Crack;Bottlehead OTL
May 19, 2021 at 1:04 PM Post #11,011 of 12,304
Volume is for volume, balance is a L/R balance. Don't buy the stereo balance pot.

You make a lot of sense with this :).
 
May 19, 2021 at 1:50 PM Post #11,012 of 12,304
May 21, 2021 at 5:33 PM Post #11,013 of 12,304
Anyone tried the BHC with Focal cans ?
 
May 21, 2021 at 6:19 PM Post #11,014 of 12,304
Enjoying my Bottlehead Crack with my oldest type 6F8G.

An early round plate Sylvania with engraved base from October 1937. Output is a Telefunken 6080.
"Early" since the first mention of 6F8G is September 1937 according to this site: https://www.radiomuseum.org/tubes/tube_6f8g.html

Sounds great; test NOS. No sign of any first production run issues :gs1000smile:

Edit: some more reading material http://www.hifi-tunes.com/the-evolution-of-a-constant-glow-in-high-fidelity/

IMG_9010.JPG
 
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May 21, 2021 at 11:17 PM Post #11,015 of 12,304
Anyone tried the BHC with Focal cans ?

Not a good match. The lower impedance of focal cans don't pair well with OTL amps. Look for headphones with higher impedance, such as beyerdynamic and sennheiser.
 
May 21, 2021 at 11:26 PM Post #11,016 of 12,304
Not a good match. The lower impedance of focal cans don't pair well with OTL amps. Look for headphones with higher impedance, such as beyerdynamic and sennheiser.
Agreed! Beyer DT1770 pro, 250 ohms; Beyer DT880, 250/600 ohms, Senn HD600, 300 ohms; ZMF Auteur, 300 ohms...
 
May 21, 2021 at 11:32 PM Post #11,017 of 12,304
Agreed! Beyer DT1770 pro, 250 ohms; Beyer DT880, 250/600 ohms, Senn HD600, 300 ohms; ZMF Auteur, 300 ohms...

Audio technica r70x...but honestly the crack's soulmate is the sennheiser HD line, all the way up to the 800.
 
May 22, 2021 at 1:38 PM Post #11,018 of 12,304
Little bird just told me that Bottlehead raised their prices. I can confirm. Makes me glad I already have some BH amps. If only I hadn’t JUST sold my mainline :).
 
May 22, 2021 at 6:40 PM Post #11,019 of 12,304
I have a question about the Belton 9 Pin socket. I bought one of these and it seems like it doesn't have the center ground pin. How do i wire the LEDs etc to the crack? Can i just use a screw and act as ground?
 
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Jun 1, 2021 at 11:53 AM Post #11,020 of 12,304
I would consider other options for sure, especially since you already have two great tubes. Honestly, two VERY solid tubes. For me, tube rolling is something I have to control myself on. I want to try EVERYTHING! But the reality is that most tubes would just end up sitting on a shelf or being resold because there are only two tubs in the crack at any given time.

So after trying pretty much everything, I limit myself. I try to follow a few rules. I try not to buy multiples of a particular tube, especially if I havent heard it, because matched pairs can cost more than buying individually, and because one of the two isn't getting used. There is a temptation to have a 'spare' but these tubes last a pretty long time, and unless it becomes my favorite I don't need a spare. So basically I try not to buy tubes now unless I think there is a legitimate chance it will replace a current favorite, or at least add a different enough sound that I can justify having it.

Also, with the crack, do you really want tubes that cost as much or more than the kit itself? A crackatwoa with stock tubes will sound better than a crack with great tubes based on components and design. At $300 plus for those tubes you're pretty much at crackatwoa levels, and you can keep all your current crack tubes to use with it. This is what I did. I've had and built a couple cracks, modded them to death, then I sold them and used the money for a crackatwoa.

So here is what I think. If you're looking at the gec6080, I would look for a single tube that is reasonable. If you're open to other power tubes that I think are much better, I would find a single tung sol 5998, a western electric 421A, or a GEC 6AS7G. Imho, those are the top three power tubes in the crack, and I find them better than any 6080 variant. They cost a pretty penny, though, so be patient. Eventually one is sold in the more reasonable price range. $150 for the 5998 and $300 or less for the other two are 'reasonable' in today's prices. I honestly wouldn't get one unless this is your forever amp, or if you're going the crackatwoa route one day.

Next, (or first!) I would explore the fun of input tube variants. You have the speedball, right? You can run some fun, fun tubes with an adapter. The favorite is the 6sn7 (not a driver tube although it is the same socket, don't get confused! It needs a 6sn7 -> 12au7 adapter!). Many crazy people who don't know better (hahah I couldn't resist!) prefer these to 12au7 tubes. Problem is, the price is going high. My favorite is the cv6 or e1148 tubes. These are half of a 12au7/6sn7 each, so with an adapter it turns the crack into the 'frankencrack!'. Others like the 6j5, 6f8g, or others. Basically, you can have fun for lower prices by rolling tube variants that arent as popular in amps as the 12au7 and 6sn7. Just make sure you have the right info and don't pop anything in that will hurt the amp.

So sorry for the long reply, hope it didn't bore you! We're all here to help and offer opinions (thats all they are!) so feel free to ask :)

Edit: I had accidentally identified the WE 421a as a GE 421a. Theres a nasty typo, for sure! Avoid GE tubes :)

I've pretty much maxed out my Crack now at this point and wanted to get your impressions on the Crackatowa (if you still have it)? Is it a significant upgrade over the Crack? I'm most concerned with the bass. I want slam! Air and separation being secondary concerns. How would you rate it in that department compared to the BHC?
 
Jun 1, 2021 at 3:07 PM Post #11,021 of 12,304
I've pretty much maxed out my Crack now at this point and wanted to get your impressions on the Crackatowa (if you still have it)? Is it a significant upgrade over the Crack? I'm most concerned with the bass. I want slam! Air and separation being secondary concerns. How would you rate it in that department compared to the BHC?

My crack was about as pumped as it could get, and I preferred my mainline amp so I sold it.

I prefer my crackatwoa vs the mainline amp just for some of the things you mentioned. While slightly less technical, the impact, slam, and FEEL of it are more to my tastes overall. Can’t go wrong with a c2a or mainline, but I prefer the former.
 
Jun 1, 2021 at 3:43 PM Post #11,022 of 12,304
My crack was about as pumped as it could get, and I preferred my mainline amp so I sold it.

I prefer my crackatwoa vs the mainline amp just for some of the things you mentioned. While slightly less technical, the impact, slam, and FEEL of it are more to my tastes overall. Can’t go wrong with a c2a or mainline, but I prefer the former.

That’s awesome. Glad to hear it. Do you feel like the slam was better on the C2A vs your regular maxed out Crack?
 
Jun 1, 2021 at 3:46 PM Post #11,023 of 12,304
That’s awesome. Glad to hear it. Do you feel like the slam was better on the C2A vs your regular maxed out Crack?

Yes, noticeably. Now that could be a function of better slam, or the blacker background and better separation giving the appearance of better slam, or both.
 
Jun 2, 2021 at 12:48 AM Post #11,024 of 12,304
Not a Crackhead, but a pic of the Bottlehead BeePree 300b pre amp in a custom wood case. These have Teflon Vcaps, stepped attenuators, and buffered outputs. Just need to settle on a stain to match the pretty copper hammertone finish but not black.
 

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Jun 2, 2021 at 1:04 AM Post #11,025 of 12,304
Not a Crackhead, but a pic of the Bottlehead BeePree 300b pre amp in a custom wood case. These have Teflon Vcaps, stepped attenuators, and buffered outputs. Just need to settle on a stain to match the pretty copper hammertone finish but not black.

Very nice work with the custom case! The tapered base with the slim bezel around the top plate looks very refined. Can’t wait to see what it looks like when finished. I’ve heard good things about the Osmo Hard Wax if you want to keep that natural look.
 

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