Ok optical works, just forgot to plug the cable! Got to get my head straight!
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Ok optical works, just forgot to plug the cable! Got to get my head straight!
Are you only doing passive mod?
For passive mod you should not use soldering iron.
Or if you doing recap upgrade with Elna Silmics....be very careful.
I have damaged my old 7520 by my inexperience with soldering iron :(
I am still sad when I think about it.
Just to solder the cat5 to the caps wire.
then, everything should work, both on coax and optical.
cat5 wire is a little thinner (I used them) so maybe you are not having proper connection inside those tiny sockets?
try to wiggle them a bit when everything is off of course.
(ok I admit, I had similar problem and wiggle them when volume on my preamp was at 7 o'clock).
All is well now! All is welll.... for now...
It was just some bad contact. Can't move the Caiman around, or it'l stop working.
Sounds nice, not that much of a difference, just a bit more definition and air, can't wait to see when it's burnt in.
How long should it take?
I should've scraped the tip off a bit with a knife... why are all the simplest options the last to be thought of?
Listening to some Dark Side of the Moon a bit! Perfect testing album. Next will be Yes' Close to Edge! Best Bass line ever!!!
I used a pair of twisted CAT5 for each cap wire. It was too thin and loose with just one. Should've taken a picture for the album... Tomorrow, maybe! For now will just enjoy music!
Which, by the way, didn't remember the last time I had a shiver while listening to this album... Or maybe I'm cold... goose bumps! THANK YOU STAN!!! THANK YOU ALL!!!!
Don't want to be anoying, but I'm so excited now!
What was a just slightly musical machine, with just a little toe tapping PRaT became a full head banging and air drumming experience! Wow!
But it does distort a little... maybe it's where the magic is coming...
The caps need some burning in, after which the distortion will disappear.
Listening to some Dark Side of the Moon a bit! Perfect testing album. Next will be Yes' Close to Edge! Best Bass line ever!!![/QUOTE]
I have always said they have good taste over in Portugal.:)
LOL! No, not really, they don't... Just us, who tend to Hi-Fi forums.
Just discovered something new. Have you ever noticed the raindrops by the 10th minute in the "Close to the Edge" track. This is life changing! Better than having a child...
Magma's Ehmehntehtt-re was marvelous, all those crashes and cymbals and rides were incredibly more defined, you can hear the hi-hats open. The voices were not so great though, all the mid-tones were not that great I guess but the bass and rithm got much better. I will wait a little longer until the caps get fully burnt in. Also my amp needs a recap, maybe it'll help later.
I also discovered that there is another guy singing in the back in the first song of Yezda Urfa's Boris (incredible prog, if anyone cares). Damn, the guy really can't sing, now it ruined for me!
Finally, also got to listen to Charles Mingus' "Moanin" from the live version in Times Square '93.... WOW!!! I just got up and dance untill I couldn't catch my breath! Which was just a minute, actually... Got to get in shape! But this is really really groovy!
So this is my first foray into modding any gear so obviously I'm a bit wary of breaking something.Quote:
Originally Posted by StanleyB
I played around with electronics in the past (HV, Tesla coils and solid state tesla coils) but I am more of a "paint by numbers" kind of guy due to my lack of understanding of electronic circuitry.
In other words, I can wield and iron, identify components, can follow a simple circuit diagram and love looking at pictures.
I want to do this mod to my Caiman but am having trouble struggling through this thread to find out exactly how to do it.
Stan's post above had all the info but the all important pictures are gone, is there an idiots how to anywhere with pretty illustrations?
Also, is there a "roadmap" of mods? I'm interested in trying out different op amps if this mod is successful.
Sorry for the very new newb posts.
Jim
Not directly answering your question (because I never did the above mod, only the original recommended passive output mod), the photo below is one I took some time ago showing the two passive coupling caps (green) inserted directly into the socket vacated by removing the op-amp board.
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8070/8...1895c57d_b.jpg
And that's all that needs to be done? Remove the op amp board and install those caps?Quote:
Originally Posted by MartinT
Yes, you will lose the headphones (obviously!), check to polarity of the caps if using 'lytics, see page 12 post 117. You may need to check to input impedance of your amp so as to select a decent sized cap that wont cause a LF roll-off
Oh wow, it's easier than I thought. No cutting cables or routing wires.
Pull the board and insert the caps.
Thank you :)
I have had a lot of requests about the mods section that used to be on my website. I hope to have it back up in April so that there is a reference location for anyone wishing to try out any of the mods.
That would be awesome, Stan.Quote:
Originally Posted by StanleyB
Apparently my input impedance is:Quote:
Originally Posted by NRG
Input impedance (R and C) 22 kohms+ 100 pF
And what caps should I be looking at for my rather varied listening tastes.
Portishead, Cash, Classical, unplugged sets etc?
With a 22K input impedance I would personally not go any lower than a 2.2uF cap...that gives a 3Hz roll off point, listening tests would confirm if Bass was OK. Any larger sized cap would be OK, it will limit you to 'lytics though and IME I found PolyProps better sounding, the 'lytics all having some coloration or sound of their own...
I agree with Neal, polypropylenes sound best but can be large and you may struggle to get the lid back on. On the other hand, 10uF bipolar Nichicon MUSE electrolytics sounded pretty good when I tried them.
10uf/25V?Quote:
Originally Posted by MartinT
Plenty!
Thank you guys, very much.Quote:
Originally Posted by MartinT
Does the voltage of the caps matter so much, and is 2.2uf - 10uf a good range to look at?
Already have a set of Nichicon on the way but now I'm looking at other caps.
If it's a simple swap and change until I get the sound I'm after, I might just grab some other bits and pieces to test.
I can see this quickly becoming a slippery slope...
No, voltage in this kind of coupling application is only at most the initial voltage differential when connecting up (say, the voltage rail at 16V) and quickly becomes tiny.
Well....Quote:
Originally Posted by MartinT
I now have some Nichicon Muse FGs in 10V and some Elna Cerafines in 16V on the way to have a play with as well.
All 47uF as I honestly don't want to go playing with the capacitance until I know why it's a specific number and what changing it does :)
As I remember, the Nichicon MUSE sounded best but Rubicons were also good. I never tried Elna Cerafine bipolars but if you look at my photo you will see that I replaced all the polar electrolytics with Elna Cerafine II caps and this made quite a difference to sound quality for a small outlay.
The capacitor forms a high pass filter with the input impedance of the following amp stage. go too small and the roll off may affect bass subjectively, 47uF is more than enough!Quote:
Originally Posted by Usernametaken
http://www.ekswai.com/en_highpass.htm
So I stole some 47uF caps from the opamp board because I just couldn't wait.
I'm new to audio lingo so please bear with me.
I'm noticing some sibilance in certain vocals and also female vocals appear a bit dull or lacklustre. I'm also getting some pops when switching between tracks, but this could be my source. It's also a lot brighter than before.
What I have noticed is that the instruments seem a lot more separated and defined, I guess this is what is referred to as sound stage.
The bass is also a lot more defined but seems to be lacking the depth that it was before, I'm unsure if this is actually due to less bass or due to it being a lot brighter.
I'm looking forward to my other caps arriving, I do like how it sounds bar a few small issues.
I take it I'm not the first person to run kit with the case removed. :)
I'm also finding the vocals slightly lacking a presence, not sure if this is just the caps or I'm listening for things that don't please me :(
Give each cap set a few days to settle, Jim. They take time to open up. However, your observations about bass tightening up and perhaps appearing less powerful match mine. I don't remember midrange (vocals) lacking presence, though. That sounds like new or poor caps, I think.
I'm definitely suspecting the caps are strangling the vocals somewhat and pushing them to the back of the stage slightly.
I'm also finding the sibilance quite a distraction.
My caps are on the slow boat from China so I have no doubt the current caps will have plenty of time to settle in. :)
Thanks very much for your help by the way, it's been much appreciated.
Just noticed your location - I was going to offer to pop some well burnt in ones in the post but I suspect that would be futile! Oh well!
Depends, if they are a set of Black Gates, I'll happily camp by my post box in anticipation.Quote:
Originally Posted by Alex_UK
I can't believe how much a set of FK 47uF are worth, are they actually worth it?
Funnily enough, post from the UK only takes about 5 days to arrive.
As you have mentioned the loss of the h/p facility on the Caiman, I think it might be worth saying that in relation to the 7510 the "wire" mod takes the h/p facility out. I suspect it may also take the variable output out (but I have not tested this).Quote:
Originally Posted by NRG
I am currently downsizing my system and going to an h/p system. I had never tried the h/p output on the 7510 and thought I would give it a go. Plugged in......Nothing. Just as thought I removed the "wire" mod and bingo....Sound! If Stan is re-instating his mods page - might put back the 7510 mods and those that don't know, will then see what the wire mod was:)
I did the passive mod to the 7510 (which is a different beast to the Caiman) and used the variable sockets by cutting the links to the board and wiring direct. I assumed that when I re-connected them that I had made a mistake as I got no sound. However the "wire" mod may have been the culprit. Must give it a try.
Has anyone found that there's a popping sound between tracks with this mod?
Only seems to be when queuing up a new track.
I think you only get that noise if you bypass the muting relays. I don't get it any more since going with the Gator upgrade.
is the Gator board still available? I can't seem to find one anywhere.
Try asking StanleyB directly?
I'll send him a PM :)
10th April - see here
Awesome, thank you :)
I'm on the list!
Now just to wait for my caps to arrive and be burnt in so I can figure out which ones I like the sound of the best.
I have a number of other hobbies and it's extremely rare to get this level of support for a product, let alone having a manufacturer not just OKing, but actively participating in the modification of their products.
Stan, absolutely brilliant service mate, I am extremely happy that I decided to get myself a Caiman.
Outstanding.
Nichicon caps arrived and I'm now burning them in.
Noticing the same sibilance that had started to fade slightly on the old caps, I suspect burning these in will have the same effect.
Really liking the Nichicons for a first listen. Warmer than the caps I nicked from the opamp board and more defined. Looks like my bass is a bit louder as well.
Yes, of all the electrolytics I liked the Nichicons best for coupling and Elna Cerafine II best for replacing all the PCB caps.
So my Caiman board arrived less than a week after I ordered it!
Is it OK to replace the four 50v/47uF caps on the "output" half of the board with 10V/10uF Nichicons?
There are also four of the same type around the headphone opamp bit as I don't use the headphone out, I see no reason to replace these.
Incidentally, using the 10uF caps in the passive mod instead of the 47uF removed all popping between tracks and a nasty pop I had from new on system power on.
Do you mean Gator board? If so I don't think there will be a lot of point from a sound quality point of view. I know Stan tried a lot of different cap makes and values on the Gator and settled on the ones that gave the best all round performance.
I'm not sure if 10V caps will be up to the job as well. You'd have to ask Stan or measure how much DC is across them somehow. On the subject of popping, that shouldn't happen if you still have the output muting relays in place. However it could be that your amp is particularly sensitive to very low frequencies. So by using a high cap value in the passive mod you may have been allowing single digit frequencies to reach the amp. Which is usually not a problem. The 10uF caps may have attenuated these enough to remove the problem.
You may find that the Gator board doesn't have this problem. If that's the case then I'd leave the stock caps in place. If you still get the pops then I would just try replacing the pair of caps that are after the output stage. I think the other pair are before this and will probably just be to prevent the output transistors from seeing the slight DC offset on the DAC chip output. The caps around the headphone opamp won't affect the line output. :)
Sorry, yes. Gator board.
Hi Chaps
Anyone interested in these http://sdrv.ms/10aVqQe
A pair of Auricap 2.2uF 200V Capacitors; used for the passive mod in a Beresford 7520 DAC.
£30.00 inc postage
Tony
Am I correct in thinking I have lost a bit of bass since installing the Gator?
How many hours has it been playing for? If it is only new, then quite possibly - IME (and others) around 200 hours and it will be fully burnt in. I didn't believe in burn in until I bought a Caiman and then the Gator (and some caps with the passive mod.)