[fishski13]

i can crank up the volume to 11 without problem with my Bijou/K701

.

 

[FallenAngel]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fishski13 /img/forum/go_quote.gif i can crank up the volume to 11 without problem with my Bijou/K701 .

Since when has gain become a measure of an amp's ability to properly drive headphones? You can connect any headphone to a $20 LM386-based speaker driver and it'll be freaking loud, quality is another story

 

[fishski13]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FallenAngel /img/forum/go_quote.gif Since when has gain become a measure of an amp's ability to properly drive headphones? You can connect any headphone to a $20 LM386-based speaker driver and it'll be freaking loud, quality is another story

you're correct, but proof is in the pudding

.

btw, the HD650 re-cable is potent as goat piss. i just finished it earlier this evening.

i've had a good DIY week after frying a $90 transfo and taking out half of my balanced Bijou a week ago. a new HD650 re-cable, silver/cotton IC, and some nude Vishays on my attenuator - all worth the effort and $$$.

 

[AmanGeorge]

Hey guys,

I know absolutely nothing about the DIY world and have no electronics skills or knowledge whatsoever, so forgive my forthcoming ignorance. Fortunately, my dad has a loudspeaker company and said that if I sent him all the parts necessary for a Millet Max, he'd be happy to have his folks build it for me and send it back.

What are all the things I need to send him and where can I get them? I need a kit from Glass Jar Audio, plus a transformer, some jacks (headphone, RCA, or both?), and a volume knob, right? Where can I get the last three things?

 

[rds]

AmanGeorge

I wouldn't expect much help when you derail a thread asking people to do your homework for you.
Why don't you at least start a new thread?

 

[TimmyMac]

Bijou is great and a relatively simple circuit. That was my first 'serious' amp build, and it turned out amazing. Balanced B22 is finished, just need to wait on 2 MOSFETs to arrive which I blew while testing

Highly recommend either depending on your budget. Bijou was a *big* step up from my Millett hybrid (not max, or starving student, the real mccoy old MH). B22 currently listening unbalanced and with too much gain seems to be more of a sidestep but I think I'm source-limited for now.

 

[V-DiV]

I just built my Starving Student (http://www.head-fi.org/forums/5266703-post4141.html) and now back to this. I need to order parts to build my "Best DIY amp for K701." Since I already have a decent SS amp, I think I want to build with tubes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TimmyMac /img/forum/go_quote.gif Bijou is great and a relatively simple circuit. That was my first 'serious' amp build, and it turned out amazing. Balanced B22 is finished, just need to wait on 2 MOSFETs to arrive which I blew while testing Highly recommend either depending on your budget. Bijou was a *big* step up from my Millett hybrid (not max, or starving student, the real mccoy old MH). B22 currently listening unbalanced and with too much gain seems to be more of a sidestep but I think I'm source-limited for now.

TimmyMac, how would you describe the difference in the sound signatures of the B22 and Bijou?

Fishski sold me on the Bijou based on what he said in this thread and in the big Bijou thread. Now I wonder If I should go SE or balanced, given fishski's glowing report on K701 with balanced Bijou. Fishski, about how much did it cost to build your balanced Bijou (before you blew the transformer)?

Quote:

Originally Posted by fishski13 /img/forum/go_quote.gif i've had a good DIY week after frying a $90 transfo and taking out half of my balanced Bijou a week ago. a new HD650 re-cable, silver/cotton IC, and some nude Vishays on my attenuator - all worth the effort and $$$.

Were there any problems putting the balanced version together (all the problems that Pabbi had getting the first balanced Bijou going, and I don't think there are instructions for balanced up on the Cavalli Bijou website)? How did you blow the transformer, finicky design or "builder error"

?

Maybe my bigger question is what will the Super Bijou bring. Did I read that runeight and Ferrari are working on boosting the voltage? When, How much$$$? It makes me think that I might want to build a hybrid for now to wait for the ultimate Bijou. If so, the Millett Max / K701 combo has received thumbs up, no comments for SOHA II / K701. Or just go for the best available today, Bijou?

In the meantime, I'm loving listening to my K701s with my new source: VDA-2.

 

[TimmyMac]

To put things very briefly - after the B22, the Bijou feels like its missing a little in the high end, but there's a good chance this is because of the big electrolytic on the output. Also, it's not necessarily unpleasant because the Bijou sounds sweet sweet sweet, very pleasing.

 

[holland]

V-DiV. I hope you're really not expecting a serious answer to the "best" question. It's really all preferences based on experiences. I just don't want you to be disappointed.

I don't know about you, but my tastes change, my preferences change. What I used to not like, I may start to, for instance.

You can take two people with the exact same headphones and amps and music and wind up with completely different recommendations.

In the vein of DIY, build as much as you can, and find out for yourself.

 

[fishski13]

Quote:

Originally Posted by holland /img/forum/go_quote.gif V-DiV. I hope you're really not expecting a serious answer to the "best" question. It's really all preferences based on experiences. I just don't want you to be disappointed. I don't know about you, but my tastes change, my preferences change. What I used to not like, I may start to, for instance. You can take two people with the exact same headphones and amps and music and wind up with completely different recommendations. In the vein of DIY, build as much as you can, and find out for yourself.

x2. no matter what you decide on building, the most important thing is to have fun and learn something new. hopefully it won't be your last build.

that being said, Ti doesn't recommend boutique parts in his designs, and i think most people follow his advice. i think for this reason most B22 are going to "sound" fairly similar, putting personal biases aside. i followed his parts lists to the T for my mini-3, ck2iii, and M3 - they're all wonderful amps, but i do prefer the Bijou. maybe i would prefer the B22 if i had one to compare? but for various reasons (i can only guess what they are), most of the Bijou builds have been tweaked with boutique bits. maybe the process of tube rolling engenders this type of behavior, but the point being is that they may not all sound alike. you make love Holland's Bijou, but find something missing in mine. that's DIY for you.

i think i said this before, but set aside some extra cash to experiment with attenuators/pots. for me, a nude Vishay in shunt was a real ear opener. i'm going to order up a PEC pot this week to replace my Alps Blue Velvet in my M3 - i will try shunting it as well. i would also like to try the Bijou P2P to see if i can do better than PCB tracings.

 

[V-DiV]

Quote:

Originally Posted by holland /img/forum/go_quote.gif V-DiV. I hope you're really not expecting a serious answer to the "best" question. It's really all preferences based on experiences. I just don't want you to be disappointed. I don't know about you, but my tastes change, my preferences change. What I used to not like, I may start to, for instance. You can take two people with the exact same headphones and amps and music and wind up with completely different recommendations. In the vein of DIY, build as much as you can, and find out for yourself.

Holland, thanks for the comments. No, I don't expect to discover the universal best diy amp for K701. I am just gathering impressions of the way different amps have sounded with K701 or sound differences between one amp and another with an idea to what I am after. This is clearly an imperfect way of trying to know what it may actually sound like to me, but it gets me a lot closer to knowing than simply reading technical descriptions of the amps. My impressions gathered this way haven't been too far off the mark with the commercial gear I have bought.

I started playing with DIY last year as a way to get good sound for less cash but now I'm starting to get the bug to build for fun. But I don't have unlimited funds so I want to choose my projects carefully.

Anyway, right now my interest is leaning heavily toward tubes, both for the sound and the fun building.

 

[slowpogo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fishski13 /img/forum/go_quote.gif you make love Holland's Bijou

To each their own...

 

[fishski13]

Quote:

Originally Posted by slowpogo /img/forum/go_quote.gif To each their own...

HAHA!!! totally missed that one

. i have beer on my keyboard now.

 

[fishski13]

Quote:

Originally Posted by V-DiV /img/forum/go_quote.gif Anyway, right now my interest is leaning heavily toward tubes, both for the sound and the fun building.

if it itches, scratch it. try rocking a chair on another porch for awhile.

 

[fishski13]

V-Div,
re: Balanced Bijou

i have yet to take apart the dead transformer, but i think it could have been a bad EZ81 rectifier tube that did it in. i was adding a capacitance multiplier mod to the stock PS with a bad P2P job. i kept frying the TIP50 transistors in one PS and the EZ81 was arcing until i finally fixed my piss-poor P2P. well...the tube survived only so long after that. live and learn.

you're going to need at least a 16"x16" chassis for balanced. i would first build it SE in a smaller chassis - see if you like it and tweak it. if you want to try balanced, just build another amp and chassis for the other channel. you're not going to lose any appreciable amount of rack space. i'm starting my SE Bijou re-chassis this week - a DIY affair with dimensions of 8" wide, 16" deep, and 5.5" high.

i have no idea what i spent on my Balanced Bijou, and i'd rather not think about it

.