View Full Version : Equipment you may know - in the buff
camtwister
15-06-2012, 20:29
In dishabille:
http://www.hifishock.org/
En dishabille:
http://www.hifishock.org/
Very interesting Johnny.
I'm a sufficiently "sad bastard", that I've added it to my Favourites! ;)
Thanks
Absolutely brilliant, Johnny!
I've found some superb pics of my Sony DAS-R1 DAC:
http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/2333/dasr1dac0.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/221/dasr1dac0.jpg/)
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/3944/dasr1dac1.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/171/dasr1dac1.jpg/)
http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/4159/dasr1dac10.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/233/dasr1dac10.jpg/)
http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/2447/dasr1dac22.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/6/dasr1dac22.jpg/)
And the matching DAS-R1 transport I used to have (before it went tits up beyond repair - later replaced with my current CDP X777ES):
http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/4623/cdpr1transportdacdasr12.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/841/cdpr1transportdacdasr12.jpg/)
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/5182/cdpr1transport0b.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/32/cdpr1transport0b.jpg/)
http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/998/cdpr1transport7.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/267/cdpr1transport7.jpg/)
http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/9213/cdpr1transport13.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/217/cdpr1transport13.jpg/)
http://img825.imageshack.us/img825/7919/cdpr1transport1.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/825/cdpr1transport1.jpg/)
http://img407.imageshack.us/img407/4301/cdpr1transport6.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/407/cdpr1transport6.jpg/)
You just don't see engineering like that these days in CDPs and DACs... Check out the sheer quality of that transport mech!! :eek: ;)
Marco.
The Sony X777ES, I use now, which replaced the CDP-R1 transport (above):
http://img228.imageshack.us/img228/2289/cdpx777es.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/228/cdpx777es.jpg/)
http://img546.imageshack.us/img546/2289/cdpx777es.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/546/cdpx777es.jpg/)
I actually felt that this sounded better than the R1, particularly when I had it extensively modified by Audiocom International (as I did with the DAS-R1 DAC). However, I'd still like to find another R1 transport, just for its looks, and so that it would match my DAC :)
Marco.
Reid Malenfant
15-06-2012, 22:24
Ooooh, look at the plastic transport :scratch:
Get yourself a decent early Krell Marco, it's all metal mate :D Mine is smaller than that & weighs the best part of 3 stone :eyebrows: Yes, the pic in the sig...
Ooooh, look at the plastic transport :scratch:.
I'm not convinced it matters that much if it is plastic - look at the Cambridge 840 - case is solid metal, fascia is metal, even the remote control is metal - but the transport is plastic...they obviously don't think it effects sq.
Ooooh, look at the plastic transport
Get yourself a decent early Krell Marco, it's all metal mate Mine is smaller than that & weighs the best part of 3 stone...
It's not plastic, mate. It just looks like that on the picture. The transport is die-cast metal. Have a read here: http://www.thevintageknob.org/sony-CDP-X777ES.html, where you'll see a proper pic of the mech (click on 'User', after you've seen the first page) :)
The only things that are plastic on it are the buttons! The unit weighs 20kg, as does my DAS-R1 DAC.
You know I'm not big on Krells. Each to their own, I guess. You've heard my DAC at Scalford (where I had the Celestion 66s), and it sounds superb, as does the transport, I can assure you! ;)
Marco.
Reid Malenfant
15-06-2012, 22:39
I'm not convinced it matters that much if it is plastic - look at the Cambridge 840 - case is solid metal, fascia is metal, even the remote control is metal - but the transport is plastic...they obviously don't think it effects sq.
Maybe they think looks or tactile feel matter...
Reid Malenfant
15-06-2012, 22:44
It's not plastic, mate. It just looks like that on the picture. The transport is die-cast metal. Have a read here: http://www.thevintageknob.org/sony-CDP-X777ES.html, where you'll see a proper pic of the mech (click on 'User', after you've seen the first page)
The only things that are plastic on it are the buttons!
You know I'm not big on Krells. Each to their own, I guess. You've heard my DAC at Scalford (where I had the Celestion 66s), and it sounds superb, as does the transport, I can assure you!
Marco.
Mate? wtf is that? I have a name you know :)
Whether you like Krell transports is besides the point, I very much doubt you have ever heard a DT10 as they are incredibly rare.
The clamp on that CD spinner looks like plastic to me Marco...
Notice I said Marco & not mate :rolleyes:
You're obviously in a funny mood tonight. I'll leave you to it! ;)
Marco.
Maybe they think looks or tactile feel matter...
What i meant to say is that the drawer is plastic - no idea about the mech but even the chepao CDPs I have been inside have metal parts in the mech. Not sure why a plastic drawer would be inferior, thats all. It is the part of the CDP you look at the most so if bling was a factor they would surely spend the money there. :scratch: Anyway it is a bit OT, sorry.
Reid Malenfant
15-06-2012, 22:52
You're obviously in a funny mood tonight. I'll leave you to it! ;)
Marco.
Actually I'm in a good mood, apologies if I have dampened yours Marco... Just get that music spinning brother :D
Nope, you haven't dampened anything, daftee. I dunno why you're getting pissy over whether I refer to you as 'mate' or 'Mark' :scratch:
Well, you're more of a daftee than either, so there! :ner:
Yup, back to the choons.....
Marco.
Reid Malenfant
15-06-2012, 22:57
Yup, back to the choons.....
Marco.
Is what it's all about :D
The Grand Wazoo
15-06-2012, 23:41
You just don't see engineering like that these days in CDPs and DACs...
Oh yes you do!
http://www.hifi-china.com/images_lab/520063121655.picture
Hehehehe... I should've added 'at an affordable price'. How much is the Accuphase? :)
Yup, Accuphase, and a handful of other companies, still make 'proper' CDPs, but they're getting rather thin on the ground. Many of today's so-called 'hi-end' CDPs, are full of plastic DVD-ROM drives and pishy SMPS units!
Marco.
The Grand Wazoo
15-06-2012, 23:49
Not sure, but the DP67, which I own & I think has now been superseded was, at last count about £4.4K.
Yup, that's what you gotta pay for a proper CD player, dude... The Sony R1/DAS-R1 combo I bought five years ago, originally cost £2500 in 1987. Not sure how that would translate into today's money...
I wouldn't have minded hearing the 'stack system' my current X-777ES CDP belonged with in 1989:
http://img835.imageshack.us/img835/492/stacksystem.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/835/stacksystem.jpg/)
:eek: :eek:
Marco.
The Grand Wazoo
15-06-2012, 23:58
I've not seen that before - nice.
It was when Sony was 'Sony', if you know what I mean...
The CDP on its own:
http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/5898/kgrhqvk0e6bvy1i2vboteoz.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/411/kgrhqvk0e6bvy1i2vboteoz.jpg/)
I bought mine second-hand from Germany, four years ago, and then had it modified. Goodness knows how many 1000s of hours of music it had played (since 1989) before I got it, and since then I've played it for many hours every day, and the transport mech is still going strong, reading the table of contents within a nanosecond, and playing discs faultlessly...
Can you imagine that happening with some of the pish that they make now? :lol:
Marco.
The Grand Wazoo
16-06-2012, 00:17
Yeah I can see. Maybe it's just the lighting in the photo or the angled facets in the detail of the fascias, but the black finish has an unusual and rather sophisticated quality about it which I like a lot.
Yeah, it's a sort of classy 'brushed' matt-black effect. Most folk don't like the Rosewood side-cheeks, but I do. Hey, it was the 80s, after all! :eyebrows:
Marco.
The Grand Wazoo
16-06-2012, 00:31
....nah, wud is gud
You can see more of the look of the black finish on this pic:
http://img51.imageshack.us/img51/6045/cdpx777es2.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/51/cdpx777es2.jpg/)
Marco
I was looking at the Spectral pictures and what do you know! the picture of the DMA 90
and DMA 250 (in the power amp section ) are mine, I posted them on a thread in PFM.
My Krell KRC-3 is a big preamp, but it's full:
VERY interesting design (one of the only Krells to use an R-core transformer) even if it goes against me preferring minimal components. Half of that circuitry up to and including those chips is a 200 step resistor network controlled digitally, so no potentiometer or moving parts in the signal path. Maybe a simple pot or stepped attenuator could be better, who knows...
http://www.hifishock.org/galleries/Krell/Preamplifiers/KRC-3---1.jpg
Seeing a preamp about as complex as a power amp always fills me with fear :) Even the better FET op-amps seem to have a simpler internal circuit I think... Good old Glenn - a couple of valves and a handful of resistors does it every time :lol:
I have a mate who tells me this is the best cd player ever built
http://www.hifishock.org/index.php?/category/1266
The laser stays still while the spinning cd passes over it
Seeing a preamp about as complex as a power amp always fills me with fear :) Even the better FET op-amps seem to have a simpler internal circuit I think... Good old Glenn - a couple of valves and a handful of resistors does it every time :lol:
Then you’re not going to like mine:
Mark Levinson 26
http://www.hifishock.org/galleries/Mark-Levinson/Preamplifiers/NO.26L---0.jpg
http://www.hifishock.org/galleries/Mark-Levinson/Preamplifiers/NO.26S---1.JPG
and
Mark Levinson 28
http://www.hifishock.org/galleries/Mark-Levinson/Preamplifiers/NO.28---0.jpg
http://www.hifishock.org/galleries/Mark-Levinson/Preamplifiers/NO.28---1B.jpg
Audioman
16-06-2012, 16:58
I have a mate who tells me this is the best cd player ever built
http://www.hifishock.org/index.php?/category/1266
The laser stays still while the spinning cd passes over it
Unfortunately when the lazer fails it is an expensive door stop unless you can find a donor.
On my Sony player, the laser remains fixed whilst the CD moves over it.
Should it ever fail, I have another Sony player to use.
Seeing a preamp about as complex as a power amp always fills me with fear :) Even the better FET op-amps seem to have a simpler internal circuit I think... Good old Glenn - a couple of valves and a handful of resistors does it every time :lol:
The actual audio circuit (fully balanced) is not that complex. All the chips are to control the resistor-based attenuator network.
If you want to see complex, then take a peek at your Harbeth P3ESR crossover. ;)
http://www.harbeth.co.uk/uk/uploadfolder/p3esr_pcb_sc.jpg
Then you’re not going to like mine:
I remember looking inside one of these two (could have been the 26 judging by the shiny earth tracks on the boards. There's a sort of excuse for the ML26 and 28, in that the signal was treated as balanced from input to output and all the components were VERY closely matched to allow this to work properly (it did in bucketloads as I remember).
What do you find is the difference between the two if at all?
The actual audio circuit (fully balanced) is not that complex. All the chips are to control the resistor-based attenuator network.
If you want to see complex, then take a peek at your Harbeth P3ESR crossover. ;)
http://www.harbeth.co.uk/uk/uploadfolder/p3esr_pcb_sc.jpg
I own ancient Spendors by the way..... Harbeth often parallel caps to get PRECISELY the value they need and won't skimp :lol: The proof of all these puddings is in the listening and believe me, the P3ESR's are NEVER found wanting unless you want more volume or bass extension :)
Here's some of mine -
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q8/DSJR_photos/eb09be34.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q8/DSJR_photos/5761209c.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q8/DSJR_photos/667c87ab.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q8/DSJR_photos/41e83489.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q8/DSJR_photos/ead9c4ee.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q8/DSJR_photos/Croft4PPrecap1.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q8/DSJR_photos/DSCF1349.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q8/DSJR_photos/DSCF1369.jpg
I own ancient Spendors by the way..... Harbeth often parallel caps to get PRECISELY the value they need and won't skimp :lol: The proof of all these puddings is in the listening and believe me, the P3ESR's are NEVER found wanting unless you want more volume or bass extension :)
That crossover is 4th order, so it's that complex because you need lots of components to make one.
I guess my point is that the simplest circuit is often best, but sometimes the complexity is needed to accommodate the design aims as with Harbeth crossovers.
hoopsontoast
24-06-2012, 20:50
My latest freebie -
http://cdn.head-fi.org/1/1f/1000x500px-LL-1f6dcc62_IMG_1217.JPG
My 670ES-
http://www.apload.de/bild/9075/sonytaf670esEM27H.jpg
And my old 770ES
http://bilder.hifi-forum.de/medium/126576/sony-ta-f770es-innenansicht_14792.jpg
I don't own these items, but I wish I did. As a retired electronics engineer, I find just looking at these pieces of kit en deshabillé, is tantamount to viewing pornography!
(Images courtesy of the lucky owner)
Enjoy! -
Rhode & Shwartz EU 6021
This is a portable network relay receiver covering 87-100MHz
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/01.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/02.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/03.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/04.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/05.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/06.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/07.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/08.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/09.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/10.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/12.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/11.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/13.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/14.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/15.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/16.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/17.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/EU_6201/18.jpg
Oh I want one, I want one, I want one…………..
Telefunken EBU 3137/3
This design is largely solid state but does uses two 7895 nuvistors in the front end.
http://www.somerset.net/arm/radio_pictures/telefunken_ebu3137_3.jpg
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/Telefunken_EBU/EBU1.jpg
Again more photos, showing the superb construction.
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/Telefunken_EBU/EBU3.jpg
Overall view of the interior
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/Telefunken_EBU/EBU4.jpg
Tuning stages, the two Nuvistors can be seen at the centre.
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/Telefunken_EBU/EBU6.jpg
IF stages and filters
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/Telefunken_EBU/EBU8.jpg
Power supplies
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/Telefunken_EBU/EBU10.jpg
Tuning meter and IF stages
http://www.ak-tubes.de/Tuner/Ballempfaenger/Telefunken_EBU/EBU11.jpg
Power supply
I remember looking inside one of these two (could have been the 26 judging by the shiny earth tracks on the boards. There's a sort of excuse for the ML26 and 28, in that the signal was treated as balanced from input to output and all the components were VERY closely matched to allow this to work properly (it did in bucketloads as I remember).
What do you find is the difference between the two if at all?
Hi Dave,
Only just spotted your post. A bit difficult to answer you question, as both preamps are superb from a sound quality point of view.
The ML26 which is used with an off-board ML25 phonostage, is the more versatile of the two: it has independent gain adjustment for each channel, in the form of stepped attenuators, so providing a balance control; a mono/stereo switch and an absolute phase control. I regard all of these features (with the possible exception of the phase inverting switch) as important and desirable features.
The ML28 appears to be a development of the 26, with fewer controls but it does make more inputs available in either balanced or unbalanced mode. The volume control on the 28 has a better 'feel' to it, but both this and the one fitted to the 26 can be moved with a single finger.
I won't be changing them and both are considerable improvement on the Quad 44 I was using.
Regards
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