[sphinxvc]

Quote:

Was probably wrong, if they ship it to Shenzhen and use HK DHL.
 

Yeah, that's their M.O.  
 
They really need are some new email templates.  I'll be happy to write them up some in exchange for a digital interface.  
 

 

[Snips]

Hey hey , just received the "Your goods we had sent out yesterday" email from audio-gd. Looking forward to receiving the tracking number.

 

[aspenx]

Quote:

Hey hey , just received the "Your goods we had sent out yesterday" email from audio-gd. Looking forward to receiving the tracking number.

Seriously? I've had no contact from them ever since their "estimated 10th June shipping" email...
 
Let me know when it reaches it. Will like to know how long mine would take, since I'm living in "the little red dot" too.

 

[Snips]

Quote:

Seriously? I've had no contact from them ever since their "estimated 10th June shipping" email...
 
Let me know when it reaches it. Will like to know how long mine would take, since I'm living in "the little red dot" too.

Sure thing.
 
Audio-gd has apparently been unusually responsive with my emails, replying to each within a day. Got myself so worked up previously that they will never reply to emails lol.
 

 

[Pricklely Peete]

Quote:

 
Hey tubesound
 
If premium replacement-part electrical values are identical to original (budget-constrained) parts one (carefully) replaces, and one has (extensive) past experience in modding DACs and other audio components, there is no harm done, mostly sonic bliss results.
 
That is one of the real benefits of sharing useful info on such forums. One can end up with quasi-SOTA sound for a fraction of what passes for so-called "high-end". Elitist marketing, fancy sheet metal and grossly-inflated sticker price anybody?
 
BTW young fella, have you ever held a soldering iron? No? Really? Go on, why not try it? It won't bite you.  
 
Here's a link to a brief primer on DAC modding?    http://www.hifizine.com/2010/12/doing-your-own-dac-mods-a-primer/
 
Of course there'll be many similar resources on-line if you care to look. Get busy! 

The only caveat I have about the link and the info provided is the suggestion by the article's author that bigger is better (when it comes to mains filter cap sizes). I agree bigger is better but only to a certain degree.....with a large cap or large bunch of caps...take the mod the author talks about (replacing  BC 4700uf 40V DC) with Panasonic 15,000uf at X V rating you have to worry about inrush current draw of such a huge increase in uf capacity. My own personal rule of thumb for PSU rebuilds is as follows (because of the inrush current demands stressing the rest of the PSU circuitry to possible failure) that one can double the uf capacity of  the mains filtering supply banks....and roughly a 25 -50% increase in size to the secondary filtering banks ( regulated lower Voltages for various stages). Another option the original author overlooks entirely are diodes....if your unit has the bog standard 1N4007 type you can do much better and reduce noise by going with faster, quieter, soft recovery types...Fairchild Stealth types...or UF4007...another fav of mine are the Vishay/Telefunken SF4007's. The latter are rated for 1000V and 1 Amp. The use of film bypass caps in the PSU and other PSU related stages is another terrific way to further improve things, sometimes in dramatic fashion.
 
Swapping out parts can yield huge improvements in the end result as long as you target what is most in need of improvement during the evaluation phase....with any digital gear under 500 USD working on the various PSU supplies is the best way to spend a limited budget. IC OPA's are worth futzing with for voicing fine tuning but I much prefer gear that uses discreet topology as that option allows one even further possible routes of improvement ( using higher quality matched sets of transistors for example...hand matched HQ resistors...same with film caps)....An IC OPA is a closed circuit which means finding another IC OPA that meets your expectations (they rarely do) while hoping it does not bring a negative or two along with it. The IC OPA is also limited in voltage output and current handling....the discrete circuit can be dialed in for a wide variety of I/V ranges.
 
Sorry for the slight OT direction fellow members...
 
Peete.
 

 

[nightcap]

Quote:

If premium replacement-part electrical values are ***identical*** to original (budget-constrained) parts one (carefully) replaces, and one has (extensive) past experience in modding DACs and other audio components, there is no harm done, mostly sonic bliss results.

 
Hey Peete
 
Your advice is well-founded. Agreed, PS optimization can yield immense sonic improvements. Generally I do not deviate more than 10% from original electrical part values when modding circuits.
 
Agreed, discreet stages can be tuned more precisely, but most DAC I/V and output (gain) stages these days are op-amp-based. I, for one, do not hold to that out-moded traditionalist myth that *all* op-amps are sonically-deficient in *all* implementations. Neither is our earth flat, nor does an inflated DAC sticker price necessarily guarantee higher fidelity. This NFB-3 is one of the better examples of "bang for the buck".

 

[spekkio]

Just received my NFB-3 today (I didn't get a tracking number lol). Initial impressions compared to the Tiny Tube DAC: wider soundstage, superior detail retrieval. But I'll let it burn in before giving additional comments.

 

[Snips]

Quote:

Just received my NFB-3 today (I didn't get a tracking number lol). Initial impressions compared to the Tiny Tube DAC: wider soundstage, superior detail retrieval. But I'll let it burn in before giving additional comments.

Then I guess I can expect to receive mine within the next few days

 
BTW, I also just received the tracking number. The NFB-3 is alrdy with DHL Hong Kong.

 

[aspenx]

Quote:

Then I guess I can expect to receive mine within the next few days

 
BTW, I also just received the tracking number. The NFB-3 is alrdy with DHL Hong Kong.

And I haven't even got a reply from Audio-Gd after dropping them a mail on Saturday about my NFB-2.............
 
All I know is that they acknowledged receipt of my payment... d'oh...

 

[Snips]

Quote:

And I haven't even got a reply from Audio-Gd after dropping them a mail on Saturday about my NFB-2.............
 
All I know is that they acknowledged receipt of my payment... d'oh...

Hey hey, keep your hopes up

 

[aspenx]

 
Quote:

Hey hey, keep your hopes up

Trying...

 

[spekkio]

Never imagined I would say this, but the NFB-3 actually makes my DT990s sound like a 'neutral' pair of headphones. I do not know why. Some of the bass 'slam' is lost, but I appreciate the superior level of detail. Sibilance is mostly gone. I wonder what I could do to bring the 'slam' back though. 

 

[Jackish]

I just pulled the trigger on the NFB-3 today! I hope I dont have to wait for months like many others in this thread. Upgrading from Essence STX, so should be nice enough!

 

[sphinxvc]

^ Well I'm checking in at week 3 here.  No news yet.  

 

[Snips]

Quote:

^ Well I'm checking in at week 3 here.  No news yet.  

Week 3? That's pretty long. It only took 1 week for DHL Hong Kong to receive the package info and for me to receive the tracking number. And for a moment I thought that Audio-gd  had upped their standards.