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Post by MikeMusic on Jan 24, 2015 21:35:05 GMT
Too much information !  The one that sums it up for me well is Last edited by Golden_Boy; 06-12-2012 at 05:12 PM Where we also have a 'branch' ! |
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Post by MartinT on Jan 25, 2015 23:09:31 GMT
Came home today, put a CD in to play, silence. Quick scan of input, player display etc., it all seems fine, other inputs working, Ayre display counting the seconds, but no sound. Try the soft-off to reset the player, still nothing. Notice from flashing clock in the kitchen that the power had glitched. Finally try removing all power from the Ayre by pulling the plug and firing it up again. Sound at last!
It must have not completed a power-up sequence properly from the brown-out and even the soft-off wouldn't reset it. Never seen that happen before.
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Post by ChrisB on Jan 25, 2015 23:19:50 GMT
Ooh that's scary! A big investment in a new CD player comes flashing past your eyes when things like that start to happen.
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Post by MartinT on Jan 25, 2015 23:28:02 GMT
It did, rather!  |
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Post by ChrisB on Jan 25, 2015 23:34:41 GMT
I can't imagine what I'd do if I had to replace my CD player tomorrow - I haven't a clue about the market any more and I don't have the cash to spend on another one of the calibre of my Accuphase!
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Post by MartinT on Jan 26, 2015 9:52:49 GMT
Me too, I'd end up looking for another used Ayre.
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Post by MartinT on Apr 1, 2015 16:19:05 GMT
Been a bit quiet of late due to work pressures over the Easter break and going away for a short city break.
I've been listening to a lot of Spotify & Web Radio of late, discovering new music and other people's recommendations. I've never enjoyed it as much as I am at the moment. My current combination of Raspberry Pi 2, Digi+, Beresford optical cable, Caiman-II, V100 cpu/firmware and Volumio 1.55 with Buscia profile are cutting the sonic mustard.
Little tweaking, much listening!
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Post by John on Apr 1, 2015 16:30:48 GMT
That is always a good place to be
I am also at a similar point
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Post by MartinT on Apr 9, 2015 12:29:15 GMT
Tightening Up the Speaker DriversThought I'd make myself useful by tightening up my Ushers' speaker drivers. The tweeters and mids I'd already done once before (I'd had to replace the tweeters when my son damaged them), but the bass drivers I had never gained access to in the six years I've owned the speakers. A 3mm hex key sorted out the tweeters and mids, each requiring only a small additional tightening. Diligent use of a credit card prised out the tight fitting round bass grills without damage to the beautiful finish. Inside I found that the drivers are secured with all-in-one bolts which are also grill cover mounts, complete with a rather small 4mm hex end for tightening (see one bolt loosened in the photo below). So, out with the socket set and I found them all to be rather loose. I added a careful half-turn to each bolt for all 24 of them (four woofers).  First impressions are a slight tightening up of the bass and imaging focus, it may be my imagination but I perceive not. It's always worth performing this exercise every few years.
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Post by ChrisB on Apr 9, 2015 13:57:58 GMT
Having everything nipped up tight has got to help.
I trust you're using Torque Electronics Torque 3 speaker cable?!
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Post by MartinT on Apr 9, 2015 14:05:12 GMT
Hah! I don't have a torque wrench so I did it by feel, taking great care not to overdo it. I will be seeing Torque Developments next week, but that'll be for the car  |
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Post by ChrisB on Apr 9, 2015 14:08:13 GMT
He-heh!
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Post by MartinT on Jun 6, 2015 6:47:00 GMT
A bit of history (about 20 years)...  Roksan Xerxes/SME IV/AT OC9/EAR 834P phono stage, Pass Labs X2 preamp (all out of view), Leak Stereo 20 (mid/treble), Croft 4S (bass), IPL S5TL speakers. |
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Post by John on Jun 6, 2015 8:47:00 GMT
Did you build the speakers Martin I was tempted to get a pair before I discovered Open Baffles
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Post by MartinT on Jun 6, 2015 10:35:58 GMT
My Dad built the cabinets and I constructed them thereon and finished them.
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Post by Sovereign on Jun 6, 2015 10:39:21 GMT
Looks good, I don't think I have any pictures of early systems, only of the last seven years or so which is a great shame.
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Post by MartinT on Jun 6, 2015 13:00:06 GMT
The core of everything in my current system began with that Pass preamp. It taught me that preamps are so important and define many key performance characteristics. Rigid control of the power amp being one of them, balanced operation being another. I'm on my third Pass now, and not likely to change except for the next model up. The XP-20 is still central to how my system sounds.
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Post by julesd68 on Jun 6, 2015 13:02:18 GMT
You know what Martin, I would have loved to have heard your Xerxes / Stereo 20 system with your current Usher speakers - that would be interesting!
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Post by MartinT on Jun 6, 2015 20:42:54 GMT
Jules, I sold my Stereo 20 only a few months ago, and hooked it up to the Ushers just to have a final listen and prove to the buyer that it worked. I played some Nina Simone and, within its power envelope, it had the most wonderful, liquid midrange known to man. Simply superb vocal reproduction.
(I had performed the HFW mod to the Stereo 20 to change the biasing of the phase splitter and direct couple it from the primary stage, swapping the ECC83 to a more linear ECC82 and reducing the gain. I also swapped the reservoir cap for a big polypropylene and had recapped the rest of the amp. It had an utterly stunning sound.)
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Post by MartinT on Jun 10, 2015 8:57:43 GMT
How I Arrived at my Preamp
I thought I would go through my main system components, explaining why I chose the equipment I am running, what came before etc.
In my view, the preamp is THE key component in a system, amplifying and controlling the small line level signals while preserving their integrity and driving the power amplifier with sufficiently low output impedance to keep noise and induced interference at bay. After deciding to replace a lot of my self-built equipment a long time ago, I started with a Croft SIP (Stereo Integrated Preamp) bought from Audio T, a rather nice and rare valve preamp with an MC phono stage. It sounded very good although there is some hiss, especially with the MC input. However, it was the start of my journey with preamps as the core of the system. I still have it gathering dust in the garage, it would be great to find a good home for it!
After the Croft, I had a foray into passive use, trying out various volume pots in different configurations and making up a great system loom to eradicate connectors at the control unit (a passive unit cannot be a preamp as there is no amplification, I detest the use of the silly nomenclature 'passive preamp'). I was never completely happy with the outcome of running the system in passive mode, it always lacked dynamics and slam as it doesn't drive most power amps very well (the Leak Stereo 20 was an exception). There is also greater risk of noise and some quality changes as the position of the volume control determines the output impedance.
So the big moment in my preamp journey came when I purchased a Pass Labs X2 from Sounds of Music. Following electronics keenly, I knew of Nelson Pass's reputation for elegant circuits and jumped on the chance to buy an ex-demo unit cheaply. This one-box unit gave me my first feel of balanced operation, with one balanced input set and balanced outputs. I could only run the balanced inputs from my Assemblage DAC, but it was a start and even at the time I intended to run my system fully balanced as much as possible, especially with a future power amp in mind. The X2 gave me much respect for Pass, but it had two issues: 1) no remote control and 2) it suffered from some hiss at high volumes.
At various times, I tried preamps from Krell, BAT and a couple of others in my system and didn't really get on with any of them. All just line level preamps, a few gain stages and no signal processing. How hard could it be, right? Obviously, very much harder than we imagine.
After some time I loaned a Pass Labs X1 preamp from John Jeffries of Sounds of Music, a two-box affair with separate power supplies and a chunky remote, connected with a 25-way D cable. Now we were talking! With very much lower levels of hiss and greatly improved transparency, this was a significant step up the performance ladder and gave my system its first taste of the high end. Beautifully elegant, with virtually no sound of its own, it featured more balanced inputs and two sets of outputs. I bought it and sold the X2 on eBay to a chap in New Zealand!
More recently, I was chatting with Stephen of Select Audio and became interested in the latest top of the range Pass preamp, the XP-20. It had received many plaudits for sound quality so I felt the need to try one. After slotting it into my system, I called Stephen and told him he was not having it back! Now the two-box finish is even chunkier, giving the impression of superb shielding, the remote is a machined aluminium beauty, noise is vanishingly small (I never hear any at listening levels)and transparency has gone further up the scale. I also notice the very potent bass end, significantly driving the Chord power amp in a vice-like grip down to subterranean frequencies. The display is more legible from a distance and the remote very comprehensive.
The final upgrade was to replace the standard supplied D cable between power supply and main preamp with a Revelation Audio Passage silver cable, which gave further small benefits in transparency and detail.
 
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