[ohenry]

Hey Vinnie,
Have you considered modding the boards and supplying them with leads for us that are too blind for micro work???

Just a thought, Henry

[Vinnie R.]

Hey Vinnie,
Have you considered modding the boards and supplying them with leads for us that are too blind for micro work???

Just a thought, Henry

Henry,

The modded boards will only come with the full package.  

Regards,

Vinnie

[Songforyou]

I'm just breaking in a Sonic Impact and getting used to the sound.  I'm very interested in the Clari-T, but would like the battery to be user replaceable.  Live north of the border and shipping things back and forth would be a pain.  I've touched on this subject before, but now seems a good time for a reminder.

Like the volume control too.

cheers

[Vinnie R.]

I'm just breaking in a Sonic Impact and getting used to the sound.  I'm very interested in the Clari-T, but would like the battery to be user replaceable.  Live north of the border and shipping things back and forth would be a pain.  I've touched on this subject before, but now seems a good time for a reminder.

Like the volume control too.

cheers

Hi Song,

Thanks for bringing this up.

I am planning to offer a 1 year warranty (parts and labor) for the Clari-T-Amp, and during this time the unit is NOT allowed to be opened.  

If proper charge habits are used, the battery will easily last more than 1 year.  After the warranty is over, one can easily change the battery by removing the top cover (4 screws) and unplugging the battery, and plugging in a new one.  It is very straightforward to do, and the battery is not expensive.

There should be no reason to replace the battery within the first year of use, and the warranty will cover it during this time.  After that, one can handle the replacement of the battery if it is even needed.  

   Remember, SLA batteries are kind of like car batteries.  They do not like to be deep discharged, and are really easy to maintain and last a long time as long as they are not abused.  They also have low internal resistance and can provide high current peaks very well.  

Regards,

Vinnie

[audiojerry]

It's great to see the enthusiasm and congrats on the planned launch of your new business. I think AudioCircle has been instrumental in fostering these kinds of opportunities for enthusiasts to acquire unique kinds of products and to launch unique kinds of businesses.

Will you be offering a trial period and return policy?

[Vinnie R.]

It's great to see the enthusiasm and congrats on the planned launch of your new business. I think AudioCircle has been instrumental in fostering these kinds of opportunities for enthusiasts to acquire unique kinds of products and to launch unique kinds of businesses.

Will you be offering a trial period and return policy?

AJ,

Yes, AudioCircle and its members have definitely been a great help     I'm really looking forward to getting things rolling this year  

Please see http://www.geocities.com/vinnie822/cta_ordering.html
regarding the return policy.

Thanks,

Vinnie

[grkn]

Just a little sidetrack question, what soundcard would be better for this amp. The Terratec DMX 6fire (wich I now have) or the EMU 0404 that has proper line-out?

Right now I'm sending the signal from the dmx at 0db, I wonder if that's a bit too high..
Anyhoo, wich soundcard would suit the t-amp and 88db 8ohm speakers best?

[Vinnie R.]

Just a little sidetrack question, what soundcard would be better for this amp. The Terratec DMX 6fire (wich I now have) or the EMU 0404 that has proper line-out?

Right now I'm sending the signal from the dmx at 0db, I wonder if that's a bit too high..
Anyhoo, wich soundcard would suit the t-amp and 88db 8ohm speakers best?

grkn,

What is the output level of your dmx soundcard in volts?  If it is around 2Vrms, it should be fine.  If it is more, it will probably work as well, but the volume will get louder with less turning of the volume control position.  It is hard to say without knowing the output voltage...

-Vinnie

[grkn]

Sorry, have no clue. But the EMU 0404 is said to have better sound anyways. So that would obviously? be the better choice?

[Vinnie R.]

Sorry, have no clue. But the EMU 0404 is said to have better sound anyways. So that would obviously? be the better choice?

Yes, because it has a line output, and assuming it really does sound better...to your ears.

[MttBsh]

I've been enjoying the little Clari-T for over a month now, have probably 150 hours on it, and continue to be amazed by its resolution, detail and dynamics. As it has broken in it now sounds best, as others have noted, with my preamp out of the way, fed straight from my Scott-Nixon Tubedac plus. That means my volume is limted, but at full volume the amp is as loud as I will ever listen anyway.

My Carver Pro ZR1000 tripath based digital amp had such great sound, but the Clari-T takes these strengths to a whole new level.  

Vinnie: A quick question regarding the best practice for battery life...  is it best to recharge after EVERY listening session, no matter how short, or kind of keep track of how many hours listening since the last charge, and then recharge after 5 or 6 hours of use? I tend to recharge even if I only listen for a half-hour as I don't want to depend on my totally unreliable memory. Some days that might mean 2 or 3 charges - will that shorten my battery life?

Thanks for any direction, and for designing such a great amp!

Matt

[Vinnie R.]

Vinnie: A quick question regarding the best practice for battery life... is it best to recharge after EVERY listening session, no matter how short, or kind of keep track of how many hours listening since the last charge, and then recharge after 5 or 6 hours of use? I tend to recharge even if I only listen for a half-hour as I don't want to depend on my totally unreliable memory. Some days that might mean 2 or 3 charges - will that shorten my battery life?

Thanks for any direction, and for designing such a great amp!

Hi Matt,

Nice to hear from you.  I am happy to read that you are loving your broken-in Clari-T-Amp!    

Regarding battery charging, just turn the unit off (Charge) every time after listening.  You can do this all you want (a few times a day is okay).  The SLA battery prefers that you do this instead of draining down your battery.  This is why I recommend that you don't listen longer than 6 hours between charges.  It most likely will play longer than 6 hours, but I want your battery to last a long time so it is best not to discharge too far beyond 6 hours.  

Thanks for reporting you impressions after the break-in time!

-Vinnie

[RonD2]

Vinnie,

I posted my impressions of the Clari-T in the SI thread but it belongs here as well.

I think there is a dramatic improvement in sound with break-in.  And, as you know, I thought it sounded excellent out of the box.  See the other thread for the details.

My routine for battery charging is pretty simple and painless.  Usually after about two hours of listening, I'll take a 5-10 min break.  I turn the amp off and invariably, the T will be fully charged by the time I am back.  I do this once and don't even think about the battery for the rest of the evening.

It's a fabulous little amp for the right speakers!

Ron

[JeffB]

When the amp is not being used do you always leave the charger in the wall socket.  I know on my electric razor and cell phone the companies warn not to charge the batteries for too long.  I believe there is risk of explosion.  Note: I know nothing about batteries.

[JeffB]

Is there something special about the digital amps that allows for battery power?  I have not heard of battery powered tubes or SS for home audio.  Of course there are plenty of car audio battery powered SS amps.

Speaking of car audio.  A big trend in car audio is to use large (1,000,000) uF capacitors between the battery and the amplifier.  This ensures enough power for the peaks, and the capacitors supply current much faster than a battery.  Or so this is what I here.  I am not speaking from a position of true knowledge here.  Would the design of the Clari-T benefit from a stiffening capacitor?

Any thoughts on whether the Clari-T could handle a 2 ohm load like the Parker 98s(http://www.parkeraudio.net/prod03.htm)?

Is the input to the Clari-T an analog input?  Does the Tripath board contain an analog to digital converter?

I found this article on the Tripath web site:
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=121527&p=irol-newsArticle&t=Regular&id=660345&
Basically, Panasonic has a new car head unit featuring Tripath chips.  100Wx4 @ 4 ohms without the need for a DAC.
Any possibility of running something like this off a rechargable SLA battery?

[Vinnie R.]

When the amp is not being used do you always leave the charger in the wall socket.  I know on my electric razor and cell phone the companies warn not to charge the batteries for too long.  I believe there is risk of explosion.  Note: I know nothing about batteries.

Jeff,

There is absolutely nothing wrong with leaving the charger plugged into the wall socket.  This is good for the SLA, as the automatic charger that I provide "maintains" the full battery charge when the charger is plugged in.  

Electric razors and cell phones do not use SLA batteries, so their situation is different.

Regards,

Vinnie

[Vinnie R.]

Is there something special about the digital amps that allows for battery power? I have not heard of battery powered tubes or SS for home audio. Of course there are plenty of car audio battery powered SS amps.

Speaking of car audio. A big trend in car audio is to use large (1,000,000) uF capacitors between the battery and the amplifier. This ensures enough power for the peaks, and the capacitors supply current much faster than a battery. Or so this is what I here. I am not speaking from a position of true knowledge here. Would the design of the Clari-T benefit from a stiffening capacitor?

Any thoughts on whether the Clari-T could handle a 2 ohm load like the Parker 98s(http://www.parkeraudio.net/prod03.htm)?

Is the input to the Clari-T an analog input? Does the Tripath board contain an analog to digital converter?

I found this article on the Tripath web site:
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=121527&p=irol-newsArticle&am ...
Basically, Panasonic has a new car head unit featuring Tripath chips. 100Wx4 @ 4 ohms without the need for a DAC.
Any possibility of running something like this off a rechargable SLA battery?...

Jeff,

Here are answers to your questions:

The Tripath digital amp can run off battery because it is much more power efficient than a conventional Class A or Class AB amp, and is a low power design (10W into 4 ohms).  

Car audio bass nuts make use of a big ass 1 Farad cap mainly for the  >1000W bass nuts out there that like others to hear BOOM BOOM BOOM from 2 miles away, not real music    This simply does not apply for the Clari-T-Amp.  

The Clari-T-Amp is rated to handle 4 ohm nominal loads.  My guess is that 2 ohms will work until you reach a certain volume that will cause the chip to overheat and go into thermal shutdown.  I don't recommend 2 ohm speakers with it  

The input to the Clari-T-Amp is analog (via RCA jacks).  The output of the Tripath chip is actually digital PWM info, but there is a simple LC filter used before the speaker binding posts that extracts the analog information.  Class T (Tripath) is similar to Class D, but with different processing in the front end that achieves much less distortion.  You can learn more about Class T on Tripath's website.

The Panasonic car amp take the 12V car battery and uses a switching power supply to create a higher voltage rail required to optain 100W x 4 of power.  While you get more power, the sound quality is generally not nearly as good.  I'm sure if you have a large enough SLA battery, you can run this amp off of it.  A car battery is similar to an SLA battery.  If you want more power, you're better off buying a home audio digital receiver that has more power.  

The Clari-T-Amp is not about raw power.  It is about a shift from conventional high-power amps paired with low-efficiency speakers to a lower powered amp paired with higher efficiency speakers.  I think those people who are trying this method are finding new enjoyment in this audio hobby.  

-Vinnie

[Vinnie R.]

Vinnie,

I posted my impressions of the Clari-T in the SI thread but it belongs here as well.

I think there is a dramatic improvement in sound with break-in. And, as you know, I thought it sounded excellent out of the box. See the other thread for the details.

My routine for battery charging is pretty simple and painless. Usually after about two hours of listening, I'll take a 5-10 min break. I turn the amp off and invariably, the T will be fully charged by the time I am back. I do this once and don't even think about the battery for the rest of the evening.

It's a fabulous little amp for the right speakers!

Ron...

Ron,

Thank you for your feedback on your Clari-T-Amp.  I'm glad you are enjoying it much with your Lowthers!  Yes it does get much better after 100 hours of break-in, and ys, the battery charging is very simple.  I think it is more simple than some people realize    

-Vinnie

[JeffB]

Thanks much Vinnie for the answers to my questions.

[JeffB]

I am really interested in the clari-T amp, but I am not sure it has enough power for me.  One thing I am curious is about is the Peak Power output.  I am not sure if I am asking this correctly, but amps often have a nominal and peak power rating.  If 6W @ 8 ohms is nominal, what is the Peak.  If I were to buy the Omega Grande 8s @ 96 db @ 8 ohms sensitivity what sort of db can I expect 10 feet away.  Will I lose dynamics at loud volume levels due to the Peaks.

Are there any other fairly compact speakers that are more efficient than the Grande 8s that might work well with this amp?

I am thinking I want a target volume of 105 db C weighted average.
I am thinking this little amp will make 105 db at 1 meter with the Omegas.  I don't know how much less at 10 ft away.  But with it maxed out like this, I don't know how well it will handle the Peaks and whether the distortion goes way up.

I might be able to live with a little less, but I want to know what I'll be giving up.