Me too - Mickey Mouse IMO. It's OK to have the headphone jack on it, but power and RCA cords? I'm working on a rebuild where that stuff comes in underneath (and a number of other non standard changes) but its after I finish my mini monitor crossover redesign/build., and an add on woofer, with a highpass.
Saw the pics of your build without the 90-degree connectors. Kind of amazing how much of an aesthetic difference those make. Makes the whole thing look a lot less busy when you don't have giant cables sticking out and up. Very clean and understated looking. Lets you see the actual amp without the visual distraction of the cables.12au7 to dual 6J5/6C5/L63 made by @Deyan. Equivalent to a single 6SN7. Check the 6J5 thread on head-fi. My favorite tube rolling has been with that family of tubes.
Only functional mods are Speedball and Alps Blue Velvet potentiometer. I greatly enjoyed the speedball upgrade and then focused on getting into tube rolling.
Thank you!
Yes! Two sets of 90 degree RCA connectors (CableMatters brand). This helps the cables from getting jammed against the wall behind the amp. Since my DAC is below it works out great.
Lol - it’s 4 inches tall, only 1/2” taller than stock. I wanted to show a bit more wood grainIt looks taller than it is because the width and length of the case is smaller than the stock crack. I did this intentionally to reduce the “rim” between the top plate and case outer edges for a sleeker look. The full dimensions are 10 3/8” L x 6 3/8” W x 4” H. The top plate is 10x6, only 3/8” of rim.
This actually led to a major issue I didn’t anticipate - I did a test fit and none of the internals were even close to fitting!! When ordering the kit I opted out of the stock base to save a few bucks, which meant I didn’t know the minimum internal dimensions to get everything to fit. To solve this I ended up having to use a combination of CNC and chisels to get everything to fit. Thankfully I was able to borrow @TylersEclectic ’s completed BHC to figure out how big the cutouts needed to be.
Here’s an album of the full case build if you’re curious!
A few pics showing the cutouts to get internals to fit:
That is truly a labor of love and excellent work! I wish I had wood working skills and the confidence to do things like this. I'm still trying to muster up the courage now to build a wood headphone stand12au7 to dual 6J5/6C5/L63 made by @Deyan. Equivalent to a single 6SN7. Check the 6J5 thread on head-fi. My favorite tube rolling has been with that family of tubes.
Only functional mods are Speedball and Alps Blue Velvet potentiometer. I greatly enjoyed the speedball upgrade and then focused on getting into tube rolling.
Thank you!
Yes! Two sets of 90 degree RCA connectors (CableMatters brand). This helps the cables from getting jammed against the wall behind the amp. Since my DAC is below it works out great.
Lol - it’s 4 inches tall, only 1/2” taller than stock. I wanted to show a bit more wood grain
This actually led to a major issue I didn’t anticipate - I did a test fit and none of the internals were even close to fitting!! When ordering the kit I opted out of the stock base to save a few bucks, which meant I didn’t know the minimum internal dimensions to get everything to fit. To solve this I ended up having to use a combination of CNC and chisels to get everything to fit. Thankfully I was able to borrow @TylersEclectic ’s completed BHC to figure out how big the cutouts needed to be.
Here’s an album of the full case build if you’re curious!
A few pics showing the cutouts to get internals to fit:
I always figured this was a cost-saving measure for amp kits like the Bottlehead, but it’s the same configuration found on amps that cost 10x more (Ampsandsound, Decware), so go figure…
It's a throwback/marketing thing for more expensive amps. It's that sexy wood wrap around look with no metal backplane. To me the cables coming out of the top plane looks like ugly skinny peacock feathers jutting out - done by a 7 year old.
Agreed - keeps the visual focus on the tubes! Here is the power cable I used btw. There are cheaper options out there but I really like Tripp Lite‘s build quality: https://a.co/d/aZdZSdK
Cool. Have you tried Bottlehead's own diy power cable? Curious how it stacks up. My go-to power cables are the Iconoclast BAV cables, so I'm not above shelling out a couple hundred for power cables (power cables are the most audible upgrade to any amp or preamp IMO). But it'd be cool to know if Bottlehead's cables are a viable and cheaper alternative.
I made an “upgraded“ cable that cost about ~$120 in diy parts that came recommended on diyaudio. It wasn’t the bottlehead kit. Honestly didn‘t spend a lot of time A/Bing as any differences didn’t seem substantial to me. I have read many accounts of people saying they notice an audible difference though so I’m not sure what to think. The diy amp builders I trust have all said its like a last 0.1% difference for amps - if anything at all.
I have 2 of the BH cables, IMO... you could recreate it with $30 in parts, its more about the assembly than the actual parts. Bottlehead Power Cord Kit Assembly - Bottlehead
I disagree. Sourcing parts is more than just getting "whatever" and putting it together. Even the folks at Bottlehead seem genuinely surprised by how much of a difference their particular cables make. The story behind the cable is that they accidentally ordered a bunch of copper wire they didn't want/need, and when they tried making a power cable out of some of it, they discovered they had happened into something special. I mean, I can make a diy power cable no problem, but I can't guarantee that it will sound better than a generic pack-in cable. I can pay $300+ for a quality cable that I assume will sound better than anything that comes packed with an amp, but not $130. At that price, it's a total crap shoot. That's why I was asking about their cables in particular. Have you followed their "recipe" using $30 in generic parts and been satisfied with the result? I have to imagine there's at least something to some of the parts (or kinds of parts) they've selected. I really should just try for myself, eh?
Just to clarify, I never said "whatever" parts will sound the same... however I believe you could purchase the same parts included in the BH kit for ~$30.
Aside from the cable debate, which I’m not able to give a good explanation, I can say from direct sourcing other DIY projects that there is much more than 30 dollars of parts in the crack kit.
we're discussing the AC mains power cable kit, not the amp
We’ll color me sheepish! I saw ‘BH kit.’ Thanks
