[LCMusicLover]

...Is it 5:00 pm yet?

Somewhere

 

[Guidostrunk]

I hear you bro. I'm in the same boat lol.

So this cap mod, and the LP going to another level of performance is really getting to me. I can't stop thinking about how freaking amazing it sounds, and it is making my days at work seem even longer. I start thinking about the LP pretty much the second I wake up, and then every couple of minutes throughout the day. I just want to get home and fire that thing up! Is it 5:00 pm yet?

 

[ra990]

OK, I've been pretty intrigued by this mod, but I don't want to mess with the warranty yet. I wonder if such a simple upgrade made such a dramatic difference, why it wasn't put in the first place by @runeight ? Could it be that the mod is just changing the sound signature to something that is accentuating particular frequencies or something like that, giving the impression of a huge massive performance upgrade?

 

[nwavesailor]

The simple answer is cost. The practical multiples ($) of audio manufacturing would not allow for better (more $) caps or big $$$ resistors and still retail for very little money.

The LP is inexpensive and sounds great stock.

 

[arashn]

The simple answer is cost. The practical multiples ($) of audio manufacturing would not allow for better (more $) caps or big $$$ resistors and still retail for very little money.

The LP is inexpensive and sounds great stock.

But how much are the capacitors versus the cost of labor and shipping included in the upgrade fee. I share the question ra990 had.

 

[ra990]

The way its been described, it seems that it puts the amp in another league with a simple upgrade. So, they could have charged a little more and ended up with a much better performing product.

Also, is there anyone who has done a good side-by-side comparison or are all the impressions of the differences from memory?

 

[skor]

@ksorota has graciously allowed me to demo vs my stock LP. I'll be providing my A-B comparisons upon receiving.

 

[LCMusicLover]

@ra990 -- valid questions.

...Could it be that the mod is just changing the sound signature to something that is accentuating particular frequencies or something like that, giving the impression of a huge massive performance upgrade?

To my ears, no. I would never characterize the change as a 'huge massive performance upgrade'. More importantly, I would say that the tonality (which is what I assume you're getting at when asking about changes to the sound signature) is not changed significantly. Rather I would say the tonality is changed 'very little', if at all. To my ears, the mods affected the sound quality in other ways: My Impressions

...Also, is there anyone who has done a good side-by-side comparison or are all the impressions of the differences from memory?

From memory here. However, I A/B'd my LP (before and after mod) vs DSHA-3F, so that comparison is the basis for my comments.

BTW, my mod now has 100+ hours, so I assume it is fully burned in without changing my impressions. Maybe a bit 'more of the same', or maybe just more brain burn-in.

 

[ra990]

@ksorota has graciously allowed me to demo vs my stock LP. I'll be providing my A-B comparisons upon receiving.

Great! Really looking forward to your impressions.

 

[Wes S]

The way its been described, it seems that it puts the amp in another league with a simple upgrade. So, they could have charged a little more and ended up with a much better performing product.

Also, is there anyone who has done a good side-by-side comparison or are all the impressions of the differences from memory?

From what I remember reading, the goal was to come in a certain price, so they made some compromises on the quality of certain parts. Also, this amp is very good in stock form, so the cap mod just gives it a little more performance that takes it to another level. The difference although small, was obvious to me, and could easily be picked out if I had two side by side. This is from memory of course, but I have listened with my LP almost everyday for a year in stock form, so I am pretty accustomed to the sound. The cap mod creates a blacker background no doubt, and let's the music come through like you are there.

 

[Sandifop]

I'm almost loath to put this out on forum but... *sigh*... here goes. The mod didn't change my E2 and LP issue: I still get distortion at, what in my opinion are, reasonable listing levels on the LP after the cap changed. The LP sounds great with my Dropennheisers 58X and the E2s are lovely on the Jot, so I'm good. I think I see another set of cans in my future, ones that rate above 33ohms.

I had an unreasonable hope the cap change might allow me to use the E2 and LP with music that liked more gain and was willing to test it. It didn't pan out. The E2+LP(capped) are pretty good at lower sound levels, however.

 

[malocadi]

How well can this drive LCD4s? I'm still trying to understand capability based on specs.

 

[CreditingKarma]

How well can this drive LCD4s? I'm still trying to understand capability based on specs.

It has no issues driving the ABYSS AB-1266 PHI TC so it should have no issue driving the lcd 4

 

[Sandifop]

It has no issues driving the ABYSS AB-1266 PHI TC so it should have no issue driving the lcd 4

I don’t have an answer for this question so I was giving it a pass; however, I think one will be delighted if they stay within the 33-300 ohms published by Monoprice. (Most folk I’ve heard from like the LP even outside of that range)

Lower impedance cans may distort on dynamic passages, ( I suspect this in my case) and higher impedance just won’t get loud enough for many folk.

 

[Guidostrunk]

@Slim1970 has no issues driving the Susvara fwiw.