The more I mod...

ben62670

The more I mod the more I am excited about audio. I have learned a lot since I started here a little over 2 years ago. Many thanks guys. F1nut has taught me a lot with little phrases like "a mind is like a parachute...", and "garbage in is garbage out".
Today I was modding my DIY pre. The XO point was a little too low. I wanted to bring it up to 2500hz from 2300hz. I had originally ordered the kit with the XO set at 2000hz. I did not like that XO point, and wanted to go higher. I went to Rat Shack, and picked up some resistors there because nobody has resistors local. I had some 1% metal film resistors that GV recommended for my Pre project around. I swapped them in, and fired the system back up again. There are only 2 of the resistors in series with the signal, and what a huge difference it made. I was complaining about my mids lacking definition before. Not anymore. Even my SDA's sound stage was wider. The detail increased tremendously. The guitars got their twang back, and the inhales of Alison Kraus between notes became much more apparent, and clear. Bass is much punchier. I am going to order the caps today for the active XO. I am going with Sonicaps. The value is tiny(.0033uf) so the cost of the caps is real low. I am very excited about this. I can not wait to get my DAC board in my pre.
This spring I am modding my Adcom GFA-565's, and my GFA-585. The guys that have nice systems know what I am talking about. When certain guitar note makes the snare drum sizzle, and you can hear it through your speakers it puts a grin on your face:)
Ben

Early B.

That's fantastic! Are you reading this, cfrizz???:p

It always amazes me how one can take a couple of internal parts and transform his entire system.

BTW -- you're full of ****, Ben.:eek: There's no way in hell your SDA soundstage can possibly get any wider than what I heard last week.

Early B.

So you don't need to add the midrange drivers anymore, do ya?

ben62670

Early B. wrote: »

So you don't need to add the midrange drivers anymore, do ya?

From what I am hearing I don't think so. I am glad I didn't order them last night:eek:
I am however ordering some sonicaps for the active XO;)
From what I am hearing with just upgrading some R's the caps should just bring it that much further. As for "audiophiles" that think mods are over rated they need to rethink a few things. Just like with cars a couple minor mods can really bring out substantial SQ improvements at a fairly low cost. Mass produced components have to think of the typical user, and a lot of Polkies are not typical;) Also I have a variable resistor to control the dip at the XO point. I am eliminating that with some real resistors soon. I spoke with Mr Marchand at Marchand electronics, and I know there are substantial improvements to be had there too:)
Ben

ntculenuff

I'm not so good on the internal parts swapping of amps and such but you guys sure make me want to tear into it.. i wouldn't even know where to start..

what are you modding on your adcoms? maybe i should be doing something with mine ?? And possibly changing components on my speaker x-overs ??

ben62670

On the Adcom's I am changing key resistors, and caps on the input boards. Also on the PS caps there has been a trend of using very large caps to help hold the voltage during high currant demands. This isn't all its cracked up to be. Just large caps doesn't improve the SQ. I will be adding some high grade smaller value caps to help with the detail, and speed. I will take detailed notes on the upgrades for those who have very good soldering skills. You do not want any cold joints on the input boards.
Ben

NJPOLKER

I do wonder if I should seek out some mental heath help. Ben, I am not saying you should but maybe give it some thought
Drew

ben62670

NJPOLKER wrote: »

I do wonder if I should seek out some mental heath help. Ben, I am not saying you should but maybe give it some thought
Drew

I did. He suggested I get a hobby. Well I got into audio. I should have taken up collecting butterflies. It would have been much cheaper:D

NJPOLKER

I have tears in my eyes reading that!!! Wait don't you have chickens??? Kinda like butterflies
Drew

NJPOLKER

Also Thanks for the Bizzel connection. No pun intended by the way.
Cables, wires, caps, resistors, IC's, sealants, bracing oh my!! Ben forward the phone number of your nut doctor to me please
Drew

ben62670

NJPOLKER wrote: »

Ben forward the phone number of your nut doctor to me please
Drew

My testicles are fine. Hanging much lower than just a few years ago, but fine. Its my brain that is out of whack:D I wouldn't want to be responsible for sending you down the road I am on:eek: The funny thing about this latest mod is usually bad recordings sound worse, but this time CD's that were lacking have a little more weight, and detail to them:) Very happy indeed. I just finished an order for 8 Sonicaps at .0033uf for the active XO. I am giddy like a school girl who just had her first kiss:o

treitz3

That was the chicken Ben, not a school girl.

Early B.

Looking forward to your Adcom amp mods. What about the Adcom DAC?

ben62670

Early B. wrote: »

Looking forward to your Adcom amp mods. What about the Adcom DAC?

It's going up for sale when I complete my Pre/Dac. I was going to mod it. It is a very solid unit that is direct coupled, does HDCD, but I need cash more than 2 DAC's;)

awe-d-o-file

My gear is the same as 3 years ago but my system sounds WAY better! Why? Mods and tweaks. Room treatment, wall outlets and covers, footings, better caps and so on....

NJPOLKER

ben62670 wrote: »

My testicles are fine. Hanging much lower than just a few years ago, but fine. Its my brain that is out of whack:D I wouldn't want to be responsible for sending you down the road I am on:eek: The funny thing about this latest mod is usually bad recordings sound worse, but this time CD's that were lacking have a little more weight, and detail to them:) Very happy indeed. I just finished an order for 8 Sonicaps at .0033uf for the active XO. I am giddy like a school girl who just had her first kiss:o

HHMMMM I was refering to your state of mind when asking for the nut doc, but happy to hear your testicals are fine.
Drew

dudeinaroom

Ben let me know when your ready to get rid of that DAC. If timing (and price) is right I might take it off of your hands.

Later,
Ted

NJPOLKER

dudeinaroom wrote: »

Ben let me know when your ready to get rid of that DAC. If timing (and price) is right I might take it off of your hands.

Later,
Ted

Great move Ted!!

thsmith

NJPOLKER wrote: »

HHMMMM I was refering to your state of mind when asking for the nut doc, but happy to hear your testicals are fine.
Drew

I think this needs to be moved to Ron's senior moment post:rolleyes:

Damn gravity, need to find the ball bra http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orymhgZ6XoA

ben62670

thsmith wrote: »

I think this needs to be moved to Ron's senior moment post:rolleyes:

Damn gravity, need to find the ball bra http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orymhgZ6XoA

I laughed so hard I choked!!!

ben62670

OK Jeff contacted me about substituting RelCap RTE caps for the Sonicaps in my Active XO. I kinda was uneasy about this, but after a little research I am more comfortable.
Here is a link to the $2000 MF SACD mods
http://6moons.com/audioreviews/maverick/maverick.html

Systems

ben62670 wrote: »

OK Jeff contacted me about substituting RelCap RTE caps for the Sonicaps in my Active XO. I kinda was uneasy about this, but after a little research I am more comfortable.
Here is a link to the $2000 MF SACD mods
http://6moons.com/audioreviews/maverick/maverick.html

Doesn't the XM1 already come stock with polystyrenes?


I bet the Sonicaps would require a lot more board space.

ben62670

GV#27 wrote: »

Doesn't the XM1 already come stock with polystyrenes?


I bet the Sonicaps would require a lot more board space.

It does, but I wanted to upgrade to better parts. The Sonicaps were only about 1/2" long(12mm Eh) The value is only3300pf.
Ben

ben62670

Well I have the new caps in. Jeff(SonicCraft) substituted RelCaps in place of Sonicaps. He figured they would they would be better for the application I had in mind. I am using them in my active XO. I changed the XO point to 3200. I am very happy. The sound stage was too far back before, and the sustain wasn't there enough. I also went passive on my pre amp. I don't have enough gain to set the system to stun, but it is plenty loud enough. I am not sure what was lacking in my pre. It is dynamic enough, but not real lively. The OpAmps, double gain stage, or the caps I used in it My new DAC board showed up so when I get some time I will drop that in there. It puts out 4.5v so that is plenty of gain from the DAC to use passively. I am also going to add some resistors on a switch to cut gain for soft listening sessions;)

Edit: I may swap out the Vifa nippled tweeters for some Vifa domes. They are better off axis which is very important with SDA's.

lightman1

Lively...Shootin' from the hip here..can you bring the upper mid bass and the lower midrange on the XO up about 4-5 dB in the circuit? Maybe 2 dB from 1000hz to 2700hz?
???

ben62670

Yeah I can play with the XO point itself via a pot. I can have a dip, flat, or a bump to compensate. I am very happy where it is now. The piano has a nice ring to it, and brushes on the cymbals are very nice. I did the wiring in my speakers with AQ instead of cheap stuff. All in all I am headed in a new direction:) Maybe a tube buffer next week. Well after the DIY DAC.

lightman1

I'll be down next week and set fire to it........

Systems

ben62670 wrote: »

I changed the XO point to 3200. I am very happy. The sound stage was too far back before, and the sustain wasn't there enough.

The drivers may have been somewhat out of phase at the lower xover setting but in phase at your new setting?
Phase can still be an issue with steep 4th order slopes.Its best to try it with the tweeter connected with normal polarity and with it reversed.Use your ears and SPL meter to confirm proper phasing,a deep notch will be present with it incorrect.

Also active xovers usually benifit with the addition of abit of time delay to the tweeter if it's pathlength to the listening position is shorter than that of the midbass's.Of course if your tweets are to the outside of the Stereo Array drivers then some delay already exists.

My new DAC board showed up so when I get some time I will drop that in there. It puts out 4.5v so that is plenty of gain from the DAC to use passively.

The 4.5 volt output engages the LP filter section optimized for SACD's much higher sampling frequency.However I doudt there will be any audible issues with standard redbook CD's.

Dennis Gardner

I have a question Ben.......how does a change from 2300 hz to 2500 hz which is only a half tone difference on a piano from D7 to D#7 make a difference in how a guitar sounds when the change is made so far above the guitar's range 80 hz to 630hz? In reality you only moved one note to a different speaker.

I understand that higher quality/different materials in components can change what we here, and some of that is harmonic related, but why would Radio Shack resistors be so much of a change that it is heard octaves down the frequency range?

ben62670

Dennis Gardner wrote: »

I have a question Ben.......how does a change from 2300 hz to 2500 hz which is only a half tone difference on a piano from D7 to D#7 make a difference in how a guitar sounds when the change is made so far above the guitar's range 80 hz to 630hz? In reality you only moved one note to a different speaker.

I understand that higher quality/different materials in components can change what we here, and some of that is harmonic related, but why would Radio Shack resistors be so much of a change that it is heard octaves down the frequency range?

I went from 2300hz to 3200hz. The mods to the Pre in the last two weeks include metal film resistors, new caps, and went passive. It's been more the materials than the XO point. The XO point does help with the piano running higher up to 3200hz. there are 4 mid woofers apposed to a single 1" tweeter handling the the higher frequencies. I can now easily distinguish whether or not they are using brushes or sticks to hit the cymbals, and the breaths between singing are more audible. I am very happy with the mods:)

bsoko2

Ben - check these out: http://www.stereomojo.com/Nola%20Baby%20Grand%20Reference%20Speaker%20Review/NolaBabyGrandReferenceSpeakerReview.htm.

Bill