[Sonny]

still in my main system:
- vmps larger subs - 1995
- melos ma333r preamp - 1999
- electrocompaniet amps (first mains amps, now sub amps) - 1995
- art di/o dac - 2000
- pentagon ps-3 fono stage - 1999
- oracle delphi turntable - 1999
- onix bwd-1/soap-2 fm tuna (occasionally) - 1995
- the marchand xm9-LL lasted from 1995 until end of 2007, when replaced by deqx.

ymmv,

doug s.,
must not be an audiophile...   

Doug, great to hear that you have stuck with/love those equipment for this long.  I hope to attain that kind of love so I can enjoy music and not components!   

[doug s.]

It must measure really well, eh Doug?   

what are the nighthawk specs?  gotta see if it would be a worthwhile upgrade over my pentagon ps-3.   

sorry, now back to your originally scheduled programming...   

doug s.

[doug s.]

Doug, great to hear that you have stuck with/love those equipment for this long.  I hope to attain that kind of love so I can enjoy music and not components!   

forget it tuan, it ain't gonna happen.  notice i didn't mention my other tunas, amps, speakers...   

but, seriously, i think i do have my source stuff down pretty well.  (except for tuna -an affliction of mine.)  yes, i still lurk on threads such as this - ya never know when some funny money might want to yump out of my pocket for some true world-beater source component at a reasonable price - i do like to keep up w/the adwances in the edge of the art.

speakers are a whole different ball of wax - way too many ways to skin that cat; i dunno if i will ever want to stop auditioning different speakers.  and amplification is an extension of the speaker, tho i now think i have a suitable amp collection for any speaker combo i might wanna try.   

doug s.

[toobluvr]

what are the nighthawk specs? 

naw....yust a yoke.....spillover from the other "wanker" thread....predictive nature of good measurements for good sound....you had to be there to get it, I guess.  Wait, you were!        

[95Dyna]

Seriously though, think of it, do you have any current equipment that you've had for 10 plus years?  If not, the battery is not an issue.  I don't know of any audiophile that has a component for 10+ years.
Tuan

Whew!  Man am I relieved to find out I'm not an audiophile.  I am now less susceptible to that financially crippling disease called "audio ad infinitis".  All that worry for naught.

[JakeJ]

naw....yust a yoke.....spillover from the other "wanker" thread....predictive nature of good measurements for good sound....you had to be there to get it, I guess.  Wait, you were!        

OMG!!  ............... No, umm, wait.....uhhh, I've fallen and CHOOSE not to get up!

[jtsnead]

Just wondering what is the recommended time to recharge the Nighthawk?
Also does the red ready light come on if it is not charged all the way?

Are you guys turning yours off when you are not listening, do you notice any
changes or does it need to warm up

I have not listened to it much I am on my third leave it on burn in cycle.

[toobluvr]

The red light on the charger (not on the power switch) means it is charging.  It turns green when fully charged.  Mine has been recharging in about one hour.

I have no idea what happens to the red light on the unit's power switch.  I leave it in off position when recharging.

[jtsnead]

Thanks,
I never noticed the green light on the charger

[denwenz]

I have been considering either the Nova or Nighthawk phono stages-they are similar in many ways.  I was wondering JTSnead how you would compare these two phono stages sonically.

[jtsnead]

I have been considering either the Nova or Nighthawk phono stages-they are similar in many ways.  I was wondering JTSnead how you would compare these two phono stages sonically.

Well you are right they are very simular sound wise also. I really liked the Nova and was hesitant to sell it. I wanted the capability of easy adjustments which the NH gives to me.

The sound of the NH as far as I can tell with about 10 of my favorite lp's that I have listened to is as good and maybe a little better than the Nova in regards to image focus meaning the individual performers/instruments have a tighter image on the soundstage. This gives a sense of more air around each performer. The bass is excelent. The treble is extended and accurate, no splashiness or slurring of cymbals. The midrange at least in relation to vocals I feel is a little warmer than I remember with the Nova, not a big difference though. I am listnening to one of my favorite Ella Fitzgerald albums Fine and Mellow on Pablo and her vocal is slightly warmer or darker than what I have experienced before. I do have to say that the loading for my Benz Ace SL is set to 100 ohms where it was set to 280 ohms on the Nova. The NH does not offer as much of an adjustment range as the Nova. I was just able to get up and go to the NH chage to the next setting (500 ohm) and can determine that that setting does not work with this record I am listening to, her vocals definetly got thinner, I could not do that w/ the Nova unless I disconnected it to get to the back of it.

One warning I will give at least as it was in my system is that it did pick up more noise when I had it sitting in my rack at the same location as the Nova.
Overall I feel it was a good change for me and my needs.

Hope this helps.

[toobluvr]

Interesting that some of you guys are having noise issues with the Nighthawk.      Mine is dead quiet like a tomb regardless of where I site it.

I'm using a HOMC (2.8 mV) so I use the 2nd lowest gain setting.  I feel I might be maybe just a touch short, but when I try to go one click higher (more gain) it seems like a very big jump.  Was hoping other members could comment on their experiences.

I know the bottom one is 40 db and the top one is 74 db.  Ray, could you chime in here and tell us what the actual gain figures are for the in-between settings?

Thanks!
John

[DARTH AUDIO]

It's in 6 increments. Looks like the increments are just shy of 6dB.

[Ericus Rex]

No noise here either  and I have mine directly on top of my CD player.  I don't know if this is the correct way of adjusting the gain but I set mine to be roughly the same volume as my CD player when I switch back and forth between CD and phono.  .8mV cartridge and third lowest (11 o'clock) gain setting.

[toobluvr]

It's in 6 increments. Looks like the increments are just shy of 6dB.

You know that, or just assuming the spread is evenly spaced?

If the latter, I think your math is wrong.  Getting from 40 to 74 in 5 clicks means that each click is 6.8 db.

[toobluvr]

No noise here either  and I have mine directly on top of my CD player.  I don't know if this is the correct way of adjusting the gain but I set mine to be roughly the same volume as my CD player when I switch back and forth between CD and phono.  .8mV cartridge and third lowest (11 o'clock) gain setting.

Preamp volume pots have a "sweet spot" in which things will sound their best.  It is usually between 10 o'clock and 2.  So probably the best way to set the NH gain is to pick a setting in which your line stage volume pot is in that range for the majority of your listening.

That's how I do it, and it just so happens to be close to the output on my cdp at the same volume pot position.

[blakep]

Interesting that some of you guys are having noise issues with the Nighthawk.      Mine is dead quiet like a tomb regardless of where I site it.

I'm using a HOMC (2.8 mV) so I use the 2nd lowest gain setting.  I feel I might be maybe just a touch short, but when I try to go one click higher (more gain) it seems like a very big jump.  Was hoping other members could comment on their experiences.

I know the bottom one is 40 db and the top one is 74 db.  Ray, could you chime in here and tell us what the actual gain figures are for the in-between settings?

Thanks!
John

The lowest gain setting, if it is 40 db, should be almost ideal for your cartridge with an output of 2.8 mV so you might want to try that.

Typically, proper gain matching with cartidge/phono preamp will result in running a fair bit higher on the volume pot on your line level preamp or integrated than when playing CD. It would be a bit odd if you did not unless you attenuated the CD input to try and match levels. 

I could be wrong but I think you'll find that your sound quality will improve and the overall sound character will be much more "relaxed" and a bit less strident/aggressive if you drop down to the 40 db gain setting. As I say, though, you will be running higher on the volume pot with analog than you will be with your digital setup. Perhaps worth a try.

[toobluvr]

The lowest gain setting, if it is 40 db, should be almost ideal for your cartridge with an output of 2.8 mV so you might want to try that.

Typically, proper gain matching with cartidge/phono preamp will result in running a fair bit higher on the volume pot on your line level preamp or integrated than when playing CD. It would be a bit odd if you did not unless you attenuated the CD input to try and match levels. 

I could be wrong but I think you'll find that your sound quality will improve and the overall sound character will be much more "relaxed" and a bit less strident/aggressive if you drop down to the 40 db gain setting. As I say, though, you will be running higher on the volume pot with analog than you will be with your digital setup. Perhaps worth a try.

Thanks for the informative reply, Blake.  But using your logic begs the following question.   If the lowest (40db) gain setting is appropriate for my 2.8 mV cartridge, what would much higher outputs use....like those in the 5.0 to 6.0 range?

At 9 db my line stage gain is just a touch on the low side.  My Vista phono section gain is fixed at 40 db.  I definitely use more of the volume pot with it compared to CD.   For most of my listening it is fine, but when I crank the vinyl tunes a bit it kindof runs out of steam.  That is why with the NH I find the setting right above 40 db to be close to ideal.  I assume it is about 47 db.

I am always interested in improving my sound so I will try the NH set to 40 db instead.  Thanks for the tip.     I did not know it was normal to be running the line stage volume pot more open for vinyl than compared to digital.
I thought if you had appropriate phono gain the two sources would be real close to level matched at any volume pot setting.

[JakeJ]

<snip>
I did not know it was normal to be running the line stage volume pot more open for vinyl than compared to digital.  I thought if you had appropriate phono gain the two sources would be real close to level matched at any volume pot setting.

That has been my general experience.  Whether it's right or wrong I don't know.

Hope you all enjoyed Record Store Day.  I sure did, got about $300 worth of new and used vinyl plus a bunch of free sampler CDs.

[toobluvr]

It was recently explained to me that proper phono gain is what brings cart output to levels that the preamp inputs need.  In most cases this is the typical CD output .....about 2V.  If accomplised,  both sources would then have roughly the same SPL at any given vol pot setting.

This way a system can be assembled such that the usual 10 to 2 volume pot "sweet spot" can be observed with all sources.  Don't know if it's true, but it sure sounds reasonable.

PS:  hey Jake....what is your general experience?      That comment of mine that you highlighted has two statements in it:  one says the vinyl volume pot is more open, the other one says vinyl and digital are matched.

Like Ricky Ricardo sez, "you got some 'splainin to do"!