Rega Elex-R Amplifier

[BigH]

Rains everyday, really, hardly rained here in 2 weeks. In fact my nearest weather centre has not had any rain since 1st September.

In fact Essex where Rega are based has about 20 inches of rain a year which I think you will find is less than many other countries inc. yours.

 

[chebby]

Rains everyday, really, hardly rained here in 2 weeks. In fact my nearest weather centre has not had any rain since 1st September.

Yes, same here, but we think it rains all the time and that's what counts. People are not very good at checking out weather stats. Plus people get more enjoyment from a good old moan to each other about the weather and don't want some smart-a### ruining everything by pointing out - correctly - that's it's really been fine.

If it only rains once - on the bank holiday they planned to have a barbeque - then they will remember it as "the summer when rain ruined my barbeque" and not "the summer when it only rained once".

 

[BigH]

Rains everyday, really, hardly rained here in 2 weeks. In fact my nearest weather centre has not had any rain since 1st September.

Yes, same here, but we think it rains all the time and that's what counts. People are not very good at checking out weather stats. Plus people get more enjoyment from a good old moan to each other about the weather and don't want some smart-a### ruining everything by pointing out - correctly - that's it's really been fine.

If it only rains once - on the bank holiday they planned to have a barbeque - then they will remember it as "the summer when rain ruined my barbeque" and not "the summer when it only rained once".

Yes, haha always rains on bank holidays. But rather be here than Germany.

 

[Vladimir]

United Kingdom ranked first for average rainfall in depth > mm per year amongst European Union in 2008.

Anyway. Here is a British technician fixing a Japanese AVR. Please endure the first few minutes. 🙂

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Evzuqpjycgw

 

[Burto]

 

[chebby]

United Kingdom ranked first for average rainfall in depth > mm per year amongst European Union in 2008.

Mostly in the northwest. Most people in the UK don't live there. (And once Scotland ceases to be in the UK then those rainfall stats will plummet.)

 

[Vladimir]

@Burto

You can see how they tucked in the preamp together with the logic board at front in a shielded compartment. Additionally shielded transformer, dual-mono configuration... Teac/Esoteric always made excellent audio porn.

 

[Burto]

Thanks for the opinion Vlad, i am no expert on design but have one of these units and it sounds very decent.

No love for Teac in the audio community and i can understand why. Had a few Teac amps and mostly average sound.

This one unit seems another league to the rest and dont think many are aware. Auditioned a FMJ recently and good as the Arcam is was a close call.

 

[nopiano]

The metal can in which the transformer sits is shielding, together with the metal cap. Such stamped metal can costs next to nothing so budgeting by leaving naked transformers is just not an argument, IMO.

Building kits from Wireless World magazine in your shed was the way to start a UK Hi-Fi company in those days. Get a BBC tender gig and off you go. But that isn't really an excuse.

Here is a simple shed made Exposure IV, but it has compartments, simple steel bracket to separate the noisy PSU from the PCBs.

Here is a Naim NAP 250.

. Thanks very much, and comparison well made. I know you aren't a big fan of the Salisbury mob!

 

[Vladimir]

Why unshielded transformers and flying wires inside amplifiers are bad design:

http://youtu.be/BPnPnaOoeus?t=6m22s

 

[Happy_Listner]

Vald,

So I noticed many designs do not use shielding directly around the transformer, are they using the heatsink to do it?

I noticed your Roksan K2 BT has a very large transfromer that is not shielded, but there is a long heatsink in the middle, does that help matters?

Why did you choose the Roksan?

 

[Vladimir]

Vald,

So I noticed many designs do not use shielding directly around the transformer, are they using the heatsink to do it?

I noticed your Roksan K2 BT has a very large transfromer that is not shielded, but there is a long heatsink in the middle, does that help matters?

Why did you choose the Roksan?

Roksan uses the heatsink as a barrier. It helps quite a lot considering the transformer is practically surrounded by 4 metal walls connected to ground (Faraday cage). It uses a single PCB, so no flying wires with zip ties to pick up EMI, it is very quiet.

They evolved from this:

To this:

I bought the Roksan Kandy K2 BT because it's the poor man's Accuphase. I don't care for the Bluetooth feature, I just wanted a clean, powerfull, silky smooth MOSFET amp.

 

[Happy_Listner]

I might have to look into one of those K2's. Looks like a heavy beast though, not sure I need all that power. I do like MOSFETS. Do you use a turntable with it? Wondering how the onboard phono pre is?

I could get the previous model a bit cheaper and I don't really need the BT feature, does the newer version come with better parts? Or do you think the older model is still ok technically?

Sound wise WHF, said about the new BT version: "It’s just a shame that some of the old, likeable character elements of the last K2 have been lost along the way." But I won't know the difference unless I compared them side by side which will never happen.

Tom

 

[plastic penguin]

Sound wise WHF, said about the new BT version: "It’s just a shame that some of the old, likeable character elements of the last K2 have been lost along the way." But I won't know the difference unless I compared them side by side which will never happen.

Tom

H_L - perhaps I can give you another point of view on the Kandys.

Can't comment on the BT version as I've yet to hear one, but my experience of the original K2 and the previous model LIII, which could be interesting.

Personally I believe Roksan have over refined the K2s, whilst a very good amp, the comparison with the LIII is it lacks a little fun, if not for a better word.

The LIII to my ears was a hoot to hear, albeit with the wrong type of music/set-up, could become a little boisterous in its presentation. Not saying one is better than the other... this maybe the case between the K2 and the new BT version.

 

[Covenanter]

Why unshielded transformers and flying wires inside amplifiers are bad design:

http://youtu.be/BPnPnaOoeus?t=6m22s

Good videos - thanks.

Chris

 

[Covenanter]

Just to add a rider to Vlad's posts (he's doing a great job) - one of the reasons people like me are sceptical about claims for many of the esoteric bits and pieces you can add to your hifi is that the biggest area where problems can arise is inside the boxes. If you spend £1000s on a piece of kit you should expect to find that they have paid attention to the simple things like shielding the transformer and if they haven't spending money on things outside that box will not be able to remedy that basic flaw.

Chris

 

[Vladimir]

Roksan with every Kandy and Caspian generation learned something and kept improving. The direction is clear, more power with less distortion and less noise, enveloped in balanced tonal character of their choosing (voicing) and with strict budget in mind. Of course some concepts were dead ends and they kept changing but there is an obvious line of progress. Objectively they are improving with every leap. Subjectively it is up to the customer/hi-fi journalist to decided if he likes the change or not.

Roksan in the new Kandy K2 BT added better ALPS volume pot, upgraded cheap general purpose caps (Samwha) to brand ones (United-Chemicon GPA), installed high quality Austrian power and USA telecom signal relays, changed cheap ceramic resistors to precise metal film Panasonics, installed faster and better rectification diodes, upgraded to bigger Noratel transformer with now 5 supply rails, completely removed Tape loop, etc.

Excellent.

And all these refinements to a basically identical K2, the K2 BT suddenly sounds worse. Alright, if that's what the WHF boys and girls hear, so be it. I will have to live without hearing the fine sonic textures of symphonic orchestra conductor's hair gel failing through my speakers. C'est cheveux. Hi-Fi Choice, Hi-Fi Pig and Hi-Fi World all absolutely loved the K2BT and gave it highest praise. If that matters to anyone.

The new K3 series is with redesigned front panels and £300 more expensive than the K2BT amp. Now they will solve the two biggest problems with the Kandy series. They were too eccentric looking and priced too cheap for what they really offer as a British designed and British made product (the front plates are made in Berlin mwahahaha).

 

[Vladimir]

PS

I haven't used the phono yet. People seem to like the phono in the old Creeks way more so fix that baby because you never know.

http://www.whathifi.com/forum/hi-fi/roksan-kandy-k2-phono-stage-sounds-worse-old-creek-4140s2-phono-tape-out-line-to-kandy

 

[gowiththeflow]

The K2BT is being price discounted by a number of retailers. Presumably they are clearing stocks due to the imminent arrival of the new K3 series?

As Vlad says, the quirky, almost eccentric looks have been ditched in favour of more mainstream looking, high quality German made alloy facias on the new K3 models.

.

 

[Happy_Listner]

Thanks a lot for all of the info Vald.

If I did decide on the K2 it would be the BT version. I would trust the updated and better premium parts in it.

I thought the phono in my Creek sounded unusally good for the price, better than all other integrated amps. that have passed through my system, except for the Croft. I already had to change the volume control and that made a noticible impovement in sound. The tech said Creek were using a really cheap volume pot anyways in the 4330. Maybe I'll see if he can solve some of the other problems it is having and/or upgrade it. Depending on cost it might be the way to go.

 

[BigH]

United Kingdom ranked first for average rainfall in depth > mm per year amongst European Union in 2008.

Mostly in the northwest. Most people in the UK don't live there. (And once Scotland ceases to be in the UK then those rainfall stats will plummet.)

Yes quite so, Scotland is about 1.5m, Wales 1.4m, Ireland surprising only about 1.1m, England about 0.8, SE England where about half the people live about 0.6 where Rega, Creek are based, not sure where Roksan are?

 

[Hi-FiOutlaw]

United Kingdom ranked first for average rainfall in depth > mm per year amongst European Union in 2008.

Anyway. Here is a British technician fixing a Japanese AVR. Please endure the first few minutes. 🙂

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Evzuqpjycgw

This is a first, a graf showing european numbers and Portugal is not on the bottom...

We should change the thread tittle...

 

[Happy_Listner]

@antskip, thanks for the comments.

Would you say the Elex-R is brighter, sharper, or leaner sounding than the Brio-R? Worried that the extra detail and resolution might mean extra sibilance, exaggerated T and S leading edge sounds. I don't like the sharp stuff. 🙂 Rather have musicality over resolution any day.

 

[matthewpiano]

You can talk until the end of time about what Roksan have done to the K2, but I wouldn't swap my Exposure 1010 for one. Neither would I pay the extra for one over a Brio-R. Likewise, my findings with the CD players are that the Apollo-R is a far nicer sounding machine than the K2.

 

[chebby]

You can talk until the end of time about what Roksan have done to the K2, but I wouldn't swap my Exposure 1010 for one. Neither would I pay the extra for one over a Brio-R. Likewise, my findings with the CD players are that the Apollo-R is a far nicer sounding machine than the K2.

Do you have the photos to prove that? 🙂