[Gariver]

Andrew:

Dr Peppard is both a gentleman and a scholar. Believe me, he is running a class operation at MAD!

 

[erix]

Before:

After:

Well, that wasn't so bad. I had to rearrange a few parts but the big cap fits nicely and is worth the effort.
I swapped the filament and high-volatge portions of the circuit to make room for the big cap. I had to use longer pieces of wire for the filament connections so I removed the line-output wires and used them. Future plans included changing the line-out to a second input - I'm gonna need more of this good wire..
I only needed to drill two holes for the screws that hold the clamp for the big cap. I used some stainless-steel button-heads and recessed them into the wood side panel.

I'm starting to love point-to-point wiring. It's like a 3D puzzle...

Here you can see the connections to the big cap and the reorganized wiring. The big cap replaces the brown cap on the left in the top picture and the not-so-big black one on the right. I had to give more thought to component location since I re-used every part I could.
Additional parts I added are the 1uF/250 Solen bypassing one side of the big black and a .47uF Wima MKP4 bypassing the 47uF on the last stage of the HV filtering section.

So, how's it sound?

Welp, in a word - 'strong'. There's a decidely firm 'whack!' on drum hits. It's a surprising sound coming from a tube amp. It's moved towards solid state in the presentation of impact - which can be good or bad - depends on your taste. I like it!. As a bonus, there's absolutely no power supply noise (it was barely noticable before - now it's non-existant).

Stay tuned for Phase 4 - Black Gate output caps, two more additional inputs, and some appearence improvements!

ok,
erix

 

[Magic77]

Quote:

Originally posted by Gariver Andrew: Dr Peppard is both a gentleman and a scholar. Believe me, he is running a class operation at MAD!

I've been very intrigued by this amp. Would you guys recommend the Ear+ Purist to someone who has never heard an all-Tube Headphone Amp?

I've only heard/have the X-Can v2, which of course is a Hybrid.

 

[erix]

Quote:

Originally posted by Magic77 I've been very intrigued by this amp. Would you guys recommend the Ear+ Purist to someone who has never heard an all-Tube Headphone Amp? I've only heard/have the X-Can v2, which of course is a Hybrid.

I would, especially if you build it yourself. It's an extremely easy build, all the parts are supplied down to the last nut and they're all good parts (except for the headphone out jack, which I've replaced with a Cliff guitar-amp type).

It is easy to tube-roll as you only have to change one tube (the 5751) instead of all three (and you can use either a 5751 or a 12AX7 in that position), the output tubes don't seem to make much difference.

ok,
erix

 

[Magic77]

Quote:

Originally posted by erix I would, especially if you build it yourself. It's an extremely easy build, all the parts are supplied down to the last nut and they're all good parts (except for the headphone out jack, which I've replaced with a Cliff guitar-amp type). It is easy to tube-roll as you only have to change one tube (the 5751) instead of all three (and you can use either a 5751 or a 12AX7 in that position), the output tubes don't seem to make much difference. ok, erix

Thanks. How about power output from this amp? Does it have enough Gain to make your ears bleed? Not that high gain is most important; But; how does it drive higher impedance Headphones?

 

[erix]

More than enough gain - I listen to my 325's with the volume at about 10 o'clock - can't go past 12...

Don't know about high impedence phones but Nick Dangerous does. He did a review a couple years ago about running his 600's through a standard Ear+. As I recall he wasn't as pleased with the combo as he was with Grados.

ok,
erix

 

[Nick Dangerous]

I do prefer the Ear+ with Grado headphones to any others I have tried.

The Ear+ doesn't sound BAD with Sennheiser/Beyer/AKG's... far from it. It's just that no single amplifier can be the perfect synergistic match for every possible headphone.

In my experience, the Mapletree Ear+ and Grado headphones were made for each other. They are as much fun to rock with as the classic MG Head OTL (with a good 5751)/Senn 600 combo is to *space out* with.

 

[BDA_ABAT]

BTW: I'm very much enjoying the Ear + with Ety ER4S... works nicely with them. Adds a touch of toob warmth and goodness to help the Ety's sound a bit less dry.

Thanks for posting the mods! Am looking forward to your finished product.

Are you available to do some mods to others Ears?

Thanks!
Bruce

 

[TheReaper]

Any updates erix?

Just received my Ear+ Pusirt and will be looking for upgrades soon.

 

[erix]

No upgrades for a while - I got to free up some projects that have been collecting dust first!

Then the're that money thing...

Anybody wanna buy an amp?

ok,
erix

 

[danlaix]

hi guys, sorry to post this here.

Erix, do u still remember the last time when i asked u about your MeatHead amp? Apparently u havent update your site, i'm still waiting for the diagram files for your wonderful MeatHead V1.
And i can see that you already have the MeatHead V2.
Still waiting dude.....

 

[erix]

Quote:

Originally posted by danlaix hi guys, sorry to post this here. Erix, do u still remember the last time when i asked u about your MeatHead amp? Apparently u havent update your site, i'm still waiting for the diagram files for your wonderful MeatHead V1. And i can see that you already have the MeatHead V2. Still waiting dude.....

V1 had an error in the layout that negated the bass boost. I stripped the whole thing down and made V2, the blue one in my avatar, out of the old red V1. I can tell you that this little blue amp kicks large amounts of ass.

I'll try to put some drawings up over the weekend - e-mail me if you can't wait.

ok,
erix