Quote: Originally Posted by Ferrari To drive the analogue VU meters, I used the driver circuit as depicted below. Thank you for the details, I finally had the time to experiment a bit with the VU meters I scavenged from the dumpster, and this circuit seems very suitable for them. =)

Beautiful work, Ferrari. May I ask what kind of a circuit did you use for those analogue VU meters and where in the SOHA II's did you hook it up? I recently scavenged some vintage VU meters from an old tape deck someone was throwing away and I've been thinking of using them in a DIY project...

As for the zeners and noise, here's a bit more on my experiments with them: When I first built the amp, I tried both the resistors and Fairchild 1N5248B zeners. I couldn't detect any difference between them, so I left the zeners in. Recently I tried tampering with the tail current (with...

If an amp has “tubey warmth”, is it still transparent/neutral? =) I'm not trying to nitpick or anything, I just find it funny because I personally choose to use a tube amp because I don't want a truly “neutral” set-up (instead preferring the tubey warmth). That said, if you're into DIY, the...

If you run both cables, the subwoofer takes the bass from both the left and the right channels (even though it doesn't do stereo playback by itself). So, like iriverdude said above, you'd miss out on any bass signals that were present only on one side. Then again, if your amplifier has a...

Quote: Originally Posted by wolf18t Thank Arkku, I'll check if Digikey carry them. Did you experiment with the tail current to see if it change the sound somewhat? No, I haven't really experimented with the tail current setting, as I'm not sure of the possible benefits. It sounds...

I'm probably going to recable mine, simply because I prefer a separate cord on each side, instead of just one on the left. I also find the stock cable a bit too long (it gets tangled up on the floor). Not sure yet what cable I should use for the modification, though, since I just put the rest of...

Quote: Originally Posted by wolf18t Anybody tried some zeners yet? Were they noisy and, if not, what brand did you use? I have zeners installed in my amp, they are Fairchild Semiconductor 1N5248B's (Mouser 512-1N5248B). When I was building the amp, I asked here about the zeners...

Quote: Originally Posted by scompton Get the pleather pads if you get new pads. IMO the only reasons to get new pads is if the old pads are cracked or so flat you can't get a good seal. Alright, I guess I'll go for new pleather pads then. The ones I have are still manageable, but...

Regarding the loose elastics, I came up with a cheap DIY solution which works very well for me: I wrapped some thicker elastic chord around the protruding part on the earcups and the attachment point for the old elastics. It seems to stay put rather well, and doesn't even strike me as too ugly...

I've had my K-601s for a couple of months now. I have to say I'm very impressed with them, especially the openness and comfort both physically and sonically. I put the K-701 pads on mine, though, because I find them better looking and slightly more comfortable. I'm using these with the SOHA II.

I just got a Sextett myself. Seems to be a mid-production version (orange circle around the radiators, holes in the headband and orange plastics inside). The foam was disintegrating badly so I replaced it and re-cabled the phones while I was at it (the original cable was not in a very good shape...

Quote: Originally Posted by Hayduke Is that the BOM Hammond case? (obviously the short one since you housed the toroid in a seperate enclosure) So there's not issues with air wiring the sockets to the board? (like picking up interference or anything) It's the BOM Hammond case...

For me, the best black metal album of all time is Arcturus: Aspera hiems symfonia. On the more gothic/doom side of things, I like Theatre of Tragedy's first two albums (self-titled and Velvet Darkness They Fear). Then again, I haven't been listening to much else in this genre since the late...

Quote: Originally Posted by Hayduke I'd like to build mine "upside down" too so the tubes will stick out further. I like they way they look As an alternative to the “upside down” build, I mounted the tube sockets on a separate platform made from scrap aluminium. It slides into...