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In Reply to: RE: Electra Print vs Hashimoto - practical economy or necessary expenditure? posted by mrubey on May 20, 2015 at 06:39:07
Virtually all of Min's Korneff clones (and all of the ones built by Korneff) have used electraprint OPTs. There must be a reason for this. Ask Min.Re. Drlowmu's suggestion to build a 2 stage (direct coupled) 45, I'd agree with this, but only because I have a pair of Fi monoblocks that can use both the 2A3 and the 45 just by changing the rectifier (although this setup is slightly less optimized for the 45, but close, according to Don Garber). One of the nice things about this design, is that the driver stage is very simple: just a single triode, on the order of one-half a 12AX7. There's an old review of the Fi 2A3/45 monos on the net by Jeff Day, if you want to see how clean and simple the build is inside the amp, not many parts!
I do know that Don went from Magnequest OPTs to Hashimotos (don't know the specs) after I received mine. Don also told me that Magnequest all silver OPTs are also lovely on this amp: $6,000 for two!
AN double C-core Opts are insanely expensive, but i have enjoyed them on two Audio Note 300B stereo amps. On AN equipment, they make a huge difference compared to the standard EI OPTs - more detail, better inner resolution, better defined soundstage, cleaner top end and tighter on the bottom. I've only used the entry-level, copper C-cores (Hi-B).
Observe, before you think. Think before you open your yap. Act on the basis of experience.
Edits: 05/20/15Follow Ups:
I've been corresponding with Min simultaneously with this thread. I just received his take on this question which is that spending the money on the Hashimoto will not necessarily create a better sounding amplifier. The difference does not justify the price differential. That if I wanted to tweek the sound towards more precision/resolution Mundorf caps would do that but that he prefers the more earthy natural sound of the Jensens. He also said that the amp he would build for me would the same as what he would build for himself.
I ask him about the Korneff 76 preamp and he said he had serviced a Korneff preamp and that he couldn't get the noise down to an acceptable level. He thinks the JEL linestage is all round the better choice.
Thank you all for helping me find clarity.
Ultimately I have trust someone and I trust Min.
I definitely will get the best output transformer I can afford for my build. If you have a scope, you can easily tell well made output transformer does have better frequency responses and low distortion.
I disagree, the output transformer could almost be INexpensive.With a proper design before the outputs, which importantly - less than 5% of the SE existing amps do, the less expensive output transformered amps will creme, totally creme, the fancy and costly output transformered amps !!
Now, if you are talking about the "other 95% " of amps, with just a typical mediocre average build, a more expensive output is a very INDIRECT way to get "slightly" better sound. But WHO can stomach listening to such mediocrity in design and execution of the circuitry that preceeds the transformer, well....not I !!!
In the end, we all listen to a modulated power supply.
How good is its design and performance ??
Jeff Medwin
Edits: 07/12/15
Good point.
How about a B+ supply operating at 300 kilohertz, rectified and filtered using only ferrite chokes. Electrolytic caps do not function at these speeds so cannot be used. Film and foil, small values used for wave shaping thus allowing the ferrites to swallow the noise.
The final cap can be an MKP1840 series, 800 volt, not more than 50UF. Ten microfarad works well.
What this does to a 45 or 2A3 is to goose the performance to unheard of levels especially the speed and the dynamics. The increase in performance is down to the fact that at 50 hertz, the final cap is delivering power for nominally 18 milliseconds when the diodes are not conducting. Thus you are listing to what the cap does using its internal chemistry. In the case of high speed supplies, this timing is a microsecond or two.
Coloration? the ferrites are all operating in the megahertz range and ignore the audio that sneaks through.
Regards john
mrubey,
Give Jack Elliano ( Electra-print )a call about your transformer needs. You have options of copper, partial silver, solid silver secondary if you wish and for less money than others. He can also answer any questions and give suggestions on circuits etc. I have several SET mono block amps and I am very happy with them. His transformers are top notch !!!
I had Min build a Korneff 45 clone for me this Winter. It uses the the Electra Print OPT (4, 8 , 16 ohm taps) and I asked him to install the best components based on cost and performance. I did not go into a lot of details on the component brands, etc, since I am a complete novice about parts selection.
I am really pleased with the results. Fantastic sounding. I have not heard a lot of comparison 45 amps, but Min made a definite keeper for me. Trust him, he will build a great amp for you. Right now, I'm having a lot of fun trying different power tubes. My favorites so far: Cunningham cx345 and EML Mesh Plates. This amp is so resolving and quiet that hearing the differences between power tubes is quite easy.
Fantastic Trackball02
thank you!
Trackballs story mimics pretty much everything I've read about Mins work.
You can get enjoyable, interesting sound out of SETs with little difficulty; a great SET amp is something different and rare(er).Based on what I have seen and experienced of Min's builds, I'd be talking to Min about layout and parts selection:
> Allowing a little extra chassis space so components can be well laid out and mounted.
> I'd especially like to see grommets on the (roughly finished) chassis holes used for routing wires.
> Use decent tube sockets - not those horrible ceramic Chinese things I sometimes see.
> Keep the input wiring away from the PSU wires and transformer.
> Don't use electrolytic caps in critical areas... almost anywhere (if possible).
If he is using a bus for 0v signal grounding in your amp, ask him to brush-up on the order things need to be attached to the bus. There is more, but those few things should help ensure some reliability and reasonable noise levels in most systems.
Of course, these are just my opinions and suggestions.
Regards,
91.
Edits: 05/21/15
Each amp has its own peculiarities. However, in SET i've never heard of coupling caps making a bigger difference than OPTs.
For high-end caps I am partial to Audio Note Copper foil in oil. For less expensive coupling caps, I favor the Russian K-40s, bypassed with another .01uf Russian, which I also have used (but not in SET - for no particular reason, by the way).
Learn to solder!
Also, make sure to speak with him about what caps he uses for the PS caps and the cathode bypass cap. Film caps are generally preferred.
Observe, before you think. Think before you open your yap. Act on the basis of experience.
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