LampizatOr Horizon - Tube Rolling Paradise

[Anyoldears]

A 91 year-old guy is stretching his legs after a looong sleep ... I'll see how it develops after a few weeks at the gym

View attachment 132372​

OK you got me, what is it?

 

[simorag]

OK you got me, what is it?

A mesh plate Telefunken RGN2004!

Production code "lt", it should mean manufacturing year 1933 according to this site: https://www.tctubes.com/telefunken-date-codes.aspx.

 

[John T]

A mesh plate Telefunken RGN2004!

Production code "lt", it should mean manufacturing year 1933 according to this site: https://www.tctubes.com/telefunken-date-codes.aspx.

Simone, Stai attento! crea dipendenza questo tubi!

 

[keithc]

Burning in E55L pentodes and EF802 triodes for a new combo from the Hungarian wizard....

 

[Sampajanna]

How are the pentodes?

 

[Wjhen]

Keithc, Great minds think alike (Got the tip from the Hungarian Wizzard as well). Waiting for adapters. I will use these in TRP with engine 11p...

 

[steve williams]

Burning in E55L pentodes and EF802 triodes for a new combo from the Hungarian wizard....

View attachment 132574

Welcome to the club. Ive been using them for the past 3 months. Killer combination with the Valvo G2504 solid plate. About as perfect as it can get. The final piece of my puzzle arrives next week when I will finally be able to use my Horizon with the KBL cables and finally hear native XDMI with this tube set . I am expecting one early Christmas present from Oldenzaahl when Emile ships my Olympus/IO

 

[jbrrp1]

I've been enjoying the following set in my Lampi Horizon for the last couple of weeks:

Telefunken EF802 triodes
Valvo EL503 pentodes
Valvo G2504 solid plate rectifier

I purchased these through Laszlo, as well as his silver spec adapters for all. I've been smiling the whole two weeks! The Horizon is an excellent DAC, and these tubes really squeeze an even more informative and harmonically lively performance out of it. I thought I was "there" at the recording event before - - now, "WOW!"

 

[godofwealth]

Has anyone had an issue with a Lampi DAC where one of the tube sockets becomes a bit loose and makes intermittent contact with the tube? In my case the right rear socket is acting up. Sometimes the inserted tube doesn’t light up. By jostling the tube I can make it come on. Is there a simple fix?

 

[Designsfx]

Has anyone had an issue with a Lampi DAC where one of the tube sockets becomes a bit loose and makes intermittent contact with the tube? In my case the right rear socket is acting up. Sometimes the inserted tube doesn’t light up. By jostling the tube I can make it come on. Is there a simple fix?

Can you open the dac and check the contacts on the socket? It might be as simple as a soldering touch up but it may require a new socket as well.

 

[wokeuptobose]

No, I havent had a probelm with socket fit.

 

[keithc]

Has anyone had an issue with a Lampi DAC where one of the tube sockets becomes a bit loose and makes intermittent contact with the tube? In my case the right rear socket is acting up. Sometimes the inserted tube doesn’t light up. By jostling the tube I can make it come on. Is there a simple fix?

That is concerning esp if it raises the possibility of a loose wire and potential short.
The Pacific's top lid comes off quite easily, and the sockets are mounted on a circuit board which has a gap around its perimeter; you can definitely get a phone camera into this gap to look underneath where the sockets are wired to see if something is loose. I have photos/videos of this if you need to see what it's like; PM me.

My guess, though, is that it's more benign and probably has to do with the pin receptacle getting a bit wide on the filament heater pins. Did you also check if the tube pins themselves are clean?

 

[Sampajanna]

I have lots of tubes to share if anyone is looking for some lightly used tubes. I basically have every tube in the Horizon-verse, or thereabouts

Shoot me a PM

 

[godofwealth]

That is concerning esp if it raises the possibility of a loose wire and potential short.
The Pacific's top lid comes off quite easily, and the sockets are mounted on a circuit board which has a gap around its perimeter; you can definitely get a phone camera into this gap to look underneath where the sockets are wired to see if something is loose. I have photos/videos of this if you need to see what it's like; PM me.

My guess, though, is that it's more benign and probably has to do with the pin receptacle getting a bit wide on the filament heater pins. Did you also check if the tube pins themselves are clean?

Here’s a pic of my Pacific with the top cover removed. The lower right triode socket was the one that’s acting up. It’s playing fine right now with a quartet of 112A tubes. Looking from the side, I see the lower right tube socket is not seating the tube all the way in. Perhaps that’s the issue?

 

[steve williams]

Here’s a pic of my Pacific with the top cover removed. The lower right triode socket was the one that’s acting up. It’s playing fine right now with a quartet of 112A tubes. Looking from the side, I see the lower right tube socket is not seating the tube all the way in. Perhaps that’s the issue?

View attachment 132700

Best advice is to reach out to Fred ( lampiNA) and send it back to Poland for repair. IIRC Takacs also had a similar socket problem I wouldn’t be jiggling anything for fear of blowing one of those vintage tubes

 

[marty]

Is anyone comfortable describing the sonic character of the EL503 pentode, a tube I am unfamiliar with? A few questions:

1) I'm curious to how it compares to the RS1003 (a 'hifi" tube I do not care for) or other pentodes such as the P17c/OS1/4654 (which I prefer musically). Since tube preferences are system dependent, please share if you are making these comparisons using tube or SS amp based systems, which I think may be a key to some of our individual preferences.

If you had to quantitate its performance in a table like this, how would the EL503 fare? (Ignore the other tube listings- those are obviously subjective as I saw them at some point). I'm curious as to how you would view the EL503 for tone, distortion and dynamics.

Tube​	Bass​	Mids​	Top​	Distortion​	Dynamics​
P17c​	Excellent​	Excellent​	Very good +​	Excellent​	Very good +​
F2a​	Average​	Good​	Excellent​	Very good​	Very good​
EL156​	Very good +​	Very good +​	Very good +​	Excellent​	Excellent​

2) is there a difference between the Valvo and Phillips brand of EL503?

3) Do they require adapters?

Thanks.

 

[Agent86]

Has anyone had an issue with a Lampi DAC where one of the tube sockets becomes a bit loose and makes intermittent contact with the tube? In my case the right rear socket is acting up. Sometimes the inserted tube doesn’t light up. By jostling the tube I can make it come on. Is there a simple fix?

Yep, in my case, the factory told me it was from too much tube rolling.

Also see my post in the A3 thread. https://www.whatsbestforum.com/threads/lampizator-golden-atlantic-trp.27809/post-977966

 

[godofwealth]

That’s helpful to know. I’m trying a quartet of JJ 300B tubes now. These are sitting properly. Will see if the problem recurs.

 

[godofwealth]

As Goran pointed out earlier, there’s a significant difference in gain between a normal 300B and the 100-year-old 112As.

 

[dminches]

When I had my Pacific I really liked the 112As and variations.

I also recall that the sockets had some give when I seated and removed tubes. And at times tubes didn’t go all the way in. Because of this I refrained from much tube rolling, which was fine.