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Post by Pigmy Pony on Jan 12, 2023 17:32:24 GMT
New speakers day! Exciting times Alan Look forward to hearing them, when do the tickets go on sale? I have just been given a nice bottle of white by a customer, and it has your name on it. Well not literally, wine that says 'Firebottle' on the label would be weird, and a bit offputting. Anyway, enjoy your 'Freakin' Bass Friday', you deserve it
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Post by firebottle on Jan 13, 2023 15:56:42 GMT
NEW SPEAKER DAY.
Well things are humming along. Jason very kindly delivered the speakers at around lunch time.
Fantastic finish, I really love the looks. They only have around 20 hours on them so need more running in, but the detail is fantastic. I was thinking I may be lacking a slight amount of bass compared to the Thiels but no worries on that score, it's very solid and tuneful. More impressions when I have lots more hours on them.
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Post by jandl100 on Jan 13, 2023 16:55:48 GMT
Photos!!!
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Post by stevew on Jan 13, 2023 18:03:27 GMT
NEW SPEAKER DAY. Well things are humming along. Jason very kindly delivered the speakers at around lunch time. Fantastic finish, I really love the looks. They only have around 20 hours on them so need more running in, but the detail is fantastic. I was thinking I may be lacking a slight amount of bass compared to the Thiels but no worries on that score, it's very solid and tuneful. More impressions when I have lots more hours on them. Well that’s a relief !
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Post by firebottle on Feb 12, 2023 13:17:05 GMT
OK the Ekta's have had a lot more hours on them and have opened up to a tremendous degree, particularly on the bass. To say the bass driver is 'only' a 7 inch would perhaps suggest a limitation, but no, the performance is superb.
It is rather helped by using a fantastic driver with very good long throw capabilities.
I was thinking that the system was at a limit of performance (without spending stupid money) but it always pays to maximise everything that you can. The recently added SOtM DDC has an external psu socket on the back, I eventually found a 9V LPSU that I knew I had somewhere and plugged it in.
I wasn't really expecting much, even though a review had been very enthusiastic about using an expensive external supply with it. Well wow, more open and better bass definition, a definite uptick in performance.
I have now added an additional 8V output from the 12V LPSU feeding the Innuos so it's a more compact solution.
I have been playing a lot of bass heavy tracks, dub reggae, Boris Blanc and a rather good one by Malia, Smouldering Ashes (Mickey Remix). Had this playing rather loudly, by gum this is a well recorded track, I could hear some percussion coming from behind me.
Ha, not so. The speakers were pressurising the room so well that the top cover of the radiator in the lounge (behind the listening chairs) was vibrating along to the bass riddim.
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Post by firebottle on Nov 3, 2023 11:27:00 GMT
Cheap as chips, well cheaper actually.Been a long time since I've posted in this blog, a couple of things have changed/are changing but that's for a future post.I am working on something on the workbench and realised I didn't have a 'test Dac' in the workshop, so I had a search on fleabay.Up popped this little Dac with no bids on so I waited until the end and nabbed it.Never heard of the make but hey-ho, no probs as a test Dac.Had a butchers inside, natch, and there is a SPDIF receiver chip Cirrus 8416 that can run stand alone plus a Dac chip I have never heard of.Never heard of the manufacturer either, Hangzhou Ruimeng Tech MS4344, 24 bit.Good thing as well the seller even included the leads:The price for all this wonderousness?99p plus postage, bargain.
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Bigman80
Grandmaster
AA Founding Member & Bigbottle Audio Creator
Posts: 15,975
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Post by Bigman80 on Nov 3, 2023 11:54:20 GMT
Cheap as chips, well cheaper actually.Been a long time since I've posted in this blog, a couple of things have changed/are changing but that's for a future post.I am working on something on the workbench and realised I didn't have a 'test Dac' in the workshop, so I had a search on fleabay.Up popped this little Dac with no bids on so I waited until the end and nabbed it.Never heard of the make but hey-ho, no probs as a test Dac.Had a butchers inside, natch, and there is a SPDIF receiver chip Cirrus 8416 that can run stand alone plus a Dac chip I have never heard of.Never heard of the manufacturer either, Hangzhou Ruimeng Tech MS4344, 24 bit.Good thing as well the seller even included the leads:The price for all this wonderousness?99p plus postage, bargain. A sonic powerhouse no doubt 😉
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Post by lurch on Nov 3, 2023 13:13:08 GMT
That's probably no different to the FiiO Taishan I had which retailed at circa £30, same size and shape of case anyway. Wasn't a, bad sounding little thing either, bought to use with a CCA and mini Chifi HA for a low cost minimalist headphone rig, sounded pretty impressive into a pair of 250 Ohm DT770 Pro.
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Post by firebottle on Dec 9, 2023 10:43:27 GMT
Having a bit of a Dac shootout, well why not? I have wired the 3 inputs of the preamp so I can switch directly between the 3 Dacs. I have my £16 Dac board, a Xiang Sheng DA-05AII and of course the Holo Spring 3. The Xiang Sheng has had a small modification to the valve (tube) output but I am using the Normal output. Second up is the 24bit £16 Dac board. I have replaced the output chip with a better one and removed the output capacitors. Lastly the Holo Spring 3 in the black as black equipment stack. No mods to this one. Source is the now working Kenwood DP-X9010 CDT, shown at tthe bottom of the above pic. Superb source for Redbook audio. Now the thing is I don't have the 'golden ears' of a certain individual on here so the summary will be short. Best is the Holo, no real surprise. Second, not a million miles behind, is the £16 Dac board. What? I hear you ask. It's a relatively recent chip with no SMPS power in sight. With the transformer and better output chip it comes in about £40. Talk about the law of diminishing returns . Third is the Xang Sheng which sounds a bit closed in and tonally a little bit bloated in the mid bass.
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Bigman80
Grandmaster
AA Founding Member & Bigbottle Audio Creator
Posts: 15,975
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Post by Bigman80 on Dec 9, 2023 12:18:08 GMT
Is it an AKM chip on that PCB?
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Post by firebottle on Dec 9, 2023 12:48:37 GMT
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Bigman80
Grandmaster
AA Founding Member & Bigbottle Audio Creator
Posts: 15,975
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Post by Bigman80 on Dec 9, 2023 12:54:43 GMT
That used in anything else Al?
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Post by firebottle on Dec 9, 2023 13:12:44 GMT
Topping D30 I believe.
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Bigman80
Grandmaster
AA Founding Member & Bigbottle Audio Creator
Posts: 15,975
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Post by Bigman80 on Dec 9, 2023 13:25:23 GMT
Oh, ok...so it's not some weird random one. Cool.
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Post by mikeyb on Dec 9, 2023 16:58:54 GMT
Oh, ok...so it's not some weird random one. Cool. He was doing the testing 😉😂
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