Zion, a ready made Phono Stage by the Paradise team

[wcwc]

This sounds interesting. Seems to have taken some time to get to this point. How tall is the base board with the sub boards attached? I have been looking for a balanced out phono preamp.

 

[Joachim Gerhard]

The Zion developped out of a stage we called " Abraxas ". That is the god of the good and the bad. This name came to me because the first version of the Abraxas was balanced in - unbalanced out. So it was build like a bal-unbal converter. Converting the " good " balanced into the " bad " unbalanced. Sorry, in retrospect this is maybe not such a great joke then i thought.
It was obvious from the beginning that the Abraxas ( with some small aditions ) could do bal-in bal-out too.

 

[Joachim Gerhard]

The Abraxas was build from CFB BJT gain cells, actually very simple. The cells where loaded with a resistor per leg and coupled out with film caps. We did some efford with the CCSs.
There where bootstrapped agains the PSU for lowest noise.
Now we had the basic double differential, current sourced structure. This is by no means new. Bonjorno, Borbely, Curl etc. did that back in the 70th. Our circuit only differs in the details to make it work optimally with low impedance MC cartridges.

 

[jan.didden]

o

Joachim are you left handed??

Jan

 

[sq225917]

I'm guessing he's left handed dexterous. Soldering left handed, enjoying a new year drink with the right.

 

[Joachim Gerhard]

No. i just tried to send a message without content but that is not possible in this forum. So the least amount you can post is one number or one letter.
With picture the shortest is one number ( or letter ) plus one picture.
So i send one Zero and two pictures.
The guy who whould have decoded this message first whout have got a free piece of art from me.

........ well

 

[Joachim Gerhard]

As to the pictures i can actually solder left and right. I am also good in using only a minimal amout of tools. OK, i cut and burn my fingers. No pain, no gain.

 

[Joachim Gerhard]

Ready.

 

[as_audio]

Cool lab

Schematic ?

Here
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/vend...-phono-stage-paradise-team-2.html#post4833150

 

[Joachim Gerhard]

I have it playing. I am glued to my chair. Worked without bugs, right away.

 

[FdW]

Wow

 

[as_audio]

Please let us know - is this still the circuit of post 15 (plus buffer?) or something else.
I see RCA plugs and no balanced wiring in and out.

 

[FdW]

Yes

 

[FdW]

The output is unbalanced (only one side of the output-buffer is build)

See http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/vend...phono-stage-paradise-team-11.html#post4950225 and remove UPb (and anything connected to outN).

For values see http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/vend...phono-stage-paradise-team-11.html#post4950237

And http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/vend...phono-stage-paradise-team-12.html#post4950661

 

[as_audio]

So he used only one input and grounded the other one ?

 

[FdW]

So he used only one input and grounded the other one ?

I do not know, and I can not contact him at the moment (to ask) so we need to wait until he contacts us (here)

 

[FdW]

Just talked to JG, he is using the preamp balanced in and un-balanced out.

 

[as_audio]

It looks like RCA in and out

 

[sq225917]

RCA can be used for +/- if you want, it's just a plug....

 

[as_audio]

So no shield connected .. ?