LampizatOr Golden Atlantic + TRP

[highstream]

Progress report: I'm six days in and my rule of thumb, Lampi's idea of 7 days notwithstanding, is 350-500 hours burn in before a component (or cable) reaches sufficient maturity that I can take it seriously, meaning a good two to three weeks. What was immediately evident within a few hours of arrival with the stock Siemens and Svetlana tubes was the TRP's great speed and clarity, easily better in those dimensions than the DirectStream dac. What I'm determinedly waiting for -- hoping for! -- is some emotional life, something warmer and more involving than the temperature of my refrigerator and feeling less removed than half way back on the top shelf. One thing that seems to be the case so far, just using my main active speakers and not subs, is with videos and watching TV (via an Oppo), going completely unbalanced is not yet providing enough output for a light weight theater presentation. Well, I’ll see (or hear) in another week or two... In the meantime, KT66's are on the way and a 596 is waiting for that fellow in Bulgaria to put down his house building tools long enough to build me an adapter.

 

[highstream]

Two questions:

1) I see the Brimar 5Z4G recti mentioned in the Lampi rolling thread's discussion of GG tubes. Would it work with the Atlantic TRP and, if so, has anyone tried it?

2) For Lampi dacs with a volume knob, is there an optimal position for sound quality, that is, short of max which brings on hiss? I've tried one o'clock and nine o'clock positions, adjusting with the remote, and the latter seemed a little different, maybe better, but I haven't really tested it.

 

[Golum]

All of them (rectifiers) which work in GG/GG2/Pac will work in TRP.
Volume wise - play with volume on your preamp and volume on TRP and try to achieve bingo option as yes it makes difference (you’re not wrong)

 

[fbs]

Any opinion regarding the Brimar recti vs. RK 5U4G or others?

 

[highstream]

All of them (rectifiers) which work in GG/GG2/Pac will work in TRP.
Volume wise - play with volume on your preamp and volume on TRP and try to achieve bingo option as yes it makes difference (you’re not wrong)

Thanks. The TRP is my preamp.

 

[Golum]

Any opinion regarding the Brimar recti vs. RK 5U4G or others?

Brimar is cheap so get it - you should have it in the stash anyhow

 

[christoph]

All of them (rectifiers) which work in GG/GG2/Pac will work in TRP.
Volume wise - play with volume on your preamp and volume on TRP and try to achieve bingo option as yes it makes difference (you’re not wrong)

You are a believer now?

 

[christoph]

Any opinion regarding the Brimar recti vs. RK 5U4G or others?

The Brimar is good but the RK 5u4g is (IMHO much) better

 

[highstream]

Langrex shows two versions, the cheaper one that looks like four pin. Would an adapter be needed?
https://www.langrex.co.uk/?s=brimar+5z4g&post_type=product

 

[Golum]

Langrex shows two versions, the cheaper one that looks like four pin. Would an adapter be needed?
https://www.langrex.co.uk/?s=brimar+5z4g&post_type=product

5Z4G 5Z4GY CV1863 KB/FE STC BRIMAR NOS BOXED
£25.00
I had this one

 

[highstream]

The Brimar is good but the RK 5u4g is (IMHO much) better

Good to know. Of course, the RK is also only 16x the price (the non-RK is sold out, at least at KR Euro site).

 

[Zero000]

Good to know. Of course, the RK is also only 16x the price (the non-RK is sold out, at least at KR Euro site).

You're bangin' in some great posts, highstream. You've got the electronics bug. The deeper you look into it, the stranger it will get. Right down to quantum level. Where no one will agree, just postulate intellectual bullshit.

My advice when looking for the best valves is construction quality. The ones that look the best made generally sound the best. If it looks like shite, stay away. It probably is.

That said, there are different qualities to look for. And different tech specs. And with some of the older valves, a valve tester is a really good idea. A lot of the stuff sold as NOS is running at way less than original spec. With obvious consequences.

For the older stuff, it's hard to determine how used they really are. Armed with a tester, even new valves don't meet the claimed specs.

For instance, I have KR PX4 that measures 4.4ma/V against a claimed bought new 5.1.ma/V. Does Eunice need to up her game?

 

[highstream]

Thanks for the advice. Being a two or three long plane flights from even the closest of the tubes I've looked at or bought, I have to depend on a close look at photos, reputable sources and the testing and evaluation they've done. Tube testers, electronic and human, are different, but I've gained a reasonably good sense of how to evaluate different measurements and what I'm being told. For example, the clear GEC KT66's I chose from a batch of about eight new and used ones posted on eBay last week tested at 83/5.2 and 86/5.3 on an Avo tester and came from a UK dealer called HI Fi Hanger, who I communicated with directly before buying. He's into vintage electronics (hifihangar.co.uk/) and these came from Quad II amp stock he picked up. Assuming he's on the up and up, what I don't know is how the early 1970s 66's will stack up against the older ones. And the 596 that awaits an adapter came from someone who posts here and has a great rep on Agon. That doesn't mean I won't hit a dud, here or there, but it seems the price for tailoring the dac to my needs and tastes.

Btw Gollum, in reading through the GG 2 thread, your comments about dumping your balanced version because of the cost and logistics of four output tubes really struck home. I'm not sure that this TRP unbalanced has enough oomph for my needs, audio and video, but it may have to do for now. I've learned that different tubes have different ouput levels, although I'm not sure how much that applies to the Atlantic, vs., say, the 242 in a GG2.

 

[jriggy]

Thanks. The TRP is my preamp.

If the TRP is your preamp, then listen at the volume level you like for mood.
If you use a preamp, you can find out what it’s unity gain is (high up there on the dial most likely), then start out at “0” on the TRP and raise vol on TRP until you reach your top/loudest listening level. From there, you can turn your preamp down to a more normal or chill listening level...and then that range will be your range to play in.
OR turn TRP to 100% and preamp at “0” and go up on preamp from there. (this one is prefers for most DAC w/ VC)
I have also turned Lampi down only one or two clicks from 100% and used preamp vol from there. Just got a slight more controlled dynamic prophile for my speakers.

And from your last post above; if TRP direct to amp is not enough, then you don’t have a good impedance match and you need a preamp.

 

[highstream]

The input impedance on my active speakers is 10K ohm, which Lukasz thought the TRP could handle well (mains + subs eventually). There seems to be about a 10-15% difference in projection of sound towards my listening seat between the TRP and the DirectStream dac I had, (balanced outs), as well as now even between recti tubes. Why that should be I don't get. What's more obvious is the output difference with videos and TV via a beefed up Oppo 203. The lighter weight theater presentation of before has diminished in terms of fullness and lateral staging. So you may be correct about impedance, but for now it's all still too new and unsettled to draw conclusions.

Thanks for the volume knob suggestion. I assume what you mean by preamp, e.g., "preamp at '0,' is the remote. What I noticed with the TRP knob at 100% was that there was a lot of speaker hiss.

 

[Monsterzero]

Can 5R4GY rectifiers be used in the TRP?

 

[Golum]

Can 5R4GY rectifiers be used in the TRP?

Yes it can be used. I have some old RCA from ww2 era. But also here you have “potato masher”. Those are also very solid and you have two options i believe with A and B letters at the end. They are the same but one was with military spec and specially selected and differently packed if you get it as NOS (can’t recall now which one of those two is the one). Anyhow can’t go wrong with any of those

 

[highstream]

The two early '70s clear GEC KT66's arrived today. An hour in, it was evident they have a lot to offer, including a bit of warmth that the Lampi-provided Siemens lacked. I'll still be looking for more and a little more tube sound vs. crisp solid state, perhaps from one of the rectis on the way or somewhere else in my system (one reason why I've thought about a secondhand GG).

I'm also shipping back today the GEC U52 to the UK seller. I wouldn't want to generalize about U52's from a sample of one, but this particular (used) tube had a nice warm tone but after 150 hours still lacked the clarity of the Siemens (and KT66) and had some ringing or glare, which when passages got complex made things a bit jumbled up (though it sounded pretty good from other rooms).

About the volume knob vs. remote, I hadn't realized it, but the knob has no mechanical zero or max, which makes how to find either for sure a little confusing, other than perhaps via the screen.

 

[Monsterzero]

Good to hear of people taking a gamble on different rectifiers. I just ordered a Marconi RK60, which also requires an adapter. A few folks on the Dubstep girl rectifier thread prefer it to the 596, and considering that the 596 is thus far my preferred rectifier, it's worth a punt especially at the $45 price for the tube and $15 for the adapter.

I'm also intrigued by the U52 rectifier. It was my favorite back when I had a DNA Stratus headphone amp and I know a friend with the Golden Gate who prefers it over his RK 5U4G.

Any thoughts on the RK60 in the TRP?

 

[Golum]

More detailed insights from Fabio:
“Did some further comparison between the GEC KT66 and Genalex KT77. After having had the KT66 in the system for several weeks I changed back to the KT77 and was first impressed by the presence, slam and details I got. The soundstage moves much closer to the listener. Dynamics and microdetails are great. At times I almost had a heartattack when an unexpected impulse hit my body. It reaches slightly deeper in the bass than the KT66. However, bass control is inferior to the KT66 with more focus on the very low end and a slight dip in the upper mid bass. The high gain, dynamics and details come at the cost of being less musical. Some music can sound a bit forced and nervous at times. The KT66 is more relaxed with lower noisefloor. Music just flows better. Details are presented in a more natural manner. Both tubes have excellent treble extension and reach deep down (the KT77 a bit deeper). Think of the GEC KT66 as a better version of the Brimar 6L6G.

If your system is a bit sleepy, you’re looking for more dynamics and punch or your pre-amp has a low input gain I would chose the KT77. If you want to calm down things and you are rather into long-term relaxed listening go for the KT66. Both tubes are exceptional in their own ways. I compared them in the TRP with the RK Ann. Rectifier.”

Now here is the update on this post with added new rectifier in the mix Takatsuki 274b and the result is: “ I have swapped the GEC KT66 with the Genalex KT77 last week. What did not work well with the RK recti seems to be a combination made in heaven together with the Tak. The additional gain of the KT77 is never getting shouty. So i have much more presence and dynamics without the annoying part. The additional body and mid-range warmth of the Tak balances KT77 nicely. My system never sounded better yet.”
All this with relatively cheap new production Genalex so I’m wondering what kind of magic would GEC Kt77 bring to the table with Tak...