[sceleratus]

Quote:

Some capacitor reading
http://diy.ecpaudio.com/p/some-notes-on-coupling-capacitors.html
 
In the beginning, he also linked to other capacitor comparisons.
 
And I agree to get sound from your amp first before you worry about things like the best cap to use.  It's just in looking at the rest of the design and components used, IMHO a solen cap is the weakest link .
 
Randy

I'm in learning mode, and questions like yours are a great way to learn.  The whole "single ended" Class A thing is very fuzzy to me.
Tom recommended a couple of books and I'm slogging thru them.  I pick them up from time to time.  But I have retention issues.
Morgan Jones "Valve Amplifiers" and 

[size=1.7em] Designing Power Supplies for Tube Amplifiers by Merlin Blencowe[/size]

 
Randy,
Please bring your source and anything else you would like.
That's the fun part,  tearing stuff apart and connecting cables.  Listening to different stuff.
I am determined to be ready for the meet but I will post if the 300B won't make it.
 
Glad I just looked up at your thread.  
My Bifrost is SPIDIF only.  I posted on the meet thread if I should upgrade to USB and if folks will be walking around with USB sources.
My plan is to bring
The Beast
The Lyr and some old glass
2 x Bifrost, one with Uber, both SPDIF
2 x LCD2's  Rev1 and Rev2
MacBook Pro and Mac Mini
 
[size=small]General question.[/size]
[size=small]I use the Schiit "PYST" interconnect cables for Lyr to Bifrost.[/size]
[size=small]They are too short for The Beast.[/size]
[size=small]I don't want to spend stupid money on interconnects.[/size]
[size=small]What is a good 3 foot value RCA interconnect cable?[/size]
 
After all this thread and posting, it had better sound good.
 
EDIT
Getting ahead of myself on Caps.
I can always order another Driver Board for experimentation.  The components are not that expensive.
Thanks for the link.  I bookmarked it.
 
 

[size=1.7em]  [/size]

 

[randytsuch]

I mostly build my own IC's, based on a recipe Stan Warren gave me years ago, I won't pay megabucks for IC's.
 
Whats "the Beast"?
 
How do you generate the SPDIF signal to your dac?
 
My dac will take SPDIF, if I add a connector to it, but as of now it's USB only.
 
Randy

 

[sceleratus]

Quote:

I mostly build my own IC's, based on a recipe Stan Warren gave me years ago, I won't pay megabucks for IC's.
 
Whats "the Beast"?
 
How do you generate the SPDIF signal to your dac?
 
My dac will take SPDIF, if I add a connector to it, but as of now it's USB only.
 
Randy

I call The Christiansen "Damn Good 300B" the beast.
The transformers alone are over 30 pounds.
Add a .090 metal top plate and wood enclosure and it's one tube shy of 50 lbs.
I think the enclosure will be Birdseye Maple.
 
OK.  I was incorrect. Vague at best.   SPDIF is an interconnect format and the delivery can be either optical or coax.
In the case of Macs, it's optical Toslink.  If you have a source with [size=small]toslink, you can plug into my Bifrost.[/size]
 
The headphone jack on a Mac doubles as an optical port.  Plug in a toslink cable with a little adapter and you are digital 96K Hz.  A quick setting in the "Audio Midi Setup" might be needed.

 

[randytsuch]

Maybe it's me, but I think of SPDIF as copper wires using RCA or  BNC backs.  
For optical, I call it toslink.
 
For my DAC to support optical/toslink, I just need to add one part, I will try to do that before the meet.
 
BTW, my dac is pretty big, bigger than you probably expect.  Case is 16 x 16 x 5.  I bought this case for a squeezebox project a long time ago, and wanted room to experiment.
 
Sorry if I am taking your thread off topic, but since you are waiting for tubes anyway
 
Randy

 

[sceleratus]

All voltages at all test point are in spec. I set the initial bias on the 300Bs.
It's time to cable the Bifrost and plug in the LCD2s

 

[sceleratus]

IT WORKS !!!!!

Music.

Beautiful music.

 

My benchmark track  [size=small]Zeppelin, "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You"[/size]

[size=small]Is amazing.  Better than I could have expected.[/size]

 

So much different than my Schiit Lyr.

Rich.

Mids in Spades.

 

And these valves have only been cooked for and hour.

 

I have a slight static,  at all volume levels.  Almost like listening to vinyl.

Not unexpected because all the boards are bunched together.

 

[randytsuch]

Cool 

 
Really happy for you.  It's great when you build something, and it works.  On the flip side, when it doesn't work it REALLY SUCKS.
 
Now I really looking forward to the meet, and hearing your amp.

Randy

 

[sceleratus]

Randy,
 
It's a beast.   Base and Mids by the truck load

 

[sceleratus]

I was soooo phreaked out just before I flipped the switch.
What a rush.
 
Still in shock that it works and sounds good....
WHo woulda thunk ???

 

[sceleratus]

 

[holland]

That's a nice amp.  I can't wait to see the enclosure.  I'm tempted to tackle a 300B build as well, but with a 6H30 or a 6SN7 input stage instead of the 6N6P.  I haven't fully read this thread, particularly the output transformers, but will when I have the time.  What z out are you going to get?  Will you have a high/low z switch of some sort?

 

[sceleratus]

Quote:

That's a nice amp.  I can't wait to see the enclosure.  I'm tempted to tackle a 300B build as well, but with a 6H30 or a 6SN7 input stage instead of the 6N6P.  I haven't fully read this thread, particularly the output transformers, but will when I have the time.  What z out are you going to get?  Will you have a high/low z switch of some sort?

Thank you.
Not too bad for an idiot with a soldering iron....  Here's the designer's site.
 
It will support ECC99 and 12BH7A as well as the 6N6P.   Tom has finished a mod for me to support 6DJ8 / ECC88's  I have a nice collection of old glass for my Lyr.
 
The OT were made to: SK@100mA to 60Ω  10 Watts   -1Db 27Hz to 35KHz  Period.  No switch, just for my LCD2's 
 
I still can't believe I'm listening to music.

 

[DefQon]

Nice stuff there. Man was hoping it would be fairly cheap, well it is considering transformers/chokes, tubes and a chassis is always the most expensive parts of diy tube amp's if you want quality first. You've just given me more motivation to get my p-p 6p14 tube amp restored soon, considering I've just ditched the PCB and going full point-to-point wiring. Playing with 300v sounds fun .

 

[sceleratus]

Ya...  It started out, "great $165 for the boards !"
Right.
 
Bruce Springsteen  "It's a Death Trap, a Suicide Rap...."    6" before the volume control.
 
I had this habit of dropping my pinky when holding the DMM probes....  I took two times to break this habit.
 

 

[sceleratus]

Quote:

Nice stuff there. Man was hoping it would be fairly cheap, well it is considering transformers/chokes, tubes and a chassis is always the most expensive parts of diy tube amp's if you want quality first. You've just given me more motivation to get my p-p 6p14 tube amp restored soon, considering I've just ditched the PCB and going full point-to-point wiring. Playing with 300v sounds fun .

You should look at Tom's voltage regulators.
21st Century Maida for high voltage and 6.3v and 5v filament regulators.
They're priced nice.  Cool to build... get to do some SMD.
 
Also,  all the schematics are on his web site if you want to adapt any to you project.