Wyred upgrade

[topround]

Yes I understand the nervosa.. I put BG's in my cd player, I removed cheap computer grade caps.
What I got was a very clean background, tremendous detail, great bass...for now
I lost some roundness and romance, will it come back? who knows I will wait a year, I changed 8 caps, some of them big BG's, that's why i say it is a balancing act, sometime puttingthe best in a circuit that was not voiced for it may not be a good idea.
But give it time, it will improve, you just have to be honest with yourself and see if where you landed was where you wanted to be. Keep the old parts, you may want them back in one day.

Is the W4S a ICE amp?

Mike

[shep]

"Is the W4S a ICE amp?" Yes. 250, 500 and 1000 watt versions of same. To my knowledge, none of the big players (Belcanto, Spectrum, etc.) use this lower powered module. Michel Mardis, who slipped this amp to me under the radar, before it disappeared off the earth, thought this module the sweetest from B and O. The old parts are probably in a drawer now in California. I tend to live dangerously on the fringe of the DIY community, relying on better minds than mine and steadier hands. My old Marantz cdp has been and continues to be moddeded extensively according to the principles and following the flow chart of the now famous 15000 page thread on diyaudio.com. it goes back and forth to England about twice a year; I'm furiosly resisting the general move to computer based playback; Just perverse i guess! Having said that, it sounds remarkable and is only about half-way to where others have gone. At the end of the day, assuming there is such a place, it will resemble nothing ever imagined by Marantz and cost a lot more than any reasonable person would spend on a funky old cd player, or for that matter on a new one. I gave up trying to keep track; Once you're on the Nervosa trail, there's no looking back.  

[richidoo]

Can you post the link to the DIYaudio thread for your Marantz CDP? Thanks, I'd like to check that out.

[shep]

Starts here: http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/digital-source/54009-marantz-cd63-cd67-mods-list.html

[richidoo]

Thanks shep

[shep]

Welcome. A very time-consuming read I fear.
Some 15 hours into it now. The edge has gone off but the bass is lumpy and the sound stage clumpy, but at least there's progress and I can begin to get a feel for what it happening and what will improve...Down the long road.

[richidoo]

Those are good signs. That's just cap voodoo. Put hours on it while you sleep, it will pass fast.

[tmazz]

I could have left well enough alone, but my nervosa is.....

Constant? 

(You are not alone, I resemble that remark.      )

[rollo]

Hey Shep, as Richadoo said about 200 hours and those new caps should sing. Just run it on repeat with the other gear off. enjoy.


charles

[shep]

I hope so. I'm not very impressed with the BG sound as of the 20 hour mark. Wasn't it you Charles who talked about breaking in caps with 5 hour on, 5 hour off proceedure?

[rollo]

I hope so. I'm not very impressed with the BG sound as of the 20 hour mark. Wasn't it you Charles who talked about breaking in caps with 5 hour on, 5 hour off proceedure?

 
 Yes it was moi . For the longest time I would run the item 24/7 for 2 weeks. put wear on the gear and had to use a spare set of tubes just for break in. Oye!
  I was reading an engineering forum some time back and the Gurus insisted that the 5 on 5 off was the way to go. Tried it and no going back. Actually the gear, caps, etc. broke in quicker.
  Something about the dielectrics settling when not running.


charles

[shep]

Thanks. I'm glad I wasn't imagining that. I wonder if 5 hours is a baseline or has some specific sense. I will do it thus.

[shep]

Some 50 hours later and things are looking up. It's still not the sound I would wish for but if the tendancy continues into the next 100 hours+, it may well get there. Altogether listenable but not very engaging, is how I would characterize the present sound of BG/Vishy foil. Strangely it's anything but bright; If anything it's on the darker side, a bit too polite in the treble and the bass is dominant but not very articulate. Where I had hope for a deeper, broader sound-stage, thus far it has not changed from the previous incarnation. I guess I would concur that it's just not on the cards with ICE technology; the holographic, sweeping brush- stroke that tubes can provide (and some sand amps). I keep my fingers crossed that the infamous run-in time for BG's will be true for me and that I will get something sweeter and more airy than is now the case. I do hear the transparency that these new Vishay foil resistors are supposed to provide but it's partially masked by the signature of the caps. On a plus side, when fresh out of the box, the amp sounded like congested re-flux emmisions. It now sounds something closer to music.

[richidoo]

That sounds about right for cap break in. You are fortunate that it is not too bright because that usually doesn't go away with break in. The muddy bass is a great sign that they are not yet fully broken in. It was clearer bass before the mods right? It will come back.

[shep]

Yeah the bass was clearer before, maybe not as deep or powerful. Definately no bright. It's all a bit stiff and tight-shouldered though, if that makes sense. I'm getting tired of all these endless burn-ins...next it will be the cdp. I sometimes wish I didn't hear it or believe in it like so many...interestingly my rca's from John P. sound a bit better than grover's SX mk2, which is a first. more forgiving. Synergy...