EC 45 preamp gauging interest

Discussion in 'Eddie Current' started by purr1n, Sep 20, 2017.

  1. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    I don't remember who it was, maybe @winders, who wanted a preamp...

    TBH, this is something I kind of want for myself. A lot of people have ideas, and most of them don't get Craig's interest. And I know Craig likes to do something different, something that will interest him. So last week I planted a seed: Would you make a custom 45 tube preamp if I gave you $2000? We discussed some ideas pertaining to implementation, like leveraging the high frequency heaters for the 45 tubes.

    A few days later, I get an e-mail from Craig that he likes the idea.

    Any interest? I know it's pretty nuts using a 45 tube, but is some ways seems kind of neat because we can use a high frequency filament heater. The 45 doesn't have much gain. And the plate resistance isn't super high.

     
  2. Daveheart

    Daveheart Friend

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    I'd certainly be interested. Of course it would take knowing more to really commit to anything, but the idea definitely sounds interesting.
     
  3. msommers

    msommers High on Epipens

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  4. winders

    winders boomer

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    Yes, I am interested in a kick-ass preamp to use with my Pioneer M-22 amp. $2000 to $3000 is my budget. I don't know anything about 45 tubes so I will need to be pointed to some information on them so I can educate myself. I am currently investigating the deHavilland UltraVerve 3 preamp as I have nice stash of quality 6SN7 tubes. Would the 45 tubes be sonically better than 6SN7 tubes? Are they readily available?

    I would want the preamp to have a remote to control the volume at the very least. I don't change inputs or outputs very often so that is not a real need.

    I am looking for an endgame preamp at this point. After getting my M-22 back from being tuned up, I can't imagine finding a better amp for my speakers much under $5K. I like the idea of a solid state amp coupled with a tube preamp. It would be best if preamp were to have ~14dB of gain. This allows me to be just past the middle in volume range and gives the system plenty of headroom for those tracks with 20+ dB of dynamic range.

    Basically, I am all ears. Tell me more about what you and Craig have in mind!!
     
    Last edited: Sep 21, 2017
  5. Pyruvate

    Pyruvate Friend

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    I'm all ears.
     
  6. ohmaigulay

    ohmaigulay Friend

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    Could this be paired with the proposed EC KT88 monoblocks in the Afficianado thread for just speaker use? Or are those specific only to that unit?
     
  7. TomNC

    TomNC Friend

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    How much cost would be added to make this a proper headphone amp and pre?
     
  8. thegunner100

    thegunner100 Hentai Master Chief

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    @sphinxvc would be all over this. (If there's enough gain)
     
  9. IceUul

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    Yes, if enough inputs/outputs including balanced.
     
  10. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Can already get something similar with Af.
     
  11. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Just an idea at this point. The 45 as single tube, maybe gain of 4. It could sound like ass, but I want to explore it because of the possibility of the HF heaters.

    I'm trying to steer him this way.
     
  12. bazelio

    bazelio Friend

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    I'm up for the exploration on this. I'm already exploring other DHT line stage things.
     
  13. sphinxvc

    sphinxvc Gear Master (retired)

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    Yes, of course.
     
  14. sphinxvc

    sphinxvc Gear Master (retired)

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    @bazelio - which DHT linestage were you looking at? Local guy's selling a Coincident, I was ogling it but also restraining myself.

    @Marvey - so did Craig bite?
     
  15. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    He is considering expanding this 45 preamp to include a phonostage. 6DJ8 + 6SL7. Still conceptual stage.
     
  16. winders

    winders boomer

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    I am no longer in the market for a preamp. I have another custom preamp on order.
     
  17. Daveheart

    Daveheart Friend

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    That still has me interested. Would said phonostage have some adjustability, or would it be MM with the need for a step-up?
     
  18. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    MM with step up.
     
  19. sphinxvc

    sphinxvc Gear Master (retired)

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    That's great news, and dibs. Hopefully it has adequately low OI to play* nice with my weirdly low OI F3 (10K).
     
    Last edited: Oct 22, 2017
  20. bazelio

    bazelio Friend

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    You should listen to it. The 101D is pretty good and that preamp has a very minimalist signal path. I was looking at going custom, using 01A or 26 or both.
     

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