What sort of life can I expect from the valves in the LD III amp, please? My listening is usually 3 hours, most nights, at low-ish levels. I see one on fleabay, by a UK seller, slightly dearer than others direct from China - are import duties going to add to the cost of an imported one? Would it be suitable to drive Grado SR80s via Naim 72/140 amp? I will appreciate any responses.
Little Dot III headphone amp
- Thread starter GeoffreyW
- Start date
The general message is 1000 to 4000 hours because of the age of some of the valves I guess.
However, the benefit outweighs any cost in my opinion. I've bought some EF92 Mullard M8161s which can be bought for £20 delivered on FleaBay from the UK. Described as 'Best Bang for Buck' valves for the LD III.
There may be duty to pay, but I went for the 'slightly dearer' UK seller route to get one quicker and avoid the hassle and potential damage issues from Asia. Very happy.
Your Grados will be fine but why not simply link to source direct? (I'm lucky and have 2 outputs on my Cyrus) I'm guessing you will be linking to tape out or the like, but direct to me would be the logical step to avoid more electronics.
However, the benefit outweighs any cost in my opinion. I've bought some EF92 Mullard M8161s which can be bought for £20 delivered on FleaBay from the UK. Described as 'Best Bang for Buck' valves for the LD III.
There may be duty to pay, but I went for the 'slightly dearer' UK seller route to get one quicker and avoid the hassle and potential damage issues from Asia. Very happy.
Your Grados will be fine but why not simply link to source direct? (I'm lucky and have 2 outputs on my Cyrus) I'm guessing you will be linking to tape out or the like, but direct to me would be the logical step to avoid more electronics.
Geoffrey, you're welcome. Just to add that this little amp is fantastic. I'll sure you'll be very happy with one.
You can make an offer on eBay for the UK based seller one too - I bought through the same seller (but not on eBay). Very good service.
The power tubes will also need replacing at some point. I found a seller on eBay based in the Ukraine selling sets of 4 (unused) for about £13 delivered.
You can make an offer on eBay for the UK based seller one too - I bought through the same seller (but not on eBay). Very good service.
The power tubes will also need replacing at some point. I found a seller on eBay based in the Ukraine selling sets of 4 (unused) for about £13 delivered.
Graham, I've decided on this amp, in preference to the Graham Slee Novo kit amp. Unfortunately I've prevaricated too long, and he seems to have sold all his LD Mk 3s, so I'm trying to contact him. It's tempting to purchase direct from China from David Z-Z, and hope the import charges aren't too high. I think I'd always regret not buying the LD3.
Geoff
Geoff
Geoff, there will be more soon I'm sure. You won't regret it either. Fingers crossed he comes up trumps for you!
And why not Geoff!
There's something about the tubes in the LD3 for us hifi buffs and gadget freaks!
The bug has hit hard Geoff! Enjoy and merry Chrimble.
Let us know how you get on once you get a chance to listen. Remember, about 50 hours run in to hear it at it's best.
I've just bought some spare power valves (6N6P-I) x 4 for £7.00 plus £7.00 postage. Straight from the Ukraine!
Will do, Graham. Once it's up and running I'll be happier. Can you tell me if there's any limits to running hours please, Graham? When circumstances allow, I was thinking of putting the cdp on repeat, and leaving it running for as long as family life allows, but don't want do damage it. I guess heat will be a factor? Have you tried tube rolling yet? I mentioned the term to my mates at work, and some of them have very dirty minds There's still loads to learn about tube/valve amps.
Hi Geoff. They recommend 6-8 hours maximum running in and then at least a half hour break.
This forum (official) http://www.littledot.net/forum/ provides all the info you need.
I haven't tried rolling yet; I'm still enjoying the stock tubes to be honest. Just having a headphone system has made me rediscover my love of music and my collection, rather than being distracted by PCs, laptops etc. It draws you in and makes you concentrate on the music. I've even found myself reading lyrics too, which is something I've not done for years!
This forum (official) http://www.littledot.net/forum/ provides all the info you need.
I haven't tried rolling yet; I'm still enjoying the stock tubes to be honest. Just having a headphone system has made me rediscover my love of music and my collection, rather than being distracted by PCs, laptops etc. It draws you in and makes you concentrate on the music. I've even found myself reading lyrics too, which is something I've not done for years!
I use Mullard 8161 tubes in my Little Dot III with Sennheiser HD650s. I bought the amp secondhand from UK ebay seller for around £90 and am very pleased. The Mullards sound very good - plenty of detail but no harshness - I find I can listen for hours with no fatigue.
Don't forget that you will have to change the position of the jumpers/switches on the bottom of the amp for the 8161 tubes. My amp had switches to alter but I believe some Little Dot IIIs have jumpers instead.
Don't forget that you will have to change the position of the jumpers/switches on the bottom of the amp for the 8161 tubes. My amp had switches to alter but I believe some Little Dot IIIs have jumpers instead.
Hi there theadmans. Yes, the newer models have jumpers. Switches would have been easier to be honest but I've not yet done the Mullard switch....
Hi, Graham, your experiences with the stock tubes sounds promising. Guess I'll just have to be patient. Having had 3-week cold, my hearing is starting to return to normal, and to be honest, my current system's sounding terrific, and I'm wondering how much better the LD3 can be. I, too, love to read the CD booklets, whatever they contain; even if I know it well. Roll on Christmas Day!! But the family may have to manage without me for a while.
Hi, Graham, my Mullards arrived safe and sound (!) This morning, so I'm all ready for some interesting listening - just have to check how to swap jumpers when I can inspect the amp on Saturday. Just as well I joined the LD forum. I've been checking out De-oxit, to clean the pins with before use, and also to clean all my other connections. Have you any idea whether the Gold G5 is better than the G5 ? You certainly wouldn't want to squander it, at these prices! Also, it seems that it might be worth using it on the new tubes supplied with the LD3, judging by the posts on the LD forums.
Hi Geoff. Nice one! I bought some De-oxit from fleaBay and it was a tiny tube that's hardly been drawn from - it will last ages. I wouldn't worry about which one is best either - all much of a muchness in my opinion.
Not long to go now!
Not long to go now!
GeoffreyW:I can inspect the amp on Saturday.
Merry Christmas Geoff. Hope you got a chance to inpsect the LD III!
Merry Christmas Geoff. Hope you got a chance to inpsect the LD III!
Hi, Graham, hope you had great Christmas and Boxing Days? We certainly did. Yes, the LD was soon set up and running, using the tv sound, for about 12 hours. It sounded quite good initially, and, with random samplings during the day, is improving. My initial fears about it not being better than my csassette recorder were unfounded. I've not used it direct from the CD player yet, as it seems very good from the Naim tape outlet, so far. Bass notes are well rounded and firm, very realistic; higher frequences similarly so, crystal clear , and I'm understanding what "liquid sound" meant. So far, I've only listened to one full track (Tommy Smith - In a sentimental mood) as the sounds I'm hearing are fantastic, I'm swapping from Tomita to Hendrix, Elgar, Mahler 5, Bonamassa, Sinatra, Buble, big band, anything and everything, just to experience the sounds of different instruments. Must try some vinyl soon. There's terrific clarity to notes, with an enhanced sound stage. Did you have similar experiences? I would hace preferred the on/off switch to be at the front, perhaps. Looking underneath, yesterday, I see there appears to be 2 jumpers at the bottom of the front valves - are these the ones to move when changing valves? I also tried moving the dip switches, both to off, which I think is recommended to be the best position for my Grados, but need to do more comparisons with alternatives. I have also found myself winding the volume control up and up, but 30 seems optimum, but am getting some "resistance" from the adjoining seat, so may have to wind it down a tad.
Hi Geoff. Yes a great Christmas thanks, and another 6 days off!
Very similar experiences. I would experiment with the gain switches too as I prefer a full on 10 on my set up. The two jumpers should be in the 'holes' behind the switches, next to two large capacitors.
I will moving my kit next to my girlfriend's seat so may have to buy some closed backs methinks instead of the Senn 600s!
Enjoy and all the best.
Very similar experiences. I would experiment with the gain switches too as I prefer a full on 10 on my set up. The two jumpers should be in the 'holes' behind the switches, next to two large capacitors.
I will moving my kit next to my girlfriend's seat so may have to buy some closed backs methinks instead of the Senn 600s!
Enjoy and all the best.
They'll stop working when your cathode doesn't have have any more electrons to give which is never. The first twenty hours or so make a difference whilst the tubes/grids are being saturated but after that it's pretty standard. Tube rolling is your best bet if you're not happy at that stage.
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