The Beresford Capella Headphone Amplifier

[struth]

Yes I know, but folk might want to use it for other things too, that needs more current. The small bulb was the original method to stop it switching off. Dunno if there is a newer method. I used a linear psu when I had the capella

[Old George]

I have a 1st Gen silver Anker battery which powers my Capella and Bushmaster MKII at the same time. It does power off though after 20 mins (so I added a grain of wheat bulb on a Y-Cable to cure this problem).

In fact my single Anker battery powers the Capella, Bushmaster plus Squeezebox Touch on 5v USB outlet !

BTW I believe the black 2nd Gen Anker linked to above can also have the 20 minute power off problem too.

It does appear that the problem is the Caiman (I only have BM so cannot test).

I think if I was you I would use your 2 batteries one for the Capella and one for the Caiman (I think I read previously that someone found separate batteries for each piece of kit sounds better).

Looks like a 'damned if you do damned if you don't' scenario Adam, i had the 1st gen' Anker that cut out after 20 mins. The Ankaka (and it's various spin offs) don't suffer from this problem, but as i've previously stated it doesn't have the output of the Anker.
Stan informed me that the 12 volt PSU supplied with the Capella is a low noise model that will power both Caiman and Capella in tandem. It looks like the solution is for me to purchase the 2nd gen Anker and have a two battery system if i want to squeeze a little extra performance from my kit.

Does anyone have the 20 minute power down issue with the second gen Anker battery?

[StanleyB]

The Capella sold very well in the last few days after I priced it at a special discount. I got hardly any left and I am now worried if I'll be able to get some more made up before Christmas. These erratic sales demands are a right pain at this time of the year.

[Harvey13]

I have the 2nd generation Anker Old George and can confirm I have never had any power down issues I tend to swap between the Anker (mainly use) and the supplied 12v battery supply every so often as they sound a little different. The Caiman and Capella are a dream to use (currently using DT 880 600 ohm cans) and never had any issues!

[Old George]

I have the 2nd generation Anker Old George and can confirm I have never had any power down issues I tend to swap between the Anker (mainly use) and the supplied 12v battery supply every so often as they sound a little different. The Caiman and Capella are a dream to use (currently using DT 880 600 ohm cans) and never had any issues!

Dumb question time Rupert, so you have both the Caiman and Capella running off the Anker without the power down issue?

[Harvey13]

That is correct Old George! I would say the maximum I have ever had it on for in one go is for roughly 5 hours and that never cut out

[Old George]

That is correct Old George! I would say the maximum I have ever had it on for in one go is for roughly 5 hours and that never cut out

Cheers Rupert, that's £40 off to Amazon!

[Jankoff]

As I said the other day, I was going to set up a system for my home PC (tight space in a small room) with the Capella in it. It's almost settled already. Source is HDD + PC with a special "DAC-UP USB port" (the motherboard is Gigabyte G1.Sniper Z97). Whether this "DAC-UP USB" port makes a difference soundwise, I don't know - and will be grateful for advice. Then a decent special (but not expensive) USB cable sends digits to the M2Tech HiFace Evo 24Bit/192kHz USB-Interface and then through a very good DIY digital cable to the Advance Acoustic MPP-505 digital pre-amp. The signal is then fed to the Cambridge Audio power amp and to the Tannoy VRi (good cables throughout). I like the Tannoys' sound very much! No subwoofer yet. But there will be one soon. Although charming in the highs and mids, without a sub the Tannoys are "half-alive". The Capella receives sound from the MPP-505 and transfers it to the Fidelio X2 headphones.
Opinions (mine, entirely based on personal experience):
- the Capella is great as a Headphone amp;
- the Capella is very good as a preamp (when used in the above configuration instead of the MPP-505). However, it cannot match a higher class preamp. I tried the Capella in my first setup instead of my valve preamp (price in the €500 range, good valves) to feed my hi-end power amps. The Capella is acceptable, but not in the valve preamp league;
- as mentioned here by others, the Capella as a preamp gives some hiss. Being a layman in the technical sphere but having a lot of experience with equipment and in listening, I know that the elimination of hiss leads to softness, loss of dynamics and bang, etc. while at the same time costing a lot of money to the producer. It is the case with my MPP-505. It costs €900 and has no hiss. My valve preamp mentioned above, costing twice less and having a hiss, blows the MPP-505 out of the water in terms of dynamics and bang. I have observed this in other cases as well, where expensive equipment with no hiss offers less sound than "cheaper equipment" with hiss. I prefer "cheaper equipment" with better sound, better dynamics and bang to more expensive equipment - with guaranteed softness achieved at a price. Hence, even with the hiss, the Capella is OK as a preamp in a less demanding setup, like the one described here.
- I am utterly convinced that the USB interface is extremely important and that it can offer immensely superior sound to that from a CD - DAC combination (unless the CD is exorbitantly expensive). Contrary to some opinions here, I think that the USB cable is extremely important. Using a standard £1 USB cable for audio is a joke. The German magazine AUDIO publishes ratings for USB cables. I followed their advice with respect to cables (in the lower end of the classification) and can re-confirm their estimates. I am not saying one must use a very expensive USB cable, but the sound difference between a £1 USB cable and a £20 or £40 USB cable is considerable (given that one has the other relevant quality components, e.g. clock generator, DAC, battery power supply, etc.).
- My experience with USB interface is relatively new. I first bought the highly rated M2Tech HiFace Evo 24Bit/192kHz USB-Interface. Was immediately blown away! Hooked up to my Advance Acoustic MDA 503 (with upgraded valves) it easily beat the Advance Acoustic CD-Transport combo. Then I added the M2Tech clock generator and the battery power supply - and .... do not want to hear any more of a CD player or transport as sources to a good DAC (unless a USB interface is unavallable ).
Hence my questions (mostly to Stan):
- Why do so many people here seem to be unaware of the benefits of the HDD - USB interface - DAC route for the digits?
- Why is the Beresford ASYNCH-1 "reduced in price to clear"? New model coming? Or due to be discontinued because of low demand? Would be very, very surprised to hear the latter;
- Why is the Caiman not equipped with an asynchronous USB connection? Will a new Caiman model be? Asking because, having the Capella, the Caiman might also be of use to me as both a DAC and a preamp.
Thank you very much everybody (and Stan in particular) in advance!

[StanleyB]

Hi Krasimir,

too many questions, and they could be dangerous to answer..
As for the Capella hiss: check the power supply. It should say 12V. If you are using it with the 15V power supply from the Caiman, or with a battery pack that gives out more than 12V, the current buffer tends to draw more current. The extra current drawn under no load condition can cause the current buffer to sound a bit noisier. If you accidentally got a 15V power supply for the Capella as well, and you are not using a battery pack, email me with your address and I shall send you a 12V power supply instead.

[Jankoff]

Thanks, Stan! I will check again.