[DaveC113]

The Anthem Pre1 preamp I had for the last 5 years just went out. I heard one channel get fuzzy, then a burning smell from the preamp's separate power supply. The preamp was still producing sound when i shut it off. I will not plug it in again unless I have guidance from someone who knows a lot more about electronics than I do.

I only use the line stage, no phono required.

I built my own Simple SE amplifier (see avatar), which needs ~12 dB of gain as I modified the build with a 12bh7a driver tube, which has a lower gain than the normal driver tube. The Simple SE runs kt88/6550/el34 power tubes driving a pair of Omega XRS 4.5" speakers in triode mode with no feedback at all.

I am considering:

1. Fix the Anthem. Is this worth it? I'm not so sure, seems like the $ might be better spent on a new preamp.

2. New preamp: around $500 to $700, although I could go a little higher for a special, amazing deal.

New preamps I am considering... I don't want anything made in China.

- Decware Zen Triode, pushing the envelope at $900: http://www.decware.com/newsite/CSP2.html
- Used Melos SHA-Gold at $800, currently on Audiogon
- Used Melos SHA-1 at at $550, currently on ebay
- Bottlehead Foreplay 3, $500 if I assemble myself: http://www.bottlehead.com/store.php?crn=220&rn=430&action=show_detail
- 12b4 preamp kit from tubecad: http://www.tubecad.com/2011/06/blog0205.htm

Any other suggestions would be welcome too.... Thanks!

[jackman]

The Anthem Pre1 preamp I had for the last 5 years just went out. I heard one channel get fuzzy, then a burning smell from the preamp's separate power supply. The preamp was still producing sound when i shut it off. I will not plug it in again unless I have guidance from someone who knows a lot more about electronics than I do.

I only use the line stage, no phono required.

I built my own Simple SE amplifier (see avatar), which needs ~12 dB of gain as I modified the build with a 12bh7a driver tube, which has a lower gain than the normal driver tube. The Simple SE runs kt88/6550/el34 power tubes driving a pair of Omega XRS 4.5" speakers in triode mode with no feedback at all.

I am considering:

1. Fix the Anthem. Is this worth it? I'm not so sure, seems like the $ might be better spent on a new preamp.

2. New preamp: around $500 to $700, although I could go a little higher for a special, amazing deal.

New preamps I am considering... I don't want anything made in China.

- Decware Zen Triode, pushing the envelope at $900: http://www.decware.com/newsite/CSP2.html
- Used Melos SHA-Gold at $800, currently on Audiogon
- Used Melos SHA-1 at at $550, currently on ebay
- Bottlehead Foreplay 3, $500 if I assemble myself: http://www.bottlehead.com/store.php?crn=220&rn=430&action=show_detail
- 12b4 preamp kit from tubecad: http://www.tubecad.com/2011/06/blog0205.htm

Any other suggestions would be welcome too.... Thanks!

I built a tricked out older generation Foreplay (with upgraded attenuators and CCS upgrade, NOS tubes, etc.) and have owned a Decware preamp.  They were both very good but I preferred the SAS 7A.   If you are in the kit building mood (and if you have the ability), I'd recommend an SAS 7A preamp.  It sells for $459 as a kit.  The SAS was more transparent, 3D and quiter in my system compared to the others. 

I owned the SAS 7A before upgrading to the 10A and it sounded great, even with stock tubes.  Although I bought it assembled, the layout is very straightforward and it's a relatively easy build.  If you can build the Foreplay, you can build the 7A.  If you don't want to mess around with DIY, Steve from SAS can probably put one together for you, for a reasonable price. 

If your budget is higher, you might want to check out the 10A.  If you are in Chicago, you are welcome to listen to mine.  Lastly, if you decide to build the 7A, you might want to take the money you save and get a pair of SAS V stereo interconnects, Jenna Labs hookup wire, and some upgraded tubes (Genelex 6922's sound great in the SAS preamps).  The V interconnects are the best I have heard in my system and are pretty inexpensive.  All SAS products are made in the USA, in Morton, Illinois.  Steve is also a really good guy who designs and assembles every piece of SAS gear. 

Link:

http://www.sasaudiolabs.com/price1.htm

[werd]

Is this the one with the outboard tube PS? If it is yes, if no don't bother fixing it unless you can do it yourself.

[DaveC113]

jackman, thanks for the suggestion, I will look into SAS. I am near Denver...

werd, yes, it's the one with the separate power supply, and it's already broke once. I fixed it myself that time, but this time it's not so obvious exactly what's wrong. However, I'm not exactly sure how good this preamp is compared to others I am considering, so not sure if I want to try to fix it or have someone fix it for me...

Also, any opinions on the Grounded Grid? I hear it is a good preamp but others may be a better choice, like the 12b4 preamp designs...

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=72652.0

[DaveC113]

It turns out the power transformer went out in the power supply of my preamp. This trafo isn't available anymore, and would have to be replaced by 2 other trafos at a cost of $400 to have partsconnexion do the job (including return shipping and labor). Since I paid $500 for this preamp, I decided to sell it to pcx for $275. I do not think a repaired unit would even be worth $400, it seems like a poor investment considering I have had to repair the unit 2x since I got it 5 years ago, it had a resistor in the ps fry and the volume pot went out. It also has too much gain. They can update it and resell it or use it for parts.

I am this close (-) to ordering a SAS 7A. I don't know much about the circuit Steve uses, and I can understand why he wouldn't want to freely distribute a schematic of it, but from the reviews I have read I doubt I'll be disappointed. Anyway, it's not really a true DIY project, just an assembly exercise, but I do appreciate saving a few hundred dollars and I don't mind doing the work myself. I also like Steve's goal of having his preamps sound like a "straight wire with gain", I appreciate that approach more than trying to "voice" it and use it as a tone control to add warmth and whatnot.

In the future I wouldn't mind building my own preamp, but I need one right now, and I realize I am pretty far away from doing the amount of research needed to make a decision on what I'd like to build. And if I do build one from scratch, I'll have the 7A to compare it to. 

[JakeJ]

I think you've made a smart decision going with the SAS.

While Melos made some great sounding gear there is no support, no schematics exist, and Mark Porzilli is never going to resurrect the brand, despite what other AC members and Melos owners might wish for.  Unless you already know a tech that is intimately familiar with the original Melos circuits then I would stay away from that brand.  Having owned a 333 I am speaking from direct experience.  'Nuff said.

And now for something completely different...I have my circle set up to notify me whenever a new topic is started and I got no notification of this new thread which is why my response is late.  I hope the new software JohnR is about to implement works better.

[DaveC113]

I think you've made a smart decision going with the SAS.

While Melos made some great sounding gear there is no support, no schematics exist, and Mark Porzilli is never going to resurrect the brand, despite what other AC members and Melos owners might wish for.  Unless you already know a tech that is intimately familiar with the original Melos circuits then I would stay away from that brand.  Having owned a 333 I am speaking from direct experience.  'Nuff said.

And now for something completely different...I have my circle set up to notify me whenever a new topic is started and I got no notification of this new thread which is why my response is late.  I hope the new software JohnR is about to implement works better.

Yeah, I know from experience that old tube gear may need repairs, lol. With the parent company gone it's certainly a crapshoot. Melos stuff is overpriced on the used market because of it's following, or maybe it is that good, IDK. Probably never will.

Now Steve at SAS is saying he's going to stop selling the 7A after exchanging several emails about his kit. What a PITA!!!  He claims the boards and parts he has for the 7A are old and it wouldn't be fair to sell them as a new kit. OK, whatever... waste of time... 

So now I think I will follow some advise I got from a few members of diyaudio and build a 6SN7 Aikido from the glassware all-in-one board.

[jackman]

Yeah, I know from experience that old tube gear may need repairs, lol. With the parent company gone it's certainly a crapshoot. Melos stuff is overpriced on the used market because of it's following, or maybe it is that good, IDK. Probably never will.

Now Steve at SAS is saying he's going to stop selling the 7A after exchanging several emails about his kit. What a PITA!!!  He claims the boards and parts he has for the 7A are old and it wouldn't be fair to sell them as a new kit. OK, whatever... waste of time... 

So now I think I will follow some advise I got from a few members of diyaudio and build a 6SN7 Aikido from the glassware all-in-one board.

Hey, I'm sorry the 7A is no longer available.  It was a great little preamp.  Good luck.

[JakeJ]

Yeah, I know from experience that old tube gear may need repairs, lol. With the parent company gone it's certainly a crapshoot. Melos stuff is overpriced on the used market because of it's following, or maybe it is that good, IDK. Probably never will.

Now Steve at SAS is saying he's going to stop selling the 7A after exchanging several emails about his kit. What a PITA!!!  He claims the boards and parts he has for the 7A are old and it wouldn't be fair to sell them as a new kit. OK, whatever... waste of time... 

So now I think I will follow some advise I got from a few members of diyaudio and build a 6SN7 Aikido from the glassware all-in-one board.

FWIW, my VAC CPA-1 absolutely smoked the MA-333 sonically.  Frankly I feel the long defunct Melos gear is just another audio cult.

Re: the SAS 7A.  Agreed that pulling the 7A from the line up sucks!  From $495 to $1595 is a huge jump for those on a budget.  Basically SAS just excluded an entire group of people from their customer base.  However, supporting a kit and dealing with the DIY crowd can take a toll on a one-man show like SAS so I can see that side of the coin.

RE: the Aikido offers the builder oodles of options, IIRC.  To and including building it into a wooden case/chassis, something I have been curious about for some time.

Good luck with the build and I hope you will document the build and keep us in the loop.  You can put the blog here as a thread, put it in the Lab, or link us to it over at DIYAudio.

Best,
Jake 

[bunky]

Hey Dave,in the AC trading post there is a guy selling a DIY HI FI Supply Basie + Akido linestage with remote control for $700.00 bucks.i have a really good feeling about this preamp.my first tube preamp was a Anthem Pre 1L and it sounded pretty good 

[JakeJ]

Very, very intriguing unit!  I would be extremely tempted to give this a whirl myself had I the disposable income available.
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=105143.msg1075393#msg1075393

[DaveC113]

Bunky, IMO the Aikido isn't worth that much money to me since I can build one myself... that one is also on Audiogon and has been for a while now. I like the remote control setup, but for that budget I could buy a lot of really high end boutique parts for an Aikido build. Also, most people seem to prefer the Octal Aikido over the 9 pin, and 6SN7s are relatively cheap for good NOS stock. I'm thinking 6BX7 input and 6SN7 outputs to get me ~12 dB gain, which would be perfect.

[JakeJ]

DaveC113,

Check out this thread concerning 6SN7 subs.

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=106191.0

The 6BX7 is a very different animal so you'll need to do some redesign to accommodate it.  Just a heads up.

[DaveC113]

DaveC113,

Check out this thread concerning 6SN7 subs.

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=106191.0

The 6BX7 is a very different animal so you'll need to do some redesign to accommodate it.  Just a heads up.

Yeah, the 6bx7 is out of the running, I think I'll just use the 6sn7. I'll have a bit more gain than needed, but it's still 8 dB less than the pre1.

I actually found that thread yesterday, thanks! The Russian 6N8S looks like a great deal, but from what I found you want the older tubes built at the Foton plant in Tashkent. They are $5 each instead of $2 for the later production tubes, but in this case paying 2.5 times as much for tubes isn't a big deal 

I found these on ebay:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/200718957251?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

The top of the line Russian 6N8S are these guys (link below), but big $$$...  I have read the older black base Foton tubes are constructed similarly to the $$$ metal base tubes, not that I'm going to spend $280 on tubes for my Aikido anyway. It is tempting since I've heard several opinions that say these are the best 6SN7 type out of anything, and they don't cost nearly as much as some of the older RCAs that are going for crazy money.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/261012109062?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649


 

[wilsynet]

I liked the Sophia Electric 6SN7 tubes in the Modwright LS-100 that I had awhile ago.

[DaveC113]

I ordered the Aikido all-in-one octal PCB, the Russian 6H8Cs and Sylvania 6SN7GTBs.

I also ordered the A3 Attenuator, which combines ladder and series attenuators:

http://glass-ware.stores.yahoo.net/netcjstat.html

Now I'm working on the BOM while waiting for the PCBs... unfortunately I can't find the user guides for these PCBs online, only for the A4 attenuator and the 9-pin Aikido PCB, and I'm not going to assume they are the same...

Once I get the PCBs in and the BOM done I'll start a new thread on the Aikido build.

Besides the 2 sets of tubes, I already selected the output coupling caps... I found REL AudioCap Copper Foil PCU for a 50% discount at partsconnexion (which means they are the same price as most high end audio caps, lol). My Simple SE uses Mundorf Silver and Oil, but I wanted a different coupling cap in the preamp.

Exotica Copper Foil Polypropylene Film PCU
This series, with copper foil, has low distortion and provides superbly clean, clear performance. It is especially suitable for ultra-high frequencies, bringing a remarkable clarity in this sonic range. Special manufacturing techniques are employed to insure that copper will remain reliable and provide high performance over time. The gold-plated OFHC lead wires provide long-term reliability, superior to silver wires owing to gold's non-oxidizing properties; the matching of copper foil with copper leads ensures long-term high performance.

The RELS are .47 uF which comes out to a 4.5 Hz corner freq with my amp (~85k input impedence), I know this isn't a large enough capacitor for amps with lower input impedences, but I'm going to install a 2nd subwoofer output, which will go through a much less expensive 2 uF coupling cap.

I'm looking at the Amtrans CF resistors for critical positions like Gridstopper and Anode load and Cathode. Wirewound where I can in the PS, and some sort of metal film for the rest.

http://www.partsconnexion.com/resistors_amtrans_amrg_three-quarter_watt.html

I'm not sure about the 42 resistors I need for the A3 attenuator, they can't be $5/ea like the Amtrans, but I do want a very good resistor here...

I plan to bypass all the PS electrolytics with film caps, I have a half dozen russian ft-3 teflon 1 uF caps lying around...   

[DaveC113]

I started a new thread on the Aikido build, please check it out and let me know if you have any comments or suggestions:

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=106870.new#new

[Karzats]

Phono section just went out. Have a great repair facility but they request a schematic. Any leads on availability of a schematic? Had this preamp completely modified with premium wire and premium part and it is heaven. Many, Many thanks.