[mvneufeld]

Just one more questions, I understand that we are talking about output capacitors upgrade to Miflex. I wondeer if upgrading other parts is worth to go or other (better) capacitors?

There were three things I had Wieslaw do on my H5:
- change the LED from green to orange (to match the glow of the tubes)
- Miflex input and output cap upgrades
- change the PreOut to Passthrough

If you'd like to know more about options and costs, you should talk to Wieslaw at eufonika@eufonika.pl. He's a nice guy and very helpful.

 

[kvik]

Just one more questions, I understand that we are talking about output capacitors upgrade to Miflex. I wondeer if upgrading other parts is worth to go or other (better) capacitors?

Good question. Since no-one yet has modded the h... out of these amps, it is difficult to know what the full potential is.

I think the reason miflex caps gets chosen/talked about is they strike a nice balance between cost and effect. Out of curiosity I checked the price for Duelund caps and they are $100 each, so four of those are nearly the price of the amp itself.

As respectable as it is, Alps Blue, there are better options available. A TKD pot would set you back $100, a stepped attentuator 2-4 times that amount.

I am sure there are more areas to upgrade, but those two would be my first choice.

 

[mvneufeld]

There were three things I had Wieslaw do on my H5:
- change the LED from green to orange (to match the glow of the tubes)
- Miflex input and output cap upgrades
- change the PreOut to Passthrough

If you'd like to know more about options and costs, you should talk to Wieslaw at eufonika@eufonika.pl. He's a nice guy and very helpful.

Forgot one thing - he also added a gain switch. It only lowers the gain by 6db, but it lets me actually use my Aryas with the H5 (with a little EQing).

 

[kvik]

Adjustable gain would have been a useful feature on my H16M. Do you know how it is implemented, is the gain actually adjusted, or is the input signal lowered?

 

[kingoftown1]

I was tempted to try an eizz stepped pot. They don't look like the best thing ever, but at ~$50 it would make sense given the price of the amp. I also changed my input RCA jacks to silver audio notes, but it was done first thing so I don't have any impressions to share.

 

[bpiotrow13]

There were three things I had Wieslaw do on my H5:
- change the LED from green to orange (to match the glow of the tubes)
- Miflex input and output cap upgrades
- change the PreOut to Passthrough

If you'd like to know more about options and costs, you should talk to Wieslaw at eufonika@eufonika.pl. He's a nice guy and very helpful.

Thanks, i exchanged many emails with him. Your amp really looks nice

 

[bpiotrow13]

Since no-one yet has modded the h... out of these amps, it is difficult to know what the full potential is.

Exactly! I think caps and potentiometer are a key. Maybe also transformer, power supply is a key. I could also imagine that one would want point to point wiring.

What aditionally intrigues me is one power and driver tube sufficient. In other words do really two pairs of tubes give better sound. If not or if not significantly this would make tube rolling much cheaper.

 

[mvneufeld]

Adjustable gain would have been a useful feature on my H16M. Do you know how it is implemented, is the gain actually adjusted, or is the input signal lowered?

I was just informed that the input signal is lowered. Excuse my ignorance, but how are the implementations different?

 

[mvneufeld]

I was just informed that the input signal is lowered. Excuse my ignorance, but how are the implementations different?

Never mind... Just read this: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/what-exactly-does-the-gain-switch-on-the-amp-do.406293/

 

[kvik]

Post #22 and #27 in your link sums it up. I wonder if there is a noticeable sonic difference between the two (three) ways. (not necessarily for you to answer, I am just thinking out loud.)

 

[kvik]

I was tempted to try an eizz stepped pot. They don't look like the best thing ever, but at ~$50 it would make sense given the price of the amp. I also changed my input RCA jacks to silver audio notes, but it was done first thing so I don't have any impressions to share.

For my next amp I am looking at TKD 2CP-2511 (which is what I have in H16M), or the 41-step attenuator from Acoustic Dimension. TKD has a stepped attenuator in their 2511-series, but it is only 24 steps, which I fear that might be too few steps. The Eizz one is 21 steps, so I ruled that out quickly. The Khozmo attentuators on the other hand seem very attractive, but there I am just not sure which of the three to go for, and prices range from 1x to 4x TKD level.

 

[kvik]

Exactly! I think caps and potentiometer are a key. Maybe also transformer, power supply is a key. I could also imagine that one would want point to point wiring.

What aditionally intrigues me is one power and driver tube sufficient. In other words do really two pairs of tubes give better sound. If not or if not significantly this would make tube rolling much cheaper.

I agree, power supply is also important. I feel Wieslaw is on the same page here, and I am not sure exactly how he would be able to improve this aspect for the 'entry-level' amps. What seems to differentiate (his) entry from higher level amps is the dual-mono construction and a more elaborate power supply scheme. And there is a reason for the price difference, the extra parts are not free.

 

[kingoftown1]

I got my denafrips athena preamp, so I'd been playing around with inserting that before the h7m yesterday -- if I keep that approach, # of attenuator steps won't matter too much.

My first attempt was with the eufonika's volume pot wide open and heavy attenuation on the athena, but I felt like I was losing tonal density. With the h7m volume low and the Athena turned up I got that back. But I'll have to try again and verify -- it wasn't the longest listening session.

 

[kvik]

I suppose ideally you should remove the Alps Blue completley, to hear what Athena brings to the table. With inferior contact/tracking in the extremes (min and max volume) the Alps Blue might still be influencing/limiting the sound even when fully open (at max).

Had a look at Athena product page, and read the 6moons review. Athena is an active unity gain preamp. Srajan describes its forte as 'fleshiness' (rather than 'leading edge'), which I assume is the tonal density you refer to.

I am trying to wrap my mind around how your experience/test reflects this aspect. As mentioned, in both scenarios the Alps Blue is in the signal path. How is tonal density when comparing H7M directly connected to source and H7M connected via Athena?

 

[bpiotrow13]

I suppose ideally you should remove the Alps Blue completley, to hear what Athena brings to the table. With inferior contact/tracking in the extremes (min and max volume) the Alps Blue might still be influencing/limiting the sound even when fully open (at max).

Had a look at Athena product page, and read the 6moons review. Athena is an active unity gain preamp. Srajan describes its forte as 'fleshiness' (rather than 'leading edge'), which I assume is the tonal density you refer to.

I am trying to wrap my mind around how your experience/test reflects this aspect. As mentioned, in both scenarios the Alps Blue is in the signal path. How is tonal density when comparing H7M directly connected to source and H7M connected via Athena?

There may be many factors here. Denafrips known for lush rather than analitic sound. However, It would be surprising for me denafrips has more dense sound that h7, but obviously it may be.

Has anyone compared h7 to h5? I would say h5 should be more dense/musical.