Line stage with 12AU7 and 6CG7 anyone?

sbelyo · 10th February 2011, 04:55 PM

Hi All...

A while back I built this Headphone OTL amp by Kurt Strain. I could never really get it to produce much base, but the midrange was buttery smooth and I liked the detail on the high end. At this point I have scrapped this amp and I don't use it, but I'd like to build a linstage with the 12AU7 and 6CG7 because I could hear some really nice sound qualities in there. I also have the hammond 269EX as well.

HeadWize - Project: An OTL Tube Headphone Amplifier by Kurt Strain

Can anyone reccomend a nice line stage or even a tube buffer circuit with these tubes that I could mate with an output stage of a DAC?

Thanks
Steve

kstagger · 10th February 2011, 07:36 PM

10uF won't get you much bass with a 300 ohm (or lower) headphone. Not a big fan of this design (would prefer a White Cathode Follower with a high transconductance tube like the 6922).

Check out the Akido - it's certainly popular around here and there is a combination that will work with your tubes of choice.

sbelyo · 11th February 2011, 12:55 AM

I increased the 10uf cap to like 30uf or more I can't remember but it didn't do much.

I'll check out the akido

wa2ise · 05:11 AM

Well, there's the cathode follower circuit, plate tied to around 180VDC, cathode resistor 10K, and grid biased to ground thru a half megohm resistor.

The 5963 is similar to a 12AU7.
Or similar to what I did to buffer a modified DAC using a TDA1543 (the 6111 is a low mu triode, somewhat similar to the 12AU7)

mastodon · 11th February 2011, 08:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sbelyo

I increased the 10uf cap to like 30uf or more I can't remember but it didn't do much.

Makes sense. Into a 32Ohm load and for a corner frequency of 50Hz, you'd have needed about 100uF. About 250uF for 20Hz. The value of C1 mentioned in the Kurt Strain Headwize article seems to be based on a 600Ohm headphone impedance, and even then it's sort of skinny.

kstagger · 11th February 2011, 12:29 PM

for my headphone amplifier, I used 470uF output caps. The White Cathode follower was pretty good driving headphones, but I found that a Mosfet buffer does even a better job with lo-z cans.

grhughes · 11th February 2011, 12:55 PM

Try the Beta follower instead of the mu-follower in Morgan Jones book. Ray

10th February 2011, 04:55 PM	#1
sbelyo diyAudio Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: East Coast	Line stage with 12AU7 and 6CG7 anyone? Hi All... A while back I built this Headphone OTL amp by Kurt Strain. I could never really get it to produce much base, but the midrange was buttery smooth and I liked the detail on the high end. At this point I have scrapped this amp and I don't use it, but I'd like to build a linstage with the 12AU7 and 6CG7 because I could hear some really nice sound qualities in there. I also have the hammond 269EX as well. HeadWize - Project: An OTL Tube Headphone Amplifier by Kurt Strain Can anyone reccomend a nice line stage or even a tube buffer circuit with these tubes that I could mate with an output stage of a DAC? Thanks Steve

11th February 2011, 04:42 AM	#4
wa2ise diyAudio Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: NJ	Well, there's the cathode follower circuit, plate tied to around 180VDC, cathode resistor 10K, and grid biased to ground thru a half megohm resistor. The 5963 is similar to a 12AU7. Or similar to what I did to buffer a modified DAC using a TDA1543 (the 6111 is a low mu triode, somewhat similar to the 12AU7) __________________ Last edited by wa2ise; 11th February 2011 at 05:11 AM.

11th February 2011, 12:55 PM	#7
grhughes diyAudio Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Cubicle Sweet Cubicle, SW, MO, USA	Try the Beta follower instead of the mu-follower in Morgan Jones book. Ray __________________ "The gift of imagination is the gift of the gods imparted to a few for which they receive innumerable kicks in the a$$ their entire life." Le Corbusier (Edward Jenneret)

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10th February 2011, 07:36 PM	#2
kstagger diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Grand Rapids	10uF won't get you much bass with a 300 ohm (or lower) headphone. Not a big fan of this design (would prefer a White Cathode Follower with a high transconductance tube like the 6922). Check out the Akido - it's certainly popular around here and there is a combination that will work with your tubes of choice.

11th February 2011, 12:55 AM	#3
sbelyo diyAudio Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: East Coast	I increased the 10uf cap to like 30uf or more I can't remember but it didn't do much. I'll check out the akido

11th February 2011, 12:29 PM	#6
kstagger diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Grand Rapids	for my headphone amplifier, I used 470uF output caps. The White Cathode follower was pretty good driving headphones, but I found that a Mosfet buffer does even a better job with lo-z cans.

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