Hi, I'm itching to build a tube preamp! No more room in the Bottlehead crack for mods, it's stuffed, and while tube rolling is a fun sport it just doesn't scratch the build itch. I've been obsessing for longer than I'm comfortable admitting to and I've narrowed it down to two possible builds: transcendence masterpiece vs. tubes4hifi SP14. Not surprising they both claim to be dead quiet and capable of delivering sonic nirvana.
My current system:
Thorens td 203 with a Nagaoka mp150 cartridge
Boozhound Labs jfet phono stage (battery powered)
Emotiva BasXpt 150 preamp
Adcom GFA 5500
Klipsch r15m speakers
2 Klipsch r100sw subwoofers
and a rarely used Denon 2900
Botttlehead Crack with Speedball and lots of other mods.
Headphones of choice are Sennheiser HD650's
this year I will be replacing the Adcom with an Aleph J build and the r15m speakers with either Klipsch Fortes or klf20's.
My living room is 13.5'x18.5' with an open 9'x12' dining room attached forming an L.
The reason I've narrowed down to the 2 listed kits is mostly they support dual outputs (I like the two powered subs). I"m a confident builder but not really a circuit designer and no danger of becoming an engineer. I'd like to incorporate the phono stage into the preamp build. I did look at Pete Millet's Low Mu tube preamp as a more scratch build but his own description of how it sounds gave me pause. I'm open to suggestions, tubes only for the preamp please.
My current system:
Thorens td 203 with a Nagaoka mp150 cartridge
Boozhound Labs jfet phono stage (battery powered)
Emotiva BasXpt 150 preamp
Adcom GFA 5500
Klipsch r15m speakers
2 Klipsch r100sw subwoofers
and a rarely used Denon 2900
Botttlehead Crack with Speedball and lots of other mods.
Headphones of choice are Sennheiser HD650's
this year I will be replacing the Adcom with an Aleph J build and the r15m speakers with either Klipsch Fortes or klf20's.
My living room is 13.5'x18.5' with an open 9'x12' dining room attached forming an L.
The reason I've narrowed down to the 2 listed kits is mostly they support dual outputs (I like the two powered subs). I"m a confident builder but not really a circuit designer and no danger of becoming an engineer. I'd like to incorporate the phono stage into the preamp build. I did look at Pete Millet's Low Mu tube preamp as a more scratch build but his own description of how it sounds gave me pause. I'm open to suggestions, tubes only for the preamp please.
What about the BeePre?
The Alpha J should not be a problem for any of these preamps to drive. It has a 240k ohm input impedance and 20db of gain. The Adcom should work okay with these preamps, but with 29db of gain is a lot. The gain of the SP14 has the highest gain and will be be a little more sensitive to changes of the volume.
I’m using the SP14 with a FW M2C and it is a great match.
I have not heard any other FW amps, but I think that most of the FW amps match up well with tube preamps based on specs.
The Alpha J should not be a problem for any of these preamps to drive. It has a 240k ohm input impedance and 20db of gain. The Adcom should work okay with these preamps, but with 29db of gain is a lot. The gain of the SP14 has the highest gain and will be be a little more sensitive to changes of the volume.
I’m using the SP14 with a FW M2C and it is a great match.
I have not heard any other FW amps, but I think that most of the FW amps match up well with tube preamps based on specs.
I did build the SP14. I did not use the Tube4hifi chassis. I had one made by Landfall Systems with the tubes coming out of the top. I used film caps in the B+ power supply and Audyn True Copper Cap 1.0uF on one of the outputs. I did not build it with a tape monitor. Also, I used the eBay DACT attenuators. I have used them in the past for othe projects and have found them to be a great bang for the buck. The only reason I would get something else is to have additional steps, but with the M2C it is not a problem.
I use vinyl and digital. My vinyl is a Shure M97xE JICO SAS stylus, Thorens TD 125 MkII, and Bottlehead Eros with 6BR7 tubes. Digital is JRiver into a iFi Mini DAC2. I’m powering the DAC with a regulated power supply.
I use vinyl and digital. My vinyl is a Shure M97xE JICO SAS stylus, Thorens TD 125 MkII, and Bottlehead Eros with 6BR7 tubes. Digital is JRiver into a iFi Mini DAC2. I’m powering the DAC with a regulated power supply.
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I've scratch built many of Brice's designs...I mainly use the Masterpiece for late night headphone sessions, antsy to add the Soekris DAM1921 to the mix.
I use his phono with a passive pre and enjoy it more than the latest Yggy.
Most impressive part of Bruce's designs is they don't require fancy parts or tubes. He recently changed his faceplates...so you'll want a different one.
-RPM3 with Blue Point #2
-Yggy with Audirvana
-Masterpiece used with Final Audio F7200 (currently DAC Magic)
Previously used with OTL Son of a Beast (no room in new house); this was the most realistic female vocals I've ever heard...of a 10' tall woman singing to me is realistic, ha!
I use his phono with a passive pre and enjoy it more than the latest Yggy.
Most impressive part of Bruce's designs is they don't require fancy parts or tubes. He recently changed his faceplates...so you'll want a different one.
-RPM3 with Blue Point #2
-Yggy with Audirvana
-Masterpiece used with Final Audio F7200 (currently DAC Magic)
Previously used with OTL Son of a Beast (no room in new house); this was the most realistic female vocals I've ever heard...of a 10' tall woman singing to me is realistic, ha!
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Jeffreyjuice,
Thank you. I had Landfall Systems fabricate the chassis for me.
Brad
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