Blown fuse after modest mod

SpeedyDad · 1456

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Offline SpeedyDad

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Reply #15 on: September 04, 2018, 02:57:59 AM
Not sure if it is by default but I switched off volume limit in settings. It's a bit odd because the gain from my CD player is high, so high that I could not listen at even 75%.

Are there any DAC you recommend?



Offline Doc B.

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Reply #16 on: September 04, 2018, 05:38:08 AM
That's perfectly normal. We use phones a lot when testing Cracks on the bench and they definitely tend to have a limited output compared to a CD player.

Dan "Doc B." Schmalle
President For Life
Bottlehead Corp.


Offline SpeedyDad

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Reply #17 on: September 04, 2018, 06:57:52 PM
That's good to know, thank you!

So, I set up the amp and am now listening more actively. The Crack sounds simply amazing with my (not even high-end) headphones (Beyerdynamic DT770 pro). I have a Ton Koopman and Simon Preston recording of Bach organ works and actually hear birds chirping between pieces; birds that are probably outside of the cathedral where the recording was made. That recording is from 1999 (Deutsche Grammophon). Then I pop in Bach's Advent Cantatas (Herreweghe, Harmonia Mundi, 2014) and can't believe how crisp everything sounds. I feel as if I am sitting right in the middle of the choir. The definition is wonderful across the whole spectrum. I am sure that I am biased (no pun intended) because I built it myself, but I listen to a lot of classical (better: baroque) music and am pretty sure that the Crack has an edge. Without wanting to be too philosophical, the process of building with patience and knowing what I am doing adds a level of appreciation I usually miss in the instant gratification world, just like maybe what the slow-food movement does to eating. All right, I stop here. I can't say that tubes sound "warm" though. That's probably another debate.