[estreeter]

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I'm surprised that we havent had a post from one of the DIYers telling us how cheaply they could build a KICAS. Whatever

But is it actually? and easy to do?
 
I was actually thinking about asking them if they would consider selling kits.

I doubt that its 'easy' for 95% of us, but there will always be some hardened DIYers who could replicate an amp given access to the right parts. I have been told on a number of occasions that highly regarded amps like the Black Cube are 'simple designs well implemented', and I think thats the key - implementation over boutique audio parts. Given that I have never assembled so much as a crystal set, this puts me in the 'totally clueless but willing to tell you what he doesnt know' category - happy to hear from those who have seen the internals of the Caliente and know what they are looking at.
 

 

[wyki]

I can understand the sheer intellectual challenge of a kit, but at current prices the K.I.C.A.S. and Caliente are already a great bargain.  Oriel and Peter deserve something for the parts and the design.
Happy New Year to all.

 

[estreeter]

Anyone who has ever written software for a living knows that the finished product has to be worth a lot more than the CDs its burnt onto for distribution (or the cost of downloading it..). Of course an amp maker should be suitably rewarded for making the effort to produce and market a product - I am assuming that most of these guys started out as DIYers anyway - the difference is that they were prepared to submit their work for public scrutiny.

 

[imdskydiver]

I have the K.I.C.A.S and pair it with my HD600's and W3's and think it is a fantastic headphone Amp , I was thinking about ordering the V-dac too  , Do you think will it improve the sound from the K.I.C.A.S .

 

[mrcalypso]

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I have the K.I.C.A.S and pair it with my HD600's and W3's and think it is a fantastic headphone Amp , I was thinking about ordering the V-dac too  , Do you think will it improve the sound from the K.I.C.A.S .

I have the K.I.C.A.S Caliente, Sennheiser 580's and a Headroom Micro DAC. There is a noticeably improved difference with the DAC and the V-DAC is supposed to be even better than the Headroom.

 

[wyki]

The V-DAC is a definite improvement over the audio out of my Pioneer DVD player and of course a huge improvement via USB over computer audio.  I highly recommend the Pyramid power supply with it, which is much better than the wall wart and much cheaper than the V-PSU.  I had to sweat a bit to find the right cable to connect the Pyramid to the V-DAC, but I think Amazon now lists the right cable (about $1).    

 

[mtntrance]

 

Surprised when I went to order that shipping with conversion from canadian dollar to USD actually resulted in being higher with USD. It was 270 Canadian and 277 USD.

 

[Bones13]

Placed my order yesterday, after reading a lot about this, and several other amps in the $500 range.  I am adding it to my speaker system, for when I can't use speakers. I plan to use it with Senn 650s.
 
I have been building a Bottlehead Crack, but I think I fried something in it the other day, it just eats fuses now, so I am going for a a reportedly great sounding amp, for a great deal during this sale.
 
Plan to try it first with the wallwart, and consider upgrading the PS at some point.
 
It has an interesting characteristic which really seems to set it apart from much of the "popular" competition - a front mounted ON/OFF switch.  I am sorry, but I really don't like feeling around behind electrical boxes for a small toggle switch.  I have a Monster power box which I use to switch most of my equipment on/off, but I leave the DAC running, and plan to switch on the Caliente for headphone use, and not have to turn on the big power supply with the tubed monoblocks.
 
They probably will immediately institute version 2.0 of their amps once they sell them out this month, but what the hey, they seem like some great guys, and put out a good product in a crowded market to this enthusiast base.

 

[estreeter]

Quote:

They probably will immediately institute version 2.0 of their amps once they sell them out this month, but what the hey, they seem like some great guys, and put out a good product in a crowded market to this enthusiast base.

Thats an inevitable fact of life, particularly here on FOTM island, but I look at it this way - you are getting a mature product at the end of its lifecycle, well tested and proven. Would you prefer a product which may generate wildly conflicting impressions from those anxious to be the first to post a 'review' ?
 
Another example is the Grace Designs M902 - many of us are eagerly awaiting the M903, but I would be very happy with the superseded model - the fact that it sounded fantastic in 2008 doesnt suddenly mean it sounds 'less than great' in 2011. Unless you have unlimited funds, there will always be something newer and 'better' just around the corner

 

[Armaegis]

Quote:

 
I have been building a Bottlehead Crack, but I think I fried something in it the other day, it just eats fuses now, so I am going for a a reportedly great sounding amp, for a great deal during this sale.
 

 
Maybe an obvious comment... but did you check for a short somewhere? Do your resistances check out?
 
 
Quote:

 
They probably will immediately institute version 2.0 of their amps once they sell them out this month, but what the hey, they seem like some great guys, and put out a good product in a crowded market to this enthusiast base.

 
I asked them a couple months ago if they were developing any new products and they said not within the same price range. They did say they were working on something "high end" though.
 

 

[Bones13]

 
Quote:

Maybe an obvious comment... but did you check for a short somewhere? Do your resistances check out?

 
 

Yes, in fact I was following the protocol at the end of the speedball manual.  The first time I turned it on, I indeed got tube glow and correct lighting of the LEDs.  It was when I started the Voltage check, that I must have caused a short.  Fuses blown since that time.  I have gone over the circuit (cold) carefully with a magnifying glass etc.  I read last night that Dr. B recommends a 1 amp fuse, not the 500 milliamp fuse listed in the manual.  So I am thinking now that I was doing fine actually, just blowing the initial fuse with a wrong contact with the multi-meter.  The subsequent failures are from the 500 milliamp fuses I bought to replace the blown one.  There was another person with similar issues on the Bottlehead board, and I was reading his journey, which sounded like mine.  I just got some 1 amp fuses, and will will give it a go when I get home tonight.
 
Edit - installing the 1 amp fuse brought it back to life.  Only one channel working, at least I am making progress.  - Edit
 
I was totally doing the "speculation" thing about the Purity Audio Line, and have no actual knowledge of what they have plans for.  Historically, I have precendent, I think.
 

 

[wyki]

I would be sorry if Purity Audio didn't continue to offer either the K.I.C.A.S. and Caliente or a successor in the same price range.  And considering the quality of these two, I'm not sure how much improvement would be possible without a big price step-up.  If Peter and Oriel have an upscale model, that's great, but they've performed a real service by providing such a spectacular entry-level headamp.  I guess there are a few more out there of roughly comparable quality, at least at the pre-discount price.  Someone like me, who feels vaguely guilty spending on this, would not have taken the plunge if the bill had been triple.  Now, far from having buyer's remorse, I wonder why I ever hesitated.  For those of us who haven't gone to meets, sound quality of a prospective model is what others say about it, and a modest price makes it possible to take the leap.    

 

[micmacmo]

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Someone like me, who feels vaguely guilty spending on this, would not have taken the plunge if the bill had been triple.  Now, far from having buyer's remorse, I wonder why I ever hesitated.  For those of us who haven't gone to meets, sound quality of a prospective model is what others say about it, and a modest price makes it possible to take the leap.

 
So true. It's hard to justify the plunge/leap of faith if the price tag is too high and there's a risk that the amp might not provide an audible benefit. (I don't own a K.I.C.A.S. amp, but I feel this way about the well-recommended, low-priced tube amp I do own.) 

 

[jeust0999]

I'm glad to know that there are a lot good headphones I can match up the with the Caliente, later on. Primarily, the HD650's.
 
Here's a review I wrote, for those interested in this amp...
 
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/540545/review-akg-k-701-kicas-caliente-w-pictures

 

[zestytesty]

I also purchased a KICAS Caliente and use it with a Sennheider HD 650 and Beyerdynamic DT 990 . What can I say that hasn't already has been said , company communication A , shipping A , packaging A , the product itself A+ for the price I paid.
I am curious about some possible switch inside the unit that can turn it from a Caliente to a regular model but so far I haven't seen any pictures on the web that show this possible dip switch .
My bottle neck right now is the source, I just placed an order for the Meier Stagedac and plan on feeding the stagedac from the optical out on an airport express . I am hoping this works well and is a noticeable improvement from just plugging in the ipod straight to the KICAS.
Cant find to many posts where people use the airport express , but since its just ones and zero's feeding the stagedac it should work well , right ?