Simon,
Anyone can order goods from RS - via their website at www.rswww.com.
See ya,
Tim.
BTW - for reasonably priced no nonsense components in the UK, Rapid Electronics, at www.rapidelectronics.co.uk, are easily the most competitive.
Anyone can order goods from RS - via their website at www.rswww.com.
See ya,
Tim.
BTW - for reasonably priced no nonsense components in the UK, Rapid Electronics, at www.rapidelectronics.co.uk, are easily the most competitive.
Also Simon,
Just to say that I liked seeing your pics - I always enjoy seeing inside electronic equipment. However, my gut reaction was similar to analog's, I am afraid that products such as these will not benefit from, as someone put it, crude "shots in the dark". Nevertheless, you seem to be enjoying yourself, so who am I to stop you? Just be sure not to damage the product, for instance I would be cautious of adding more reservoir capacitance.
See ya,
Tim.
PS - How much did the unit cost?
Just to say that I liked seeing your pics - I always enjoy seeing inside electronic equipment. However, my gut reaction was similar to analog's, I am afraid that products such as these will not benefit from, as someone put it, crude "shots in the dark". Nevertheless, you seem to be enjoying yourself, so who am I to stop you? Just be sure not to damage the product, for instance I would be cautious of adding more reservoir capacitance.
See ya,
Tim.
PS - How much did the unit cost?
Thanks Tim, rapidelectonics looks promising.
The Caspian integrated is £900 new, but mine was 2nd hand.
About the shots in the dark - the amp, and my hi-fi as a whole has never been brilliant musically, or even in some certain basic hi-fi terms/areas. Modding has usually worked on other components - cd players, speakers, well the last two pairs were home made or kit.
When I mod. I can tailor the sound to my personal preferences, and I have just about enough knowledge to get away with it, or have done so far. And that brings me to another point, this is a learning experience, and hands-on is the way I learn best. I really don't care for the opinion that "the manufacturer knows what he is doing, leave it alone". It doesn't hold weight for several reasons: Firstly, things like my amp are designed, then built down to a cost, and made easy to manufacture/repair etc. and are made to be reliable. Performance is certainly high on the list of priorities, but when so little is actually spent on the components, 15% maybe(??), even on a £900 amp this is quite little, one can expect to be able to improve performance with some fairly careful tweaking.
Furthermore I believe most products, like my Caspian, are designed to produce a sound that will sell itself, get a good review, or be easy to listen to, or if possible all of these, though that is a contradiction as I see it.
In large chains such as Richer Sounds and Sevenoaks, *the* large chains in the UK, the products people tend to buy are the ones that have been well-reviewed by What Hi-Fi, and sometimes the other mags. This fact alone puts pressure on middle-market manufacturers such as Roksan to knock out units which will sound impressive if not good, on a first listen, and not necessarily be satisfying longer term.
My number one complaint for over two years now has been harshness in equipment, and that typical mushiness, but that's just being picky. Without guided and shot-in-the-dark modifications, my hi-fi would be seriously unlistenable. I honestly cannot say for sure why my old amp (Roksan Kandy) sounded so much more harsh than the current one, the Caspian. What I can say for sure though, is I know what I like, and I'll take whatever measures are necessary to achieve my goals - and bear in mind I'm poor so I can't just buy the ideal solutions
I am actually at a fairly happy point now - I can listen at high volumes without feeling dizzy and having my ears close up, I can hear details reminiscent of live music, and have a relatively deep, rich, solid, and punchy bass...
However, I could really do with better midrange presence (that might be what I'm after), even less harsness/glare/brightness/whiteness and more solidity in the bass.
I really felt the need to explain myself at this point, I hope you don't take it the wrong way
-Simon
ps. I've just taken on part time work in a hi-fi shop, so I can compare and see if my 'souped up' system really is better £ for £ than original stuff... so far it's promising
The Caspian integrated is £900 new, but mine was 2nd hand.
About the shots in the dark - the amp, and my hi-fi as a whole has never been brilliant musically, or even in some certain basic hi-fi terms/areas. Modding has usually worked on other components - cd players, speakers, well the last two pairs were home made or kit.
When I mod. I can tailor the sound to my personal preferences, and I have just about enough knowledge to get away with it, or have done so far. And that brings me to another point, this is a learning experience, and hands-on is the way I learn best. I really don't care for the opinion that "the manufacturer knows what he is doing, leave it alone". It doesn't hold weight for several reasons: Firstly, things like my amp are designed, then built down to a cost, and made easy to manufacture/repair etc. and are made to be reliable. Performance is certainly high on the list of priorities, but when so little is actually spent on the components, 15% maybe(??), even on a £900 amp this is quite little, one can expect to be able to improve performance with some fairly careful tweaking.
Furthermore I believe most products, like my Caspian, are designed to produce a sound that will sell itself, get a good review, or be easy to listen to, or if possible all of these, though that is a contradiction as I see it.
In large chains such as Richer Sounds and Sevenoaks, *the* large chains in the UK, the products people tend to buy are the ones that have been well-reviewed by What Hi-Fi, and sometimes the other mags. This fact alone puts pressure on middle-market manufacturers such as Roksan to knock out units which will sound impressive if not good, on a first listen, and not necessarily be satisfying longer term.
My number one complaint for over two years now has been harshness in equipment, and that typical mushiness, but that's just being picky. Without guided and shot-in-the-dark modifications, my hi-fi would be seriously unlistenable. I honestly cannot say for sure why my old amp (Roksan Kandy) sounded so much more harsh than the current one, the Caspian. What I can say for sure though, is I know what I like, and I'll take whatever measures are necessary to achieve my goals - and bear in mind I'm poor so I can't just buy the ideal solutions
I am actually at a fairly happy point now - I can listen at high volumes without feeling dizzy and having my ears close up, I can hear details reminiscent of live music, and have a relatively deep, rich, solid, and punchy bass...
However, I could really do with better midrange presence (that might be what I'm after), even less harsness/glare/brightness/whiteness and more solidity in the bass.
I really felt the need to explain myself at this point, I hope you don't take it the wrong way
-Simon
ps. I've just taken on part time work in a hi-fi shop, so I can compare and see if my 'souped up' system really is better £ for £ than original stuff... so far it's promising
btw, while you are at it....you should get some of those for your cdplayer...
http://www.schuro.de/Daten/IR/11dq10.pdf
....and it would be nice with new opamps too....!
http://www.schuro.de/Daten/IR/11dq10.pdf
....and it would be nice with new opamps too....!
Not at all! Having read your reply, I respect your viewpoint. You must understand that I am currently tending to look at audio from an increasingly objective viewpoint. This is down to my uni course, and my live sound work.
Anyway, good luck with your HI-FI, and do try Rapid at some stage.
See ya,
Tim.
Tim, I can certainly understand your angle too. I wish I had the mathematical nouse to be able to deal with an EE course. Maybe one day I'll try, it would certainly help with the hobby
tbla, I recently replaced 6 or 7 diodes (according to tnt audio's cd63 modding pages) with Schottky types. At the same time I added a .33uf mains cap. Combined this was a stunning improvement - finally I can hear truly sweet treble through my speakers - but only if it's on the disc in the 1st place! Also, .33uf is a surprisingly potent amount for discharging into ones wrist
-I'll not be making that mistake again!
re. opamps, I bought some new ones a while back: analog devices ad825, but they are 1/2 the correct size, doh!!
I've since decided to leave them alone for now, though with all the mods I've done, it's probably about time, though I guess I'll also need to buy a solder pump for this one!
How can I be sure of buying the right package opamp? When I made my mistake I looked at the datasheet and saw a familiar 8-pin thing, so took it as safe...
-Simon
tbla, I recently replaced 6 or 7 diodes (according to tnt audio's cd63 modding pages) with Schottky types. At the same time I added a .33uf mains cap. Combined this was a stunning improvement - finally I can hear truly sweet treble through my speakers - but only if it's on the disc in the 1st place! Also, .33uf is a surprisingly potent amount for discharging into ones wrist
-I'll not be making that mistake again!
re. opamps, I bought some new ones a while back: analog devices ad825, but they are 1/2 the correct size, doh!!
I've since decided to leave them alone for now, though with all the mods I've done, it's probably about time, though I guess I'll also need to buy a solder pump for this one!
How can I be sure of buying the right package opamp? When I made my mistake I looked at the datasheet and saw a familiar 8-pin thing, so took it as safe...
-Simon
this is the opamp to choose for your player...
http://www.national.com/pf/LM/LM6172.html
i recall thorsten has some good tricks for this opamp - use the search function....!
http://www.national.com/pf/LM/LM6172.html
i recall thorsten has some good tricks for this opamp - use the search function....!
Not had much time last few days, I've not ordered anything or done anything, apart from a small cd player mod. Replaced the output caps for some tiny film ones, and it was a sonic disaster, so they will be changed back, maybe tonight.
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=18172
btw I don't know where to buy that opamp from, and is it definately a 'drop-in' replacement for my current ones?
-Simon
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=18172
btw I don't know where to buy that opamp from, and is it definately a 'drop-in' replacement for my current ones?
-Simon
caps, resistors, cd player
Hi tbla, this may or may not be of interest:
I removed those film caps from the output of my cd player, and completed the circuit with silver wire, which I had spare.
A veil was removed, but I need to listen more to appreciate fully what has happened.
Also, I notice the last thing in the signal path here is a 200ohm resistor, which on one channel measures 198ohms and on the other measures 200ohms. Is this discrepency enough to upset the left-right balance? Is it worth changing these for high quality, tight tolerance resistors?
Cheers,
-Simon
ps. maybe I should start a new thread just to beg for help with my cd player
Hi tbla, this may or may not be of interest:
I removed those film caps from the output of my cd player, and completed the circuit with silver wire, which I had spare.
A veil was removed, but I need to listen more to appreciate fully what has happened.
Also, I notice the last thing in the signal path here is a 200ohm resistor, which on one channel measures 198ohms and on the other measures 200ohms. Is this discrepency enough to upset the left-right balance? Is it worth changing these for high quality, tight tolerance resistors?
Cheers,
-Simon
ps. maybe I should start a new thread just to beg for help with my cd player
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