[jgwtriode]

3.4 gigahertz is 3,400,000,000 hertz

But you say running at 1,100 hertz (which is 0.0000011 Giga Hertz) sounds vastly better?

oops 1100 MHz typo...didn't notice! Pardone!

jgwtriode

 

[jgwtriode]

@jgwtriode How far out from the walls are your speakers? I'm fighting with SBIR with mine since I moved into my new place. I also suspect that having my monitor in between the speakers is also a major detractor but the entire setup is build around the PC and desk and there's no getting away from it.

I have stacked cinder blocks that my speaker sit on, about a foot outside of on either side of my monitor which sits squarely in between them on a pedstal table with internal lamp. Kind of a mission victorian plant/lamp stand that is fairly beat, but works great for the purpose. They sit about 3.5 feet from the side walls. P I have the cinder blocks shimmed to keep it more rigid use coin and porcelain discs from bathroom tiling. Stacked. Use in lieu of cones etc. Have larger hexagonal porcelain shims stacked at the bottom between cinder block and a marble tile floor. The Swans image like mad and will throw significant depth and a surprising amount of width. The monitor between does not hinder them. and I have my keyboard on a folding food table stand in front of the plant/lamp stand. It's what I had, so I improvised. Computer sits to the side below right speaker which sits at about 38 to 39 inches up. I have the baffles lined with commercial grade packed lambs wool around the edges and between the drivers to limit edge diffraction. Replaced screws with brass(non magnetic). Some isodamp pro around the drivers. They sound a bit better than stock with those mods and the imaging and staging improved a bit. Everything else is just stock.


PS I did try moving the monitor back in 6 inch increments to two feet further back. That does improve depth and imaging specificity and evens out the midrange. Very interesting.

Happy listening,

jgwtriode

 

[JazzVinyl]

oops 1100 MHz typo...didn't notice! Pardone!

jgwtriode

I thought a serious math error had occurred. Your not allowed to drive the spaceship anymore

 

[L0rdGwyn]

I like it......... ALTHOUGH I gotta say somebody whose name is derived from a Dark Souls reference ought to have enough RPG lore rattling around in his head to come up with Aegis on his own.

Lol true, I tend to like to hear other peoples' ideas though, I'm not usually a fan of my own when it comes to naming things.

 

[jgwtriode]

I thought a serious math error had occurred. Your not allowed to drive the spaceship anymore

Operator headspace as we used to say in SATCOM!

 

[Monsterzero]

Aegis arrived in one piece. Listening tonight with the ZMF Caldera.

 

[jgwtriode]

All those gorgeous tubes!

jgwtriode!

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Aegis arrived in one piece. Listening tonight with the ZMF Caldera.

Lookin' good

 

[whirlwind]

Aegis arrived in one piece. Listening tonight with the ZMF Caldera.

Are those EL34 tubes?

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Are those EL34 tubes?

Yeah Philips / Mullard XF2.

 

[leftside]

Aegis arrived in one piece. Listening tonight with the ZMF Caldera.

Love it!

 

[pravous]

Probably the next DIY thing I would consider doing is the spud circuit, which I would expect to cost < $1K in parts. For this design, I placed the highest priority on the ease with which it can be built, even if it is relatively expensive. I think that will make it approachable even by novice DIYers.

You can save money on a tube circuit and get great sound quality by augmenting with semiconductors, but many of the great ones for tube circuits are not available right now (hopefully that changes in the near future) and the propensity for parts failure goes up. Better to start with something easy to build and troubleshoot.

Your next project needs to be adding a headphone jack/ speaker binding posts to the etracer.

Think of the tube rolling possibility’s! Little modules that plug into the tube pin connections. Heater voltage, plate and grid configured through software. For added insanity dual mono etracers

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Nothing too exciting to report as of late, Aegis work is still underway. New set of transformers and Lundahl shields are ordered, I am finishing up some minor changes to the chassis and will place that order either today or tomorrow.

Also finishing up some final changes to the main PCB with test points included, I'll get those ordered today as well.

As of about a week ago, Dave at Landfall had around 900ft of 3.25" extrusion. That's a lot of chassis, no worries on availability there.

I confirmed with Holger at Erhard Audio that he can supply the Lundahl parts, he says he has "plenty" of the small transformer housings. There will be a 4-5 week wait time for the transformers / chokes since they will be made in Sweden, but if there is enough interest over time he might start holding them in stock.

Lastly, I confirmed with ELMA's U.S. sales rep that he can be reached out to directly to order the output switch, so I will provide instructions for that as well. Another 4-5 week wait time for that part.

So, everything is on track, I'll have final orders placed over the weekend, then about a month's wait for parts, then the final build and documentation.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Here is a look at the final PCB. I added test points for the tube heaters, plate voltages, and cathode voltages. I also increased the hole diameter for all of the major components (I felt it was a bit tight on the first go around for some of the resistors) and increased pad sizes in certain places. Should be easy to stuff and easy to desolder if necessary.

The idea with the test points is that the builder can clip on leads from their DMM, so no hands in the chassis while the amplifier is on. Safety first a few of the test points are the leads of large components (resistors, capacitors) which also can be clipped on, they have been marked on the board.

I just want you all to know that designing this PCB was a huge PITA.



I also added pads on my Alps RK27 PCB for the shield wire from the shielded twisted pair input wiring from the RCAs. I am going to recommend a specific wire from Mogami as it has a drain wire which keeps it simple.

 

[triod750]

For discussion: https://web.archive.org/web/20120605105654/http://www.kk5dr.com/Tubes.html
What is the relevance for our use?

Example: "Every vacuum tube has an element that is known as the electron emission source usually it is either an oxide coating as in indirectly heated cathode tubes, or a treated filament as in directly heated cathodes. When the element is heated, either directly or indirectly, it emits "extra" electrons that are driven by the electro-motive force & current flow within the tube, to the anode, this is how a tube amplifies. This process is continuous, as long as the tube heater/filament is active, electrons flow, even when the tube is in standby/cut-off mode. The supply of electrons is NOT endless, every tube that is active, is on the way to the end of its life span. However, turning the tube "off" and "on" a number times unnecessarily would cause more damage than to leave the tube on for a few hours between uses. Thermal cycling is more harmful than continuous operation, but a balance of the two should be had".