spritzer

I watched the first two episodes and it is a great series. It's definitely different which is a welcome change.

They are the exact same drivers except the top of the Pros sticks out a little due to the larger D/S spacing. The Gamma Pro's aren't that hard to source with plenty on ebay.de but the price makes the conversion too expensive. The Alphas are much rarer. They do sound much better then the normal bias model with more bass, better soundstage and not as damn analytical. Even though both frequency extremes are extended they aren't bass monsters or bright but every little bit helps. The sound upgrade is a combination of the better drivers (more D/S spacing and thinner diaphragms) and the glue I use to mount the drivers. The Stax glue (same as was used on the earpads) isn't all that good and the newer stuff is much better. There is only one Mafia... and it is the Stax Mafia. Now you need some Japan made 6CG7's preferably late 60's/early 70's Toshiba's for the holy grail.

Nothing is ever at blowout prices up here but I'll check it out the next time I go to that store. They had it on display so I think it is only fair I can check under the hood...

Gamma/Alpha drivers do fit since Stax just did what I planned to do, use thicker spacers and drill new holes as the basic construction of the drivers is identical. For this one I used my old SR-X Mk3 with a ribbon cable and a SR-Alpha Pro Excellent and an old Gamma Pro cable that was easier to work with. The real trouble is to find the right adhesive to mount the drivers but once you have that it's mostly just a nerve wracking experience...

Yup I walked away from that and posted it on HF. Too bad it wasn't a SR-Lambda though...

I saw it in one of the local electronics stores so I might buy it just for kicks. You know, install some V-caps and Jena Labs cryo wire so it will be a giant killer...

Wasn't that the one I turned you on to? I can't remember anymore... way to many headphones...

That's rather cheap at 200$+. The Ebay norm is closer to 400$. The transformer color code is this, yellow and black are the input wires (doesn't matter which is + or -) while the red and blue are the output wires and the green is the CT. You can connect directly to the yellow and black wires from the amp, thus bypassing both the switch and the PCB and you can also bypass the other side by connecting directly to the Stax plugs. If you have the black SB version then you need to connect the left transformer to the small trafo on the back panel or you get no bias. If you want to do this properly it is best to bypass all of the crap wire Stax used and go directly to the solid core copper windings. You only have to cut the wax paper on each side of the trafo and push it apart to reveal the solder joints. Be careful with heat though as it will kill the trafo. I have a few Stax trafos around from really bad SRD-7's that I scrapped for parts but they simply pale besides the transformers Koss used in the E/10 unit. The Koss unit is 4kg easy and the transformers are about half that. So if you can find one on the cheap snap it up and use the transformers. Btw. This new SR-X Mk3 Pro I just made sounds really good!

I had 3 but they are all sold a long time ago. I might get some more from Japan but i don't know when. You can find them on ebay from time to time but the price is very high unless you stumble on some BIN listing. WTB ads are always a good way and so is searching locally.

If you can't find a Mk2 it is easy enough to either buy the Illusion unit from Japan or convert a normal bias SRD-7 to Pro status with a new bias circuit. I would also rewire the thing directly to the windings of the transformers with some nice wire. The Mk2 is rather rare but I try to snap them up every one I can find them and I even had 3 sitting in a row once waiting to be shipped out...

Yeah I meant the full phono preamp. It's a very impressive design and even better since they came out with a new kit with even better parts...

http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/29/philips-dvd-micro-theatre-with-tube-amp/

That's not as cool as the new Phillips mini system with a tube preamp and ribbon tweeters. Phillips FTW!!

That is true enough so just get a Blue Hawaii. Easy to bias (unless you just had to get the Black Gates like I did...) and beats the pants of every other amp.

How about the K&K Audio kit. Plenty of Lundahl goodness in that one...

It is basically the same amp so yes. The only real change are the DC heaters.

You need to rebias it if you change the tubes. It's a bit of a pain to do for the first time but the instructions are somewhere on head-fi.

Sounds like a plan. I know that the current SR-Lambda price is all my fault... The stand and cover are about 40$ used, the phones can be had for 1k$ in Japan, the amp for less and the 5m extension costs 90$ new. Considering it isn't a gray import the price is quite good.

It's hard to beat the FOTM even if I'm partially to blame as I have quite a few posts there.

I just told him about us.

I'm working on it!! I'm going to order some custom made transformers soon and find somebody to laser cut 4mm copper sheets. The tubes are in the mail so I am working on it... The T2 is a bunch of good ideas thrown in with some bad ones. I do think it will be on par with a stock Blue Hawaii with basic parts but after that it should be surpassed. I'm going to buy one when I find it but it's not a matter of life and death or anything like that.

Ahh so that's why Ray paints all the chips! His designs are so advanced that they can't fall into enemy hands....

There is one design available but it doesn't use them for the output stage. There you can use either a 6SN7 or some transistor. I was in some data sheet for an opamp but I forget which.

Precisely. I bet it will be some opamp based joke or he might even build something like the Egmont.

Hehe... on a related note Ray sent me an email about my HE90...