After unboxing, removing their tops, and blowing some stink off, I got them warming quickly and actually played music! Here they are holding the amppads to the floor.
Removed a bottom cover and was please to see much room around the output-stage PS caps, so I filled a little of it on two amps with pairs of BlackGate VK-series 2200/35 bypass caps. (Original caps are ELNA for Audio 22000/50s.)
Will concentrate, initially, on the inputs, replacing the RCAs with Furutechs, adding 50K TDK pots*, and, to the lower-frequency amps, adding SoniCap Platinum hi-pass filter caps for the Vandersteen 5As' bottom ends**.
Will post schematic soon.
* Will lift the original 56K load resistor too. The amps have WAY too much--as in almost 30dB--Voltage gain, so the pots will allow me to get my preamp gain control where I want it, reduce system noise slightly, and tweak the level of the high frequencies easily.
** The VS Quatros, 5s, and 7s require a preceding, inline, or built-in-the-amp high-pass filter since the speaker has none in its x-overs.
Removed a bottom cover and was please to see much room around the output-stage PS caps, so I filled a little of it on two amps with pairs of BlackGate VK-series 2200/35 bypass caps. (Original caps are ELNA for Audio 22000/50s.)
Will concentrate, initially, on the inputs, replacing the RCAs with Furutechs, adding 50K TDK pots*, and, to the lower-frequency amps, adding SoniCap Platinum hi-pass filter caps for the Vandersteen 5As' bottom ends**.
Will post schematic soon.
* Will lift the original 56K load resistor too. The amps have WAY too much--as in almost 30dB--Voltage gain, so the pots will allow me to get my preamp gain control where I want it, reduce system noise slightly, and tweak the level of the high frequencies easily.
** The VS Quatros, 5s, and 7s require a preceding, inline, or built-in-the-amp high-pass filter since the speaker has none in its x-overs.
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Nico, the black box in the center is a Vandersteen VCC-1 centerchannel-dialog speaker*. I've improved that, too, and haven't finished the cosmetics; that's why the black cloth is drooping.
Ilimzn, yes indeed I did. Voltage on schematic is 31; actual at my house is about 32.
BTW the amp has a completely separate (starting with PT secondaries) supply for the frontend--51Volts. I will NOT be putting 50V caps in that.
Have found another spot where output-stage PS bypass caps sort of fall in and have added a couple more BGs per amp, this time 100/50 K-series.
* Mine is a combination multichannel-music/home-theater system. The 8-feet-wide (NOT diagonal) screen is suspended on chains, and it's hung up, out of the way for these pics. The screen fills all but about 3" per side of the space between the V-steen 5As.
Ilimzn, yes indeed I did. Voltage on schematic is 31; actual at my house is about 32.
BTW the amp has a completely separate (starting with PT secondaries) supply for the frontend--51Volts. I will NOT be putting 50V caps in that.
Have found another spot where output-stage PS bypass caps sort of fall in and have added a couple more BGs per amp, this time 100/50 K-series.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
* Mine is a combination multichannel-music/home-theater system. The 8-feet-wide (NOT diagonal) screen is suspended on chains, and it's hung up, out of the way for these pics. The screen fills all but about 3" per side of the space between the V-steen 5As.
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That's the one even if it's not all there.
Here is a complete one.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
If anyone wants one that's 4222 pixels wide instead of 1280, e-mail me at jeffreybehr(at)cox(dot)net.
Finished installing the two pairs of bypass caps in all amps. Received the new IC cable, custom assembled by Sonic Craft from Neotec NEI-3001 cable and Xhadow RCAs. Had 2 jacks installed at the load ends to drive 2 amps without jumpers or splitters.
Have separated the amp ends of my single/double-biwire speakercable.
This too was assembled by Sonic Craft, of Tefon-insulated UPOCC copper or silver, with 2 pairs of 18g. copper for the bass/MR and one pair copper and one pair 23g. silver for the MR/treble.
The entire system sounds quite good even with lots of parts still breaking-in.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
Have separated the amp ends of my single/double-biwire speakercable.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
This too was assembled by Sonic Craft, of Tefon-insulated UPOCC copper or silver, with 2 pairs of 18g. copper for the bass/MR and one pair copper and one pair 23g. silver for the MR/treble.
The entire system sounds quite good even with lots of parts still breaking-in.
Am almost finished with improvements. If you care, I've posted some info and pics in my blog... http://jeffreybehr.myblogsite.com/
The output-stage powersupply ended up, per pole, with the original 'ELNA for Audio' 22000/50 plus 2 times 2200/35 BG-VKs, a 100/50 BG-K, and a '1.47' uF SoniCap Platinum. Voltage-gain PS* ended up with, per pole, a 680/65 BG-F, a 100/100 BG-std, a 47/100 BG-std, and a '0.517'uF SoniCap Platinum. Both rectifiers are now sets of Fairchild Stealth diodes. Have replaced decoupler C710 with a 470/16 BG-VK, Rs757-760 and R765 with Mills MRA-5s, C708 with a MultiCap RTX 0.1/200, and will replace R771 and C712 when I remount the Cardas bindingposts. I have some UPOCC stranded 14g. wire coming to replace internal PS wiring; I'll use AQ's silver-over-OFC-copper spades on those. Captive powercord is a twisted pair of solid 12g. UPOCC copper in PVC with a Furutech FI15MER (rhodium over OCC copper) plug. I stand each amp on 3 Herbies Tall Tenderfeet.
The system now sounds breathtakingly smooth--NOT gritty or edgy--AND transparent...the best it ever has. This has been worth all the money and time I've spent on it.
* The schematic show 3 times 470s per pole; actual was one 1000/63 ELNA per pole.
The output-stage powersupply ended up, per pole, with the original 'ELNA for Audio' 22000/50 plus 2 times 2200/35 BG-VKs, a 100/50 BG-K, and a '1.47' uF SoniCap Platinum. Voltage-gain PS* ended up with, per pole, a 680/65 BG-F, a 100/100 BG-std, a 47/100 BG-std, and a '0.517'uF SoniCap Platinum. Both rectifiers are now sets of Fairchild Stealth diodes. Have replaced decoupler C710 with a 470/16 BG-VK, Rs757-760 and R765 with Mills MRA-5s, C708 with a MultiCap RTX 0.1/200, and will replace R771 and C712 when I remount the Cardas bindingposts. I have some UPOCC stranded 14g. wire coming to replace internal PS wiring; I'll use AQ's silver-over-OFC-copper spades on those. Captive powercord is a twisted pair of solid 12g. UPOCC copper in PVC with a Furutech FI15MER (rhodium over OCC copper) plug. I stand each amp on 3 Herbies Tall Tenderfeet.
The system now sounds breathtakingly smooth--NOT gritty or edgy--AND transparent...the best it ever has. This has been worth all the money and time I've spent on it.
* The schematic show 3 times 470s per pole; actual was one 1000/63 ELNA per pole.
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