Eastern Electric MiniMax BBA (Booster Buffer Amp)

jdjohn

I pulled the trigger on one of these guys today off the 'gon. http://www.eeaudio.com/eeaudio_009.htm I watched it for a few days and did some research...saw some very favorable reviews. I searched here on the forum, but didn't see any comments on this product. Anyone have first-hand experience with one?

I'll be placing it between my Peachtree Audio novaPre hybrid (it has a single tube that can be toggled on-or-off) and my McCormack DNA-125. Hopefully it will send my upgraditis into remission for awhile. Worst case: I can play with it awhile, and then resell it if not satisfied. Looking forward to getting a better taste of tubes

MrBuhl

mmmm... McCormack and tubes... yum!

tonyb

Taken from the link....

"In fact, one of the joys of being an audiophile is "mixing and matching" components in an everlasting quest to achieve a combination of units that is "just right" in their own system. Music lovers want to cross over the line beyond mere sound reproduction so that they can experience musical magic. Very often, it is actually an electronic mismatch between components that fuels an audiophile's urge to "upgrade" their equipment or is the cause of a music lover's dissatisfaction with the sound they are hearing. Until now it has been a trial and error process to achieve system synergy that transcends the electro-mechanical aspect of sound reproduction."

Agreed....

However take note that these things will NOT change the overall tone of your system. Better dynamics....possibly yes. I would make sure the cabling is up to snuff though also before injecting one of these devices.

heiney9

EE stuff is excellent. It should make a noticeable improvement and even more with some other tube choices. But as always heed Tony's post above......

jdjohn

Thanks for the input/advice. Just to be clear, I'm not dissatisfied with my current setup, and there is certainly an argument to be made for just leaving it alone. But I'm curious as to what a more involved tube sound can bring to my setup, and specifically in my room, so I think this unit will give me a pretty good idea. If I fall in love with the tube sound, I will be more inclined to get a full-on tube preamp and put this buffer aside.

I like the tone of my system, so added dynamics will be what I'm looking for here. I may like the dynamics of it...I may not. Most of my music is soft rock/pop/folk, with occasional chamber-style classical, so I'm hoping for more airy highs, and mids that jump-out. I think big orchestral works and harder rock might overwhelm the setup at louder volumes, but I'll check all types as part of the process Speaking of volume, I'm also interested to see if the tube buffer can eek-out more dynamics at lower volumes...to keep it interesting. I currently have an EQ that I use at lower volumes (kind of like the old loudness button), so it would be great if the tube buffer added enough low-volume dynamics so that I could remove the EQ entirely. This EE buffer has separate gain and volume knobs, so I will experiment. I play vinyl, FLAC, and high-res streaming, so will be interesting to see how each source is impacted.

Once I have enough experience with it, I'll post some comments. Besides my main rig, I have some other equipment (test systems) to try it with as well, so I should be able to get a good sense of its overall capabilities. Wish me luck!

dannylightning

gain and volume knobs very cool. i have been wondering about a tube dac or tube preamp type thing for quite a while.. not sure why i have never tried one yet.

i would expect warmer and more lively sounding i hope you like it.

if its like a guitar amp crank the volume knob to almost max to get the tubes running at full power and adjust the gain till you get start to get too much break up then use the volume knob on your amp to control the main volume.

heiney9

A tube buffer or pre-amp or dac don't work at all like a guitar amp. Guitar amps are designed to overdrive and produce different kinds of distortion as part of the signal. Tube audio gear is not!

H9

dannylightning

tube guitar amps can produce a very clean sound as well, even on the clean settings the tubes still sound best cranked up a bit compared to having them at a lower volume so low wattage tube amp are ideal since you can turn up the volume more before they get crazy loud.. unless you need a really loud amp that is..

i assume all tube audio devices sound better with more power going to the tubes.

F1nut

dannylightning wrote: »

tube guitar amps can produce a very clean sound as well, even on the clean settings the tubes still sound best cranked up a bit compared to having them at a lower volume so low wattage tube amp are ideal since you can turn up the volume more before they get crazy loud.. unless you need a really loud amp that is..

i assume all tube audio devices sound better with more power going to the tubes.

That would be a negative. A well designed tube amp will not run the tubes at maximum to get the best sound. Besides, running at max shortens their lifespan quite a bit.

jdjohn

Interestingly enough, the Eastern Electric operating manual for this MiniMax BBA says, "With the volume of the BBA set at minimum, and the rest of the sytem powered on, we suggest you to turn the "Gain" control of the BBA to maximum first." The manual then goes on to say that combinations of gain and volume on the BBA and the preamp should be experimented with.

Well, overall first impression is a noticeable, but subtle, enhancement in dynamics, with no discernible loss in other aspects. I only have stock tubes ATM, but I have read some good information about suggested NOS replacements. I look forward to experimenting

I also think it's time for me to step-up my IC game a bit.

mikeyb128

Those stock EE tubes are complete junk. You will be pleasantly surprised with some NOS tubes in there.

I use an EE phono pre, with 1960 NOS Mullards, a 50's RCA rectifier, and a svetlana/colomor from the 70's in the middle slot, sounds almost as good as my buddies NVO phono pre amp (6000$ USD). I've spent months finding this special combo, which doubled the sound quality vs the Stock EE tubes.

jdjohn

Cool, thanks. I ordered a pair of Brimar output tubes, and a Tung-Sol rectifier. The Brimars are either from 1951 or 1961 (4A1 code), and the Tung-Sol from 1962.

mikeyb128

jdjohn wrote: »

Cool, thanks. I ordered a pair of Brimar output tubes, and a Tung-Sol rectifier. The Brimars are either from 1951 or 1961 (4A1 code), and the Tung-Sol from 1962.

I have a 60's ring sol rectifier as well, but prefer a rca black plate. It's nice because they can be had for under 10 bucks.

jdjohn

The 'new' tubes really made a difference...really digging the sound. I may roll others in at some point just for comparison, but new ICs are next on the list.

jdjohn

Ok, I can't live with the (slight) grounding hum from this unit anymore, so am reaching out for advice. It's not awful, mind you, but I can't let it go on like this.

I've obviously lived with it awhile now, holding out final judgement until I made some other upgrades first, but the upgrades didn't help. I still have it placed in my chain between my Peachtree Audio novaPre, and my McCormack DNA-125. Interconnects are Furez cables and connectors from Doug. Power conditioner is PS Audio Powerplay 9000 (for the preamp and tube buffer; power amp is plugged into the wall). Power cables and plugs for conditioner, preamp, and tube buffer are Furutech from Doug. Power cable for power amp is a PS Audio. I had the hum before upgrading pc, cables/cords, and I still have it now.

Connecting the preamp directly to the power amp, everything is quiet. It's only when the tube buffer is in place when the hum occurs. Again, it's not awful, and initially I thought, "Oh, I can only hear it when my ear is next to the woofer." But then my wife noticed it from her sitting position, so now I just want it gone...the hum, or the tube buffer.

I could probably turn down the gain and/or volume controls on the buffer to help, but I'm hoping for other ideas or advice from folks who might have solved this before. FWIW, the hum is slightly louder in one channel.

Thanks for any advice!

P.S. I don't want to overstate the hum...it is only noticeable when music is NOT playing. It may just be inherent to the 'sound' of tubes.