Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Headphone Amps (full-size) › Darkvoice 336i
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Darkvoice 336i - Page 2

post #16 of 92
11/3/07 at 6:58pm
Thread Starter 
It helps very much, Nick. Thanks for the advice.

I was just a bit jazzed about something new making noise.

For the price, it's a keeper either way, nor am I afraid of a soldering iron!

For now, I'll let her burn and keep you posted.

Thanks for your time,
Chris
Reply

Head-Fi's Best Sellers

post #17 of 92
11/3/07 at 7:03pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by SoFlaChris View Post
It helps very much, Nick. Thanks for the advice.

I was just a bit jazzed about something new making noise.

For the price, it's a keeper either way, nor am I afraid of a soldering iron!

For now, I'll let her burn and keep you posted.

Thanks for your time,
Chris

No problem Chris. I questioned this as well.. I got responses saying "just give it more "burn-in" time you'll be set..." and sure enough I am. "Hum" is gone in all problematic tubes with some hours logged on them. Like I said, tonight, it may be gone, or it may be until next week until your problem is gone.


This is the best way to approach it. Isolate the problem, then if you STILL have these nosie problems, and it's not improving at all after 24 hours, I would make a post. I don't know much about these amps (the insides) however I do know the extended "burn-in" period worked for me. Hopefully this is all you need to solve your "noise" problems. It would be a bummer to have to send it back to China.




Good luck Chris..



-Nick
Reply
post #18 of 92
11/3/07 at 7:17pm
I got hum with a lot of tubes with my 336i. But some tubes were worse than others. Some RCA's I had were the best, but still weren't completely silent. I'd suggest trying out various tubes, get some on ebay for cheap.
Reply
post #19 of 92
11/3/07 at 7:28pm
Hey SoFlaChris

I hope I didnt make you think your amp has a problem, I'm sure the DV336i amps are fine, given the many happy users here
The reason for my asking is that lower impedance headphones like Grados, or Audio Technicas dont do as good a job of eliminating that little bit of audible hum, in comparison to higher impedance headphones.
I dont think there is anything to worry about however, like Nick already mentioned, your amp and tubes will settle in over the next few days and it will be interesting to see if you can still hear any noise with the Grados.

Even if you do have persistant hum with your amp, there are various measures you could try, like trying different tubes, adding some impedance by using an adaptor, or you can PM the user Fitz, who performs some mods to the 336i.

Keep us posted
Reply
post #20 of 92
11/3/07 at 7:35pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by musicmind View Post
Hey SoFlaChris

I hope I didnt make you think your amp has a problem, I'm sure the DV336i amps are fine, given the many happy users here
The reason for my asking is that lower impedance headphones like Grados, or Audio Technicas dont do as good a job of eliminating that little bit of audible hum, in comparison to higher impedance headphones.
I dont think there is anything to worry about however, like Nick already mentioned, your amp and tubes will settle in over the next few days and it will be interesting to see if you can still hear any noise with the Grados.

Even if you do have persistant hum with your amp, there are various measures you can take, like trying different tubes, adding some impedance bu using an adaptor, or you can PM the user Fitz, who performs some mods to the 336i.

Keep us posted

Trying new tubes will further improve the sound on these amps. The stock tubes, especially the front (6SN7) aren't of good quality, and should be replaced latter down the line. The rear (6AS7) is decent, but is recommend to swap out both.


I will agree, somewhat with the assumption that the lower imdependance HP's allow the user to "hear" more of the "noise". I have a tube that has very slight hum, and is much more noticeable in the Grado's than my RP21's. But it doesn't bother me because they sound so nice. And the "hum" is only at the end of the song, and doesn't effect the overall sound.
Reply
post #21 of 92
11/3/07 at 7:51pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks, guys. Good counsel that I will heed.

BTW, I have 2 old tube cases in the garage. Who knows what I'll find!

I'll keep you posted.

Best,
Chris
Reply
post #22 of 92
11/3/07 at 8:21pm
Put some bypass caps on the 6SN7's cathode resistor...
Reply
post #23 of 92
11/3/07 at 9:19pm
First and foremost, run the tubes in for 24-48 hours as has been suggested above. Then come back and report to us.
Reply
post #24 of 92
11/5/07 at 12:01pm
Thread Starter 
12 hour update: The hum in the left channel is gone. Just like you guys said. Maybe I'll listen a bit more, and do some rolling to tweak the sound.

Chris
Reply
post #25 of 92
11/5/07 at 2:33pm
Skylab,

I have been toying with the idea of buying a Darkvoice 336i as my home amp, after I bought some eBay tubes for my friend in Houston who is having some money trouble.

I am currently using an iBasso D1 as my bedside home amp and DAC, with rolled opamps - initially with the same chips that you reviewed, but now burning-in a pair of AD797 on a 2:1 adapter for LR, and the already burned-in AD8397 in the buffers (and a 6234 in the DAC).

Do you think the DV336i would be a good choice, or would you save the extra $250 for the Meier Cantata? I kinda like the Cantata looks, lack of heat, easy transportability, and performance reports of the DAC and crossfeed and balanced ground.

Or, would you say the D1 with rolled opamps would be better for me since I do use optical a lot? However, I do have a CD player with excellent line out (two Sony D-5 and D25s and D-303) that I could use instead of optical from D-EJ2000 or D-NE20 at the bedside - so I could use the Cantata's DAC only with my Macbook and not miss too much.
Reply
post #26 of 92
11/5/07 at 2:51pm
I think first you have to decide if you want to have a tube amp. Tube amps sound lovely, and the 336i has a very beguiling sound. There are ways in which the Cantate is the far superior sounding amp, but rare indeed is the SS amp that has the same beautiful midrange as a decent tube amp, IMO.

That said, tube amps can be a little fussier, require warm-up, don't generally like very low impedance headphones, and do generate some heat (although my Meier Opera generates almost as much heat as the DV 336i).

The kind of direct comparison you are asking for just isn't possible, IMO, except by you
Reply
post #27 of 92
11/5/07 at 4:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by SoFlaChris View Post
12 hour update: The hum in the left channel is gone. Just like you guys said. Maybe I'll listen a bit more, and do some rolling to tweak the sound.

Chris


Glad to hear we could be of help.
Reply
post #28 of 92
11/5/07 at 4:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skylab View Post
I think first you have to decide if you want to have a tube amp. Tube amps sound lovely, and the 336i has a very beguiling sound. There are ways in which the Cantate is the far superior sounding amp, but rare indeed is the SS amp that has the same beautiful midrange as a decent tube amp, IMO.

That said, tube amps can be a little fussier, require warm-up, don't generally like very low impedance headphones, and do generate some heat (although my Meier Opera generates almost as much heat as the DV 336i).

The kind of direct comparison you are asking for just isn't possible, IMO, except by you
Okay, I see what you mean.

I suppose for my first tube amp, staying with the DV336i would at least keep my losses down, and allow me to try for a sound I like at $10 a pop.

However, I do like SS and when I tried the "SS tube chip" setup in my iBasso D1 that HiFlight recommended, I wasn't all that hot for it (LMH6643 x2 buffers, and LTC6241HV in the LR).

I instead have recently settled on the AD797 in a 2:1 adapter for LR, and a pair of AD8397 in the buffers in my iBasso (LTC6234 in DAC). It seems I may have moved about as far away from tubes as I can? If so, then the Cantate might be better for me. I do really like my Meier Headsix, and was told the Cantate is more of the same good stuff.
Reply
post #29 of 92
11/5/07 at 4:48pm
Thread Starter 
I'm listening to it right now: Sweeeeet.

Been reading the 336i tube rolling thread. Slowly wading through the minutiae. Considering RCA 6SN7GTB black plates/RCA 6AS7G gray as a start.

Chris
Reply
post #30 of 92
11/5/07 at 5:02pm
Quote:
"SS tube chip"
This made me LOL. If there were such a thing, really, we'd have no tube amps anymore. Trust me, you cannot judge the sound of a real tube amp by listening to some wannabe op-amp
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Headphone Amps (full-size)

Head-Fi's Best Sellers

Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Headphone Amps (full-size) › Darkvoice 336i