gunning for a different kind of enemy

[stevieboy]

hi mahiruha,

was actually bout to write to you. you should do it after cleaning to remove static from the vacuum cycle. you also need to zap after play cos static builds up after play especially with acrylic platters. you can also take any lp lying around and zap it before play. works superb. little weird to use cos you've got no visible/audible feedback on how its working. you're just noiselessly depressing the trigger! it comes with a testing bulb that glows to indicate its working, better results are had by holding the bulb (which is in a plastic nozzle) against a water pipe. am extremely happy with it especially at the price i got it. :licklips:

no the other tweak is not the genetic experiments i'm doing

regards

 

[thekinge]

aha king! you will be quite happy with it overall i think. some loss of 'drive' i noticed on a couple of songs which seem to be mitigated slightly by the new powercord viren sent, overall worth it. tv picture improves too! do post how it goes!

no vinyl??? shucks we gotta convert you soon!!!

Hi Stevieboy, on a serious note, thanks to you for that thread that I learnt about power conditioners and hence my subsequent order for two power conditioners:thumbsup:

Will surely post my impressions after I receive them along with the Aviball wall brackets expected delivery by 6 or 7 June.

I am not too sure about Vinyl probably need to listen to your system to become a convert

 

[stevieboy]

propose to your system. works very dramatically. you'll hear silence then you'll be rewarded with music that seems to come out of nowhere. highly worthwhile tweak. trust me. pics to follow...

if someone cracks this it'll be something! hyeah:

 

[mahiruha]

Let me take a guess. It has to be the power cord. Or may be some exotic tweaks I have recently come across.

The Cartridge Man Cartridge Man Isolator - CMI

Cardas Signature RCA Caps (set of 4) | Analogue Seduction

Have fun.

 

[stevieboy]

well the cartridge man isolator is in the pipeline down the line. this is something you can definitely benefit from. will click and post pictures tonight

 

[Hiten]

propose to your system.

..... a vinyl stabilizing ring or something ???

 

[suri]

I GOT THIS! I GOT THIS!! I GOT THIS!!!!!!

: : : SOLIDTECH : : : Audio Products

 

[stevieboy]

suri, nopes. hehe i did say its not easy

hiten, so close yet so far away...

 

[Rajiv]

Hi Steven,


Tube dampers(rings) Steven.

Regards
Rajiv

 

[mahiruha]

Hi Steven,
is it the disc doctor liquid. I can't think of anything else which takes you to complete silence.
Thanks.

 

[Hiten]

Anti resonance ring mat ????

 

[stevieboy]

congrats to rajiv!



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these are prototypes of tube damping rings by viren. teflon white rounds on a steel ring, three to one ring. grips the tube solidly. the change? music sounds more solid, one can hear more and deeper into the music. this is one of the things that one thinks ok i've got to get these but well yeah what will these small things accomplish? lets wait some more. so totally worth getting! don't delay. am ordering a cheap set of dampers from ebay for the timebeing for the 45 tubes and rectifier tubes a seller called sandyphoto, link given courtesy rajiv.

http://cgi.ebay.com/TUBE-AMP-PREAMP...tronics_R2&hash=item563cf49351#ht_4803wt_1139

at that price worth getting RIGHT NOW! will explore herbies dampers later on.

if you've got a tube set up get a set of dampers and you'll wonder why you delayed so long. smooth, solid, more detail. what's not to like!

edit: mahiruha, put these on the mullards and you'll hear the absence of tube noise click and pops seem muted too... two lps sounded dead silent like cds, and that's a first for me! more than just an absence of clicks and pops, when you hear music with tube dampers on the tubes you realize just what 'tube noise' is.

this is one of those listen and no going back type of tweak.

 

[Hiten]

Congrats stevie. Good to know ring ceremony went very well.
I dont know the theory in detail but I have read about microphonics/vibration in tubes which affect sound quality. Some audiophiles put 2 rings per tube. Are there any good links to this tweak ? Just curious.
regds.

 

[Rajiv]

Hi Steven,


I see that you are using the Brimar 5Z4G rectifier in your phono stage.

Have you tried the GZ34,or any other rectifier in its place?

The dampers look a lot like the Herbies dampers,I must try them out in my system.

Regards
Rajiv

 

[stevieboy]

Congrats stevie. Good to know ring ceremony went very well.
I dont know the theory in detail but I have read about microphonics/vibration in tubes which affect sound quality. Some audiophiles put 2 rings per tube. Are there any good links to this tweak ? Just curious.
regds.

hi hiten,

there's the herbie's audio labs site and the link i gave above. most sites just mention tubes have glass envelopes that are prone to picking up vibration from the air and damping these help the signal flow through better. if i find some reading that is more specific i'll post a link. the link i've posted above recommends two rings per tube. herbies audio lab only one ring. but then both are different designs. i'd guess one ring would be more than enough. the current ones viren has made grip the tube pretty firmly and you can feel the grip it has on the tube. i'd say more than a tweak, it's an essential!

regards

edit: here found some links for you

http://www.duncanamps.com/technical/microphonic.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QM2qWZYbInI&feature=related

more likely in hi-fi you'll notice microphony after its gone hehe. i dare not tap my $$$ telefunkens like that!!!

 

[stevieboy]

Hi Steven,


I see that you are using the Brimar 5Z4G rectifier in your phono stage.

Have you tried the GZ34,or any other rectifier in its place?

The dampers look a lot like the Herbies dampers,I must try them out in my system.

Regards
Rajiv

hi rajiv,

yup tried the gz34s got an assortment mullard philips and one philips gz34 st shoulder shape. prefer the 5V/Z series rectifiers. more air and a more relaxed presentation. the GZ series are sharper, harder hitting more driving. now and then i pop a GZ in just for a change.

got a sylvania 5V4G for the SET amp. its a single plate rectifier and sounds quite good compared the the rca. more detail. wondering if the rca is old now and whether that's a factor. the tube needs to play a while though.. i'm gonna build a jewel box for all my tubes soon with velvet lining so access is easy for when i want to swap tubes.

viren's new power cord also brings a bit of improvement. so overall system is getting there... with the tube dampers on the gap between vinyl and cd is like the grand canyon now. though with the new cord and the sylvania tube cd sounds quite good through the airport express. at least good enough for me not to miss the wadia.

regarding the tube dampers on ebay, i'm trying them out lets see how they do...

regards

 

[Hiten]

Thanks steve.
Video was great. (Have you tried it ?)
~Wouldn't it help to use vibration less transformers or if one can isolate transformers ?
~I guess modern tube manufacturers would have thought about this, and made necessary chages, right ? like building more rigid valve etc.

i'm gonna build a jewel box for all my tubes soon with velvet lining so access is easy for when i want to swap tubes.

Good idea, I broke my Old radio valve while cleaning. (want to connect 78 speed TT with it and hear how it sounds).

 

[stevieboy]

hi hiten,

welcome yes i tried gently tapping the tube but couldn't hear anything. some people say one should not tap a tube as it might make things worse! bout the transformers i dunno. i guess more is picked up through air borne vibration. some modern manufacturers have good performing tubes when it comes to noise, i think the tungsol 12ax7s are one of them. personally i'd take a NOS tube any day. what valve does your old radio use? be3amplifiers in mumbai itself has some tubes... should be a good experiment! post how it goes!

by the way rajiv,
the sylvania is not a single plate the two plates are in a line not facing each other. not much bass though. that's the only drawback. otherwise its quite superb bringing out all the detail the rca misses. do you use the shoulder shape gz tube or the small bottle one? cos i think gz34s are bottle and gz32s are shoulder also.

regards

 

[Hiten]

what valve does your old radio use? be3amplifiers in mumbai itself has some tubes... should be a good experiment! post how it goes!
regards

Its 'EBF89' IF Detector and amplifier (Wonder what it means, "Intermediate Frequency" detector and amplifier ???).
Thanks for the 'be3amplifiers' link. They don't seem to have this particular valve. Will contact them tomorrow.