solderdude
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Post by solderdude on Oct 10, 2015 7:54:02 GMT
Note that to run 6N6P and certainly 6N6PI (6H6n, 6H6nN) you need either Ember-II or Ember-I with supercharger.
The heater currents are 750mA and 900mA respectively.
The start-up currents are even higher.
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Post by luckbad on Oct 11, 2015 2:57:31 GMT
Thanks all! I have an Ember II being sent my way Monday.
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Post by luckbad on Oct 16, 2015 6:44:22 GMT
Schiit Bifrost Multibit -> Project Ember II (6N6P Gold Grid tube) -> JVC HP-DX1000 || Sennheiser HD-650 What a heavenly amplifier. This gorgeous piece of kit is coming with me to work tomorrow and I'm going to have to resist taking it home for the weekend. Let's be honest, I will.  |
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Post by luckbad on Oct 18, 2015 4:09:29 GMT
If I use the Ember II as a preamp, does it still get the tube color? I was thinking about sending it through to a vintage Pioneer SA-9100.
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solderdude
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Post by solderdude on Oct 18, 2015 6:24:05 GMT
Yes, the line out is an attenuated version of the headphone out signal.
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Post by musicman on Oct 19, 2015 0:40:08 GMT
If I use the Ember II as a preamp, does it still get the tube color? I was thinking about sending it through to a vintage Pioneer SA-9100. Don't know why you would want to. The preamp on that Sa-9100 and amp was one of the first really good solid state amps. I had the amp, tuner and cd player for that series, still have the schematic somewhere, and they used very high quality parts, all resistors were 1% precision parts, better resoulution than the Ember. |
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Post by tunkejazz on Oct 19, 2015 7:55:21 GMT
Totally unrelated: people are crazy with some auctions on ebay :-P
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howie
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Post by howie on Oct 19, 2015 11:11:08 GMT
Totally unrelated: people are crazy with some auctions on ebay :-P Really spooky you just posted that because I was only thinking this morning how much more expensive tubes have become over the last 3 years since I first bought a load of ECC 88's for my Bravo v3 |
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Post by tommo21 on Oct 21, 2015 11:03:54 GMT
At the moment I'm really enjoying a Gold Label Telefunken E88CC(Diamond). Extremely expensive tube, but it really has balanced sound with wide soundstage and firm punchy bass. Might be a little bit sibilant, but only just. This tube was terrible in my stereo setup with my Pathos Classic One MKIII and Klipsch Heresy III, but much smoother in the Ember.
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Post by luckbad on Oct 22, 2015 1:09:26 GMT
I like the Russian 6N6P.
What's the step up? I'd like to stay under $50 still.
Moar bass preferred, including smooth treble (rolled off is okay) and decent mids.
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Post by tunkejazz on Oct 22, 2015 5:49:03 GMT
The Telefunken is great, I have borrowed one from a friend and it sounds very good. I just would not pay that much for that tube given current prices. The Philips e88cc SQ is very close at 1/2 of the price. I think I like the idea of staying below ~$30-$35 per tube. My latest acquisition (still waiting for them to arrive!) is a pair of Reflektor 6N23P "single wire" (the Russian version of the E88CC?). luckbad: The 6SN7 have an inherent sweetness in the upper end and are somewhat bassy with good clarity. You need Jeremy's adapter though. BTW I am sure Jeremy can also help you with a recommendation of a 6SN7, I bought one from him with similar requirements as you (Raytheon 6SN7GTB short bottle) and it really sounds great, only my Syl Bad Boy sounds better to me of the few 6SN7 that I have tried. The Ken-Rad VT231 is also quite bassy, but as howie said, not as good in the mids. If you need much more bass....perhaps wouldn't it be better to spend your money in new headphones? |
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Post by luckbad on Oct 22, 2015 15:31:35 GMT
Haha. Yeah, I already have bass heavy headphones. I just want to see if I can get maximum bass without bothering with EQ. Realistically, I'll probably always EQ. But, I still wanna find the best bass tube and take it from there.
Thanks for the help!
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Post by musicman on Oct 26, 2015 1:35:28 GMT
Solderdude, a few suggestions for the next Ember upgrade or new amp. Balanced headphone out, power switch on front, volumne knob with power switch would be fine. I have large hands and reaching around behind the amp, in between rca's input and pre-amp outs is a pain in the backside. I use the amp, three hours in the morning about the same in the evenings, and it is getting to be a enough to start looking to replace it. Nice amp and all, good features, put that power switch, is a deal breaker for my next amp, plus the ability to run balanced headphone input would be good selling point.
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solderdude
Administrator
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Posts: 4,886
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Post by solderdude on Oct 26, 2015 5:49:23 GMT
I have always wanted the power switch on the front of the amp.
The filterboard will have a switch on the front and it powers both the filter and the amplifier.
Jeremy and I already discussed a front switch a while ago and Jeremy wanted a tactile switch.
That circuit will be tested (along with some other minor tweaks) and will most likely be present in the next iteration.
The balanced out thing has also been discussed but then it will become another amp completely.
The next question would be to have balanced inputs as well which will require a line transformer or a completely different circuit.
For now the linear and filter board need to be finished, perhaps as well as output attenuators for sensitive headphones.
Perhaps ... someday .... there will be an 'Ember' with balanced and TRS out.
It might have 2 glowing bottles and perhaps even a linear power supply and metal enclosure.
That won't be cheap though .... IF it ever sees the light of day.
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Post by jhelms on Oct 26, 2015 15:39:51 GMT
I can imagine reaching behind franken embers tall tubes to turn it on could be a pain  As Frans mentioned, we are looking at several options for a power switch. I also like a switch in the volpot however many are firmly against it and say they would not buy with one / and it can lead to other issues and complications which are not desirable such as volpot matching. Most do not know this, but every volpot that makes it into our designs is hand selected and tested. We literally test every volpot and grade it prior to allowing it into our work. This leads to a pretty high rejection rate (I have hundreds of volpots here I cannot use) And going to a switched pot will just add a LOT to the cost with the rejection rate as it is. Right now, we are playing with a solid state powerup with tactile switch but we are trying to figure out the best way to make work both aesthetically and functionally. As Frans mentioned, the filter assembly will provide an easy on-off for the amplifier which is great. Another option if there is a lot of interest - since our gear is primarily used in desktop applications, would just be a small box (remote power on) that one could double sided tape to a nice spot on their desktop with a pushbutton / tactile on-off for the amplifier (likely would not be very expensive). Just ideas at this point. Thoughts? Also - agreed, a balanced amplifier may be similar to Ember, but will be a totally different amplifier. Only a small fraction of our customers have ever even inquired about a balanced design. So while it has been talked about, not exactly at the top of the list. Good news is - Frans and I are just about set on the linear. We feel the few hurdles we hit previously have been resolved - finalizing a few things in testing which is great! Turning into quite a beautiful piece of kit. More info and photos to come soon or our FB page has a photo of some testing this weekend. |
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