Michael,
Are you referring to the Serious Stereo Audio amp by Dennis Fracker?
Regards, |
Meant to write Dennis Fraker. |
Hi Michaelvv,
It`s good to know you have a high quality 2A3 DHT amp for such a reasonable cost.DHT based tubes(SET or PP) are my favorite type of amplifiers,they so naturally convey music`s emotion when properly implemented. I mentioned the 2A3 amp by Dennis Fracker(Serious Stero) which has a great reputation but is very expensive! Congratulations, you have two fine power amps to enjoy.
Charles, |
Volleyguy,
I'm glad you were patient and gave the Psvane tubes some reasonable burn in time. Some people are too hasty in judgements and never realize the true performance of products. These tubes are likely to continue to improve. |
Sal,
I can accept the premise that nothing is "perfect" and I'm someone who replaced the Solen with a Duelund CAST in my speaker crossover(5.6uf). I also used the CAST in my DAC to replace the stock coupling capacitors(1.0uf).
My impression, simply no negative tradeoff whatsoever the CAST are remarkable across the entire spectrum. Most significant is the improved nanaturalness and realism of music reproduction, things just sound right.
Granted the improvement gap is likely less if moving from say, Sonicap Platinum, V-Caps, Mundorf SGO, etc. Neither of these or other fine capacitors can match the sheer natural tone and timbre/harmonics of the stunning CAST.
These CAST placed in a source component is without question is a very wise decision, my DAC went from very good sound to what I now consider to be sublime. At this point I prefer Redbook CD in my system to many good analog record systems I've heard. I believe that the CAST is an example of an expensive product that in reality is a genuine bargain given its sonic impact.
Charles, |
Good discussion gentlemen and again another example of the pure subjective nature of this enjoyable hobby. Volleyguy I don't know if many have actually compared CAST-VSF s you have patiently done. I just went straight to the CAST and glad I did. Sal has far more DIY experience and hands on expertise than me and is familiar with numerous brands of capacitors. I respect his observations regarding the CAST's relative lack of air and sparkle and certainly accept the premise that nothing is perfect.
All I can contribute is this, I listen to live jazz in smaller venues quite often (10 visits to clubs the past 2 months) I've been doing this for close to 25 years. A good friend happens to be one of the better drummers in our area (I even listen to him practice sometimes). I feel that I have a good ear for drums, cymbals and most instruments due this type of unfiltered exposure. IMO the CAST capture the air, harmonic tones, energy, sparkle and what ever else you want to call it exceedingly well. Sheer honestly and realism wih cymbals nearly as I hear live and up close with the natural attack and decays intact.
We may differ on our various impressions here but as for me , I just believe that the CAST provide astonishing realism. They compared to other capacitors probably aren't "adding" artificial enhancement but instead are keeping it real. My 2 cents worth.
Charles, |
Tas,
You chose a speaker that should satisfy you for the long term.
I think all Coincident speakers utilize a zobel network to ensure a pretty flat impedance across the board. |
Bill,
That was funny and people crack me up when they resort to that phrase. These latest Jupiter capacitors could be fabulous and some may prefer them to the Duelund CAST. But "broken" is too much hyperbole for me. How about saying another superb cap and legitimate alternative.
Charles, |
Hi Volleyguy,
Interesting observations concerning you wife and daughter and I can relate to them. My wife isn't a hard core fan of jazz as I am but she does enjoy accompanying me on occasion to the clubs. She really does love the sound of live instruments and has said so ( how could one not enjoy this experience? ). She also notices and enjoys the interactions of the musicians on stage ( the clubs are small and we sit close to the stage). She used to play the piano and has a good ear. When she says the music at home sounds close to "real"(unsolicited) coming from her it's taken as a sincere compliment
Charles. |
Volleyguy,
I've heard systems where the sound of a drumkit's cymbals have "more" shimmer, sheen and energy than I hear sitting 6 feet from the real thing. So it's possible to voice a system's sound to embellished what is beyond a natural presentation ( unavoidably subjective). This is where I make a distinction between hifi and natural sound and in this realm the CAST errs towards natural. This isn't to dispute what Salectric is hearing at all, just my concept/idea of what sounds right and realistic.
In Sal's system things could certainly be different from mine and his perception of natural/ realism may vary from me. I'd love to hear his system. We're all aware that results can change from one system to another.
Charles, |
I agree with Grannyring (Bill). With the premium VSF Black capacitor there's no benefit to using bypass caps, nothing to gain but something to lose (purity of sound).
Charles, |
The crossover in the 4 way(9 driver) Coincident Total Victory III is more complicated than the much simpler Coincident Total Eclipse(whew! lucky for me). Grarnnyring your effott will pay off for you. Your fine upstream components will reveal this. You have excellent speakers.
Charles, |
Grannyting, (Bill)
I wish you were a neighbor of mine, it would be a lot of fun hearing each other's systems and also temporarily swamping components between the two to try out.
Charles, |
Bill,
That wasn't quite what I had in mind, Lol. |
Biil,
I think he's referring to the zobel network caps as well. I don't believe Israel would use bypass caps in the crossover ( I could be wrong). Sure is a big difference between the crossovers in the Total Eclipse I vs the series II. Or could because that Tasos's is the bi wired version?
Charles, |
I definitely have a zobel network but it's located on the floor of the speaker cabinet along with the coil inductor. There's no capacitor on any driver other than the tweeter (5.6uf) and no resistor (except what's in the zobel network. Believe me we looked and also confirmed with Israel. This may be his simplest crossover. I didn't bother with the zobel components as I was told they aren't in the signal pathway and changes would be minuscule sonic impact. Changing the tweeter capacitor was quite significant and I'm very pleased.
Charles, |
That's good news Bill. The stock speaker is exceptional to begin with and makes a wonderful foundation. High quality modification/parts elevate it to the level of "superb" sound and tremendous performance /cost ratio. Lampizator-Dude-Coincident, how can you lose?
Charles, |
The more I learn about bypass capacitors the less enticing they have become.Theory of getting the benefits of a higher quality cap in a smaller value (less money) don't often seem to be the case in reality. Apparently to get the desired sound you have to get a good cap in the appropriate size. The shortcut bypass isn't the same.
Charles, |
Tas,
You are correct the Total Eclipse has a simpler X over than the Total Victoty III of Grannyring. You just remove the lower woofer and will find the tweeter cap(solen) mounted on the floor of the speaker near the coil inductor. I have the Total Eclipse II version and assume your xover is very similar.
Charles, |
Tasouli,
You're right I'd forgotten that. |
I find it difficult to understand the use of such a high capacitance electrolytic as a DAC's output "coupling" capacitor. On the surface it doesn't make sense ( most are .47uf-1.0uf). 470uf???
Salectric as usual you offer good perspective and advice. It's true, you won't no the result of a modification until you actually hear it.
I'd find it hard to believe that a premium PIO capacitor wouldn't be an improvement over a large value electrolytic as a coupling cap.
Charles, |
Bill,
That is very good news. For those who find the Duelund CAST too expensive the Jupiter caps would be a wonderful alternative to improving their sound. The results I achieved with the CAST should be available to more music lovers.
Charles, |
Tas,
Your description of the speakers is precisely what I hear, "purer, bigger, more lifelike". Crossover capacitor quality does matter, significantly.
Charles, |
Tas,
We share the same philosophy regarding audio components. Buy the components that really move you and connect emotionally with your music, then try to extract the most potential they have to offer. This approach has worked beautifully for me .
Charles, |
Tas,
Well said and I understand your passion. Once people realize to focus on the "natural" reproduction of music in place of hifi dogma and criteria they're much better off (and happier). I want to enjoy music rather than analyze and obsess over the sound.
Charles |
I don`t know why Duelund would be misleading about the construction of their capacitors(if they indeed are] I haven`t cut one open. I can only account for what I hear and I love what they`ve done in my individual case.Volleyguy had one CAST capacitor that leaked. What was it leaking?
Charles, |
Hi Tas,
Congratulations on the successful modification of your speakers. The Duelund upgrade takes the Total Eclipse from the "very good" to the level of superb in my opinion. Just settle back and enjoy your music, it will steadily improve. In hindsight I realized the sound improvement continued for several hundred hours.The CAST were just a terrific decision for me and utterly worth every red cent I payed for them . Surely they are one of High End audio's esteemed products for those of us who highly value natural sound.
Charles, |
Bill you are aware of a cut open CAST that had no apparent oil.
Volleyguy reports a CAST capacitor that leaked oil!
Charles, |
Hi Tas,
Well your conclusions about the Coincident speakers match mine. Very good cabinet construction, excellent quality drivers and pretty simple signal path. Address the crossover with premium parts and you'll have an exceptionally sounding speaker (natural rather than artificial Hifi). I'm very happy that you achieved such a pleasing outcome.
For the initial money spent on the superior parts the end result is actually quite a remarkable value. You can use any top quality source or preamp/ amplifier and your speakers won't be outclassed, they'll easily keep up!
I agree with, this long thread (thanks Volleyguy) has been informative, friendly and fun.
Charles, |
Hi Bill (Grannyring),
As usual you raise many good points with your insight.Based on my experience I really can't understand why builders of expensive speakers don't use bette Xover parts.I sincerely respect their talents and efforts but many(not all) seem to cheap out on the Xover portion of the speaker.Or they design a complex multiple part Xover with poorer quality caps, wire and resistors. It seems to me that fewer parts (simple design) but placing emphasis on the quality would be a better option.
To Coincident's credit their Xovers are very simple and direct. The standard speaker is very good sounding. Yank out the Solens capacitor and insert Duelund and it's a "Wow what happened" experience.This would probably be true for the vast majority of speakers. Speakers with complex-multi capacitors can become expensive to change if you decide to go the Duelund route . fortunately there are other less costly alternatives that would still be a worthwhile upgrade from the stock parts.
I never would have thought that the Xover could be so crucial to the overall sound. Another example of "everything matters".
Charles, |
Audiolabyrinth,
I wouldn't extrapolate to the extent that you have done.The main point is with many speakers the Xover is a soft spot and is ripe for considerable improvement. The speaker should be very good and appeal to your ears in its stock form.I wouldn't suggest that you can take any old speaker and transform the sound merely by upgrading the capacitors. Other important aspects of the speaker must be of quality also.
Charles, |
I'd never heard of Duelund until Grannyring began a thread about them roughly 2 years ago and this stirred my curiosity. Very soon afterwards I came across this thread and Volleyguy's postings simply hooked me in. Yes his single speaker comparison method was unusual but I completely understood his impressions and descriptive points. I loved my speaker's sound and had no real interest in buying something different(though always curious about PHY driver speakers and Horning). I thought, try the CAST and if I don't like it, remove them and stick with the stock Solen capacitor. The Solens cap will never see the interior of these speakers again. It wasn't a case of going from bad to good, it was instead, quite good to sublime. To his credit, Israel Blume got really good sound from an average capacitor.
Charles, |
Tas,
The capacitors are 1 per channel (so just 1 pair is needed). If you click my system page and then click my Yamamoto DAC you'll see a picture of the installed CAST. If Grannyring believes the Jupiter is equal to the CAST that's very good news and saves you money. I'm not familiar with your DAC but surely superior output capacitors can't hurt.
Here's my perspective, The 1 pair of Duelund CAST cost me 459.00. You could easily spend 2-3x that (or more) for a pair of quality interconnect cables and not get the same improvement rendered from the CAST capacitors. For me the CAST represented a substantially high value/reward result.
Charles, |
Roxy54,
Yes,I agree with you.It just doesn't make any sense for Duelund to be misleading about their fabulous capacitors and that's why I was hesitant to cast doubt on them.Duelund should clarify to avoid confusion concerning the various capacitors.
Charles, |
Hi Tas,
Perhaps it's the different systems we have but I didn't experience the occasionally aggressive treble you mentioned. Immediately apparent was an increased resolution and detail/information retrieval. However the innate natural character improved! More resolution yet the organic quotient elevated simultaneously. That's special in my book. Tas you are well on your way.
Charles, |
Tas,
The Jupiter capacitors seem to be an ideal candidate for your DAC based on Grannyring's ringing endorsement. The CAST in my DAC has been a spectacular sucess (1uf output coupling position). If either of these two caps fit into your DAC I'd go for it. You'll have premium capacitors to begin the signal path and again exiting at the speaker.
Charles, |
Tas,
The Jupiter copper foil capacitor appears to be an excellent choice for your DAC.If they do for you what the Duelund CAST did in my DAC, you're in for a major treat{for less money than I happily spent}.Not a bad way to go.
Charles, |
This is starting to make sense, inexpensive mass market CD players using very large value but poor quality capacitors. Certainty this partially explains the typically crappy sound heard from these types of players. I'd be genuinely shocked if a Duelund or Jupiter capacitor doesn't provide a significant improvement in the sound quality.
Charles, |
The more I think about this I'm inclined to believe the Duelund CAST is what its makers say it is . Personally I don't know of a Teflon capacitor that sounds like the Duelund. So if it is "plastic", how did they get it to be superbly organic and natural in character? The internal construction could be oat bran and toilet paper. Bottom line is they sound superb and serve as a supreme benchmark for other audio capacitors.
Charles, |
Frederik,
Thanks for the prompt response, as speculation and innuendo has the "potential" to get out of control. Are the variety of CAST capacitors(different materials) labeled for cleat distinction among them? I have the 1uf 630v in my DAC and the 5.6uf 100v in my speakers. Both are splendid.
Charles, |
Bill,
The innuendo comment wasn't directed toward you. It was a general statement/observation on how rumor and speculation can sometimes run out of control and people pile on. I am glad Frederik has responded to this thread. Clearly there's a variety of CASTcapacitors which was unknown to me.
Charles, |
Hi Tas,
What you've described is a profound occurrence. Your wife (and you) is responding spontaneously to the "natural" character of the sound and this is a major step! I long ago rejected the notion of audiophile hifi criteria and its so called accurate and hyped detailed sound.
Perhaps all the years hanging out in jazz clubs and live instruments in my home but for me the right pursuit is towards the natural and organic. When your priorities shift to that direction, emotion, communication and involvement come along for the ride. The last thing you're interested in is
un involving analytical assessment. Music is meant to be listened to and
enjoyed (deeply). Just think, you've made your wife happier.
Tas I really felt you'd appreciate the Duelund effect/improvement in your speakers and resultant system overall influence.
Charles, |
Hi Volleyguy,
I look forward to your listening experience of the Jupiter capacitor and how it sounds compared to your very familiar Duelund CAST reference point. Should be a lot of fun.
Charles, |
This has been one of the better threads I have participated in when considering information, truly good attitude and shared experiences. |
Johnk,
Others here are capable of speaking for themselves, so I'll state my experience. My Coincident speaker has a Solen capacitor at the tweeter position. The sound of this stock speaker is very good. Replacing the Solen with the Duelund CAST was such an obvious improvement that there's no need to debate this, it's better!I don't need to reinsert the Solen to be "sure".
Charles, |
Johnk,
I 've made changes in my audio system that weren't always better but just different or a bit worse. I simply report what's heard and accept it for the reality it represents. Duelund CAST in my speaker and DAC were "significant" improvements on what was already very good sound.For me it's as clear cut as going from my former class AB SS amplifier to a class A SET amplifier. Unmistakable upgrade for me and no need to go back and forth(I knew the sound of both very well and the contrast was too profound to deny).
Charles, |
Volleyguy,
Are the V-cap Cu foils artificial sounding relative to the Jupiter and the CAST? Some products yield an "ultra hifi" sound rather than what some would describe as a natural/organic sound. Is that possibly what you're hearing?
Charles, |
Johnk,
With all due respect, your recent posts make little sense. Of course the process is subjective, you hear something and judge it's quality of sound. Either it's an improvement or it isn't. People contributing to this thread have had sucess and failures with various components and modifications. I don't get the sense that we're here just to pat each other and ourselves on the back. Many of us aren't qualified to make radical or extensive modifications to our speakers. The fact that by changing a capacitor (relatively simple) can yield significant improvement in sound is noteworthy. I am happy to let others know of my pleasing outcome and that they can achieve similarly good results in their systems as well. That's a positive occurrence IMO.
Charles, |
I believe Johnk builds speakers. If he and Salectric feel it's necessary to perform multiple A/B testing to be certain that the differences are legitimate, more power to them. Some situations may require that degree of scrutiny, I get that. In my case of changes/upgrades it'd be a waste of my time. The improvement was simply too apparent and profound. The CAST affect was a stark contrast initially and nearly 2 years later that hasn't changed. To each their own.
Charles, |
Ait,
The stock Coincident Eclipse speaker is "very" good sounding with the Solen capacitor. It's just notable the considerable improvement provided by the Duelund CAST substitution. |
