"All Battery" modded TEAC is here

GuyL · « **on:** 6 Apr 2005, 07:35 pm »

I've received my modded TEAC a couple of days ago and let it settle in my system.

What can I say - This thing is AWESOME. I thought that the unmodded TEAC was sweet. This one is much sweeter and smoother and the bass , I just can't believe the quality of the bass. It really blows my mind.

This amp has zero background noise and as smooth as it is, it still manages to capture every bit of detail in each and every recording.

The most apparent thing about the amp is how well balanced it is. Every note reaches the ear in the same manner and nothing is too forward or laid back.

To some, it might sound weired to spend $449 on a $100 amplifier but to me it was one of the best audio inverstments that I've made in this long term hobby of mine.

ludavico · « **Reply #1 on:** 7 Apr 2005, 01:51 pm »

Thanx for the post. I, like a few others, are anxious to get some feedback on the new vino from Mr. V.

After getting the A-L700P the correlation between cost and sound went out the window. I know some will probably disagree, but $450 is still in the noise band for a high-fidelity amp. $100 for the stock amp is insane.

A Naim fan(-atic) friend of mine just got a TEAC along with a RAM-modded Toshiba DVD and he was floored how good the sound was fresh out of the box. His Naim stuff, which has now been sold off, easily cost 10x more. There is bad craziness with his new stuff.

I have never experienced battery-powered equipment, do you think recharging will be much of an hassle over time?

John

skrivis · « **Reply #2 on:** 7 Apr 2005, 02:19 pm »

Quote from: ludavico

Thanx for the post. I, like a few others, are anxious to get some feedback on the new vino from Mr. V.

After getting the A-L700P the correlation between cost and sound went out the window. I know some will probably disagree, but $450 is still in the noise band for a high-fidelity amp. $100 for the stock amp is insane.

I have never experienced battery-powered equipment, do you think recharging will be much of an hassle over time?

John

No more than any other item with rechargable batteries, and probably less hassle than something like a cell phone.

Lead acid cells tend to prefer being kept topped up, so you might be best off charging as often as possible. They tend to not like deep discharging, so don't run it until it stops. (They're different than NiCd or NiMH batteries in these respects.)

But you should ask the maker since he selected the battery and knows the specs.

GuyL · « **Reply #3 on:** 7 Apr 2005, 02:21 pm »

Recharging is not a hassle at all.

The charger is always plugged in. When the Teac is ON, it is just running off of the batteries. When the Teac is OFF, the batteries are charging. I followed Vinnies recommendaion and charge the unit every time I finish listening. Even if I just listened for 5 mintues. They are Lead Acid batteries (like a car battery, but smaller), so it's possible to charge them as much as you want.

The rest of my system is:

TEAC A-L700P Tripath amp "all battery" (modified by Vinnie Rossi)
Luxman MQ-80 (Pushpull 6336 tube)
Arthur Loesch full function preamp (built by John Wiesner)
Pyramid Sequerra Met 7 + HF-1 ribbon tweeters
Technics SP10 MK2 turntable, Dynavector DV505 tonearm, Ortofon Jubilee cartridge
Rotel RCD-990 CD player/transport
Manley Refernce tube DAC
Toshiba SD-9200 DVD-A
Kenwood KT-600T Tuner

Toys:
Interelectronics Coronation monoblocks (PP KT66's) 2 pairs
Altec Lansing "Big Red" with Mastering Lab crossovers and 604E2 drivers, or Altec 604-8K in same cabinet/Sound Anchor Stands.
Epos ES14 speakers.

mcgsxr · « **Reply #4 on:** 7 Apr 2005, 06:49 pm »

Interesting little toy you have, that battery Teac! I have been interested to hear what someone thought about that version of the amp, since I have heard 3 versions so far, and am always pleased to know how other things work out.

Sounds like you are sorted out well, and I know that amp can do wonderful things under the right conditions.

Congrats on your cool amp!

GuyL · « **Reply #5 on:** 8 Apr 2005, 06:09 pm »

Mark,

Before the "Battery mod", I've sent my TEAC to Vinnie for the power supply and Auricap mod.
I thought the the PS and Auricap mod really improved the sound of the stock TEAC adding more clarity and better definition and control in the bass and as good as it was, I still thought that it could be bettered.

The Battery mod moves this little amp into a different league and it's now one of the most rewarding amplifiers I've had in my system.

Vinnie R. · « **Reply #6 on:** 20 Apr 2005, 02:00 am »

All,

I posted some pics of the Red Wine Teac here:

http://www.redwineaudio.com/Teac_AL700P_mods.html

I have a couple more on the way to be modded!

I plan to make updates to the webpage within the next few days, so please check back often

Thanks for all your continued support!

Jay S · « **Reply #7 on:** 20 Apr 2005, 06:53 am »

Interesting stuff. What speakers are you guys using with this amp? My nOrh 9s are 2 ways and while the impedance is not very low, the sensitivity is just 86 db/watt. My room is about 23 x 12 and I like to have the ability to play loud.

My current digital amp has 200+ watts into 8 ohms but its more power than I truly need.

I have noticed that digital amps (if mine is an indication) are sensitive to power quality. Mine took a big jump forward in sound when I plugged it into my balanced power supply.

mcgsxr · « **Reply #8 on:** 20 Apr 2005, 03:28 pm »

Hello Jay - I have run 86Db Totem Rokks with the Teac and had no volume concerns at all.

I would think it would be fine for your use, and I am not aware of any change in power delivery, when battery powered, if that is your intention.

Jay S · « **Reply #9 on:** 21 Apr 2005, 01:28 am »

Thanks for the info. I've never had a 30wpc channel amp. I've had an 8 wpc tube amp, a 100 wpc SS, and the 200+ wpc digital.

The point I was making was that digital amps are sensitive to the quality of the power they get... which leads me to believe that a properly done battery power supply (with sufficient caps to deliver instant current) would sound quite nice.

nodiak · « **Reply #10 on:** 24 Apr 2005, 07:58 pm »

GuyL, I have a Decware Zen C set amp and love it for it's tone and "atmosphere". But it lacks the power I need, unfortunately. Do you have any experience with tube amps to compare the modded Teac to ? I can tell it will have plenty of power, and I like the longer playback before recharging.
Do you consider it to have good "tone", that is instruments sound like themselves. A little warmth in the midrange wouldn't hurt.
Unfortunately I couldn't find any $99 ones anywhere, $198 was the best price, could still be worth it.
Don

Wind Chaser · « **Reply #11 on:** 25 Apr 2005, 02:18 am »

nodiak,

I used to have a Zen C; it's a very fine amp. Power wasn't a problem for me as I usually don't listen too loud and my speakers were 92-93 sensitive. The Clari-T feels like a muscle amp by comparison. Going from 1.8 watts to 6 watts is quite a jump. I know the Teac has more power, but how much power do you really need? I cannot state for a fact if the Clari-T sounds better than the Teac, or even in what way they are different. But I do know that I am much more impressed by the musicality, the incredible transparency and tone of the Clari-T over a tweaked out Decware Zen C. AND BY THIS I DO NOT MEAN IN ANY REGARD THAT THE ZEN IS A BAD AMP. No, it's a mighty giant killer at a very affordable price! It has quite a dedicated cult like following, but it's definitely not what you'd call audio jewelry.

The Clari-T is entirely different. Not holographic like the Zen which borders on surreal, but more believable. I use to be an 3-D imaging freak and that was my highest priority - until I realized that there was a whole lot more texture hidden in the music, held back by the amp. The clarity of Clari-T is awesome! It's something you have to experience. If you hear the human voice revealed by this amp, you'll immediately know what I'm talking about. This amp unravels complicated music unlike any other amp I have ever heard regardless of cost or design. I seriously doubt you'd be anything less than very impressed with a Clari-T over your existing amp. 6 watts might not sound like a whole lot of power, but it's far more than what you're making do with now.

nodiak · « **Reply #12 on:** 25 Apr 2005, 03:19 am »

Wind Chaser,
I expect the ClariT has enough power for my speakers too, that's not a concern. What makes me think the Teac would be better for me is my listening habits. I like to turn my system on when I get up so it's ready whenever I am. Then I turn it off before bed. So the teacs 12 hours between charges is the deciding factor for me. I know it could burn my ears off. My speakers are 92db 5 ohm Decware radials, I love these enough to build a system around them instead of starting at the source end of the chain.
But I'm with you that the ClariT is the one to compare the Teac to. I should start a thread on comparing them sonically. I've never heard a digital amp, and just got my first tube amp 4 months ago. I can't justify spending much more than the $500 Zen. So now I'm looking at the only amps I hear about that are possibly as good sonically as the Zen and in my price range.
Good to hear your experienced opinion, makes me think it could be a good idea to try a ClariT with the return policy. I should talk to Vinnie about the charging issue with my daily pattern in using my system.
Don

Dmason · « **Reply #13 on:** 25 Apr 2005, 03:26 am »

Maybe I can help.

Left "ON," the Tripath chip is only switching away, not amplifying anything, and as such draws very little power. It ~could be left on. The 12 hour thing is about a playing cycle, not ON cycle.

nodiak · « **Reply #14 on:** 25 Apr 2005, 03:30 am »

Oh, I just looked closer at the ClariT info and noticed it only takes 1 hour or less to recharge the battery. That makes it a little better to me. I'd prefer to not have to worry about that during the day, but at least it means I wouldn't be restricted to only 1 six hour session a day. Don

nodiak · « **Reply #15 on:** 25 Apr 2005, 03:39 am »

DMason, We just crossed posts there.
On the amp not using much battery power when not amplifying, that's better yet. But I often play music even when I'm not in the house, especially lately breaking in speakers. Still that could help. Don-suddenly the ClariT becomes a contestant

Dmason · « **Reply #16 on:** 25 Apr 2005, 04:01 am »

If you are looking at a battery powered amp which you can play music with ....while you aren't EVEN home, perhaps you might consider altering some of those habits. I wouldnt use it to break in speakers, that is what cheap cast-off receivers are for....however, I suppose it would serve to help break in the amp.

As for leaving it turned on, warm up is not a consideration here. This is not an analogue type device using hundreds of volts across plates. There ~may~ be a ~slight~ difference in SQ from dead start to ten minutes of warm up, but I rather doubt it. You need to adjust your thinking abit here. Think: "appliance." This amp needs to be warmed up before use about as much as a lightbulb, and represents the same level of conservation, in leaving it turned on. Keeping the battery as topped up as possible should become the habit here. Different streaks for different freaks.

Contestant? No contest to those whose ears are familiar, as noted above.

Paul_Bui · « **Reply #17 on:** 25 Apr 2005, 04:15 am »

"The Clari-T is entirely different. Not holographic like the Zen which borders on surreal, but more believable. I use to be an 3-D imaging freak and that was my highest priority - until I realized that there was a whole lot more texture hidden in the music, held back by the amp. The clarity of Clari-T is awesome! It's something you have to experience. If you hear the human voice revealed by this amp, you'll immediately know what I'm talking about. This amp unravels complicated music unlike any other amp I have ever heard regardless of cost or design. I seriously doubt you'd be anything less than very impressed with a Clari-T over your existing amp. 6 watts might not sound like a whole lot of power, but it's far more than what you're making do with now."

Wind Chaser, I can't agree more.

nodiak · « **Reply #18 on:** 25 Apr 2005, 06:29 am »

I hear you about no warm up needed, but that isn't the only reason for my habits. Much of my work is done from my shop which is at my residence. So I'm here often and play music alot during the day. But most days I'll go to a store, lunch, clients, etc. a couple or more times a day. I'm just not going to think about turning the music or system off when I leave, and back on when I return. And I'm not going to set up a different lesser system for the day, I like quality sound all day long, just like at night when things have settled down and I can relax and listen.
That pattern is why I originally thought the Teac with 12 hour play time might fit me better. I was thinking it would fit in as it recharges at night then can play pretty much all day, depending when I turn it on. It may seem odd to choose a component this way but from my inexperienced view it seems to matter for a battery system. This pattern works well for me and I know I wouldn't want the bug in my ear to babysit the amp thru the day.
I think there's a battery amp that could work out for me. What do you folks think? Do any of you use your system this way? Don

Paul_Bui · « **Reply #19 on:** 25 Apr 2005, 11:01 am »

Don, there's nothing wrong with the way you enjoy music that way - leave it on all day long. While I haven't heard the TEAC (but believe it's a very good sounding amp too), I would think you still can enjoy the ClariT all day long if a bigger more powerful battery is feeding it juice. I would ask Vinnie to locate such a powerhouse and connect it to the chip. the Longevi-T comes to mind.