Pros: Sound seems to come from a black hole background, it just jumps out at you.Very clean with no hum whatsoever.
Cons: No matter what you do its (the P/S) is going to be larger.It requires a charging system, but once you have overcome the charging system its a plug in and forget system.
ron
Cons: No matter what you do its (the P/S) is going to be larger.It requires a charging system, but once you have overcome the charging system its a plug in and forget system.
ron
Walmart Charger upgraded?
Ron - et al,
I went to Walmart over the weekend and the box for the trickle charger you recommended now says it does "float mode monitoring" - which I assume means that it switches from charging to float maintainance. Did the ones you bought claim this feature? (The box claims that the design is being constantly upgraded.)
I have been considering the Deltran "battery tender" unit which has a float mode - so I could just turn off the battery charger when listening.
Comments?
Ron - et al,
I went to Walmart over the weekend and the box for the trickle charger you recommended now says it does "float mode monitoring" - which I assume means that it switches from charging to float maintainance. Did the ones you bought claim this feature? (The box claims that the design is being constantly upgraded.)
I have been considering the Deltran "battery tender" unit which has a float mode - so I could just turn off the battery charger when listening.
Comments?
The float system is designed to mantain the batteries. In my charger system i use a timer and have just added a switch to turn on the chargers when i am not listening.The timer is there for when i forget or just dont care to flip a switch (is that LAZY or what?).The timer switches on the chargers at 2am and runs till 5am each day regardless if i flip the switch.So its a basic plug in and forget system.
And Yes, on some chargers it will provide a current drain when the charger is off and still connected to the batteries, so i just solved the question with relays.
ron
And Yes, on some chargers it will provide a current drain when the charger is off and still connected to the batteries, so i just solved the question with relays.
ron
Just removed the BGN caps from the chip.I am using only .33uf film caps there now.The BGN's seemed to add some bloat and thickness in the mids and mid-upper frequencies believe it or not.I haven't experimented with higher film values because the sound seems well balanced as it is and as we know more capacitance in the GC can degrade performance.
I had Derek Walton (http://indigo.ie/~walton/audio1.html)over the last two Saturdays and he brought over his 300B set amps which he let me use for a week.He was quite impressed with the battery powered gainclone and he wants to build one himself.Now for those who know tube lovers and and the hard core variety - the SET lovers- realize how diffcult it is for them to appreciate the sound of "sand" amps.On the other hand I must confess that I myself fell in love with sound of the SET amps and I am going that way myself.We both agreed that the battery gainclone had a really great sound and astounding value for money but the SET amps have a kind of naturalness,spaciousness,musicality that is hard to get anywhere else.Of course there are some compromises in terms of power and absolute bass weight but I was surprised at how quick they can sound and all the bass notes are well delineated.
Also a good set amp can cost up to 10 or 20 times as much as a battery gc.
I had Derek Walton (http://indigo.ie/~walton/audio1.html)over the last two Saturdays and he brought over his 300B set amps which he let me use for a week.He was quite impressed with the battery powered gainclone and he wants to build one himself.Now for those who know tube lovers and and the hard core variety - the SET lovers- realize how diffcult it is for them to appreciate the sound of "sand" amps.On the other hand I must confess that I myself fell in love with sound of the SET amps and I am going that way myself.We both agreed that the battery gainclone had a really great sound and astounding value for money but the SET amps have a kind of naturalness,spaciousness,musicality that is hard to get anywhere else.Of course there are some compromises in terms of power and absolute bass weight but I was surprised at how quick they can sound and all the bass notes are well delineated.
Also a good set amp can cost up to 10 or 20 times as much as a battery gc.
Hi Protos;
>>>...Now for those who know tube lovers and and the hard core variety - the SET lovers- realize how diffcult it is for them to appreciate the sound of "sand" amps...<<<
I resemble that remark!
>>>...On the other hand I must confess that I myself fell in love with sound of the SET amps and I am going that way myself. We both agreed that the battery gainclone had a really great sound and astounding value for money but the SET amps have a kind of naturalness,spaciousness,musicality that is hard to get anywhere else. Of course there are some compromises in terms of power and absolute bass weight but I was surprised at how quick they can sound and all the bass notes are well delineated.
Also a good set amp can cost up to 10 or 20 times as much as a battery gc...<<<
Your listening experiences are similar to my own, comparing my 2A3 SET to my first GC (which is playing as I type). Then again, it's wonderful for short listening sessions, when I don't want to short cycle my valve filaments. Moreover, the GC fits in the palm of my hand and cost less than one set of new production SovTek 2A3's so what the heck!
Before you go SET, be aware that they are VERY load sensitive - my 2A3 is magical with Fostex fullrangers, cheap Radio Shack 40-1354 and 40-1197 fullrangers, or vintage EPI100 2 way speakers - and that magic goes away when hooked to any speakers with complex crossover networks/shaping filters, etc. That's just a generic warning that if you have a pair of speakers with an impedence curve that looks like the Afghani countryside and pair 'em up with a 2A3 or 300B SET, it's a match made in - well, you know. Limp, lifeless music that will leave you wondering what went wrong is the result.
My apologies for taking the thread OT, but as a dedicated SET flea-amp lover, I feel bound to honestly report a wart on amps of that general type.
Good luck and all the best,
Morse
>>>...Now for those who know tube lovers and and the hard core variety - the SET lovers- realize how diffcult it is for them to appreciate the sound of "sand" amps...<<<
I resemble that remark!
>>>...On the other hand I must confess that I myself fell in love with sound of the SET amps and I am going that way myself. We both agreed that the battery gainclone had a really great sound and astounding value for money but the SET amps have a kind of naturalness,spaciousness,musicality that is hard to get anywhere else. Of course there are some compromises in terms of power and absolute bass weight but I was surprised at how quick they can sound and all the bass notes are well delineated.
Also a good set amp can cost up to 10 or 20 times as much as a battery gc...<<<
Your listening experiences are similar to my own, comparing my 2A3 SET to my first GC (which is playing as I type). Then again, it's wonderful for short listening sessions, when I don't want to short cycle my valve filaments. Moreover, the GC fits in the palm of my hand and cost less than one set of new production SovTek 2A3's so what the heck!
Before you go SET, be aware that they are VERY load sensitive - my 2A3 is magical with Fostex fullrangers, cheap Radio Shack 40-1354 and 40-1197 fullrangers, or vintage EPI100 2 way speakers - and that magic goes away when hooked to any speakers with complex crossover networks/shaping filters, etc. That's just a generic warning that if you have a pair of speakers with an impedence curve that looks like the Afghani countryside and pair 'em up with a 2A3 or 300B SET, it's a match made in - well, you know. Limp, lifeless music that will leave you wondering what went wrong is the result.
My apologies for taking the thread OT, but as a dedicated SET flea-amp lover, I feel bound to honestly report a wart on amps of that general type.
Good luck and all the best,
Morse
protos said:
If you were using them in super-e configuaration, I don't have any doubts about it. Single caps sound better. Also, lead orientation is very important. I like to keep the short (or marked lead) on more positive side of PS.
I've been listening to some tube equipment recently as well, and I understand what you mean
Hi Peter;
It's 'dumb question' time over here:
>>>...BGN cap...<<<
Would that be a reference to one of the Black Gate subtypes or something else?
>>>...super-e configuaration...<<<
????
Sorry for being so dense.
Also, if I were to splurge on caps for an upcoming LM1875 GC, what should I go with? Black Gate? Elna Cerafine? Or one of the Panasonics? Also, any suggestions on an input cap? Ever tried Solens in this application?
Thanks in advance for any information!
All the best,
Morse
It's 'dumb question' time over here:
>>>...BGN cap...<<<
Would that be a reference to one of the Black Gate subtypes or something else?
>>>...super-e configuaration...<<<
????
Sorry for being so dense.
Also, if I were to splurge on caps for an upcoming LM1875 GC, what should I go with? Black Gate? Elna Cerafine? Or one of the Panasonics? Also, any suggestions on an input cap? Ever tried Solens in this application?
Thanks in advance for any information!
All the best,
Morse
Super-e configuration is achieved from the N/NX/NH
non-polar types by configuring them as an “L Canceling Pair”.
This involves paralleling two identical capacitors so that the
starting foil lead of one is connected to the ending foil lead of
the other and vice versa. This arrangment lowers the ESR, cancels
the internal inductance, and eliminates resonance, allowing
the Black Gates to function as pure C.
While this may be true, but sonically I didn't like it and it sounded exactly like Protos described it. I prefer much better a single BG cap.
As to the GC caps, I mostly used BG and they seem to be more open and direct than Panasonic FC. But Panasonic sound fine too, seems to be smoother and more relaxed than BG, so the choice may be very personal, but for the money Panasonic are hard to beat. I still have ttry Nichicone KZ caps from percyaudio. As to Cerafines, it's a mixed bag, but whatever they say about those caps to be mellow, seems to be true from my observations. But they are definitely not annoying in any way, but sometimes too laid back. While I also tried 1000/50 BG type N in my GC amp, I don't think that almost tripling the price justifies what you get. Just a bit smoother and more refined comparing to STD caps, but I wouldn't probably buy them again.
However I tried BG N type caps in my DAC and they seem to be the best sounding there. Also, for coupling applications I would also recommend those 4.7 type N BG caps. They seem to be very direct, without any excessive colorations that even film caps show. I tried NX Hi Q caps as well, and those are a bit veiled and not as open and direct as N caps. But they might perform well in slightly brighter systems.
non-polar types by configuring them as an “L Canceling Pair”.
This involves paralleling two identical capacitors so that the
starting foil lead of one is connected to the ending foil lead of
the other and vice versa. This arrangment lowers the ESR, cancels
the internal inductance, and eliminates resonance, allowing
the Black Gates to function as pure C.
While this may be true, but sonically I didn't like it and it sounded exactly like Protos described it. I prefer much better a single BG cap.
As to the GC caps, I mostly used BG and they seem to be more open and direct than Panasonic FC. But Panasonic sound fine too, seems to be smoother and more relaxed than BG, so the choice may be very personal, but for the money Panasonic are hard to beat. I still have ttry Nichicone KZ caps from percyaudio. As to Cerafines, it's a mixed bag, but whatever they say about those caps to be mellow, seems to be true from my observations. But they are definitely not annoying in any way, but sometimes too laid back. While I also tried 1000/50 BG type N in my GC amp, I don't think that almost tripling the price justifies what you get. Just a bit smoother and more refined comparing to STD caps, but I wouldn't probably buy them again.
However I tried BG N type caps in my DAC and they seem to be the best sounding there. Also, for coupling applications I would also recommend those 4.7 type N BG caps. They seem to be very direct, without any excessive colorations that even film caps show. I tried NX Hi Q caps as well, and those are a bit veiled and not as open and direct as N caps. But they might perform well in slightly brighter systems.
Thanks for the info Peter;
Very interesting way of wiring things for 'super e'! I'll file that away for future reference. Maybe some rainy day I'll have the parts and the time to experiment a bit.
On the listening impressions of different caps, that's just the sort of thing I was looking for!
By the way, I take it that I wouldn't really need much voltage rating for an input cap - i.e. would 16V BG's be fine there, or should I use a higher voltage rating? Obviously my CD/DVD source isn't going to put out anywhere near 16V, but couldn't a low volts cap be damaged with a big enough 'pop' if someone hot-swapped the interconnects?
There's a small chance I'll get to do a short sidetrip to Akihabara in about a week, so I'll be on the lookout for BG N type (I'm kicking myself that I didn't buy any BG's when I was in Nihombashi in December). I'll also be on the lookout for the other types you mentioned. 'Got my fingers crossed for good luck....
Thanks again and all the best!
Morse
Very interesting way of wiring things for 'super e'! I'll file that away for future reference. Maybe some rainy day I'll have the parts and the time to experiment a bit.
On the listening impressions of different caps, that's just the sort of thing I was looking for!
By the way, I take it that I wouldn't really need much voltage rating for an input cap - i.e. would 16V BG's be fine there, or should I use a higher voltage rating? Obviously my CD/DVD source isn't going to put out anywhere near 16V, but couldn't a low volts cap be damaged with a big enough 'pop' if someone hot-swapped the interconnects?
There's a small chance I'll get to do a short sidetrip to Akihabara in about a week, so I'll be on the lookout for BG N type (I'm kicking myself that I didn't buy any BG's when I was in Nihombashi in December). I'll also be on the lookout for the other types you mentioned. 'Got my fingers crossed for good luck....
Thanks again and all the best!
Morse
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