Back when the MAX mod was being implemented in earnest (starting with the I/O wiring and then the PSU rebuild) I had set aside a matched set of K42 (1.0uf) K40 (.033uf) PIO caps for use in the PSU section to replace the 4 Solen 1.0uf 630V film caps......when I rebuilt the PSU I hummed and hawed about replacing the Solens since I could not really see the advantage of swapping them (at that time even though I had originally planned to swap them). In any event fast forward 6 months or so to last Thursday...I went ahead and installed the matched quad (it's a network of 1 K42 1.0uf + 1 K40 .033uf x 4) which required a method called tomb stoning to get the them to fit in the space left behind by the vacated Solen MKP's. The network needed one lead extended to reach the the other pad so instead of splicing a short section of wire to make up the difference I took a small section just after the K40 join point and used a section of Legenberg 22 AWG copper hook up. It looks cool and worked quite well. The hard part is tomb stoning the other end of the cap network since I did not pull the PSU board for this job. The solution is rather novel...leave a 1/4 inch section of lead attached to the one end just after the K40 bypass cap join and bend it at a 30 degree angle then insert it into the pad...that angle gives just enough room for the solder iron tip and the solder...solder the pad/leads as normal pull the iron and while the solder is still liquid move the cap network into position...you have to work quickly but it can be done. Beats pulling the PCB for 4 solder points and the end result is pretty much identical.
 
The Legenberg copper needs to be trimmed a little at the end to fit the other through hole pad ( I nib off a small sliver at an angle until it slides in an 1/8 in). As I was saying earlier I had some reservation about the veracity of this mod but hearing is believing....there is no doubt about it there is clear improvement over the Solens much to my amazement. I do have a certain disdain for Solen caps in general and this little mod only cements that position further in my mind. I literally have spent the last 4 days or so spinning one disc after another enjoying this latest tuner change with glee. Is it a night and day difference ? Not at all, is it a nice little improvement ? Absolutely positively. The moral of this story is simply for my own future reference....if I set aside parts for a job go though with it without hesitation is the lesson. The cap network I spent a fair amount of time on to match all 8 caps as closely as possible they measure within .02% of each other ...why I didn't swap these in during the original PSU rebuild...well I guess this way I find out what that specific change brings rather than having no idea how much it contributed to the work previously...I suppose that's a positive reason for delaying the swap. Needless to say the 2  Solen MKP .1uf 630V caps under the DSP-1 board in the RE1 will now be swapped for a matched set of K42/T-1's ( 0.1uf 160V/820 pf 200V Teflon) as soon as I can get a set measured and matched for it. Sorry no pics this time around.
 
Peete.

I am selling mine if anyone is interested- PM me.

 

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tim3320070 said:

I am selling mine if anyone is interested- PM me.

 

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Tim!  Say it ain't so!

Today I moved my Phoenix home and listen to it as a preamp the very first time.  I was very happy with the result: the same openness, driving with ease, and well focused soundstage that I am familiar using headphone also showed up in my speaker set.  I haven't been super impressed with my humble speaker setup in the past when it was driven with CSP2, but they starts to sound quite interesting now.
 
One thing I wasn't happy about was that I can only use volume setting of about 1/77 to 2/77 for my near-field listening.  My power amp is NAD 216 THX and speaker is Monitor Audio BR3.  The good efficiency, balanced high input, and near-field combination may be the reason.  And I tried not to switch to 99-steps mode for personal preference reason.

I have one of the first batch of Phoenix preamps and just today have experienced some major problems.  When I turned it on today I wasn't getting any sound using any input/output combination.  After playing around with it for 5 minutes it finally kicked in and worked for a while.  After playing sound for about 30 minutes it suddenly cut out again.  None of the inputs or output combinations produce any sound again.  I've tried both the headphone outputs and the speaker outputs and it's dead silent at all volume levels.  I've tried the various debug options for the volume control/memory and there is no change.  I've tried power cycling the Phoenix, and reconnecting all of the power cables and no change.
 
Has anyone else ever had this problem with a Phoenix or any other Audio-gd preamp?  Anyone have any suggestions on how to fix it?  I definitely haven't hooked it up wrong since one second it was working and the next it wasn't, without me having done anything.  The display still works as do the volume and input controls, but no sound on any setting.  Help!

Does the preamp switch work properly? The first 10 made had bad caps in the switching circuit which eventually flake out.

It switches in the sense that the display shows it changing inputs, but it's not clear if it's actually switching inputs.  When I turn it off and turn it on again, it doesn't always remember which input I set it it to.  None of the inputs seem to work anyway.  Shipping this back to China for repairs is going to really suck.  Is there anyone who can repair it in Canada or the US?

With the preamp button OFF, does the blue light above it glow? It should only light when the pre-amp button is depressed (on).
 
When you switch inputs, you'll hear a distinct click from the relays.

I hear the relays clicking when changing inputs.  It sounds the same as when I change the volume. 
 
With the preamp button off, the blue light above the preamp button is still on, but not as bright as when the button is pressed. 

I had some problems with no sound coming from my Phoenix a while back. It would happen everytime I disconnected the wiring to move the unit to a different location. The preamp light was acting the way you described. The relays however weren't clicking while the problem was happening. Kingwa sent me a new data cable and that fixed it completely. I don't know if it was the same issue as what your experiencing, but it may be worth a shot......

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mik said:

I hear the relays clicking when changing inputs.  It sounds the same as when I change the volume. 
 
With the preamp button off, the blue light above the preamp button is still on, but not as bright as when the button is pressed. 

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I think you have the cap problem, going by your statement that you have one of the originals. It requires two capacitors (one for each channel) to be replaced.

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currawong said:

I think you have the cap problem, going by your statement that you have one of the originals. It requires two capacitors (one for each channel) to be replaced.

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How difficult is it to replace the capacitors if I only have limited soldering experience?  I have emailed audio-gd/Kingwa to see what he advises.
 
 

In case anyone else gets this problem later, I may as well post about how the diagnosing/repairs go.  Kingwa told me to solder two points together with wire for each channel.  Luckily I still had a soldering iron, solder, and a bit of wire from 10 years ago used only once.  I managed to solder it, and on his direction, hooked up my Phoenix again.  It now produces sound again and the preamp button works, but it makes the loudest BOOM noise out of my speakers when I turn it on.  Same thing out of my headphones when set to the headphone input.  I'm a bit concerned it will damage my speakers by doing that.  Following up with him about that now.

I found replacing the caps fiddly, because there is a wire soldered across that area. Other than that, taking the case apart was more tedious. Of the original 10, I think between a few of us, we've help fix or get fixed 8 or 9 of them, so you are possibly the last.

 
Quote:

currawong said:

I found replacing the caps fiddly, because there is a wire soldered across that area. Other than that, taking the case apart was more tedious. Of the original 10, I think between a few of us, we've help fix or get fixed 8 or 9 of them, so you are possibly the last.

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Being a total novice, it's probably best if I don't attempt the soldering myself then.  Kingwa is trying to work out something for me now to get the capacitors replaced.  Very nice of you and others to assist with the repairs. 
 
It's kind of funny since Kingwa is halfway around the world from me, but this is so far the most pleasant customer service experience I've had dealing with an electronics company.  Now if only he could make a surround preamp/processor so I wouldn't have to deal with Denon issues anymore.