Crack;Bottlehead OTL

[DenverW]

I found one on ebay in black (probably not as good looking as those audio note ones!) that was only about 8 bucks. Shipping worries me, estimate is currently...July. I'll just have a non-fitting knob till then .

 

[Paladin79]

My build might give a few of you ideas on cabinet choices. This is walnut with maple splines and solid brushed copper.

 

[Toad_of_Toad_Hall]

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[Paladin79]

The VU meters look great! Do they add any noise to the circuit? How do you hook them up?

No noise that I can measure or hear. They go on the output stage, use a 12 v supply that I ran separately. Dual volume pots that are simple enough to install. I did another version that is outboard, uses a pre-amp out, tulip poplar with ebony inlays and splines.

 

[Paladin79]

Those amps are for friends. My next venture will be a honey locust cabinet with copper and maybe holly splines.

 

[Toad_of_Toad_Hall]

.

 

[DenverW]

Those amps are for friends. My next venture will be a honey locust cabinet with copper and maybe holly splines.

Clearly I need better friends .

 

[Paladin79]

Source for the meters?

Amazon or Ebay, they are not expensive but they can take a while to receive. I just noticed this seller and the price is very good.

https://usa.banggood.com/2-Pcs-VU-M...LMmHZ2G1UsvcJphoCZ1AQAvD_BwE&cur_warehouse=CN

It took me a while to find a hole cutter the perfect size but I have used these meters a lot and will continue to do so. I compare different headphone amps a lot and the meters are quick reference for me on signal level.



.

 

[wwmhf]

My build might give a few of you ideas on cabinet choices. This is walnut with maple splines and solid brushed copper.

A classy amp ...

 

[Paladin79]

A classy amp ...

Brushed copper can be time consuming but I love the effect. This is the start of a top plate for my own amp.



thanks

 

[MRHiFiReviews]

Hey Friends!! Check it out...a quick video I did with a fun montage unboxing of the Bottlehead Crack OTL 1.1 Headphone Amplifier! I hope you dig it, I will post up more audio gear videos to the channel soon. Please consider subscribing to the channel and drop me a like on the YouTube video if you don't mind and let me know if you want to see part 2 and 3 of this video series in the comments! Have a safe and great start to your week.

MR

 

[wwmhf]

It should be continued ... until music comes out it ...

 

[Wes S]

Hey Friends!! Check it out...a quick video I did with a fun montage unboxing of the Bottlehead Crack OTL 1.1 Headphone Amplifier! I hope you dig it, I will post up more audio gear videos to the channel soon. Please consider subscribing to the channel and drop me a like on the YouTube video if you don't mind and let me know if you want to see part 2 and 3 of this video series in the comments! Have a safe and great start to your week.

MR

Hey man! Nice to see you over hear!

 

[chrisdrop]

I am quite well equipped in the headphone amp department, but, I also want to learn to build 'em. So, I'll build a Crack+Speedball to start that journey.

In terms of parts/ performance upgrades, I think we have:

• Potentiometer - a good stepped attenuator can cost as much as the Crack, but an Alps pot seems a good balanced upgrade?
• Resistors - Looking for thoughts here. Looks like sometimes a choke is used in place of one resistor post power-supply to reduce power noise too. Hammond? Wire-wound replacements - Mills?
• Caps - You can spend quite a bit here. Some can also be huge. Looking for thoughts here.
• Anything else?

Question:
I assume it is best to build it to manual spec first (no changed parts), then make changes? Is that the case? Anything worth just doing during the initial build?

 

[MRHiFiReviews]

Hey man! Nice to see you over hear!

Thanks Wes!