Sonic Impact Class T $39 amplifier review at 6moons

Dmason · « **Reply #100 on:** 10 Jan 2005, 03:53 am »

Depends on the sensitivity of your speakers, and whether you are listening to Mozart Clarinet Concertos, or Sweet Leaf by Black Sabbath.

Mine can listen to several albums, a movie, some more music, switch it off and go to bed. Is that enough?

Maybe it is the 3Ah I can't remember. Either way, just get the battery, they are about $12.

TheChairGuy · « **Reply #101 on:** 10 Jan 2005, 03:54 am »

I have the 7 aH one.....only $9.95 (remarkable, I think, for that much of a slab). Buy the 500, or faster 1 aH charger for it from www.BatteryMart.com. My SI lasts over 60 hours on 90db Vandersteen 1c's at moderate volumes.

I never tried a regulated AC power supply, but the difference in wall wart, and 8 AA's with the SLA is quite substantial. My SI has no mods and sounds waaaay better than it oughta'....mostly because of the 7 aH SLA battery. The eeeery silence of DC is beautiful.

1.3 aH seems to small, but I have been told it's plenty by Vinnie. Wayne / Bolder says something different here in his concoction involving the same Tripath board as the SI:

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=15478&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=10

It'll cost you a little more in shipping, but it's worth springing for a bigger-than-1.3 aH SLA....whichever modder-gent is right on this subject.

tianguis · « **Reply #102 on:** 10 Jan 2005, 03:59 am »

Nelson:
Vinnie uses the 1.3 ah SLA in the Clari-T. He says it's good for at least 6 hours, depending on speaker efficiency and listening level. It'll still work longer, but SLA's don't like deep discharge cycles. With my speaks (about 96 db/w/m) at my listening level, I ran a 7 ah SLA to the point where it wouldn't output sound: it didn't lose volume, it just stopped (not recommended, it was a "spearmint"). That took about 40 hours. The output of the battery at that point was 7.1 v.

Regards,
Larry Welsh

ellogan · « **Reply #103 on:** 10 Jan 2005, 04:08 am »

I am using a 12V 7 Ah SLA battery with my SI amp and I am still in disbelief on the increase in sound quality from the wall wart and AA batteries (I have about 15hrs on it and still going strong). I almost feel guilty of getting such good sound for so little money. And to think I had almost given up on the little SI. I am using the SI with a Sony DVP-S9000ES (a nearly 30 lb gem I got on Audiogon for under $400), a Space Tech QA-112 tube pre (a superb pre I also got on Audiogon for less than half its normal selling price), and a pair of KRK ST-6 passive monitors (great sound for $200/pr, better to my ears that other higher priced and much better known speakers I have had. KRK Rokits also sound great, but the ST-6 are a bit better to my ears).

corwin99 · « **Reply #104 on:** 10 Jan 2005, 05:08 am »

I'm still reluctant to go with an SLA battery... mainly because i am lazy about charging and the hassles that come along with it. I installed a 1000uF cap in place of the stock one and hooked up a 0.01uF cap as a bypass cap and it sounds WAYYYYY better... i'm actually quite amazed. this thing is now starting to sound impressive... maybe i will try and wire one of my stepped resistor attenuators in here.

I guess i should really try the SLA thing just to see what it is capable of. I'll look for a Canadian supplier probably.. if anyone knows one please share!

Dmason · « **Reply #105 on:** 10 Jan 2005, 06:36 am »

Corwin,

If you're going to the trouble of redoing SM stuff like storage caps, then you OWE it to yourself to check out clean battery power. This is one of the few opportunities one has to easily

implement it. Rethink.... It will offer the biggest, Clydesdale sized 5 watts in amplifierdom. No shit, -it is totally killer on battery juice,and easily the best Tripath sonic out there, including the Bel Canto eVo2, in my opinion. Others have described the sonic and dynamics as "addictive" and I agree.

Future speaker projects, like my oncoming Sigma Horns, are to be 'N Sync with the ClariT. The dough you save on amplifier you can blow on things like Birch plywood and exotic wide range drivers.

Vinnie R. · « **Reply #106 on:** 10 Jan 2005, 02:00 pm »

Quote from: corwin99

I'm still reluctant to go with an SLA battery... mainly because i am lazy about charging and the hassles that come along with it. I installed a 1000uF cap in place of the stock one and hooked up a 0.01uF cap as a bypass cap and it sounds WAYYYYY better... i'm actually quite amazed. this thing is now starting to sound impressive... maybe i will try and wire one of my stepped resistor attenuators in here.

I guess i should really try the SLA thing just to see what it is capable of. I'll look for a Canadian supplier probably.. if anyone knows one please share!

Corwin,

I just checked out your sonocable webpage. The SonoSilence One looks great, along with your cables. Nice!

-Vinnie

corwin99 · « **Reply #107 on:** 10 Jan 2005, 11:40 pm »

Quote from: Vinnie R.

Corwin,

I just checked out your sonocable webpage. The SonoSilence One looks great, along with your cables. Nice!

-Vinnie

Thanks Vinnie! I've been working on it a while.. but its still in the works and waiting on a few things but I will be promoting my products a little more heavily soon.

Your Amp looks very good too!

Nelson

gonefishin · « **Reply #108 on:** 11 Jan 2005, 05:32 am »

Hi guys,

Does anyone know a source that has these Sonic Impact amps in stock?

thanks,
dan

Feisal K · « **Reply #109 on:** 11 Jan 2005, 05:38 am »

Quote from: gonefishin

Hi guys,

Does anyone know a source that has these Sonic Impact amps in stock?

thanks,
dan

Dan,

we ordered 10 units from eCost a couple of weeks ago ($19.45)

corwin99 · « **Reply #110 on:** 11 Jan 2005, 07:31 am »

holy crap.. i just did the Canadian Checkout for this place... and 4 of these amps is like just under $100CAD, but then after shipping ($102.30) and Tax ($17.24) the total works out to $263.73!!! Sometimes i just love living in Canada....

RichterDi · « **Reply #111 on:** 11 Jan 2005, 07:40 am »

http://www.thinkgeek.com

They delivered international in 5 days.

Regards, Reiner

Feisal K · « **Reply #112 on:** 11 Jan 2005, 07:44 am »

Quote from: corwin99

holy crap.. i just did the Canadian Checkout for this place... and 4 of these amps is like just under $100CAD, but then after shipping ($102.30) and Tax ($17.24) the total works out to $263.73!!! Sometimes i just love living in Canada....

Nelson.. is that thru borderfree?

http://www.borderfree.com/consumers/browse.jsp?cat=2

I don't really know how or have shopped via Borderfree, but I gathered they provide a solution for Canadians to shop US online merchants

corwin99 · « **Reply #113 on:** 11 Jan 2005, 03:08 pm »

Quote from: Feisal K

Nelson.. is that thru borderfree?

http://www.borderfree.com/consumers/browse.jsp?cat=2

I don't really know how or have shopped via Borderfree, but I gathered they provide a solution for Canadians to shop US online merchants

Yeah.. that was through borderfree. I've never used the service myself either, but i remember when they came out about 2-3 years ago.. and i seem to recall the prices were pretty steep back then as well.

Thinkgeek is probably the better option, i've heard good things about them, however they are out of stock.

Nelson

mcgsxr · « **Reply #114 on:** 11 Jan 2005, 07:58 pm »

re: borderfree - facilitate Canadian customers buying from US retailers Yes - Cheaply? Not so much...

tianguis · « **Reply #115 on:** 11 Jan 2005, 10:20 pm »

Hi, all:
I just completed my second modded version of the T-Amp. This one is housed in a sleek plastic case from RS and features their boutique RCA's and real tin binding posts. The switch is a NOS SPST from my stash of old parts, which I bought new in 1956! The power jack is one of RS's stylish shiny chromium jobs, fed by a 7 ah SLA. Caps are Panny low ESR 220 and 110 uf paralleled with a Nichicon 1000 uf. Internal signal wiring is Discovery Cable tonearm wire (which I use in my Tri-Planar arm - great stuff). Pot is an Alps Blue Velvet 50 k., operated by a high-tech RS knob.
I used a spanking brandy-new T-Amp for this one and it's got about 30 minutes on it now. How does it sound? Better than my modded Panny XR-50: faster, better dynamics, better clarity, better bass control, quieter (!) on my ~96 db/w/m Lowthers, using Goertz MI2. Compared to the first one I modded, it doesn't: waaaay better. The internal wire, RCA's and binding posts make a HUGE improvement.
There's still some harshness on top, but smoothness will come with some break-in. I think it's time to get serious and build a real one. BTW, I recommended the T-Amp to a friend who's a manufacturer of spendy front-end analog components. He was so impressed with the stock T-Amp (hooked up with magnet wire to his Eminence horns) that he cut it up the first night to start modding it. His reference amps are modded Welborne 2A3 Moondogs.

Regards,
Larry Welsh

gonefishin · « **Reply #116 on:** 12 Jan 2005, 01:18 am »

Hi guys,

I just ordered two of them from ecost (thanks Feisal). I've got a +/-36V battery supply (still half in pieces) for another project...but it would be easy enough to give me a secondary output for the T-Amp. Is this thing a straight 12Volt (1 batt) or +/- 12 volt(two batt)?

thanks

dan

Vinnie R. · « **Reply #117 on:** 12 Jan 2005, 02:33 am »

Quote from: gonefishin

Hi guys,

I just ordered two of them from ecost (thanks Feisal). I've got a +/-36V battery supply (still half in pieces) for another project...but it would be easy enough to give me a secondary output for the T-Amp. Is this thing a straight 12Volt (1 batt) or +/- 12 volt(two batt)?

thanks

dan

Dan,

You just need one 12V battery.

Just be careful not to reverse the polarity of the battery. If you do, you blow the chip

-Vinnie

lonewolfny42 · « **Reply #118 on:** 12 Jan 2005, 02:38 am »

Quote from: tianguis

Hi, all:
I just completed my second modded version of the T-Amp. This one is housed in a sleek plastic case from RS and features their boutique RCA's and real tin binding posts. The switch is a NOS SPST from my stash of old parts, which I bought new in 1956! The power jack is one of RS's stylish shiny chromium jobs, fed by a 7 ah SLA. Caps are Panny low ESR 220 and 110 uf paralleled with a Nichicon 1000 uf. Internal signal wiring is Discovery Cable tonearm wire (which I use in my Tri-Planar arm - g ...

Larry,

gonefishin · « **Reply #119 on:** 12 Jan 2005, 02:07 pm »

Thanks Vinnie! I'll just add a 12volt output to the +/-36vdc power supply I've already got.

Works out good

thanks,
dan