Looks like TomB has put a lot more work this past week into the Bantam DAC web site, complete with a section on tweaks, some video instruction, plus other goodies: BantamDAC Overview For well under $30, this DAC is a lot of fun to build and if you melt something, it's cheap to replace the...

Am I imagining things or can someone help me figure this out? I have the same set of of Apple lossless tracks on my Rockboxed (a few months old for rockbox version) iRiver iHP-120 player and on a MacBook Pro with iTunes-latest in MacOS X-latest. I'm feeding a DAC with an optical input...

Some build instructions recommend soaking boards in 99% Isopropyl after soldering the smd parts, and then scrubbing with a toothbrush, etc., to get the extra flux off the board. I understand that at this point, it's easier to get into the tiny spaces you'd like to clean, before you add the...

OK, here's a very basic question: I have an Alps pot I'm planning to use in a Starving Student Hybrid amp. The pot has tabs to solder to. They're simple and small: about 5/32" long, 1.5/32" wide, less than 1/32" thick. What's the best way to solder a wire to one of these? Just rest the...

Here's a basic question that I'm hoping someone will have some insight into. I'm looking for theory here -- I know that in the end I will do what my ears like best, but perhaps there are adjustments I'd make to my gear if the theory were persuasive. I have a DAC with control over the "volume"...

I'm in NYC for a couple of days next week. Can anyone recommend a retail business that would carry a large assortment of DIY goodies (components, cabling, connectors, etc.)? Thanks in advance for any leads.

Looks like my search skills are not as good as they could be. I'm having a hard time finding a list of the portable DAC/Amps that have an optical in port, for connecting a digital source (for example, an iRiver iHP120). I see the the iBasso D2 has this feature. I'd appreciate a pointer...

I did some searching and couldn't find any discussion of this. m902 balanced output upgrade Has anyone tried this upgrade? With headphones? With other devices?

I have Sennheiser 650s and recently purchased Cardas plugs so I can try building a balanced replacement cable to use with a Lavry DA10. The plugs have two connectors of course. Presumably I can wire them to pins 2 & 3 of an XLR connector. Any point in trying to do something with pin 1, such...

(oops, wrong forum -- moved to cables)

I wonder if anyone has experience connecting a standalone phono stage to a Macbook's microphone jack as a poor-man's solution to creating digital files from records, using a product like Audacity? I have a Lehmann Black Cube and headphone amp cables that can do this physically. I've...

This must have come up in the past, but I'm having a hard time finding threads that discuss it. Anyone know of links to a discussion of distortion on CDs? I've been working a heck of a lot of hours lately listening to a Thinkpad XP sp2 with iTunes and lossless audio ripped from my CD...

I've been ripping my CD collection into iTunes for some time, using Apple Lossless Encoding. I'm running iTunes under WinXP/sp2. I recently ripped a Monk solo piano CD where I can clearly hear a buzzing distortion, as if there were something loose or broken in my headphones. I have determined...

Anyone have any data on drive speed and audio performance? In other words, are there any performance implications of a 4200 rpm drive for storing music files versus a higher speed drive?

I'm using a core duo T60 Thinkpad running Win XP Pro as a digital source. Lots of RAM. Separate HD for the music (not the boot HD). Without getting into the details, I believe I have iTunes correctly configured for bit-perfect playback of lossless files; sometimes just playing a CD in a modern...