[MattTCG]

   
Hey Sonido, how long do the batteries typically last in the Quickie? Have you needed to replace them often?
 
Anyone else tried it with the HD 650/Crack combo with good results? I'm curious, and it's cheap enough that I'm willing to give it a whirl. Hell, it's cheaper than many premium tubes!

 
I'm curious about the quickie also. I guess I'll head over to BH and read through the forums. 

 

[Sonido]

Hey Sonido, how long do the batteries typically last in the Quickie? Have you needed to replace them often?

Anyone else tried it with the HD 650/Crack combo with good results? I'm curious, and it's cheap enough that I'm willing to give it a whirl. Hell, it's cheaper than many premium tubes!

About a month and half at 4 hours of usage a day on alkaline batteries. I bought batteries from Woot at $40 for 6 sets (24 9V, 12 D cells).

 

[Doc B.]

That sounds pretty typical of battery life. The math says 200 hours for a stock Quickie (and a bit less for one with PJCCS installed), based upon the Ah rating of typical alkaline 9Vs and D cells. But the reality is that a lot of batteries don't last quite as long as the manufacturer publishes and users seem to get more like 150 hours out of a set on average.

 

[olegausany]

 Finally! Someone with Aune T1 and Crack. I use 6DJ8 single leg... So, what else DAC you compared with? Are you saying better DAC is the same with Aune T1? My Crack+balls will shipped to me next week. And I can't wait it anymore...

 
Although I don't own an Aune T1 like @spacequeen7 I have spent some time with the T1 and can confirm that it is a very good DAC (esp. for the price), but there are other DACs that are significantly better - they're just also significantly more expensive... You'll find that upgrading your DAC will make a difference to the sound from the Crack. The following is from the Bottlehead Discussion Thread (http://www.head-fi.org/t/683012/bottlehead-amplifier-discussion-comparison-thread-crack-sex-mainline) from my comparison reviews of the Crack, S.E.X., and Mainline. I was blown away by how good the Crack could sound with a high end DAC. Although I upgraded from an Audio-gd NFB-5.2 rather than an Aune T1, I would say they are on par (having listened to both) although the T1 is probably a little more neutral.

 

DAC Upgrade Update - 27th October 2013

A recent upgrade to my DAC has brought some very interesting changes.

 

The new DAC is a Matrix X-Sabre based on the very detailed ES9018 Sabre DAC chip. The extra separation and clarity offered by this DAC (compared to the previous Audio-gd NFB-5.2) has brought the Crack (with Speedball) very close to the S.E.X. in terms of overall sound performance. It's so close now that I could actually be completely happy with either amp when driving the Beyerdynamic T1s. For lower impedance cans, the S.E.X. is still the only choice due to the Crack's high output impedance, but with high impedance Beyerdynamic or Sennheiser cans I would probably choose the Crack simply because it is cheaper and still excellent.

 

I think the key to this change is the signature of the DACs. The NFB-5.2 was slightly warmer than the X-Sabre. The X-Sabre is still musical, but a little closer to neutral than the NFB-5.2. The result is a cleaner sound from the Crack - still warm and rich, but not smoothed over at all. The S.E.X. can sound a little dry at times in comparison which makes the Crack a bit more seductive - it soothes the ears with detailed, mellow tunes while the S.E.X. presents oodles of details and clarity, but isn't always soothing.

 

Never tried NFB5.2 or X-Sabre but if you want neutral DAC I would recommend Arcam irDac which is way cheaper than X-Sabre and pairs great with SEX and Decware CSP3

 

[skeptic]

FWIW - based on measurements I've seen, and assuming aune uses the same usb implementation in the t1 as in the x1, it looks like jitter measurements may be less than ideal.  See comparison here to one of the $50 generic "breeze audio" cm6331a usb converters off ebay.  http://archimago.blogspot.com/2013/03/measurements-adaptive-aune-x1.html  Hard to say how audible this really is, if at all, but it is clear that the aune is not up to the level of current gen budget usb solutions.   

 

[Klots]

Hi! I own Sennheiser HD700 headphones and I ordered my Crack yesterday (woohoo!

). Now im looking for a dac. Im thinking about two dacs - Aune T1 and Schiit Modi. Basically they are both the same price for me (shipping + customs). I know that Aune T1 also has an amp section inside, but its more about which one goes better with Crack. Any opinions welcome

 

[UmustBKidn]

   
1) clear two big spaces, one to do the actual work, the other to lay out all your components (using the sticky bubble wrap is great for this so they don't roll around
2) read through the crack manual, lay out all the components in a logical order, cut/strip/tin wires ahead of time if you want to (lots of prep time, but makes life easier)
3) read through the speedball manual, lay stuff out, etc. you can actually populate the boards as a separate project so feel free
3b) note the four resistors which you'll be replacing in the crack, and remove or mark them from step 2
3c) note the capacitors which will be bent/moved and mark them as well
4) start all the hardware assembly for the Crack, stop before any soldering stuff
5) go back to your speedball stuff and attach the mounting hardware there
6) lunch
7) proceed with crack assembly, omit the four resistors, and when you get to the caps look at the orientation in the speedball manual
8) recreational beverage
9) keep building
10) register for the forums at bottlehead for the inevitable troubleshooting
11) keep building
12) sleep?
13) build, install speedball components, check all the thingies
14) music?

 
If I may, I would suggest adding one bullet:
 
0) Subscribe to the Crack thread on head-fi, for about 3 months, before you buy your kit. You'll learn a crapton of useful stuff.

 

[mordicai]

I bought a Emotiva DC- 1 to go with my Crack and HD600. Absolutely fabulous DAc. $499

 

[UmustBKidn]

 

 


Now that, is flat out beautiful.

 

[spacequeen7]

I don't know what to make out of it ...I recently noticed resonance coming through my right channel (there is some in the left but not as much),for example when the unit is ON and I have nothing playing any tapping on the base or aluminium plate will travel through left channel ,it's more of a micro phonic sound ...what gives ???
I've tried  changing tubes ,headphones and it's not going away ,I was about to swap some caps but this have to be addressed first ,any help ?

 

[Doc B.]

90% of the time microphony is from the tubes. My solution to a ringing sound when tapping on the tube is - you guessed it - stop tapping on the tube. But if it is not a tube, start tapping on other parts to see if you can isolate it. The next most likely candidiate is a cap. But that doesn't happen very often. If the sound does not go away when you change tubes, it's most likely you simply have more than one microphonic tube. Pretty much all tubes are microphonic to some degree. It's a matter of finding one that you feel has a low enough level to be acceptable to you. When you aren't tapping on it.

 

[spacequeen7]

  90% of the time microphony is from the tubes. My solution to a ringing sound when tapping on the tube is - you guessed it - stop tapping on the tube. But if it is not a tube, start tapping on other parts to see if you can isolate it. The next most likely candidiate is a cap. But that doesn't happen very often. If the sound does not go away when you change tubes, it's most likely you simply have more than one microphonic tube. Pretty much all tubes are microphonic to some degree. It's a matter of finding one that you feel has a low enough level to be acceptable to you. When you aren't tapping on it.

for example when the unit is ON and I have nothing playing any tapping on the base or aluminium plate 

it's not the tube I'm tapping on ,noise is most present when tapping next to headphone jack port
EDIT; I just swapped power to my DV336SE and it's dead silent 

 

[Tonequest]

Hi.
I'm actually hesitating between the S.E.X and Crack kits... I have 150ohms orthodynamic headphones and Kanto iPair 5 active speakers. Has anyone any recommendations to make? What DAC to get would be the next brainstorming step... Thanks!

 

[Zashoomin]

  Hi.
I'm actually hesitating between the S.E.X and Crack kits... I have 150ohms orthodynamic headphones and Kanto iPair 5 active speakers. Has anyone any recommendations to make? What DAC to get would be the next brainstorming step... Thanks!

Hi to you as well.  I personally think that you should go for the SEX. Since it looks likes the Kanto speakers are active there is no need to hook them up to any amp.  From what I think I know about the speakers just hook them up via usb to your computer or hook them up to your dac.  The headphones, though your orthos might be 150ohms, I don't think that the crack will put out enough current for them.  
 
As for your dac I have no idea what your budget is so you got to give me a little something because there are 5 million dacs out there.  

 

[Loquah]

  Hi to you as well.  I personally think that you should go for the SEX. Since it looks likes the Kanto speakers are active there is no need to hook them up to any amp.  From what I think I know about the speakers just hook them up via usb to your computer or hook them up to your dac.  The headphones, though your orthos might be 150ohms, I don't think that the crack will put out enough current for them.  
 
As for your dac I have no idea what your budget is so you got to give me a little something because there are 5 million dacs out there.  

 
+1 for the S.E.X. I don't know about the speakers, but if they don't have built in volume controls, you might also want a Quickie...