Doctor's Orders-Part Two-The New Listening Room Of Steve Williams

Steve Williams

Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Steve, I agree with Jeff. The vdH Master Signature sounds really good on a 3012R tonearm. I happen to think it also sounds really good on my SME V-12. I think van den Hul uses the SME V for some testing, at least photos from him show the cartridge on a modern SME arm. I suspect you will be very pleased with the Master Signature on your 3012R and I look forward to reading your impressions.


Thanks Peter

now that we have the right size aluminum Tech Das mounting frame the rest will be hopefully a whole lot easier than before.

The plan is to move the ZYX to the 3010R
 

jeff1225

Well-Known Member
Jan 29, 2012
3,009
3,249
1,410
51
Steve,
Did DDK indicate what the sonic difference will be of the 3012R vs the 3010R?
 

ddk

Well-Known Member
May 18, 2013
6,261
4,040
995
Utah
Steve,
Did DDK indicate what the sonic difference will be of the 3012R vs the 3010R?
The difference is mostly in the bass Jeff, 3012-R's unbeatable! 3010-R shares all the same characteristics of the 3012 but it's lighter in presentation.

david
 
  • Like
Reactions: jeff1225

ddk

Well-Known Member
May 18, 2013
6,261
4,040
995
Utah
David, is this because of the extra length and lower distortion or is something else going on? Higher effective mass?
I think both are factors Peter. Distortion wise 12" is a much better geometry than 9" or 10" and the longer tube has better resonance control than shorter ones.

david
 
  • Like
Reactions: PeterA

Steve Williams

Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Yesterday after many months of vacillation I decided to add the Herbie's Audio Lab tube damping rings to my Lampizator Pacific tubes.They have been on my desk for months.I was loving what I heard and only yesterday decided to do an A-B-A test with the damping rings. Appropriate sizes for my tubes was determined by what other members were using as well as recommendations by. Herbie himself

I first had to decide if I had an audible ring. My initial gut instinct was that I didn't. To prove or disprove ringing existed I played Bruckner's 9th Symphony DSD512 at reasonably high music and paused the music and tapped quickly on th chassis of my Pacific and I'll be darned but there was indeed some mild ringing but nonetheless easy to hear.

It took less than two minutes to apply the top and bottom rings to each tube. and then I played the music again. My first test was once again to pause the same music and tap allover the Pacific chassis again. Much to my pleasant surprise the ringing was totally gone.

So how did it sound.? While there were no logarithmic jumps of degrees of bitterness, it was easy to discern better resolution throughout the entire spectrum. I found some the very high passages were no longer sounding slightly bloated or congested. Rather there was more air around the notes. It brought a sense of easiness to what I was hearing. Te both end also seemed better defined

My biggest initial concern with these damping rings was that they would dumb down the sound and make it subdued and rob it of dynamics.To my amazement just the opposite happened. There was no loss in detailer or dynamics but far better resolution It created IMO a better feeling of "I am there"

Long and the short of the change in sonics was also appreciated by removing the rings and playing the music again.

Simply put there was a return of the ringinging and the mild bloating at the top. Suffice it to say I remained deeply engaged in the music once the rings were reapplied and these are now a permanent part of my DAC.

This isn't a black and white change but rather one which tended to refine what I was hearing and making it far more engaging. Sorry I waited so long to try these damping rings as they are keepers
 

Steve Williams

Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
FWIW, I have 3 extra rings left that were initially meant for the tops of the tubes. I did not get around to placing those. IIRC Leif is using 3 rings on the tops of his tubes with very good results so I might get around to trying these a little later today
 

andromedaaudio

VIP/Donor
Jan 23, 2011
8,354
2,731
1,400
Amsterdam holland
Nice , may be it would improve also other tubes like in the pre / power , who knows .
Its basically resonance control so it might work on any tube
 

Steve Williams

Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Nice , may be it would improve also other tubes like in the pre / power , who knows .
Its basically resonance control so it might work on any tube
I agree

I am tempted to place set around my large GM-70 amplifier output tubes
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,606
5,415
1,278
E. England
So Steve, in these Covid testing times, nice bang for yr buck for minimal outlay? I'm looking for more of those as I'm in my second month of zero income. Adding Ack's Isoldamp ideas to this "cost effective" list.
 

sbo6

VIP/Donor
May 18, 2014
1,660
594
480
Round Rock, TX
Awesome, I've found similar results with preamp and tube power amp input tubes. Interesting you have one on the tube socket, probably in most cases the socket isn't as exposed to do so.
 

rbbert

Well-Known Member
Dec 12, 2010
3,820
239
1,000
Reno, NV
Awesome, I've found similar results with preamp and tube power amp input tubes. Interesting you have one on the tube socket, probably in most cases the socket isn't as exposed to do so.
my experience with the dampers (similar to many other reports from users) is that improvement (or not) is dependent on too many factors to make a prediction without trying them. Tube type, specific tube (i.e., brand and type), mounting, circuit used, rectifier vs. output vs. input, etc all come into play
 

About us

  • What’s Best Forum is THE forum for high end audio, product reviews, advice and sharing experiences on the best of everything else. This is THE place where audiophiles and audio companies discuss vintage, contemporary and new audio products, music servers, music streamers, computer audio, digital-to-analog converters, turntables, phono stages, cartridges, reel-to-reel tape machines, speakers, headphones and tube and solid-state amplification. Founded in 2010 What’s Best Forum invites intelligent and courteous people of all interests and backgrounds to describe and discuss the best of everything. From beginners to life-long hobbyists to industry professionals, we enjoy learning about new things and meeting new people, and participating in spirited debates.

Quick Navigation

User Menu

Steve Williams
Site Founder | Site Owner | Administrator
Ron Resnick
Site Co-Owner | Administrator
Julian (The Fixer)
Website Build | Marketing Managersing