on testing the board in use after 3 hours use I saw very high temps on all sections of the board including dac's adc and op amps which has significant effect on the chips operation in some case's they were exceeding max specified temps as per data sheet. I hope my info can help others to improve there sound at a very low cost about an one and half hours work and about £20 worth of parts. TheSynthDr
 
Hey guys!

I am not sure if this is the right thread, please move. I recently got myself a used model of the M-Audio Delta 1010 and must say that I am very happy regarding its performance / audio quality. One thing that caught my attention in a bad way is the heat build up in the "power section" of the device. My device generates a lot of heat after short usage and I don't feel comfortable about this. Since I don't have much of a clue how to fix this, I thought you might have an idea? I read on forums that the power regulators are kind of "over dimensioned" and create heat from all the power that is above the needed specs, just for safety. Is there anything I could do to fix this?
Thanks in advance, best regards.
Bolandross
 
Hey guys!

I am not sure if this is the right thread, please move. I recently got myself a used model of the M-Audio Delta 1010 and must say that I am very happy regarding its performance / audio quality. One thing that caught my attention in a bad way is the heat build up in the "power section" of the device. My device generates a lot of heat after short usage and I don't feel comfortable about this. Since I don't have much of a clue how to fix this, I thought you might have an idea? I read on forums that the power regulators are kind of "over dimensioned" and create heat from all the power that is above the needed specs, just for safety. Is there anything I could do to fix this?
Thanks in advance, best regards.
Bolandross


Hi Bolandross, I drilled a bunch of holes above the caps cluster on the top left, because the vent backing plate only couples to the caps on the bottom. Though I didn't measure cap temperature or anything, certainly the whole unit is cooler to the touch than it was originally.
 
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