Goldpoint SA4M-47 passive 'preamp' winging its way to Marco Towers...

[User211]

BTW used to use the Caddocks in the first iteration of the crossovers in my first pair of Apogee Duettas. They had quite and thumpy, weighty bass, as I remember them.

We're now using some flat pack secret things I can't tell you about, without getting shot, LOL.

[Ali Tait]

Thought you'd like those AN's Marco, they were the best of what I tried.

[Marco]

Hi Justin,

Annoying result as in good resistors cost too much.

This sort of thing makes you realise just how complex getting a decent sound is. This is magnified far more in complex circuits, where the number of component interactions increases by a big factor.

Yup, it was somewhat gratifying that the more expensive resistors in the test sounded markedly better than the others, which shows that sometimes you do get what you're paying for!

Essentially, a very good passive preamp, in its stock form, has now been considerably improved by spending £12.50 each on two resistors. It'd call that a result... Like you say though, how much would it cost to kit out a whole active preamp or power amp with them!

Marco.

[Marco]

Wish I'd been there to hear all that. It may (and may still) have influenced my selection of resistors for a couple of projects.

It makes one realise why some makes appear costly for seemingly the simple designs they manufacture. Audio Note spring to mind. I'm sure they spend a lot of time and money actually listening to the effects of every discrete part of what they make.

Indeed. It was another valuable learning curve in this sometimes complex hobby of audio!

Marco.

[Marco]

Thought you'd like those AN's Marco, they were the best of what I tried.

Yup, Ali, they're *really* good. However, I need to revisit the Z-foils, as I haven't yet heard those in my system. Listening to the ANs here, and remembering how the Z-Foils sounded in Duncan's system, I wouldn't rule out the latter making it in here instead, particularly as they're 20K (as opposed to 22K), and so just that bit more suited to my system.

We shall see after a week is up and the swap over takes place!

Marco.

[mikmas]

Great write up and fascinating results Marco

Would be interesting to hear how a 'blank' Goldpoint attenuator kitted out with the 'best of the test' would fair as opposed to the stock ladder ... an expensive jaunt but who knows

[Marco]

Hi Mike,

The AudioNotes wouldn't fit into the switches (flick back to the pics and note their size), as they're only available in 2W versions... And the Shinkohs (nearest equivalent) aren't available in the values I would need.

Glad you liked the write-up. I intend to enjoy the music now for the rest of the week, allowing the ANs to burn in, until giving the Z-Foils a go in my system

Marco.

[brian2957]

Now that's what I call a write-up . It was kept reasonably simple for an electronics dummy like me . I usually switch off after reading a couple of lines of this type of test , but I read all of this with interest . Yes it's interesting how a couple of tiny , relatively inexpensive , parts can elevate the performance of a piece of kit . I also heard this a while back when Gary changed 1 single cap in his M2Tech DAC . The part cost pennies and the improvement in SQ was clearly audible . Funny old game innit Well done sir .

[The Black Adder]

A very nice review indeed, Marco... well done matey-ho.

Sounds like the AN are doin' the boogie - Not surprising though.

The Caddocks you used are somewhat different in design to the ones I tried on my shunt attenuator, must be newer versions.

Cheers for that, all very interesting indeed.

Jo

[Marco]

Cheers, guys. Glad you enjoyed the write-up and found it informative. As a summary, I've now added some 'pros and cons' under the description of each of the resistors, which some of you may find useful

Marco.