BAT VK5i 6 pack capacitor upgrade


Hello, I have a BAT VK-5i preamp, and I was wondering how much improvement would the 6 pack capacitor upgrade would give.(?)

Another question is, can I apply this mod my self ? I live overseas and I cannot afford sending the BAT to the US !

Does anyone with BAT have performed this upgrade and what was the result ? Does it worth the money ?

Thanks.
tbabis
i can see where you are coming from regarding the shipping...

if you are going to ship to the usa, would wait till the unit needs repair or go for the super tube & cap upgrade ( full boat)..
Jeffrey123, no I haven't.

I tried different power cables and tubes, I cannot send the BAT to the US, or trust someone here in Greece to perform the upgrade, I believe the bass can still be very good and dynamic in absolute terms when Amperex PQ 7308 are fitted in the BAT.
I changed to a SUPRA LoRAD for power cable (which is very affordable) and although is does not have the best bass among other PCs, it still has a fine overall tonality which I like.
To be frank, I forgot about the capacitor upgrade after doing all these..

Upgrades are safer when performed by the manufacturer I believe.
And all these things COST and are endless..

Not to mention the fact that we are never sure about the PERCENTAGE of improvement that will come after paying XXX money for upgrade.

The good thing when you are out of money is that you may settle down a bit and listen to some music without fantasizing and worrying all the time asking yourself "how would it sound if.."

(By the way, if you DO the upgrade, send me some comments please !!! )
The capacitors from Sonic Craft cost about $80 + shpg. The 3.3mF caps lowered the output impedance & increased the bass slam while the 0.33 caps gave better detail in the highs. Jeff recommends to keep the existing 1mF oil caps in the system so as not to change the overall nature of the sound. Call him for advice as to what changes in sound YOU wish to make.
I had the six pack upgrade done on my vkp-5, befor doing so I talked to Victor at BAT about the improvement`s and he ensured me I would notice the upgrade, Victor was right it opened the soundstage wider and I was hearing thing`s I had not heard befor digging more stuff out of the groove`s.

I must admit it most certainly was worth it. Give Victor a call at Bat and discuss your concern`s with him the great thing with BAT is their customer service it`s one of the best. David
Thanks Oldears, did you hear improvement ? In what terms ? Did you lose anything from the previous sound ? Are you happy with BAT's bass right now ?

Thanks and Regards,
Babis.
Go to the soniccraft.com website and contact Jeff for his advice on soniccap capacitors for the BAT preamps in place of the 6-pak. I did this mod myself and he will ship overseas. Please note I did not compare this to a 6-pak mod, but you should be very pleased.