Biggest improvement
Replace the 2,2 ohm on the base of each output transistor with 1 ohm Vishay. Carbon resistors here is also a big aprovement. Make a reulated supply for the input section. Replace all MKT to pure KP foils no MKP;s. Also replace the 80 ohm on the base of each driver.
Almost forgot biggest improvement of them all. Skip all the Emitter resistors and replace them with a single 0,33 ohm Mills for each output device.
Replace the 2,2 ohm on the base of each output transistor with 1 ohm Vishay. Carbon resistors here is also a big aprovement. Make a reulated supply for the input section. Replace all MKT to pure KP foils no MKP;s. Also replace the 80 ohm on the base of each driver.
Almost forgot biggest improvement of them all. Skip all the Emitter resistors and replace them with a single 0,33 ohm Mills for each output device.
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Thanks Erland, I note the base resistors are surface mounts do you simply solder the leaded resistors to the pads or do you find a surface mount replacement?
I also note that the 2.2 ohm base resistors on the output transistors appear to comprise two 4R4 resistors in parallel. Do you mean replace these with one 1 ohm Vishay, and if so do you consider the change in value to be acceptable?
Thanks again.
. . .A film resistor is made by carving a channel into a carbon (or metal) film on a glass or ceramic tube, resulting sometimes in meters (feet) of material in the signal! Also a film resistor always has inductance, composite resistors don't. 😀 /QUOTE]
There is no reason why a metal film resistor has to have its channel constructed in a path that has significant net inductance. By utilizing small alternating sections of left-hand and right-hand spirals, the net inductance could be many orders of magnitude smaller.
. . .A film resistor is made by carving a channel into a carbon (or metal) film on a glass or ceramic tube, resulting sometimes in meters (feet) of material in the signal! Also a film resistor always has inductance
There is no reason why a metal film resistor has to have its channel constructed in a path that has significant net inductance. By utilizing small alternating sections of left-hand and right-hand spirals, the net inductance could be many orders of magnitude smaller.
Which is exactly what bulk metal foil resistors accomplish by a serpentine path etched into the foil. It would be difficult to accomplish the same feat with a cylindrical film resistor, I would think. I'm not sure how the minuscule inductance of a film resistor affects sound (RF, perhaps, but audio?), but I suppose if it can be minimized, that's a good thing.
. . .A film resistor is made by carving a channel into a carbon (or metal) film on a glass or ceramic tube, resulting sometimes in meters (feet) of material in the signal! Also a film resistor always has inductance
As for small SMD metal film resistors, how could you have that much inductance inside, say a 0201 size metal film resistor? Or is it more like metal oxide of various thickness deposited onto a ceramic substrate?
IMHO, these types are the best to use in terms of quality vs cost as long as you stay well within derated Pd.😉
Hi Everyone,
I am carefully following the thread and have a question /I am not very experienced/. Would like to replace the stock resistors around the base of the double thriode WE 396 of my Havana DAC and need your suggest. I have already tried some carbon composition from the Tube Doctor but I am not happy with the sound /no air/. Is it recommendable to go for Vishay Z, will it improve the performance ? Otherwise I have already replaced most of the caps, now expecting the last couple of 2,2 mkF from Mundorf for the output stage.
Thanks for your assistance,
Ignat
I am carefully following the thread and have a question /I am not very experienced/. Would like to replace the stock resistors around the base of the double thriode WE 396 of my Havana DAC and need your suggest. I have already tried some carbon composition from the Tube Doctor but I am not happy with the sound /no air/. Is it recommendable to go for Vishay Z, will it improve the performance ? Otherwise I have already replaced most of the caps, now expecting the last couple of 2,2 mkF from Mundorf for the output stage.
Thanks for your assistance,
Ignat
I have a problem, I might of soldered resistors wrong values, because it's hard for me to distinguish the coloring, would the sound quality suffer?
Certainly, it's like putting the wrong size nut on a bolt. Depending on the degree of error, the operation of the circuit may be severely affected. Tiny color bands don't make this easy; got a digital multimeter?
Depends on the voltage present in that part of the circuit. I think the Vishay Z resistors are the best resistors made, but expensive, limited in resistance range and voltage rating. You'll hear a difference, almost certainly between the two types; I consider composition to be the least desirable, but they have their uses. A good quality metal film should suffice unless you can afford the cost of bulk foil resistors.
At work we had one brand of resistors that most people could NOT read all the colors. These people were not color blind.
Hi !
please excuse me if I recover this old 3D.
Me and a friend did some experiments but we did not believe to our ears.
Could you confirm that a better quality resistor in the feedback path improves the overall sound in a very remarkable way or we were just hearing things ?
Thanks a lot
Regards,
gino
please excuse me if I recover this old 3D.
Me and a friend did some experiments but we did not believe to our ears.
Could you confirm that a better quality resistor in the feedback path improves the overall sound in a very remarkable way or we were just hearing things ?
Thanks a lot
Regards,
gino
The magnitude of improvement would vary on the application and resistor, but speaking from personal experience, I'd say yes. The TX2575 made a night and day difference for my Gainclone.
Thank you very much indeed for your confirmation
We were playing with a little preamp and the effect was quite obvious
At the point that i wonder how much could be gained in terms of sound quality in a commercial unit just with "critical" parts replacement keeping the design identical
I guess that, at least in the case of resistors, lower noise and better linearity could be the reasons ?
I have a question
How did you select the TX2575 ?
Thanks a lot and kind regards,
gino
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Did you and your friend know which was the 'better quality' resistor?
It is plausible that the feedback resistor in a power amp can affect results due to thermal problems, but unlikely in a preamp.
It is plausible that the feedback resistor in a power amp can affect results due to thermal problems, but unlikely in a preamp.
Hi ! honestly I have to rephrase a little
We replaced a common metal film resistor with an Holco resistor and we both like the Holco more
Maybe we were hearing a nice distortion ??? 😕
and speaking of resistors we liked a series attenuator made with Holcos more than an Alps blue velvet
But the point is, I guess, that we did hear clearly a difference between one resistor and the other
Regards,
gino
Yes. Why ? 🙄
My friend invited me to listen to the preamp with the new resistors (one per channel) installed
The sound was cleaner ... I think
He was experementing with coupling caps and in his opinion the effect of the resistor was more evident than a cap swap
Al the caps were film caps of good quality
I have to say that i trust more his ears than mine ... he has a good ear really
Regards,
gino
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It is much easier to hear the improvement produced by a branded resistor when you know it is present, even when you are aware of this effect.
It is much easier to hear the improvement produced by a change when someone else tells you he can hear it too, even when you are aware of this effect.
This effect still occurs even when the component change actually produces no sound change at all, or (sometimes) when the alleged component change has not taken place.
It is much easier to hear the improvement produced by a change when someone else tells you he can hear it too, even when you are aware of this effect.
This effect still occurs even when the component change actually produces no sound change at all, or (sometimes) when the alleged component change has not taken place.
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