for use with Mikael Abdellah's SE KT88. I've searched and searched and maybe that's part of my problem. There are all kinds of conflicting things to read if you do enough looking.
I'm a bit leery of those $20 deals on ebay. Conflicting reports on those, as well.
I want something to be of comparable quality to the rest of the build. It's going to be a stereo, one chassis version. I'm using EH KT88s. Plan is to buy a couple of other brands for experimentation. Maybe something vintage. Using a Russian 6N1P, with several 6922 and 6DJ8 variants to play with.
Mains xformer is the universal Angela. That would have been different had I looked more closely at the size factor before ordering. It's monstrous. I still may change that. I have a mint, vintage Chicago Transformer of the correct specs except it has no provision for 5V. It's literally half the size of the Angela. I have a filament xformer I could mount under the chassis and use for the RCA 5U4G in the PSU.
Nice sockets from Angela. OPTs are Transcendar. Russian PIO, Black Gate, Solen, and BHC caps. Resistors will most likely be the Roedersteins that Michael Percy has. Hook up wire from Percy.
Percy also has some reasonable prices on some of his attenuators. Tempting.
I'm not a tightwad, and I'm willing to buy what I need. But I don't want something that is unnecessary overkill. I'm not trying to "impress" anyone by saying I have this brand or that brand. This is strictly a "what is best for this particular build" thing.
Thanks and regards, Greg
I'm a bit leery of those $20 deals on ebay. Conflicting reports on those, as well.
I want something to be of comparable quality to the rest of the build. It's going to be a stereo, one chassis version. I'm using EH KT88s. Plan is to buy a couple of other brands for experimentation. Maybe something vintage. Using a Russian 6N1P, with several 6922 and 6DJ8 variants to play with.
Mains xformer is the universal Angela. That would have been different had I looked more closely at the size factor before ordering. It's monstrous. I still may change that. I have a mint, vintage Chicago Transformer of the correct specs except it has no provision for 5V. It's literally half the size of the Angela. I have a filament xformer I could mount under the chassis and use for the RCA 5U4G in the PSU.
Nice sockets from Angela. OPTs are Transcendar. Russian PIO, Black Gate, Solen, and BHC caps. Resistors will most likely be the Roedersteins that Michael Percy has. Hook up wire from Percy.
Percy also has some reasonable prices on some of his attenuators. Tempting.
I'm not a tightwad, and I'm willing to buy what I need. But I don't want something that is unnecessary overkill. I'm not trying to "impress" anyone by saying I have this brand or that brand. This is strictly a "what is best for this particular build" thing.
Thanks and regards, Greg
Greg.
PEC hot molded Carbon controls cost less than good stepped attenuators, while sounding better too boot. 😀 An added benefit that comes with the PEC controls is MILSPEC toughness, for long service lives.
DigiKey is the place to buy PEC controls.
PEC hot molded Carbon controls cost less than good stepped attenuators, while sounding better too boot. 😀 An added benefit that comes with the PEC controls is MILSPEC toughness, for long service lives.
DigiKey is the place to buy PEC controls.
Eli,
Thanks for that idea. That is one option I hadn't heard until now. The more I learn, the more it amazes me what I don't know.
Thanks again, Greg
Thanks for that idea. That is one option I hadn't heard until now. The more I learn, the more it amazes me what I don't know.
Thanks again, Greg
After looking for the PECs at Digi-Key, the ones I found are all linear taper. No audio tapers, unless I missed something.
Ignore that previous post. I found them under log taper. Seems there are some nice ones to choose from.
Thanks again, Eli. I submitted my order for the KKA 100K version.
Any thoughts on why the PEC pots are rarely mentioned in discussions, or have I just missed it. It's not like I'm a veteran at building, but I have been lurking for years before the '"plunge". It seems like such a great option to be able to pick this up from Digi-Key.
Ha! Ha! I should have made this post before spending the last week wearing out Google.
Any thoughts on why the PEC pots are rarely mentioned in discussions, or have I just missed it. It's not like I'm a veteran at building, but I have been lurking for years before the '"plunge". It seems like such a great option to be able to pick this up from Digi-Key.
Ha! Ha! I should have made this post before spending the last week wearing out Google.
Any idea on how tight the tracking between sections is? PEC does not list any spec, only tolerance of 10% or 20%, presumably for the resistance value. They should give excellent service life. TKD also make some "reasonably" priced units and offer a balance control.
Regards, KM
Regards, KM
69CamaroSS396 said:
I always thought it was a great option to be able to pick up the 100K Alps pot from the local Radio Shack for only $3.50. Unless I'm missing something, the PEC pot is $32.42? Is it really worth the 10x price premium?
kmaier said:
How reasonable is it?
Alps or Alpha (Taiwan)? Mouser carries Alpha for less than R/S charges. 😉
As to the worth, the PEC stuff is made BETTER. The wiper is a block of Carbon, not a piece of metal that causes early wear. MILSPEC certification does not happen by accident. By all accounts, PEC sounds better. Yet, another consideration is the cost of Canadian, as opposed to Taiwanese, labor.
BTW, Alpha (Taiwan) Carbon controls are pretty good. When funds are limited, A/T is an excellent choice.
Ty_Bower said:
Do you think the $3.50 Alps unit would be suitable for use in this amp? If so, please explain.
Are you suggesting there is no appreciable difference to be heard, or noticed in build quality, that would justify the cost difference?
What is "reasonable" is different to us all. My next door neighbor, who spends more than $500/month on tobacco and alcohol for he and his wife, thinks it is NOT reasonable for me to pay $50 for a pair of EH KT88s. Go figure.
Log...
Allways thought "scraping pots" were an inferior way to apply resistance within a 'range'.
We have all slid a volume open on someones unknown gear only to hear a scratchy amp killing pop...rip sound...if it was bad enough your amp pegged & switched off you speakers.....It was BAD.
Now when the stepped ATT arrived..............you world was silent........given we are trying to achieve the highest standrads of design, materials,quality builds, Chassis as Art..........et.al.
Say no to "scrapers" & embrace switches!!!!!!!!!
_______________________________________Rick........
Allways thought "scraping pots" were an inferior way to apply resistance within a 'range'.
We have all slid a volume open on someones unknown gear only to hear a scratchy amp killing pop...rip sound...if it was bad enough your amp pegged & switched off you speakers.....It was BAD.
Now when the stepped ATT arrived..............you world was silent........given we are trying to achieve the highest standrads of design, materials,quality builds, Chassis as Art..........et.al.
Say no to "scrapers" & embrace switches!!!!!!!!!
_______________________________________Rick........
Attachments
69CamaroSS396 said:
I couldn't say whether it is suitable or not. I've used the three dollar pots in several of my amps, and I've been happy with them. Then again, I've never known anything better. It's like the dog. Every night he gets excited to receive another bowl of dog food. If only someone would tell him that he could have been eating steak all these years.
Other than the fact that a $30 pot is one order of magnitude more expensive than a $3 pot, I'm not trying to suggest anything. I hope I didn't imply otherwise. I'd like to know from someone with more experience than myself whether they think it's worth the price. If they do, maybe I ought to try one for myself someday and draw my own conclusions.
Ain't that the truth. 🙂
Ty,
While PEC controls are not inexpensive, I suggest you compare the cost to DACT or other good stepped attenuators. Then, they seem like "Bargain Basement". Add warm, as opposed to icy cold, sound into the equation and the value grows.
Richard,
I appreciate your dislike of noisy controls. The PEC stuff is made like the proverbial brick outhouse. Ask Eddie Vaughn about PEC controls here or here. Send Steve Eddy and/or Jim McShane an EMail to get other opinions about PEC controls. There are any number of folks who hold PEC in the highest regard. 😀
While PEC controls are not inexpensive, I suggest you compare the cost to DACT or other good stepped attenuators. Then, they seem like "Bargain Basement". Add warm, as opposed to icy cold, sound into the equation and the value grows.
Richard,
I appreciate your dislike of noisy controls. The PEC stuff is made like the proverbial brick outhouse. Ask Eddie Vaughn about PEC controls here or here. Send Steve Eddy and/or Jim McShane an EMail to get other opinions about PEC controls. There are any number of folks who hold PEC in the highest regard. 😀
I've thought for more than a few years that the initial cost of an item is only a small part of its long range expense to the user.
One thing you can use is 12 way Lorlin switches, MBB. Use them as a shunt 100k volume conrol with a 5k resistor in each leg for balanced operation. Works SE as well. Quality is as good as your resistors. I use Holco or Dale. Job done. I find 12 ways enough. One per channel
TKD pricing is about double the PEC controls, but again, the definition of reaonsable was covered above. TKD offer a balance control which I've not found in the PEC listings. In any case both are very well made and should last a lifetime if not abused.
I prefer a stepped attenuator. The main reason is accuracy, specifically channel balance. This is one area where very few logarithmic potentiometers do well. The PEC ones are either 10% or 20% tolerance but there seems no specification for tolerance against the log curve or matching between sections, the latter being most important.
I don't select components for warm versus icy-cold sound. I've not found a good stepped attenuator to chill music. I try to get accurate reproduction, not added flavoring, but that's a personal choice as well. To each their own.
Regards, KM
I prefer a stepped attenuator. The main reason is accuracy, specifically channel balance. This is one area where very few logarithmic potentiometers do well. The PEC ones are either 10% or 20% tolerance but there seems no specification for tolerance against the log curve or matching between sections, the latter being most important.
I don't select components for warm versus icy-cold sound. I've not found a good stepped attenuator to chill music. I try to get accurate reproduction, not added flavoring, but that's a personal choice as well. To each their own.
Regards, KM
Eli Duttman said:
I have in my hand two pieces of Radio Shack part number 271-1732 (100K audio taper dual gang pot).
The shell is stamped "ALPS Japan"
I have them in my hand as they have not yet been installed, but will be shortly. I'd heard only good things about this $3 part, albeit little of that even, so I thought I'd give it a turn.
I've used various volume controls in my preamps/amps - Alpha, budget Ebay 'ALPS' pots, Noble, Goldpoint stepped and PEC pots.
The PEC stuff is very very good for the money - I used a pair of 100k log taper from Digikey on my latest monoblocks and they have worked flawlessly.
The Goldpoint was expensive (over $100 if I remember correctly) and had excellent channel matching as to be expected.
The PEC stuff is very very good for the money - I used a pair of 100k log taper from Digikey on my latest monoblocks and they have worked flawlessly.
The Goldpoint was expensive (over $100 if I remember correctly) and had excellent channel matching as to be expected.
I use PEC pots as well. Here are some kind words about the PEC pots from a long comparison by Peter Daniel.
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=40676&highlight=
These guys used to love PEC too, until they introduced their SMT stepped attenuator for $70 (maybe shipping from Canada to HK became too inefficient). Their 50K (custom 2% tracking) and 100K PECs are on sale for $10.
http://www.diyhifisupply.com/?q=catalog/56/clearance_products
If you decide to go the stepped route, check out their $70 unit. They also sell some really nice switches if you want to get fancy.
pj
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=40676&highlight=
These guys used to love PEC too, until they introduced their SMT stepped attenuator for $70 (maybe shipping from Canada to HK became too inefficient). Their 50K (custom 2% tracking) and 100K PECs are on sale for $10.
http://www.diyhifisupply.com/?q=catalog/56/clearance_products
If you decide to go the stepped route, check out their $70 unit. They also sell some really nice switches if you want to get fancy.
pj
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