What is the most affordable decent amp for the akg k1000?
Feb 28, 2006 at 2:59 PM Post #46 of 56
Quote:

Originally Posted by mourip
I have been using a modified SI T-Amp for about 6 months. I have been very happy with it running my K1000s. Based upon this experience and with my enjoyment of DIY I decided to try another Tripath kit which would give me a bit more power and allow me to upgrade parts more easily, especially the input capacitors which on the SI are too small a value and very hard to replace without trashing the board.

I chose a kit from Audiodigit which is sold through Autocostruire in Italy. http://www.autocostruire.it. A similar kit is available from www.diyparadise.com and gets very good marks on the Class D forum at www.diyadio.com.

The short version is that this thing is remarkable: tons of detail, a rich midrange, and way more quality bass than I thought that the K1000s could produce. The only changes I have made to the circuit so far were to replace the input caps with some polypropylenes that I had on hand and to replace the on-board power supply caps with some Blackgates. I have the amp running on a sealed lead acid battery right now but I have an SMPS power supply coming to try out.

Hanging out in the Class D forum has also gotten me interested in the Hypex UCD amp modules which can be obtained through DIYcable.com. The modules produce well over 100 watts of very refined and quiet Class D power. Supposedly they are even better sounding than the Tripath amps and do not have the problem of rising high end response as impedance rises. This rising high end is why it is a good idea to put a ~5 ohm-5 watt resistor accross each output to give the amp a more "normal" load. These UCD amps also allow you to wire the outputs into a normal headphone jack because they do not float their output ground above zero like the Tripath amps.

The two T-Amp stereo kits are each under a hundred dollars. The UCD kits start at $80 for a single channel. You will still need power supplies, case, connectors etc.

If you are inclined toward DIY things are looking pretty great for K1000s. I will post again after I get the Hypex amp built

Best,

Paul

k1000smile.gif



I have a few Tripath based amps.Two Sonic T-amps (one is modded, one is stock) and the Audiodigit amp from Autocostruire you've mentioned.
One of the Sonic T-amps died after a few weeks.
All of the Tripath amps do provide a nasty DC offset at least on one channel.
The two surviving amps measure:
0.4 mV/60.4 mV (stock Sonic T)
0.2 mV/55.4 mV (Audiodigit T 2020)
More than 50 mV isn't exactly what I'd call acceptable for a headphone amp.
I'm done with Tripath.
 
Feb 28, 2006 at 3:09 PM Post #47 of 56
Quote:

Originally Posted by RnB180
topic.

affordable, meaning budget low cost solution that still sounds good
smily_headphones1.gif

is it the t-amp? would a stereo receiver speaker binding posts work?


Firestone's Big Joe ?
 
Feb 28, 2006 at 3:53 PM Post #48 of 56
Quote:

Originally Posted by cosmopragma
I have a few Tripath based amps.Two Sonic T-amps (one is modded, one is stock) and the Audiodigit amp from Autocostruire you've mentioned.
One of the Sonic T-amps died after a few weeks.
All of the Tripath amps do provide a nasty DC offset at least on one channel.
The two surviving amps measure:
0.4 mV/60.4 mV (stock Sonic T)
0.2 mV/55.4 mV (Audiodigit T 2020)
More than 50 mV isn't exactly what I'd call acceptable for a headphone amp.
I'm done with Tripath.


EDIT: More thread relevant question

Is DC offset common with power amplifiers? If it is, wasn't the k1k designed to work with power amplifiers?
 
Feb 28, 2006 at 4:39 PM Post #49 of 56
Quote:

Originally Posted by tkam
My PrimaLuna Prologue One drives the K1000's very well



Seconded .... this amp/ headphone pairing was my favorite over all the other great gear at the Cincinnati meet.
k1000smile.gif
 
Mar 1, 2006 at 4:52 AM Post #50 of 56
I think this may be a sore spot for you but here goes. I have a Timester T200 ordered DIRECT from an associate IN CHINA that arrived double boxed in perfect condition. I am testing it with a home pair of Infinity Ovetures and Audio Technica W1000s. The Infinity's are in a room 25 by 32 with 13 foot cielings and they fill the room well. Of course I listen to accoustical jazz and not ZZ Top but they perform well. I think for $230 delivered to So Cal the sound is great, open and at this price point is a good value. If you want you can demo them at the next So Cal meet in August.
 
Mar 1, 2006 at 5:23 AM Post #51 of 56
You could look for a Cayin TA-30 on audiogon. Some of these had a "focus control" mod installed by Paul Grzybek. Don't hesitate to grab one of these, it's feature that would be nice to have with the K-1000's. Basically it worked as a level control for the treble to control brightness (worked in a smaller window than an actual tone control) and worked quite well. I had one of these and it's a lot of amp for the money. You'll have to ditch the stock Chinese EL-34's though to hear what this amp can do. Svetlana's were good.

Here is a link to one (no affiliation):

http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls....ube&1144309693
 
Mar 1, 2006 at 5:55 AM Post #52 of 56
Prima Luna amps are made by Spark audio in China, whose prodcuts are branded Cayin in US. If integrated amps from both brands drive K1000, it is not by coincidence. My K1000 is driven by a Cayin single-ended EL84 headphone amp.
 
Mar 1, 2006 at 7:36 AM Post #53 of 56
A used Krell KAV-300i would be good if you plan to get a power cord for it later. If not, get the T-Amp.

They are the complete opposites so it depends on what kind of sound you're after. If you want warmth and bass and can sacrifice clarity and detail, then get the Krell. You can always improve the weaknesses later with power conditioning...
 
Jul 2, 2008 at 8:41 PM Post #55 of 56
Quote:

Originally Posted by alavan /img/forum/go_quote.gif
How much power per channel does it take to push a K1000？


It don't require a high wattage power amplifier.
As an example I know that 'Afrikane' drive his K1000 to ultimate pleasure with just 8 watts per channel. An Air Tight ATM-300 to be specific.
 
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