The Analog Kid

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Fretless
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The Analog Kid

Unread post by Fretless »

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In the primaeval swamps of a far-gone age, strange and massive creatures ruled, swinging unwieldy tonearms from side to side as they rotated at 33 or 45. Their dominance was supreme and they had no cares or worries as they fed on the vast racks of vinyl that flourished in those days.

Then small creatures, the Seedee's, began to appear - round, silver shapes that vanished into secret drawers and span rapidly in a laser-beam shower of pristine, clear sound that was called 'digital'. A threat to the monsters and almost a cause of their extinction.

Even the existence of the Seedees was threatened, though, the world entered the new era of the Streamtaceous and physical shapes were no longer necessary. All forms became wireless amd ethereal, living in 'The Cloud' and called into action through tiny boxes and bluetooth earplugs.

But lo! A new acolyte of the true faith appeared; the 'Analog Kid'. Discovering prehistoric turntables left to rot in attics and cellars. Scraping dusty cobwebs from crates of forgotten LPs. A new sound was born (same as the old sound but of that the Kids were unaware). Vinyl was Cool. Vinyl was Hip.



Alright! Enough of foolish fantasy and back into the reality of my sitting-room system. Because I'm now only using that rather than the all-digi rig upstairs I thought it was time to try combining the best of both installations into one setup.

First move was to change the Metrum Musette DAC for the Denafrips Ares II. And what a revelation that is. The Ares just has that 'analog' feel. Music lives and breathes through that DAC in a way that is directly comparable to the Logic / Grado TT combination, the difference is in the warmth and fullness of vinyl versus the clear and crackle-free accuracy of the stream - but the sheer musicality of both sources is obvious.

I was using the superb Allo DigiOne Signature as the streaming source and replaced that with the medical-grade PC, Oehlbach USB reclocker and DHLabs Mirage cables. Again the sound took a quantum leap forward with a vivid, integrated soundfield.

Next up was adding the DH Labs Air Matrix interconnects from DAC=>pre and pre=>power amp. The 80's vintage NVA set really responded to these and became crisper, fresher with revitalised imaging.

Pondering now how I can go the whole hog and get the BMU and A40 monoblocks implemented. The equipment here is shoehorned into a corner and it is a puzzle to get additional boxes set up there. The Arcam speakers will be staying as their positioning is totally unsuitable for use of the Cubes.

So, my faith is restored in the Church of Digi - in a straight playoff against the turntable my streaming setup acquits itself with honour. But the return to the 'Old Ways' and the initiated path of the Vinyl has given my interests a new boost. It was the search for that intangible 'Analogue Sound' that lay behind my quest for the best digital performance and it looks like I can finally combine the two.

:music-listening:
These users thanked the author Fretless for the post (total 3):
CN211276 (Wed Aug 18, 2021 11:26 pm) • Latteman (Wed Aug 18, 2021 11:27 pm) • antonio66 (Thu Aug 19, 2021 12:13 am)

Upstairs:
Vinyl
Pro-Ject 1.2 + Grado Sig Jr + Cambridge Alva Duo
DigiVolumio PC + Kiss DP-500 + Sabaj A20d
NVA: P50sa - Cube2 - SSP - LS6+ Sabaj A10a (x2)
Downstairs:
Vinyl
Logic DM101 + Syrinx LE1 + Grado Sig MCX
DigiDenafrips Ares II + Volumio PC + Cambridge CXC
NVA: P50 - BMU+ Aiyima A07 MAX (x2) + Arcam One
HP: HifiBerry Digi+ PRO + Sabaj A10d
Office:
Allo DigiOne SIG + SMSL M300se + Douk G4 (x2)
Mission 760 + Monolith THX AAA 887
Headphones: German Maestro, Monolith & AQ

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Re: The Analog Kid

Unread post by CN211276 »

"He plays fast forward just as long as he can
But he won't need a bed
He's a digital man...."

:lol: :lol:
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Fretless (Thu Aug 19, 2021 7:44 am)
Main System
NVA BMU, P90SA/A80s (latest spec), Cube 1s, TIS, TISC(LS7)
Sonore OpticalRendu, Chord Mscaler & Qutest, Sbooster PSs
Network Acoustics Eno, ifi iPurifier3, AQ JB FMJ, Cisco 2940 & 2960
DH Labs ethernet, BNC & USB cables, Farnells cat 8 ethernet cable

Second System
NVA P20/ A20, Cubettes, LS3, SSP, SC
Sonore MicroRendu, Chord Mojo 2 MCRU PSs, AQ Carbon USB cable & JB FMJ

Headphones
Grado SR325e/Chord Mojo, Beyerdynamic Avetho/AQ DF Colbat

RIP Doc

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Re: The Analog Kid

Unread post by Fretless »

Image

A question for the brains at NVA Towers:

Can I stack my A40 monoblocks using some sort of a spacer in-between?

With the top-mounted heatsink they cannot be directly placed on top of each other - but something of maybe 5cm or so should do the trick.

Upstairs:
Vinyl
Pro-Ject 1.2 + Grado Sig Jr + Cambridge Alva Duo
DigiVolumio PC + Kiss DP-500 + Sabaj A20d
NVA: P50sa - Cube2 - SSP - LS6+ Sabaj A10a (x2)
Downstairs:
Vinyl
Logic DM101 + Syrinx LE1 + Grado Sig MCX
DigiDenafrips Ares II + Volumio PC + Cambridge CXC
NVA: P50 - BMU+ Aiyima A07 MAX (x2) + Arcam One
HP: HifiBerry Digi+ PRO + Sabaj A10d
Office:
Allo DigiOne SIG + SMSL M300se + Douk G4 (x2)
Mission 760 + Monolith THX AAA 887
Headphones: German Maestro, Monolith & AQ

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Re: The Analog Kid

Unread post by savvypaul »

As with all NVA, intelligence is required.

Think about what speakers you are using, the volumes you are playing at, and the length of time you are playing for. Under those conditions, how warm do the A40 heatsinks get now, when they are not stacked? If they are barely beyond cold (like our latest amps), then that bodes well.

Try it with your 5cm spacer and regularly check the temperature of the A40 at the bottom of the stack. If it gets warm then you probably won't cause a failure but you might shorten the overall life of the boards. If it gets hot, switch off immediately.

You may get a negative hit to SQ from stacking transformers - you can use your ears and let us know. Piano music will normally highlight any problems.

You can do what you like out of warranty...the more stupid, the bigger the repair bill :lol:
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CycleCoach (Fri Aug 20, 2021 2:15 pm)
I am in the hi-fi trade
Status: Manufacturer
Company Name: NVA Hi-Fi
https://nvahifi.co.uk/

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Latteman
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Re: The Analog Kid

Unread post by Latteman »

Just a thought- as the amps are rectangular could u lay on their side and be able to get them side by side- heat sinks facing out?
Analogue Source -
Denon DP47f- Ortofon mc20 supreme
Ifi Zen Phono
Doug Self balanced Pre amp
Akai 4000DS mk2 R2R
Digital Sources- IfI stream, Ifi Neo idsd Dac; Tidal / Radio Paradise
Amplification Nva 30vdc mono blocks
Speakers Lii Audio F-15 in Open Baffle; Ls6
Weiduka AC8.8- for digital sources
Mini BMU for analog sources

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Re: The Analog Kid

Unread post by Daniel Quinn »

The glue will certainly hold the transformer and caps.

Wether it does so indefinitely it anybodies guess.

On its side ,the transformer will only have glue to defy gravity.

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Re: The Analog Kid

Unread post by Fretless »

Interesting idea. Although the transformers will then be very close to each other.

:think:

Upstairs:
Vinyl
Pro-Ject 1.2 + Grado Sig Jr + Cambridge Alva Duo
DigiVolumio PC + Kiss DP-500 + Sabaj A20d
NVA: P50sa - Cube2 - SSP - LS6+ Sabaj A10a (x2)
Downstairs:
Vinyl
Logic DM101 + Syrinx LE1 + Grado Sig MCX
DigiDenafrips Ares II + Volumio PC + Cambridge CXC
NVA: P50 - BMU+ Aiyima A07 MAX (x2) + Arcam One
HP: HifiBerry Digi+ PRO + Sabaj A10d
Office:
Allo DigiOne SIG + SMSL M300se + Douk G4 (x2)
Mission 760 + Monolith THX AAA 887
Headphones: German Maestro, Monolith & AQ

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Re: The Analog Kid

Unread post by slinger »

Chunk McDaniel stacked his A80s using acrylic blocks. You even commented on the post at the time Fret.

https://www.hifisubjectivist.org/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=48639&p=157096&hilit=stack#p157096
Amps - NVA P50, AP30, A40, Stanislav Palo Tube Headphone Amp BB 85
Speakers - Monitor Audio Silver RX2
Cables - NVA LS1+LS3, SSC, Gotham S/PDIF, IBRA Optical
Digital - NAD C516BEE, SONY ST-SDB900 DAB TUNER, TEAC UD-H01 DAC
Analogue - Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Esprit SB, Graham Slee Gram Amp 2 Phono
Cans - Grado SR80, ATH-M50X

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Re: The Analog Kid

Unread post by Fretless »

Memory like a sieve!

:doh:

Upstairs:
Vinyl
Pro-Ject 1.2 + Grado Sig Jr + Cambridge Alva Duo
DigiVolumio PC + Kiss DP-500 + Sabaj A20d
NVA: P50sa - Cube2 - SSP - LS6+ Sabaj A10a (x2)
Downstairs:
Vinyl
Logic DM101 + Syrinx LE1 + Grado Sig MCX
DigiDenafrips Ares II + Volumio PC + Cambridge CXC
NVA: P50 - BMU+ Aiyima A07 MAX (x2) + Arcam One
HP: HifiBerry Digi+ PRO + Sabaj A10d
Office:
Allo DigiOne SIG + SMSL M300se + Douk G4 (x2)
Mission 760 + Monolith THX AAA 887
Headphones: German Maestro, Monolith & AQ

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slinger
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Re: The Analog Kid

Unread post by slinger »

I honestly don't know why I should have remembered it. I just felt sure it had come up when Richard was still with us. I'm guessing it was something like this he was using...

https://www.3ddisplays.co.uk/lifts-steps-blocks-c21/blocks-shapes-c24/7-5cm-solid-plinth-solid-acrylic-plinth-p891
Amps - NVA P50, AP30, A40, Stanislav Palo Tube Headphone Amp BB 85
Speakers - Monitor Audio Silver RX2
Cables - NVA LS1+LS3, SSC, Gotham S/PDIF, IBRA Optical
Digital - NAD C516BEE, SONY ST-SDB900 DAB TUNER, TEAC UD-H01 DAC
Analogue - Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Esprit SB, Graham Slee Gram Amp 2 Phono
Cans - Grado SR80, ATH-M50X

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