The Pass Pub: The High-End Off Topic Thread

So I was sitting in the pub (with my back to the wall), and this guy
came up and said "Oh Mr. Pass, I don't like your volume control - when
I turn the knob it makes a sound like a zipper."

"Sonny," I said, "When I was young, that was exactly the sound we
were looking for."

:cheers:

I bought a 23-step attenuator with SMD resistors off ebay and the listing headline from vendor in Taiwan mentioned Pass 1.7 type. In my ignorance [read as bliss] I had no idea that the zipper was part of the mechanical concept.

I find there is too much physical resistance to this particular zipper.

I have it disassembled at the moment and it would appear that if I remove the front shaft clip I can further disassemble the mechanical mechanism part of it and I wonder if I can change the spring to one with less tension to improve the feel. Ya...that's the ticket!

...what I want for 25 bucks?

"...are ya hungry for me mon? ....zip" :D:eek:
 
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I bought a 23-step attenuator with SMD resistors off ebay and the listing headline from vendor in Taiwan mentioned Pass 1.7 type. In my ignorance [read as bliss] I had no idea that the zipper was part of the mechanical concept.

I find there is too much physical resistance to this particular zipper.

I have it disassembled at the moment and it would appear that if I remove the front shaft clip I can further disassemble the mechanical mechanism part of it and I wonder if I can change the spring to one with less tension to improve the feel. Ya...that's the ticket!

...what I want for 25 bucks?

"...are ya hungry for me mon? ....zip" :D:eek:



U talking about this one ?

DACT Type 21 Stepped Attenuator 20K FOR PASS B1 DIY - eBay (item 120502791204 end time Jan-05-10 09:17:39 PST)
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
 

No, I bought this one. The heading of the auction I bought mentioned Pass1.7 but I see now they no longer do. Whether this one I've linked to has the clicking step action I don't know.

VALAB 23 Step Attenuator Potentiometer 20K Stereo Log on eBay.ca (item 290376481970 end time 31-Dec-09 15:24:21 EST)

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Official Court Jester
Joined 2003
Paid Member
I hope the choice i make for my alps pot is going to be good for the b1 pre-amp.

matter of personal taste , in fact - but - if you are searching for soul of the Music , you have two most prominent choices ;

both are completely valid , just different ... and both are superior to any common type pot .

one is ( nota benne - not first) Lightspeed type of attenuator

other one ( nota benne- not second) is transformer based attenuator ( sub types are autotransformer (AVC) or transformer (TVC) ; first is one coil with taps , second one is primary+secondary with taps) .

in both cases buffers on output are must in 90% of cases , except when cables to amp are 100% benign as load and amp is of highish input impedance , presuming that you don't have any active gain stage between attenuator and power amp .

off course - these attenuators are beneficiary as substitution for any attenuator , be it stand-alone or implemented in any active gadget .

I have TKD 4 deck pot (kwayzee 250++ Euro jobie , geschenk from my man Manu) , as part of my selector/volume box , but that Drek is inferior to AVC/TVC or bufferless PSM LS .

naturally - YMM&MV
 
matter of personal taste , in fact - but - if you are searching for soul of the Music , you have two most prominent choices ;

both are completely valid , just different ... and both are superior to any common type pot .

one is ( nota benne - not first) Lightspeed type of attenuator

other one ( nota benne- not second) is transformer based attenuator ( sub types are autotransformer (AVC) or transformer (TVC) ; first is one coil with taps , second one is primary+secondary with taps) .

in both cases buffers on output are must in 90% of cases , except when cables to amp are 100% benign as load and amp is of highish input impedance , presuming that you don't have any active gain stage between attenuator and power amp .

off course - these attenuators are beneficiary as substitution for any attenuator , be it stand-alone or implemented in any active gadget .

I have TKD 4 deck pot (kwayzee 250++ Euro jobie , geschenk from my man Manu) , as part of my selector/volume box , but that Drek is inferior to AVC/TVC or bufferless PSM LS .

naturally - YMM&MV


I thought about the Lightspeed Kit for the pre-amp volume pot,, but i thought it would be Pricey$$$ to get one going.

I really REALLY liked the sound of the Alps black beauty when we ran it in passive mode with 2 aleph mini amp's and a nice cd player, it was simple clean and just amazing, that is what hooked me on the passive pot im running now.

Jase