Grado RA-1 Power Supplies MOD/TWEAK
Jul 24, 2002 at 2:59 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 16

KR...

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Well, I thought I would never start a thread here, but never say never, huh?

Ok, here's the deal, I really wanted to use a power supply with the Grado RA-1. But, the catch was that I knew nothing of how to do it and I have no DIY skills, as far as soldering goes. Bootman gave me the idea of looking into using a power supply with battery clips. I then e-mailed Grado Labs and ask them which ones I should get, and the next day they e-mailed me back (how cool is that?). They told me to get two 9 volt Radio Shack model # 273-1552 . Today I did, plug them in and woohoo it works great! no need to drill, carve, or saw anything, just plug and play!

This mod will save me a lot of money and those PS are very cheap at about $6.99 each and I never need to worry about my amp starting to distort when my batteries start running low ever again.

Also, this mod isn't really a "mod" in that you are not changing anything, so you can still use it as you did before for portable use. So it's more like a tweak in reality.
biggrin.gif


I hope this helps any RA-1 owners out there!
 
Jul 24, 2002 at 6:21 AM Post #2 of 16
Hello,

I wouldn't just using cheap PSUs on the amp. A part of the reason why RA-1 good is because it runs on batteries. This way you get nothing bad from outlet.

I really wonder why Mr Joe Grado (Dr?) would suggest that idea. That is totally ... not professional to suggest that. I mean Grado Lab is one of super hifi manufactures, right?

Besides, if the amp cost 300, I wouldn't spend 10 bucks on PSU. ... Many people does not notice that in most cases, PSU cost significantly more than actual amp. I would go nothing less than Mr Gilmore's or PPL's dual PSU with tracking.

Tomo
 
Jul 24, 2002 at 12:09 PM Post #3 of 16
Quote:

Originally posted by KR...
They told me to get two 9 volt Radio Shack model # 273-1552 . Today I did, plug them in and woohoo it works great! no need to drill, carve, or saw anything, just plug and play!


That sounds pretty cool! So let me see if I've got this straight, you buy two Radio Shack 9 volt amps and simply clip the plugs on the end of the wires to the battery clips on the RA-1? Did you notice any change in sound using this approach?
 
Jul 24, 2002 at 1:44 PM Post #4 of 16
Eep, no! I think that's a recipe for disaster, or some sort of explosion. The Grado is made of wood too, right? I think he means that there are some DC power supplies that actually have a connector that fits on to the 9v battery hook up. I seem to remember having one of those several years ago.

Quote:

Originally posted by Beagle
That sounds pretty cool! So let me see if I've got this straight, you buy two Radio Shack 9 volt amps and simply clip the plugs on the end of the wires to the battery clips on the RA-1? Did you notice any change in sound using this approach?


 
Jul 24, 2002 at 2:42 PM Post #6 of 16
Quote:

Originally posted by KR...
273-1552.jpg


This is how the PS look like, my version has a white cord.


OK I'm stupid. So the battery clips in the picture simply clip on to the battery clips on the RA-1?
 
Jul 24, 2002 at 6:26 PM Post #7 of 16
Quote:

Originally posted by Beagle
OK I'm stupid. So the battery clips in the picture simply clip on to the battery clips on the RA-1?


that's what i would think. the ra-1 has a small batter compartment which you can open and put two 9v batteries in, each with their own little clip.

i'd have to agree with tomo.. i mean, i don't know a single thing about diy in the slightest, but from what i've been reading this "mod" would tremendously degrade the sound. half of the reason why the grado is so smooth and neutral is because of the batteries.. right?
 
Jul 24, 2002 at 6:35 PM Post #8 of 16
In theory, I suppose this might be true. I guess we'll just have to wait until KR reports back about the sound quality.
 
Aug 5, 2002 at 12:43 AM Post #10 of 16
KR, anything to report back on the 9V power supply 'sound', or comparisons with the battery 'sound'?

I'd be interested in your opinions before I purchase two of the units...
 
Aug 5, 2002 at 1:16 AM Post #11 of 16
I have been watching DVDs and listening to them with this combo with the HD600 as well as some music CDs (classical, rock).

A totally fresh pair of batteries will still sound the best, but not by a lot. But, as the batteries begin to drain the sound begins to degrade, as you know. The duel power supplies will give you a very clean sound, but a brand new pair of batteries when you 1st put them in, still sounds better to my ears.

Remember that this is a tweak not a real mod, so you can always use batteries if you like when you are on the go.
 
Aug 5, 2002 at 6:36 PM Post #12 of 16
Thanks very much KR!

No hum or noise with the dual power supples?
 
Aug 5, 2002 at 11:29 PM Post #13 of 16
Quote:

Originally posted by Beagle
Thanks very much KR!

No hum or noise with the dual power supples?


No hum or noise whatsoever, I just turn the amp on (with the dvd player off) and cracked up the volume to the max, and it's as dead as a doornail.
 
Aug 6, 2002 at 1:34 PM Post #14 of 16
Thanks again KR! I will be acquiring a couple of those 9V battery eliminators.
 
Jun 1, 2003 at 11:31 PM Post #15 of 16
digging up the ancient thread...

I've just tried using two battery eliminators with my Meta42 and they produced a nasty hum. I modified some regulated adapters by putting 9v battery clips at the ends of them and they worked much better- I couldn't tell the difference from the batteries. But those Radioshack adapters... yuck..at least with a Meta
 

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