Dpa Pdm1 Series 3 Dac
- Thread starter bigalow
- Start date
martin clark
pinko bodger
Yes, it's bloody great if you can find one at a good price. Even better when used with a transport with the Deltran clock link - (sends the dacs clock back to slave the Deltec transport) Based on the Philips bitstream 'Dac7' chipset, it has the receiver etc in obne box linked to the DACs themselves in the other by six(!) optical cables.
What does it sound like? Incredibly refined and speedy, majoring on detail, resolution and refinement rather than bass whomp. One of the few offboard dacs I've heard that does the infectious groove thang, but also the full 'round earth' package if that's how you listen.
Both boxes run warm, and the voltage regs can fail with age as a result but since these are only LM317/337 types, easily fixed. The other thing is that the 'glass AT&T' optical senders/recevers can go with age -again , not difficult to fix, and Chevin Audio can help you here.
What does it sound like? Incredibly refined and speedy, majoring on detail, resolution and refinement rather than bass whomp. One of the few offboard dacs I've heard that does the infectious groove thang, but also the full 'round earth' package if that's how you listen.
Both boxes run warm, and the voltage regs can fail with age as a result but since these are only LM317/337 types, easily fixed. The other thing is that the 'glass AT&T' optical senders/recevers can go with age -again , not difficult to fix, and Chevin Audio can help you here.
Well, having just managed to snag a DPA PDM 1 Series 3 unit...and upgrading from a DPA Little Bit II, here's my listening notes so far (only had the unit for 24 hours, haven't really been able to listen to it properly yet). I'll simply repost my notes from another audio forum to save typing them all again 
"OK - got my 2nd hand DPA PDM 1 Series 3 DAC yesterday morning, have only listed to it for a few hours. Completely different sound to what I expected.
I've had a DPA Little Bit II for over ten years now, and I've been very happy with the sound. It's quite musical, quite detailed, good soudstage and imaging, vocals are reasonably prominent, as is the midrange. It all adds up to a very nice sound.
The DPA PDM 1 Series 3 unit is perplexing me...it's a higher ended unit, obviously mean to sound better. That's where the problems start - the definition of what better is. These are my listening notes so far...
For the DPA PDM 1 Series 3 unit:
More laidback and relaxed presentation
More detail
Better soundstage - width/depth/height
Tighter/deeper bass
Against:
Dynamics seem a bit flatter
Less musical
Midrange less prominent
Vocals less prominent
Vocals more nasally (on some of the Cranberries tracks, never heard this before)
Not quite as tightly focussed on vocals as the little bit II
Now, I am using el cheapo interconnects, which up until now have sounded just fine. I'm wondering if the DPA PDM 1 Series 3 unit isn't happy with either the CD transport being used (Pioneer DV-344) or the interconnect cabling. Said DVD player seems to work just fine with the DPA Little bit II.
Please note that my system, as is, isn't setup really good. The Sonus Faber (Electa Amators) are in a corner, 3' apart, not toed in right, and right up against a rear wall. The sound isn't as good as it could be when using the DPA Little bit II, but it's not that bad either. I'm wondering if trying the below suggestions:
Different rca cables to preamp
Toeing in speakers correctly, and set them correct distance apart
Pull speakers away from the rear walls
Turn off subwoofer (REL Stadium II, again, not ideally seated/sited)
What are your thoughts on this?
I'll also be getting my original CD transport, the Teac Esoteric P-500 repaired over the next few months. It's a bit hard, cos DPA is such an older brand, and was high end at the time it was current, few people would have had it, few would probably remember it. If you have, can you remember if your experiences match mine?
I'm not saying that the DPA PDM 1 Series 3 is bad, don't get me wrong. It's still very listenable, it's just not more of the 'same' that the Little bit II was and I'm very used to its presentation. There are definite improvements with the new unit.
CDs used so far to test the system have been:
The Cranberries - no need to argue (lovely acoustic sound on this album)
The blessing - Prince of the deep water (fantastic recording this one)
I Bificus - Bif
I warned you all that I have very wide musical tastes ;-)
I will be trying Tracy Chapman's self titled album tonight, and also The counting crows 'August & everything'.
Any thoughts, comments, suggestions are much appreciated."
and after a 2nd short listening session, some more notes:
"A bit of an update on the new DAC. Listened to a few tracks from James Blunt's 'back to bedlam' album, his voice sounds a bit hollow, and thin and recessed. It's also lacking the emotion that I know is in his voice and on this album. Some of the tracks were unbearing to play, being very bright and wish washy, something I've never noticed with this CD before on my system, and a mates.
Angie's (owner of the house) unasked comment was "I don't like the sound of this, it sounds too bright". Granted, she has very good hearing, but it was interesting. She also thought that it didn't really have any bass to it. I think the new DAC has bass, but it's just very tight, whereas the little bit II was more warm and woolly in the bass.
We then played a few tracks from Led Zeppelin's 'remasters' double cd, something Angie was familiar with (I'm not very familiar with their stuff to be honest). She was quite happy with the sound. Her comments were "if your system is not very good, I'll know it as soon as I listen to these tracks". It did sound much better with this CD than the james blunt cd, but the bass is still very tight.
My initial impressions are a lack of midrange and a slightly skewered presentation, favouring the top end over the bottom end of the audio spectrum. I don't know if this was atypical of DAC 7 DACs.
After reading a few comments on pink fish media, it seems that my units are deltecs, not dpa (they have the glossy finish, and the serial numbers are hand written on labels, stuck to the back of the chassis, not on the underside like dpa models were). These could even be prototypes, I'm going to give the serial numbers to Tom on pink fish media (hopefully he's still around there, as he was the repair technician for DPA) and see what he thinks."
I'm hoping Tom is still around on the boards, so I can throw some questions at him...
Anyone else got any thoughts?
Dave
edit: I don't have any option, due to living arrangements, of setting my hi fi system up properly...sorry guys...I wish!!!
"OK - got my 2nd hand DPA PDM 1 Series 3 DAC yesterday morning, have only listed to it for a few hours. Completely different sound to what I expected.
I've had a DPA Little Bit II for over ten years now, and I've been very happy with the sound. It's quite musical, quite detailed, good soudstage and imaging, vocals are reasonably prominent, as is the midrange. It all adds up to a very nice sound.
The DPA PDM 1 Series 3 unit is perplexing me...it's a higher ended unit, obviously mean to sound better. That's where the problems start - the definition of what better is. These are my listening notes so far...
For the DPA PDM 1 Series 3 unit:
More laidback and relaxed presentation
More detail
Better soundstage - width/depth/height
Tighter/deeper bass
Against:
Dynamics seem a bit flatter
Less musical
Midrange less prominent
Vocals less prominent
Vocals more nasally (on some of the Cranberries tracks, never heard this before)
Not quite as tightly focussed on vocals as the little bit II
Now, I am using el cheapo interconnects, which up until now have sounded just fine. I'm wondering if the DPA PDM 1 Series 3 unit isn't happy with either the CD transport being used (Pioneer DV-344) or the interconnect cabling. Said DVD player seems to work just fine with the DPA Little bit II.
Please note that my system, as is, isn't setup really good. The Sonus Faber (Electa Amators) are in a corner, 3' apart, not toed in right, and right up against a rear wall. The sound isn't as good as it could be when using the DPA Little bit II, but it's not that bad either. I'm wondering if trying the below suggestions:
Different rca cables to preamp
Toeing in speakers correctly, and set them correct distance apart
Pull speakers away from the rear walls
Turn off subwoofer (REL Stadium II, again, not ideally seated/sited)
What are your thoughts on this?
I'll also be getting my original CD transport, the Teac Esoteric P-500 repaired over the next few months. It's a bit hard, cos DPA is such an older brand, and was high end at the time it was current, few people would have had it, few would probably remember it. If you have, can you remember if your experiences match mine?
I'm not saying that the DPA PDM 1 Series 3 is bad, don't get me wrong. It's still very listenable, it's just not more of the 'same' that the Little bit II was and I'm very used to its presentation. There are definite improvements with the new unit.
CDs used so far to test the system have been:
The Cranberries - no need to argue (lovely acoustic sound on this album)
The blessing - Prince of the deep water (fantastic recording this one)
I Bificus - Bif
I warned you all that I have very wide musical tastes ;-)
I will be trying Tracy Chapman's self titled album tonight, and also The counting crows 'August & everything'.
Any thoughts, comments, suggestions are much appreciated."
and after a 2nd short listening session, some more notes:
"A bit of an update on the new DAC. Listened to a few tracks from James Blunt's 'back to bedlam' album, his voice sounds a bit hollow, and thin and recessed. It's also lacking the emotion that I know is in his voice and on this album. Some of the tracks were unbearing to play, being very bright and wish washy, something I've never noticed with this CD before on my system, and a mates.
Angie's (owner of the house) unasked comment was "I don't like the sound of this, it sounds too bright". Granted, she has very good hearing, but it was interesting. She also thought that it didn't really have any bass to it. I think the new DAC has bass, but it's just very tight, whereas the little bit II was more warm and woolly in the bass.
We then played a few tracks from Led Zeppelin's 'remasters' double cd, something Angie was familiar with (I'm not very familiar with their stuff to be honest). She was quite happy with the sound. Her comments were "if your system is not very good, I'll know it as soon as I listen to these tracks". It did sound much better with this CD than the james blunt cd, but the bass is still very tight.
My initial impressions are a lack of midrange and a slightly skewered presentation, favouring the top end over the bottom end of the audio spectrum. I don't know if this was atypical of DAC 7 DACs.
After reading a few comments on pink fish media, it seems that my units are deltecs, not dpa (they have the glossy finish, and the serial numbers are hand written on labels, stuck to the back of the chassis, not on the underside like dpa models were). These could even be prototypes, I'm going to give the serial numbers to Tom on pink fish media (hopefully he's still around there, as he was the repair technician for DPA) and see what he thinks."
I'm hoping Tom is still around on the boards, so I can throw some questions at him...
Anyone else got any thoughts?
Dave
edit: I don't have any option, due to living arrangements, of setting my hi fi system up properly...sorry guys...I wish!!!
hifienthusiast
Vintage by heart
Dave
I understand your situation about small listening area, my speakers are about 3 feet apart on either side of a hi fi rack. I wonder where you put the subwoofer in your room?
Hon
hey guys, thanks for replying!
Hon - I'd really have to get a picture to illustrate where everything is. I basically board a room with a family, my room is not electronics friendly (due to pet rats) and is very small anyways, so acoustically would suck. That leaves the main living area, which has to integrate with said family's belongings. Said female of the house does not like my musical tastes (I'm very eclectic, listening from blues to jazz to primarily rock/pop, some 60s, some reggae, some alternative, some classical, some folk, and so on and so forth). She also has very keen hearing, and dislikes loud music. Her definition of loud, and mine do not match. She calls low/medium sound levels (probably around 85db at a guess, don't have my SPL meter on me), as 'too loud'. Serious listening is not something I can do and it saddens me. I don't play my music that loud, but I like a reasonable volume level (probably around 90-95db), which alas...I envy all of you guys with dedicated listening rooms, or understanding spouses!!! I'll grab a photo and post when I get a chance.
Muzzer - I can probably get the P-500 repaired for AU $400 or less (it's just the laser I suspect), with my current budget, that's slated for June's pay (alas, my income levels aren't great, and my expenditure levels are...). 280 pounds is around AU $670, then you've gotta add shipping costs to that, which are expensive for larger/heavier items (probably around the AU $200 mark)...the Teac sounds very good (to my ears), and matched the DPA Little Bit II very well, not sure how it'll match with the new DPA Dac. I'm not even sure if Deltran really makes that much of a difference. True, I've never heard a deltran'd unit, so I'm only guessing that it does. I could probably, one day, send the Teac unit to Chevin and get them to deltran it, if it's worth it. I'd prefer to have it done locally, but I suspect the chances of that are slim to buckleys.
I'm just wondering - could it be power/mains issues? Australian mains are 240v/50hz, I was under the impression that UK mains are the same. Is this correct? If the UK is different, I wonder if that could explain sound quality issues? I would describe the sound as very neutral, but a bit bass light, and a bit thin, and very slow paced. That said, the foot naturally taps to the beat of the music, which is a good sign. Maybe I just really need to get used to the different presentation.
I also did some listening on my headphones last night (Sennheiser HD540 gold references) to the James Blunt album, and it did sound much better than through the speakers. Interesting, I've never really noticed that much of a day/night difference between them before. Jame's voice sounded more fuller, more central and forward, but still lacked some emotion (compared to the DPA Little Bit II). The new DAC definitely has a LOT more detail, I was hearing a lot of things last night that I've never heard before. I was quite amazed!!!
I'm going to play with interconnects (I have a spare DNM Reson interconnect that I can swap out) and see if that helps with the sound. I'm currently using some el cheapo Dick Smith silver plated interconnects, which have always sounded quite good previously (through a variety of systems). Maybe my previous front ends weren't good enough to show up issues.
I'll post the rest of my system details in a few minutes, just gotta go help around the house a bit.
Cheers,
Dave
Hon - I'd really have to get a picture to illustrate where everything is. I basically board a room with a family, my room is not electronics friendly (due to pet rats) and is very small anyways, so acoustically would suck. That leaves the main living area, which has to integrate with said family's belongings. Said female of the house does not like my musical tastes (I'm very eclectic, listening from blues to jazz to primarily rock/pop, some 60s, some reggae, some alternative, some classical, some folk, and so on and so forth). She also has very keen hearing, and dislikes loud music. Her definition of loud, and mine do not match. She calls low/medium sound levels (probably around 85db at a guess, don't have my SPL meter on me), as 'too loud'. Serious listening is not something I can do and it saddens me. I don't play my music that loud, but I like a reasonable volume level (probably around 90-95db), which alas...I envy all of you guys with dedicated listening rooms, or understanding spouses!!! I'll grab a photo and post when I get a chance.
Muzzer - I can probably get the P-500 repaired for AU $400 or less (it's just the laser I suspect), with my current budget, that's slated for June's pay (alas, my income levels aren't great, and my expenditure levels are...). 280 pounds is around AU $670, then you've gotta add shipping costs to that, which are expensive for larger/heavier items (probably around the AU $200 mark)...the Teac sounds very good (to my ears), and matched the DPA Little Bit II very well, not sure how it'll match with the new DPA Dac. I'm not even sure if Deltran really makes that much of a difference. True, I've never heard a deltran'd unit, so I'm only guessing that it does. I could probably, one day, send the Teac unit to Chevin and get them to deltran it, if it's worth it. I'd prefer to have it done locally, but I suspect the chances of that are slim to buckleys.
I'm just wondering - could it be power/mains issues? Australian mains are 240v/50hz, I was under the impression that UK mains are the same. Is this correct? If the UK is different, I wonder if that could explain sound quality issues? I would describe the sound as very neutral, but a bit bass light, and a bit thin, and very slow paced. That said, the foot naturally taps to the beat of the music, which is a good sign. Maybe I just really need to get used to the different presentation.
I also did some listening on my headphones last night (Sennheiser HD540 gold references) to the James Blunt album, and it did sound much better than through the speakers. Interesting, I've never really noticed that much of a day/night difference between them before. Jame's voice sounded more fuller, more central and forward, but still lacked some emotion (compared to the DPA Little Bit II). The new DAC definitely has a LOT more detail, I was hearing a lot of things last night that I've never heard before. I was quite amazed!!!
I'm going to play with interconnects (I have a spare DNM Reson interconnect that I can swap out) and see if that helps with the sound. I'm currently using some el cheapo Dick Smith silver plated interconnects, which have always sounded quite good previously (through a variety of systems). Maybe my previous front ends weren't good enough to show up issues.
I'll post the rest of my system details in a few minutes, just gotta go help around the house a bit.
Cheers,
Dave
Firstly, sorry to the OP for inadvertently hijacking his thread, wasn't intended. Mods - if need be move my posts to a new thread!
OK, here's a piccie of my setup.
http://david.dia.net.au/potn/hifi/hifi.jpg
Kit is as follows:
Amplifiication
Audiolab 8000c preamp
Audiolab 8000m monoblocs
sources
CD transport - Pioneer DV-344 (not mine, loaned by a mate as he knew my P-500 died)
DAC - DPA DPM 1 Series 3 (Dac 7) (replacing a DPA Little Bit II 7350 chipset unit)
Turntable setup -Systemdek IIX900 + Rega RB300 + Lyra Clavis cartridge
Tape deck - Nakamichi CR-5
Tuner - Nad 402
Speakers
Main - Sonus Faber Electa Amator on dedicated Sonus Faber pillar stands
Subwoofer - REL Stadium II
cabling
Speakers (bi-wired) - Audioquest Midnight 3 cable to bass + DNM reson to tweeters
Preamp to monoblocs - Audioquest Jade
Other interconnects - a mixture of Dick smith silver plated stuff and Tandy interconnects
I honestly don't believe that cables make as much a difference as the manufacturers would like you to believe.
The TV isn't mine
You can see the setup of my system, the speakers are just over 3' apart from center to center and as you can see heavily toed in, more than I'd ever toe them in on a critical setup. My listening seat (my PC chair) is around 13 or so feet away. I would be really surprised that a DAC would change the sound setup by so much, it's almost like I've replaced the Sonus Faber's!!! In every setup that I've had, they've sounded very good, not obviously totally neutral, but a slightly warm sound, not over the top treble that is detailed, good, solid bass (especially for their size) that could be classified as a bit warm, but is still reasonably taut, excellent midrange and vocal projection, very good soundstage (width/depth, height isn't as good as the others). It has a very natural, musical sound imho. With tracks that I know well, the sound is almost anaemic on some of them, with the pace of the music slower than the DPA Little Bit II, and midrange slightly recessed and vocals further back in the mix, thinner sounding and lacking in emotion.
Dave
OK, here's a piccie of my setup.
http://david.dia.net.au/potn/hifi/hifi.jpg
Kit is as follows:
Amplifiication
Audiolab 8000c preamp
Audiolab 8000m monoblocs
sources
CD transport - Pioneer DV-344 (not mine, loaned by a mate as he knew my P-500 died)
DAC - DPA DPM 1 Series 3 (Dac 7) (replacing a DPA Little Bit II 7350 chipset unit)
Turntable setup -Systemdek IIX900 + Rega RB300 + Lyra Clavis cartridge
Tape deck - Nakamichi CR-5
Tuner - Nad 402
Speakers
Main - Sonus Faber Electa Amator on dedicated Sonus Faber pillar stands
Subwoofer - REL Stadium II
cabling
Speakers (bi-wired) - Audioquest Midnight 3 cable to bass + DNM reson to tweeters
Preamp to monoblocs - Audioquest Jade
Other interconnects - a mixture of Dick smith silver plated stuff and Tandy interconnects
I honestly don't believe that cables make as much a difference as the manufacturers would like you to believe.
The TV isn't mine
You can see the setup of my system, the speakers are just over 3' apart from center to center and as you can see heavily toed in, more than I'd ever toe them in on a critical setup. My listening seat (my PC chair) is around 13 or so feet away. I would be really surprised that a DAC would change the sound setup by so much, it's almost like I've replaced the Sonus Faber's!!! In every setup that I've had, they've sounded very good, not obviously totally neutral, but a slightly warm sound, not over the top treble that is detailed, good, solid bass (especially for their size) that could be classified as a bit warm, but is still reasonably taut, excellent midrange and vocal projection, very good soundstage (width/depth, height isn't as good as the others). It has a very natural, musical sound imho. With tracks that I know well, the sound is almost anaemic on some of them, with the pace of the music slower than the DPA Little Bit II, and midrange slightly recessed and vocals further back in the mix, thinner sounding and lacking in emotion.
Dave
Yeah, I've thought about upgrading the preamp, but up until now it's been fine. An 8000Q would be nice, although from memory it doesn't have a phono stage, which wouldn't make me too happy. I'd probably try grabbing a 2nd hand Michell ISO phono amp first before contemplating upgrading the preamp.
As an aside, I see that Audiolab is relaunched, does anyone know if they use the exact same circuit/design, or are these new designs working on the Audiolab name/models?
Dave
As an aside, I see that Audiolab is relaunched, does anyone know if they use the exact same circuit/design, or are these new designs working on the Audiolab name/models?
Dave
Just came across this thread and wanted to point out to anyone else reading that this post refers to a PDM II (not a PDM I series 3). The PDM II was a higher-end model than the then contemporary PDM I Series 2. The PDM I Series 3 was a later revision of that.. and, yeah had 4 optical connections between the two boxes (the PDM II had six) .
Good info here: http://www.acoustica.org.uk/DPA/deltec.html
TheDecameron
Unicorns fart glitter.
Cant open any of your pic links, but err...Elacta's in hte corners of a small room and a sub as well. I take it you're a man who likes his bass?
Two things to note, the 8000c is not a great pre amp and wont show the benifits of a better source. You could keep the 8000c and use it as a phono stage, the 8000q is miles better and are around £300 s/h.
Also if your speakers are up against a wall, and you "improve" the source, the increased bass output of the better source will make the system sound more closed in and slower.
Also if your speakers are up against a wall, and you "improve" the source, the increased bass output of the better source will make the system sound more closed in and slower.
Well, long time between drinks. I never got back to posting here, not sure why.
TheDecameron - I've since moved out of that residence, none of the links will work. I'm not really a bass freak, I prefer tight and elegant bass, than bloated stuff. Over bloated bass actually hurts my ears.
Firstly, the 8000c is not bad at all, and is capable of handling the DPA PDM 1 Series 3 unit.
spxy - you are possibly right to some degree.
OK - the updates - I replaced the interconnect between DAC and preamp with some silver wired cabling that I bought off EBay (had very good reviews from other buyers). They look exceptionally well made and an instant difference in sound quality was obvious. I had been using some Dick Smith silver plated cheapies, and they were obviously causing the issue. With the change of cable, everything improved in leaps and bounds. Nasalness disappeared. Soundstage improved. Top end became less "shrill". Bass was better too. I theorise that the original interconnects that I used were bass light and overly bright. I'd say the Little Bit was a good match, as it must have been chubby in the bass and rounded in the treble. As a test, I placed the Little Bit II back in the system and it pretty much confirmed my suspicions.
I have since moved back to my parents place, over 2 and a half years ago. I had the opportunity to set my hi fi up here for only a week, and then it had to be dismantled due to space restrictions and also to please the parents. I had the ability to set my system up with the speakers better positioned and there was a definite improvement, actually, a vast improvement. And yes, I placed the Little Bit II back in the system to test my hypothesis and was pretty much happy with my suspicions being right.
wck - I haven't played the units for 2 and a half years now, about to reassemble the system over the next week. Hopefully all is well.
Dave
TheDecameron - I've since moved out of that residence, none of the links will work. I'm not really a bass freak, I prefer tight and elegant bass, than bloated stuff. Over bloated bass actually hurts my ears.
Firstly, the 8000c is not bad at all, and is capable of handling the DPA PDM 1 Series 3 unit.
spxy - you are possibly right to some degree.
OK - the updates - I replaced the interconnect between DAC and preamp with some silver wired cabling that I bought off EBay (had very good reviews from other buyers). They look exceptionally well made and an instant difference in sound quality was obvious. I had been using some Dick Smith silver plated cheapies, and they were obviously causing the issue. With the change of cable, everything improved in leaps and bounds. Nasalness disappeared. Soundstage improved. Top end became less "shrill". Bass was better too. I theorise that the original interconnects that I used were bass light and overly bright. I'd say the Little Bit was a good match, as it must have been chubby in the bass and rounded in the treble. As a test, I placed the Little Bit II back in the system and it pretty much confirmed my suspicions.
I have since moved back to my parents place, over 2 and a half years ago. I had the opportunity to set my hi fi up here for only a week, and then it had to be dismantled due to space restrictions and also to please the parents. I had the ability to set my system up with the speakers better positioned and there was a definite improvement, actually, a vast improvement. And yes, I placed the Little Bit II back in the system to test my hypothesis and was pretty much happy with my suspicions being right.
wck - I haven't played the units for 2 and a half years now, about to reassemble the system over the next week. Hopefully all is well.
Dave
An update - system has been up now for a few months and there's been changes. The Audiolab 8000C has been replaced by a Yaqin MS-12B preamp, which is better in most areas. The Audiolab 8000M's have been replaced by a pair of Opera Consonance SET Cyber 845 monoblocs (running Shuguang 845B valves). I've also added a DPA "the power" filter to the analogue processing unit section of the DPA DAC.
As I was using a Lyra Clavis (low output MC) with my SystemDek IIX/900, and the Yaqin only supports high output MC and normal MM cartridges, I ended up buying a Lentek step up transformer to boost the signal.
The NAD 402 did not survive the storage (dead LCD screen and no sound), and my poor Nakamichi CR5 did not survive either (motor failure). The former can be fixed, the latter, no motors left. *sob*
The Yaqin will eventually be replaced (thinking a stereo knight preamp) and I will grab an Opera phono stage too (well, it's looking likely). The SystemDek will be replaced, got a few turntables that I'm considering (Opera LP5 Mark II, Michell Gyrodek spring to mind).
I'm enjoying the SET sound, although I'm finding that the Cyber 845s are a bit dynamically restricted, and there's some upper mid glare and treble spit. I suspect that that's due to the JAN 5687 valves used. They'll eventually be replaced by some NOS Bendix 6900 valves, and I'm currently in the process of getting some Vokshod "rocket logo" 6H23 to replace the e88cc valves.
Dave
As I was using a Lyra Clavis (low output MC) with my SystemDek IIX/900, and the Yaqin only supports high output MC and normal MM cartridges, I ended up buying a Lentek step up transformer to boost the signal.
The NAD 402 did not survive the storage (dead LCD screen and no sound), and my poor Nakamichi CR5 did not survive either (motor failure). The former can be fixed, the latter, no motors left. *sob*
The Yaqin will eventually be replaced (thinking a stereo knight preamp) and I will grab an Opera phono stage too (well, it's looking likely). The SystemDek will be replaced, got a few turntables that I'm considering (Opera LP5 Mark II, Michell Gyrodek spring to mind).
I'm enjoying the SET sound, although I'm finding that the Cyber 845s are a bit dynamically restricted, and there's some upper mid glare and treble spit. I suspect that that's due to the JAN 5687 valves used. They'll eventually be replaced by some NOS Bendix 6900 valves, and I'm currently in the process of getting some Vokshod "rocket logo" 6H23 to replace the e88cc valves.
Dave
bottleneck
pfm Member
Hi
What speakers are your 845 power amps driving?
I would not expect to hear treble spit from an 845 valve, which has extended but enjoyable treble and beautiful mids. I dont know your exact amp, but my immediate reaction was to wonder what tweeter in particular you have, room setup and questions of that ilk.
Sadly, not in Australia it seems. And I tried a few places in the UK & US, no luck. It seems that these motors are in HIGH demand, and people have been buying up stock of them over the past few years, readying for the inevitable (no stock). I wish I had...
Dave
Sonus Faber Electa Amators on their dedicated mounts. I've had them for near Ten years, and have never had any spittiness or upper mid glare. I doubt that it's the 845 tube that's causing the issues, but is probably the e88cc or 5687 choice.
Dave