Golden Gate rejuvenated

dctom

Well-Known Member
Jan 28, 2015
309
55
258
Wiltshire UK
www.davidcthomas.co.uk
It has been a frustrating few months. I had my GG updated with super clocks R2R and the ps modified to be more compatible with 242s back in May.
Unfortunately the amanero usb board decided to give up the ghost shortly after the mods were carried out.
Long story short, now have it back in perfect working order. Plus a nice new earth terminal, further ps tweets (Greg assures me) and the output reduced, as previously my pre was getting saturated with some high level recordings. Almost thought it had been the wrong decision to go for the 242s.
It is sounding better than ever using 4x DSD with Jriver upsampling.
 

christoph

Well-Known Member
Dec 11, 2015
4,659
4,058
825
Principality of Liechtenstein
Hi dctom

What output tubes have you been using before?
Do you also have the chipless DSD512 engine?
I'm happy you are happy now :cool:
 

bonzo75

Member Sponsor
Feb 26, 2014
22,434
13,467
2,710
London
Hi dctom

What output tubes have you been using before?
Do you also have the chipless DSD512 engine?
I'm happy you are happy now :cool:

How are your 242s going.

He had the 242 but then had a mild gain issue which he got fixed. He also has PX4. We tried special 45 at his they didn't work too well and PX25 worked better than PX4. Though that might change with the new gain
 

dctom

Well-Known Member
Jan 28, 2015
309
55
258
Wiltshire UK
www.davidcthomas.co.uk
Thanks, I was using PX4s before I got the 242s in May when I got the upgrade.

Did not bother with the chipless engine at the time as I am using a linux server and it only goes up to 256. Linux can go to 512 now but I have heard it is not that stable at the moment.

I am very happy with the current sound, it is considerably better than with the 242 previously.
 
Last edited:

bonzo75

Member Sponsor
Feb 26, 2014
22,434
13,467
2,710
London
Bill has now started grounding his tubes directly instead of his chassis. This has given him a new jump and the normal 45s, which we never liked are sounding the best with his current set up.
 

bonzo75

Member Sponsor
Feb 26, 2014
22,434
13,467
2,710
London
how does he manage to connect them?

PM him, no idea about the details. He has these cages he can insert around the tubes and he connects those, I think. Creating partial faraday cages.
 

Audiophile Bill

Well-Known Member
Mar 23, 2015
4,293
4,093
675
View attachment 37286

Thought I would try making a Faraday cage myself

ackoledgements seatrope View attachment 37285

Hey Guys. Yes I am having unbelievable results with my Faraday cage prototype. I still have chassis grounding also - this is additional. The key with the cage is to ground it. I have mine grounded into my star ground system that I designed. The noise floor is literally non existent even with the noisiest (in the past tube such eml 45 mesh) tubes. I can turn the volume to a level that would be near to 100db without noise.
 

bonzo75

Member Sponsor
Feb 26, 2014
22,434
13,467
2,710
London
So Bill texted me this pic saying i haven't heard a Lampi properly yet and this is giving him literally zero noise floor
 

Attachments

  • 2017-11-16-PHOTO-00008421.jpg
    2017-11-16-PHOTO-00008421.jpg
    39.5 KB · Views: 163

Audiophile Bill

Well-Known Member
Mar 23, 2015
4,293
4,093
675
So Bill texted me this pic saying i haven't heard a Lampi properly yet and this is giving him literally zero noise floor

I have just ordered two copper chimneys as I am calling them as this prototype looks a bit crap lol. Will post a picture of the new creation next week but yes I have the noisiest tubes I ever heard (EML 45 mesh plates) totally silent at extreme levels.
 

wisnon

Well-Known Member
Dec 12, 2011
3,525
635
1,200
Where did you order them and do you nedd grounding box to get good results? Do they improve thing WITHOUT grounding?
 

Audiophile Bill

Well-Known Member
Mar 23, 2015
4,293
4,093
675
Where did you order them and do you nedd grounding box to get good results? Do they improve thing WITHOUT grounding?

Hi Norman,

You can derive some good benefit just simply using the cage but the real magic in terms of silence occurs when grounding them.

The thing above I made quickly as a prototype but I have ordered some copper “chimneys” that I will be converting into my final solution. These parts are from specialist plumbing shops
 

Iamrael

Member
Nov 3, 2017
87
4
8
The easiest way to ground is to use roach clips with 22 Ga. Au wire to ground. Many have stated that the Faraday cage effects dynamics and tonality so it may not be win/win.
 

bonzo75

Member Sponsor
Feb 26, 2014
22,434
13,467
2,710
London
So if we ground this plus the tubes in SET amps in similar way, we will have system with lower noise floor than Mike's :cool:
 

Audiophile Bill

Well-Known Member
Mar 23, 2015
4,293
4,093
675
The easiest way to ground is to use roach clips with 22 Ga. Au wire to ground. Many have stated that the Faraday cage effects dynamics and tonality so it may not be win/win.

This hasn’t been my experience at all. Actually unsurprisingly the dynamic range and perceived dynamics are improved a lot. If one measured it, it would be very substantial. Tonality seems unaffected thus far.
 

Audiophile Bill

Well-Known Member
Mar 23, 2015
4,293
4,093
675
So if we ground this plus the tubes in SET amps in similar way, we will have system with lower noise floor than Mike's :cool:

Lol. No. Just so hard to get noise floor anywhere near solid state - my AD is -120db for example.
 

About us

  • What’s Best Forum is THE forum for high end audio, product reviews, advice and sharing experiences on the best of everything else. This is THE place where audiophiles and audio companies discuss vintage, contemporary and new audio products, music servers, music streamers, computer audio, digital-to-analog converters, turntables, phono stages, cartridges, reel-to-reel tape machines, speakers, headphones and tube and solid-state amplification. Founded in 2010 What’s Best Forum invites intelligent and courteous people of all interests and backgrounds to describe and discuss the best of everything. From beginners to life-long hobbyists to industry professionals, we enjoy learning about new things and meeting new people, and participating in spirited debates.

Quick Navigation

User Menu

Steve Williams
Site Founder | Site Owner | Administrator
Ron Resnick
Site Co-Owner | Administrator
Julian (The Fixer)
Website Build | Marketing Managersing