Too bad, I'm more into Rock, Rap, Raggamuffin and Rococo, and thought they might fit for me...
the "R" in the R-core is the give-away....😀
There's so much claims made by one man operations with uncertain credentials on the net that I think I stick with known PT manufacturers such as Plitron, Bartolucci or Hashimoto.
Excellent idea. I'd add Edcor and Antek to the list- long track record making good power transformers, and way cheaper than fashion stuff like Hashimoto.
Don't you dis my Hashis!
Don't knock the Hashimoto over...
Yea, ditto! I have quite a collection (aka investment) in Hashimoto iron. I've not found anything better on measured performance, plus it's dead quiet, very well shielded and wide bandwidth. Most importantly, the amps sound excellent, but that's an overall design/implementation.
I'm not jaded however, I also have a lot of other stuff including Magnequest, Transcendar, Electra-Print, James, Edcor, Hammond, plus older Triad, Freed, Stancor, tons of old Dyna, McIntosh, Eico, etc. There is a lot of great iron out there, but for my own personal gear I use Hashimoto across the board now.
Regards, KM
Yea, ditto! I have quite a collection (aka investment) in Hashimoto iron. I've not found anything better on measured performance, plus it's dead quiet, very well shielded and wide bandwidth. Most importantly, the amps sound excellent, but that's an overall design/implementation.
I'm not jaded however, I also have a lot of other stuff including Magnequest, Transcendar, Electra-Print, James, Edcor, Hammond, plus older Triad, Freed, Stancor, tons of old Dyna, McIntosh, Eico, etc. There is a lot of great iron out there, but for my own personal gear I use Hashimoto across the board now.
Regards, KM
The problem comes that when the diodes are conducting, you enter the area of transient LCR characteristics of the transformer, under load, becoming the shape and character of the transient behavior of the amplifier circuit. The two become intimately coupled.
This is heard, by the ear, as the ear works via harmonics, in the sense of micro differentials in signal level and timing between micro information (micro differentials).
The ear works like a diode, and only hears that micro transient leading edge of the signal, and determines everything via that. Thus, the ear only uses the 10% of the signal. It literally does not use and is not designed to hear the other 90% of the signal, the other 90% that linear weighted engineering and thinking put value to. The ear could not give a damn about that 90%.
If one weighs their measurements and thinking in purely linear weighted engineering terms, they won't get a direct comparative to what the ear is hearing and doing. They will produce numbers that are in error, compared to how the ear does things. There will be no useful comparison - no useful basis of comparison.
Thus the micro differentials, the micro distortions, that in linear measuring terms are so small...this is the single area that the ear works in. To the ear, 0.3% distortion..sounds like 3% or possibly much more of a difference. It is only using the signal component that is distorting. Which is 99% of the time, in the micro transient domain.
So, one can see, with a small amount of rumination on the matter.... that linear weighting and linear thinking with audio, is not even worth a given duplicity of fecal matter olfactory integrations that have been blown about by the given local elevated wind conditions.
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Intimately coupled via a low pass filter, with a rolloff in the subsonic region i.e. in audio terms hardly coupled at all. The exception would be if there is significant magnetic coupling via large loops. In a well-made PSU this won't happen. Transformer sensitivity is bit like cable sensitivity: a sign of weak engineering.KBK said:
In answer to your comment on my original post in this thread, I'd say to you that science is conjecture and discussion before it becomes science.
Thus one can never fault conjecture, as it is part of the origins of science. A fundamental, if you will. Without black, there can be no white. Differential is fundamental to all attempts at dimensions, space, time, matter, and so on.
Science, in it's more correct form, tries not to suffer from human bias. It always will suffer from human bias, no matter how it may try not to, for it is the fruit of human minds. One might say, that the best it can do, is try to swim with it's head above the water line.
There are no absolutes. And getting back to your response to my post - there are no absolutes.
That I am not absolutely correct, and...neither are you.
The return to philosophical discussion, an aspect of logic, as function.
KBK, those are some very interesting comments you make about psychoacoustics and how the ear "hears" distortion. Do you have a reference (textbook, published research, etc) you base them on? I'd be interested in reading more. Or are they the result of your own research?
Given that this thread is in the tube forum, and this is a DIY site, some of the answers to the effect that "if the PSU is well made you won't hear a difference" or "I can filter away any effects of suboptimal transformers" do with respect lack context and are singularly unhelpful to the initial enquirer.
Tube power amp power supplies are usually filtered with passive components and are not regulated. It is not hard to imagine therefore that transformer regulation may play a part in the sound quality of an amp particularly a high power class A/B amp. It will sag less on high current demand.
If the power transformer powers B+ and DC heaters then it is very likely the switching noise of the rectifiers on the heaters, will couple to the B+. I strongly suspect this is sub optimal for sound quality.
Naturally all DIYers are smart enough to mount their transformers so there is no magnetic interaction, to apply proper suppression measures to their rectification circuits, or if they don't- filter away the rf rectification harmonics They also as a rule fully regulate their power supplies with ultra wideband regulation. Information about transformer screens, low leakage transformers, good transformer regulation and the like is wasted here clearly.
Tube power amp power supplies are usually filtered with passive components and are not regulated. It is not hard to imagine therefore that transformer regulation may play a part in the sound quality of an amp particularly a high power class A/B amp. It will sag less on high current demand.
If the power transformer powers B+ and DC heaters then it is very likely the switching noise of the rectifiers on the heaters, will couple to the B+. I strongly suspect this is sub optimal for sound quality.
Naturally all DIYers are smart enough to mount their transformers so there is no magnetic interaction, to apply proper suppression measures to their rectification circuits, or if they don't- filter away the rf rectification harmonics They also as a rule fully regulate their power supplies with ultra wideband regulation. Information about transformer screens, low leakage transformers, good transformer regulation and the like is wasted here clearly.
Yes they do and the OP question was without ANY context, so everyone makes up their own context, as seen below:
OK, in what context is the rectifier switching noise related to the type of PT or its design characteristics?
are you trying to build from scratch? if you are, then look around for proven working designs and get the materials that the designer used....
could it be that you are suffering from audiophilia nervosa? 😀
do you fear that other transformers may sound better than the one you are going to use? and that you might miss that? 😉
more often than not, the feeling that you get when you are finally able to build something with your own hands is greater than any monetary considerations....gives you a natural high......
it takes years of experience with different transformers and amps to know the difference and no amount of asking and no amount of us telling you will make you any wiser....
Always...😀
No I will not be making my own transformers. I'll let the experts do that.
Does Hashimoto make custom PTs?
On the contrary, such answers are very helpful. They address the OPs question, from the point of view of sound engineering. Some may have a different, contrary view, and they are free to state it too. It is for the OP to decide who to believe.Robert F said:
Currently, I don't see Hashimoto making any custom units. They do have a fairly large selection of iron already. However, after numerous talks with Isao (US importer) they (Hashimoto) finally started making LCR units for Phono RIAA EQ (and of course I bought a pair).
If you're planning to build your own gear, are you doing your own design or implementing an existing one? Chances are there's already iron in the existing catalog that will fit with zero or minimal changes.
If you're certain you need custom iron made to your spec, you might try talking to Jack at Electra-Print.
Regards, KM
MGH, why think of custom transformers? go with a known good designs and use what the designer used......when you get enough experience you will be able to tell if your needs are met...and armed with the knowledge you can step it up....you have to experience these things yourself....
ir you can ask Edcor to make one for you, Pete Millete's projects are an example...
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