GlassWare Audio Aikido Rev C 9-pin board - stuffed & tested with 6GU7s

[beeah]

Actually... this board is currently part of a working preamp, fully enclosed with tube-regulated CLCLC power supply, input selector, Noble volume pot, 4 RCA stereo inputs and 1 RCA stereo output. It's running 6GU7s, and several sets will be included (Sylvania, RCA & GE). The board is populated with .47uF Auricap coupling caps, Vishay/Dale metal film resistors, and ceramic sockets.

It ain't the purtyest thing out there, but it gets the job done. It sounds fantastic - very quiet and great tone. In fact, it's the best tube preamp I've heard, but I've recently moved into the passive (TVC/AVC) realm and so far I like what I'm hearing.

I configured the board such that the resistors that one would change to accommodate a different tube are "socketed" using pins from a DIP socket, so no soldering is necessary - just bend and trim the leads, replace the resistors, and you're good to go.

I can either sell the entire preamp or just the stuffed board. That said, I'd hate to sell the entire preamp only to have it parted out - I can use the parts myself for another project.

I can post some pics (internal and external) if there's any interest. Just putting out feelers at the moment - I haven't even given much thought to pricing, so feel free to make suggestions/offers.

[Glowbug]

You have a PM

[beeah]

As do you.

[beeah]

A few pics...

[beeah]

...and a few more.

After some fuzzy math, I pulled $175 out of my hat as an asking price, based largely on the general quality of the parts, the number of tubes included (16 mostly NOS 6GU7s + a vintage 5Y3), and the fact that the Aikido kit (board + parts) alone would run about $100.

A few things to note:

• The RCA inputs are a little close together. This never posed a problem for me, but larger connectors such as WBT locking RCAs might be an issue.
• Several of the 6GU7s seem to be microphonic/noisy. Again, this was never a huge issue for me as I never heard any noise when the music was playing, but it bears mentioning. I don't know if it was a stretch of bad luck on my part, or if 6GU7s just tend to be a noisy tube. All that said, the board can easily be converted to run any number of 9-pin tubes if it comes to that.
• I believe I configured the B+ for ~400V, which is at the upper end of the range for the Aikido. With the current I chose for the tubes, this put the operating point in a nice linear region for these tubes (which happen to be very similar to the 12BH7 electrically).

[beeah]

oops

[beeah]

Still available as stuffed board or entire preamp.
Open to offers.

[beeah]

Sold!