High ouput source for my EMP

[AdamZuf]

hey..now i'm using a Darla20 bit SC.
i want to get Art DI/O.. do you think it might have higher output?
(the EMPs' manual asks for high output source.
i will also check the results of a bit tube rolling but i still want to know..

thanks ppl

 

[AdamZuf]

now i use:
pair of NOS Amperex 7308s
sylvania GB 6201
(that the setup i got from Ablaze)

the stocks are:
i don't have a clue what's on the input tube
the outputs are "PhilipsECG, JAN 6922" (and also written in smaller font:8713AEZ)

tell me.. which tube type determines the output level more, relatively, the input/output ?
what do you suggest me to do for my first step?
(today i won't tube roll, i want it hot for the evening for 3rd day evaluation, so guide me for tommorow)
BTW, it takes the current installed tubes quite a while to clip less (2 hours at least).
can it suggest that they're not high output?

 

[Joe Bloggs]

Don't know about your current DAC, but the ART DI/O definitely has a higher output than normal.

 

[Tomcat]

Adam,

I guess I might have mentioned it before: in my experience, nothing has given the EMP more authority, solidity, liquidity and effortless, glorious and fatigue-free musicality than the E80CC as the input tube. I am convinced that no tube from the 12AT7 family comes close. Not even the highly regarded Sylvania 6201. The E80CC is about 1.5 times taller than the 12AT7s. This means that you'd have to get rid of the protective wire covering the tubes. That's definitely a good thing. This wire rings like crazy (just drop it on the ground and you'll hear it), and if attached to the amp, its sonic character is audible through your headphones as distortion (probably through electromechanical resonance).

While there are clear differences between different output tubes, the amp's basic sonic charcter seems to be determined by the input/gain stage tube.

 

[AdamZuf]

great answers guys!
E80CC is a type of a tube, right?
recommendations for manufacturers, prices, place to get?

 

[Tomcat]

This seems to be a great tube: http://www.thetubestore.com/nos-6085.html
I use an E80CC made by Philips, rebranded as Siemens. The Tube Store seems to offer a high quality version of it. I'd say anything made by the Philips Heerlen plant in the Netherlands ought to be very good. I for one, use an output tube similar to your Dutch Amperex 7308 from the Philips Heerlen factory: a Philips Miniwatt 6DJ8/ECC88.

Other E80CCs seem to have been made by Tungsram in Hungary.

 

[markl]

In my somewhat limited experience tube rolling the EMP, I found that replacing the center input tube to have the most effect on sound quality. No idea whether or not it affects gain.

 

[pigmode]

Quote:

BTW, it takes the current installed tubes quite a while to clip less (2 hours at least).]

What is the output of your current source? If it is set at the redbook standard, and you are experiencing clipping, I'd have to guess that your NOS tubes (most likely the7308s) are the culprit. They are probably weak and in need of replacement. I have been through this with my own EMP.

The market for the 6922 class tube is a veritable snake pit filled with counterfeits and old half dead tubes. I was fortunate enough to acquire a few Holland Orange Globes from an impeccable source--Doug in Ecuador.

 

[AdamZuf]

Quote:

Originally posted by pigmode What is the output of your current source? If it is set at the redbook standard, and you are experiencing clipping, I'd have to guess that your NOS tubes (most likely the7308s) are the culprit. They are probably weak and in need of replacement. I have been through this with my own EMP. The market for the 6922 class tube is a veritable snake pit filled with counterfeits and old half dead tubes. I was fortunate enough to acquire a few Holland Orange Globes from an impeccable source--Doug in Ecuador.

my source is Darla20 bit SC. i don't know how it stands next to redbooks.
but i know that if i let it output in 100%, it will distort more easy then 80%, with the amp set for higher volume to equal.
(i guess it says the Darla sucks ass, right?)

culprit? what is that?

 

[AdamZuf]

also, this amp produces less bass then my integrateed sansui or porta corda.
maybe it shouldn't?

i like this sound for lots of recordings, though

 

[Hirsch]

Quote:

Originally posted by AdamZuf (the EMPs' manual asks for high output source.

"high output" in that context usually means line level. The EMP will not accept a low level source such as output from a phono cartridge directly. However the ART DI/O has a much higher output than anything in consumer audio, and the output should be reduced in order to even qualify as "high output" in the EMP context. Over-the-top output is a better description.

 

[AdamZuf]

i know what high output is

just quoted them

 

[AdamZuf]

Hirsch, can i control the output line level of the ART?

BTW, i tried the stock tubes. definetly not better, i think they were worse.

would be nice to have an answer on the bass issue..

 

[Hirsch]

Quote:

Originally posted by AdamZuf Hirsch, can i control the output line level of the ART?

Nope. It's determined by the resistors in the output path. You can try an inline attenuator, but I found that those always produced some degradation of the sound, to a greater or lesser extent. The only cure is to go in and actually change out the resistors on the circuit board

 

[AdamZuf]

wow
that sucks ass

(mmm...no.. it's groovy yeaahhhhh)
well i ordered it already..
which resistors are there, stocked?
which should i use for my EMP?

well.. i guess that if my friend will fix the resistors thing in my ART DAC, i better ask him for the other mods in it