Precision Fidelity C7/A: To modify or leave as is?


Hello:

We recently invested in a Precision Fidelity C7/A and I was thinking of upgrading some of the OEM capacitors. The original designer -- Bruce Moore -- apparently built the preamp. to sound as good as could be in stock configuration without having to modify anything, i.e. evincing the philosophy that an intelligent design should be simple and sound excellent as is.

Has anyone upgraded their Precision Fidelity with caps. such as V-Cap teflons or Auricaps and come away with dramatic differences in sonics, either for the better or worse?

Thank you.
somut

Showing 1 response by palasr

I recall the C7A-Revised being a fantastic sounding preamplifier. If you have merely a C7A, perhaps investigating what exactly the "revised" referred to would be an excellent starting point. Perhaps some generous "revised" owner out there would be willing to take a few detailed internal photographs for you to examine, as well as answer a few questions about the circuit changes in the "revised" version.

Cap upgrades are a crap shoot at best. Often, a designer will use seemingly pedestrian parts that are perfectly voiced into the circuit. Changes will render differences, but only your ears will emphatically tell you whether boutique parts are actually better. In my experience, you have a 50/50 shot of actually improving things without destroying the fundamental characteristics of the unit; presumably, it's these original characteristics which made the unit both worth keeping for an extended period, and worth attempting to improve. You takes your chances.

-Richard