[BrokeSkoolBoi]

I finally plugged my Dac into the wall instead of my power strip.. lol what a difference. thank god mac chargers are so long

 

[buke9]

Honestly even after getting the LP, the CTH gets a lot of time with the 6XX. I still feel that synergy is one of the best sounding combinations I’ve ever heard. Also for $450? A no-brainer.

I think the CTH and 6xx’s is great also I think the Bottlehead Crack is a bit better with them but not by huge margins.

 

[Guidostrunk]

Folks, I gotta tell you. Using an external power supply with this amp puts it in an entirely different level of SQ!
I purchased a used Acopian A28mt300 for $35 shipped. It looks like someone was bowling with it , but it works flawlessly, and I saved a good bit of money. Besides, you never see the power supply anyway.

This amp is a beast now. Way more transparent. The expansion in dimensionality, and space is off the charts. Bass extends way down, with insane impact and slam now. Mids and treble integrate with precision and fluidity presenting a much more realistic and lifelike presentation.

I totally went into it pessimistic. Thinking that it would be a miniscule change and then I'm stuck with this ugly power supply under my desk. Well, that's not the case! It sounds nothing like the amp with the walwart.
I'm totally blown away! @atomicbob has an entire writeup on the subject at a different place in which I'm not allowed to mention. Just google MCTH Acopian, and you'll find it.

Cheers folks!

 

[Sekka]

Folks, I gotta tell you. Using an external power supply with this amp puts it in an entirely different level of SQ!
I purchased a used Acopian A28mt300 for $35 shipped. It looks like someone was bowling with it , but it works flawlessly, and I saved a good bit of money. Besides, you never see the power supply anyway.

This amp is a beast now. Way more transparent. The expansion in dimensionality, and space is off the charts. Bass extends way down, with insane impact and slam now. Mids and treble integrate with precision and fluidity presenting a much more realistic and lifelike presentation.

I totally went into it pessimistic. Thinking that it would be a miniscule change and then I'm stuck with this ugly power supply under my desk. Well, that's not the case! It sounds nothing like the amp with the walwart.
I'm totally blown away! @atomicbob has an entire writeup on the subject at a different place in which I'm not allowed to mention. Just google MCTH Acopian, and you'll find it.

Cheers folks!

Would you say it's a more noticeable change than rolling with 6C8G tubes?

 

[Guidostrunk]

No tube has come close to making a change like this LPS. I'd put the MCTH/wLPS up against anything under 1k.
If you like that 6c8g. You should give the 12at7/ECC81 with adapter a try. I'm currently using a Telefunken 12at7 w/ adapter.
You get the same Soundstage as 6c8g, with more depth. And the magic of the best 2c51/396a. The 12at7/6201/ecc81 are way more transparent, with the best bass out of any tube I've ever rolled.

Would you say it's a more noticeable change than rolling with 6C8G tubes?

 

[Guidostrunk]

If I were to buy another power supply. I'd buy this lab model, and offer $65. With shipping you're looking at $100. Same LPS that @atomicbob uses in his writeup. For the price it's a steal.
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/113551487386

 

[BrokeSkoolBoi]

If I were to buy another power supply. I'd buy this lab model, and offer $65. With shipping you're looking at $100. Same LPS that @atomicbob uses in his writeup. For the price it's a steal.
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/113551487386

I'm interested in getting the most out of my CTH, but I have no knowledge of how to use this device. Would you mind at least pointing me in the right direction of how to use this thing?

 

[jrhill]

I've used a number of different power supplies with this amp and, as you'd expect, different tastes of sound support different quality of Linear Power Supplies, different valves, different headphones.

I'm using an AMB regulated supply with that 'tombstone' 6cg8 valve (or tube, if you want) and the total sound is quite dependent on the reg's output capacitor - I would expect this to be similar to other high quality supplies - there are some 'ready-built' supplies but they tend to be nearly as expensive as this whole amplifier - this one seems to be very good value for money and will benefit from adding a good quality cap on the power supplies' output terminals

 

[jrhill]

Oh yeah, the Tung Sol version of the 6C8G, not the RCA - a bit expensive unfortunately.

 

[jrhill]

Oh, forgot to add, I enlarged the hole to 38mm so the 6F8G/6C8G converter socket could directly plug into the pcb instead of using the extension socket ... I thought the 6c8g has a clearer heavier bass response than the Siemens PCC88 and a more detailed background too

IMO, it's still one of the best 'bang-for-the-buck' headamps available - this one has run nearly continuously (24/7) for the last 10 months without missing a beat and fills out the sound of the k701/2 extrememty well too.

 

[horaspaul]

OK, so I and a bunch of newbies have bought into this Massdrop.

I love the reviews of this amp but am wondering whether there is a better power source than the included one?

Newbies need to learn the value of a "linear power supply" but have no clue what it is or where we can get one.

When my M/CTH arrives next week, we'll start using it with the included wall-wart.

Any other options for a LPS?

 

[jrhill]

Not sure what a 'newbie' is really so a bit hard to suggest you build you're own using an assembled tested pcb as a base but involves working with mains power and this isn't something everyone's comfortable doing properly/safely.

Ready made - there's plenty of people that can provide good quality linear power supplies and it depends on the $s you have available and how far down the 'rabbit-hole' you want to go - plus, many people that are into this sort of upgrade have quite definite opinions about "good quality" or "good value for $s"

Some people aren't too keen on buying anything built in China but like most things, "it depends" - there are quite a few linear power supplies available from China that'll do the job very well indeed but you may need to ask for the slightly higher voltage this amp requires (28 volts at 360mA) - most of them only go up to 24volts dc

One of the 'good ones' is based around the ZeroZone Betta 11 pcb that is a version of the AMB Sigma 11 circuit that has been an excellent unit for this amplifier. There are a number of laboratory power supplies that'll also do a very good job and often cheaper too - I hope my rambling is of some help.

I'm not sure if the guys at Massdrop are designing a linear power supply - I'm pretty sure it'd be a big seller.

 

[horaspaul]

Okay, I got my MCTH yesterday, burned it in overnight and did some listening this evening.
Hooked up to the Schiit Fulla 2 DAC, it turned itself off playing Earl Klugh, "A Time for Love," on Amazon music listening through Sennheiser 58x.
Hooked up to the headphone jack only on the same laptop, the MCTH again turned itself off playing Earl Klugh, "A Time for Love," on Amazon music listening through Sennheiser 58x.
It was the same source, a Dell Inspiron, same tune, and it triggered some "off" switch on the MCTH.
Any ideas why this is?
Paul

 

[joeike]

Did the LED turn from white to red when it turns off?sounds like the protection circuit is being triggered maybe try different set of headphones just to eliminate them first.also check to see if the tube is in all the way sometimes it's kind of hard to tell they could be in partially and may need to be gently receipt it.

 

[joeike]

Haven't seen too many reviews for this unit but here's what I just found.