My new amp

Here's a shout out to AK, GF and all the participant's in this forum site.

I'm enjoying, exploring and sharing my love for hi-fi and music more than I have in years since I got this amp.

this is the type of gear and community hi-fi needs to keep growing as a hobby, as a passion.

To Ian and Rachel, THANK YOU for carrying these products here and backing them up the way you do.

I got PMed about buying "Chinese" and how I was destroying lives and jobs and blah blah.

Its okay though, the hobby needs these people too, how else are we going to know how deep our love of it goes unless were asked to defend it?

I can see myself investing, yes investing, in my system over time. Building it up so I can enjoy it, share it.

So thank you, all of you.
 
Hearing new things in old music

Listening to Tangerine Dream "Lily on the Beach"

Never noticed the sounds panning so much before.

Alot of the synth work is so crystalline, used to sound harsh, not any more!

"Too hot for my chinchilla" has some serious bass too, sounded mushy through my HD201 phones driven by my phone. The i12 grabbed the 50mm drivers and make them move. Much more intelligible bass.

With the DM302's upper off the lowboy by 12" or so they sound great, and the sound opened up again. I'm still amazed at the bass, substantial and coherent.

Midrange is smooooooth and the highs don't bite at all.

It reminds me of the Sunfire Classic Pre and Sig 2 channel through the ML Monolith 2's.

Damn I love hi-fi again, thx GF!
 
Was reading an article written by Nelson Pass, of Pass Labs fame, about when their amps leave Class A operation and their bias currents.

What is the threshold on my i12 for class B mode?
 
Your amp is a Class A/B amp.

Most designed for high-end amps will do part of the first watt in Class A then the bias will move it into A/B, depending on your speaker load and source volume that could happen at say anything above a quarter volume on the I-12.

Cheers,
Ian
 
Have you any idea the bias current on the output tubes?

Class A operation is usually double the bias current, I realise this may not be relevant as the article discusses ss amps.

This amp has inspired me to look into whole new areas of audio, thank you Ian!
 
Here's a link for a site I'm reading about transformers, interesting stuff, and informative for newbies to the glass envelope.

http://sound.westhost.com/xfmr.htm

It occurs to me that if you understand how a thing works you can appreciate it more, I do.

I also read a review on 6moons that compared the Consonance 211 monoblocks to the legendary Audio Note Ongaku integrated, which was in the Guinness book as the most expensive amp in the world at one time, I'm impressed.

I'm obviously on the right path here.
 
Have you any idea the bias current on the output tubes?

Class A operation is usually double the bias current, I realise this may not be relevant as the article discusses ss amps.

This amp has inspired me to look into whole new areas of audio, thank you Ian!

Being Auto Bias I never thought about it as there isn't much you do about it. If I'm ever inside one I'll measure it for you. Principle is the same no matter tube or SS, most keep their bias tricks under wraps, Nelson Pass doesn't always which is cool.

Bias in a tube amp is set for the amp at idle in an A/B design, in a A design it set for maximum.

Cheers,
Ian
 
Ya, from my understanding in the article I read the idle current is used to minimize the crossover notch distortion when the amp switches from class A to class B at a preset current level.

the crossover distortion is caused by nonlinearities in the devices as their output approaches zero so the bias current prevents this happening, hence lowering distortion.

Read another awesome article on transformers, really cool stuff, its cool to be able to see thebusiness end of the amp!

btw, is tube rolling possible with the output tubes or just the preamp tubes?

Im trying to wrap a label, so to speak, around the sound of this amp but I probably won't be able to untilled I change something.
 
We have a complete upgrade set of Pavane tubes for the 1-12, since you are new to tubes we suggest you just do the 12AX7 Pavanes first, get used to the difference a tube roll makes, then do the power EL84 tubes.

Cheers,
Ian
 
High Res downloads

Was scrolling through Audiostream.com and saw a link about high rez downloads for free!!

24/96, 24/192 and straight DSD as well.

Listening now through the amp with VLC player as a source using the headphone output of the computer.
The tubes sure smooth it out, the hd201's are nice!

Go check it out.
 
Nice to listen to some pink floyd. 320kbps mp3 so it lacks dimensionality, its like a photo of an oil painting. The tubes sure make the top end easier to listen to though
 
Ya ive run flacs thru my phone and pc headphone out, very very smooth.

cant wait to get a proper DA converter, a DAC11 when i can.
 
this is the type of gear and community hi-fi needs to keep growing as a hobby, as a passion.

To Ian and Rachel, THANK YOU for carrying these products here and backing them up the way you do.

I got PMed about buying "Chinese" and how I was destroying lives and jobs and blah blah.

Its okay though, the hobby needs these people too, how else are we going to know how deep our love of it goes unless were asked to defend it?

.

Ya ive run flacs thru my phone and pc headphone out, very very smooth.

cant wait to get a proper DA converter, a DAC11 when i can.

Everything's made in China anyway, the advantage of buying from Grant's is that there is direct vendor communication with the manufacturer of the products, you know what you're getting. Anyway good Chinese equipment still uses the best suppliers for components, German and Polish capacitors, the best-qualty resistors etc. And leading-name Chinese tubes are becoming very very good, since it's the only part of the world pursuing the manufacture of NEW tube equipment for everday audio.

Get the DAC-11, the DAC-09 and 11 add immensely to the audio quality of digital to analog stuff. I'm using a DAC-09 with the coaxial input connected to a JVC DVD player for CDs, SO much better sound than the analog RCA outs! Plus the tube cathode-follower removes the digital harshness.
 
New home for my system

Mov3d the system into the living room for a christmas party, it works out well.

moved the 302's onto stools and put them into the corners, my what bass they have.

Listening to Bass 305, some melodic bass music, and im really not missing the very bottom of the basslines.

Most of it is still there with the speakers in the room some.

just 320kbps mp3 so not hi rez by any means but gonna put some vinyl Fleetwood mac on next, Rumors, Yum!
 

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Grrrrr, hate being sick!

Head full of wool, but this disc rules.

Can really hear the bass modes in my space with the bassline on Dreams, either thin sounding or not, shuffle shuffle.

Never going back, Yesssss!

Those guitars are soooooo awesome! The texture, i love that song!

Got the speakers right in the corners, i can just see the inside of the sidewalls, and the image stretches across the whole room.

Thankyou Grant Fidelity, ive been waiting to do this!
 
K, vinyl sounds great till i hear speed innacuracy on sustained notes.

Wishlist

1. New/used TT
2. Diy Sachiko fullrange horns
3. DAC11
4. GF Phono pre
5. New Rack
6. Line Conditioner
7. New Cables
 
K, so im saving 50 every 2 weeks for a dac11, its gonna be a while.

should i drop like $30 on ebay for a remote control av switcher till it gets here?

not expecting quality, just tired of shuffling my amp and cables to switch sources.
 
Was given a Fisher Studio Standard RS-9005 by a family member. I was listening to it thru the headphone output into the input of the i12, HUMMMMM, then plugged turntable into phono input and listened to it alone.

Sounds hard compared to the i12, its interesting to finally have something to compare sound with.

Im really needing an input switcher of some sort, movng my amp every time i want to go from the TT to my cable box or phone is tiresome.

Anyone know where to get a double pole 4 position selector knob? Think ill just build a quick input selector.
 
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