# The Zero MOD Thread - 24/192 DAC/H/Amp



## Pricklely Peete

This subject line has been a long time in coming. Hopefully the creation of which will alleviate the load on the reader having a thread with 700+ posts to wade through for the latest ruminations on tweaks, mods of all stripe etc....


 Please post related ideas, tweaks, mods etc...in this thread.



 Peete.


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## Pricklely Peete

I guess I'll get the ball rolling with the BA cap mod for the HDAM module.

 Simply put it's a 1uf film and foil cap (PIO Russian K42Y-2 160V in my case) of 50V rating or better connected parallel to the V- and V+ pins on the HDAM module.

 Here's a pic showing the solder points on the LC module (Lawrence Chan's first generation "Earth" module).

















 Please note second generation HDAM modules from audio-gd are far easier to add this cap to because of the pcb assembly of the units exposes good pad areas where the V- and V+ pins are located. The third pic shows BA's drawing of the HDAM pin outputs. 

 The V2 revs of HDAM have caps tied to gnd, 1 cap for each channel. It has yet to be determined if removal of these in favor of a PIO and hooked up the way BA suggests is the way to go....as always these things take time to compare and it is being looked at.

 Peete.


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## sennsay

Onya PP, who's going to be a happy FrankenZero owner soon then! ME, and I'm looking forward to it. Please put your feet up now with a nice glass of something and sit back, won't you. Well deserved indeed, mate.
 Many thanks for all your work, S-Man


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## Currawong

One of the suggestions by ccshua was to solder the earth wire from the HDAM to the RCA earth leg. I'm guessing this fixes some or other issue with voltage or current as the sound becomes more punchy and clear.

 Since I use the Zero only as a DAC, I unplugged the head/pre amp as it was a waste of energy not to. Didn't notice any significant change in SQ as a result though.


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## Pricklely Peete

Agreed Currawong I have now soldered the DAC HDAM's ground wire to the RCA jacks ground.

 I haven't noticed anything (when unplugging the H/Amp power connector from the main pcb) other than the voltage regs on the main pcb are now quite a bit cooler than before.

 Sennsay...thanks man !!! It's been a crazy 24 hours around here 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Peete.


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## Pricklely Peete

This is a mod to isolate the Zero's Headphone amp from the stock power supply and transformer (allowing use of HDAM modules in the H/Amp opamp sockets)

 It's a wee bit expensive and not very practical for the average Zero owner but it certainly does allow for the full use of the 3 HDAM config with great results.

 Personally I opted for this mod because I felt the H/Amp section could be improved by giving it it's own highly regulated power supply (plus 50VA transformer)

 The PS1 kit is DIY from Welborne labs. All specs and such are located at the web site. I'm running the reg board at -15 0 +15V DC as per the spec for the Zero's head amp requirements. Current is limited to 1.5 amps at this time but the board can easily scale to 3amps with a transformer swap.

 Here are some pics of it's construction and it's use with the FrankenZERO.
















 The Head amp has considerable balls now......the whole mod is still in burn in from extra modifications I added ( 8 bypass caps on the reg board) and 4 more bypass caps on the Head amp's beefed up electrolytic caps. Power supply caps were swapped from 330uf 16V to 1500uf 25V Nichicon PW's. The 47uf 10V Silmic caps were swapped for 47uf 35V Elna Silmic II's (both sets of these bypassed with .047uf 160V PIO) The same PIO's were used to bypass the 8 reg board caps.

 I would say for 95 % of the Zero owners this mod is for the die hard cost no object type of person and I don't recommend anyone doing this mod unless they can source far cheaper options than the PS1 kit. It certainly was fun doing this modification. The whole Headphone amp has to be relocated into another chassis which adds even more cost to this mod...all told it makes little sense cost wise. 

 Peete.


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## LeBuLLeT

Peete do you think that PS1 kit mod was worth the sound in upgrade? Do you think it would just be better to get a separate head amp?


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *LeBuLLeT* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Peete do you think that PS1 kit mod was worth the sound in upgrade? Do you think it would just be better to get a separate head amp?_

 

I think that money is better spent on a dedicated amp. I only included the PS1 mod because I had done it......for those not able to buy a dedicated amp the PS1 mod could be a good solution. 

 It was an experiment to see how far the Zero's Head amp could be taken. It's better for sure with the PS1 mod, as good as a dedicated amp (like the MK III which cost an additional 150US) is debatable. With the new LD I+ for instance the PS1 mod makes very little economic sense. 

 My idea was/is to create a one box solution aka FrankenZERO SST for the cottage (using 3 HDAMs) with a traditional CDP as source (heavily rebuilt and modified as well). Space for my stuff is an issue and I need a compact setup when heading to the lake every summer.

 Peete.


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## Pricklely Peete

C'mon guys without end user participation in this thread it's useless....start posting your various mods and ideas please.

 Peete.


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## majkel

I guess all mods were posted in another thread. People won't be willing to repeat. BTW do you find Silmic II sounding better than Silmic? I don't, at least where I tried. Silmic ROS is more natural than RFS IMHO.


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## PyrotekNX

This is closest to the DIY section, so I will have to post it here. I was replacing my broken TOSLINK connector the other day, and I think there was a bridged connection. The mosfet in the left rear closest to the power plug got very hot to the touch, and the LEDs in the front panel were not lit. I cut the bridge, and the LEDs came back. Now when I plug in the TOSLINK or the digital coax, the signal LED on the board does not light, and I am not hearing the click I usually get when the board senses a digital signal. Anyone have any idea what might have fried? I did not see any sparks, and there wasn't a short as far as I know. Everything seems to power up fine, except for the digital input.


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## bundee1

Anyone have pictures and tips on how to do the alps pot mod? I got mine and was wondering how to remove the blue casing.


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## Currawong

I just realised you posted this in the main Zero thread, but I'll post my reply here too: You need the model from Lawrence (the Zero seller). The regular blue Alps pot wont fit and the casing can't be removed.


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## Pricklely Peete

Swapped out the crappy digital coax in for a CMC jack and some silver wiring

 Tough to say if it's better SQ overall but I'm sure it can't hurt....an easy tweak for sure 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Heres a pic of it in use.....









 Peete.


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## StratCat

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *bundee1* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Anyone have pictures and tips on how to do the alps pot mod? I got mine and was wondering how to remove the blue casing._

 

Bundee1 -

 IIRC, you ordered the pot with the square blue housing, like this ALPS RK27 Series

 The pot I just received from Lawrence looks similar to this VRA-100S100

 (But it is labelled ALPS 820G 100KAX2)

 Mine looks similar to the one Penchum used in his ALPS upgrade. I'm not sure if yours will fit (but hey, give it a try). If it doesn't fit (and you don't mind risking destroying the pot) there might be a way to remove the blue housing, but I have no idea if that'll destroy the pot or not.

 If you have the correct pot it's a simple R&R direct replacement job. I'll be replacing mine soon, and will try to get some pics and post here, but can't give a specific time frame other than "soon" (read: soon as I get time and am not too lazy).

 Good luck.

 Edit: Ahhh...just seen you are well advanced with this now in the main Zero thread...oh well, this thread gets a free-on-me bump!


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## Pricklely Peete

Here a pic showing my Alps installation









 Not the greatest pics....

 Peete.


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## bundee1

thanks for the pics and help peete and Stratcat. Any images and advice are of great value to this thread. I'm going to do some more soldering practice this week so by the time my new pot comes in I'll be ready.


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## bundee1

Peete how did you connect the thin ground wire in the pot picture? Is that hot glue? Are you just reconnecting the existing one?


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## mz5

hi PP and all

 i did mod my zero then i found your page. most i have done are similar to your except for the VitaminQ on Earth and 0.1uf tantalum as bypass cap.

 i also use Precision regtifier to drive the HP/amp 

 something to ask. i want to change the audio interconnect from pre-amp to Hp/amp but am not sure which line are the audio cables since i see 8 of the cables from pre-amp to Hp/amp. Cound you please direct me?

 now i am thinking of mod the dac clock. have to study the replacement part first. Texus Ins looks good but not sure if that would help.

 will post some photo 2nite 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 thanks

 PS: the moding are fun now since i found some friends here


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## espressogeek

This thread is a great idea so you don't have to parse to the dozens of pages on the other Zero thread. Perhaps I will get a Zero when I complete some of my current projects. Kudos to all !


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## bundee1

I just tried to do my first mod on the rca jacks but when I opened I realized what it entailed and retreated for more info. 

 Peete Im having trouble with the nut that comes with the jack. One of them wont screw all the way down so I cant get the jack to secure to the case. 

 My first question is in what order do the plastic spacers and nut go on the jack?

 Where did you buy that wire you are using for the jacks?

 Where do you connect the ground wire on the white jack?


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *bundee1* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Peete how did you connect the thin ground wire in the pot picture? Is that hot glue? Are you just reconnecting the existing one?_

 

Just soldered it onto the side of the pot casing bundee1. The old pot you heat up to get this wire loose. Be careful it's delicate, solder in the new pot...clean a spot (alcohol swab or Q-tip dipped in rubbing alcohol) on the Alps casing where you want to re-attach the ground wire and solder the wire onto the new pot's casing on the clean spot.

 It takes a while for the casing to get hot enough so be patient with the iron on it. Have the solder close by ready to go once you see it flow on the casing (a tiny bit).

 Peete.


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *bundee1* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_I just tried to do my first mod on the rca jacks but when I opened I realized what it entailed and retreated for more info. 

 Peete Im having trouble with the nut that comes with the jack. One of them wont screw all the way down so I cant get the jack to secure to the case. 

 My first question is in what order do the plastic spacers and nut go on the jack?

 Where did you buy that wire you are using for the jacks?

 Where do you connect the ground wire on the white jack?_

 

Regular jacks or CMC jacks ?

 The spacer with the inner groove (that sticks out a hair is located first on either side of the stock hole flush up against the metal. Try it a few times until you get it right.....The nuts themselves don't have to be super tight...just tight enough that they don't come loose from use.

 Don't twist cables on or off is a another good tip.

 The wire I had on hand and I got some good wire from Kingwa (as part of the HDAM bundle + CMC RCA jacks, I received last week).

 Once you get it right bundee1 you'll never forget how......look up various types and methods of install via You Tube instruction videos.....lots of good stuff there for that.

 Peete.


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *mz5* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_hi PP and all

 i did mod my zero then i found your page. most i have done are similar to your except for the VitaminQ on Earth and 0.1uf tantalum as bypass cap.

 i also use Precision regtifier to drive the HP/amp 

 something to ask. i want to change the audio interconnect from pre-amp to Hp/amp but am not sure which line are the audio cables since i see 8 of the cables from pre-amp to Hp/amp. Cound you please direct me?

 now i am thinking of mod the dac clock. have to study the replacement part first. Texus Ins looks good but not sure if that would help.

 will post some photo 2nite 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 thanks

 PS: the moding are fun now since i found some friends here 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	


_

 

Good stuff MZ5.........the clock is pretty darn good as it is.....never the less it would be interesting to see a Tentlabs TX03 plus full power supply in a Zero 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Terribly expensive but cool !!!

 Hows your Zero sound ?

 Peete.


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## ccschua

For the RCA connection, kingwa told me twice that the insulation material at the inside of ZERO dac should not be used. Meaning the ground pin of RCA will touching the casing. I doubted what kingwa say at first but then from many photo of the cdp, I saw the internal insulation piece is not used. wonder if this is correct. 

 pls see photo by Kindwa. The coaxial and RCA ground is connected to casing.


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## mz5

after Peete confirm that modding the clock won't help. now i am thinging if it possible to send out a Balance signal from the Zero Dac? or the pre-amp ?

 if so would that sound better ?

 let do some study on this 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 this should be fun.


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## ccschua

Haliluya,

 PP u got the cap modded. I thot u would go Oscon. how about Blackgate to replace the Blue KLE.

 also the yellow cap, when u gonna replace with red WIMA.

 Our modded unit replace the rca decoupling cap with Silver mica, which serve as ground look breaker. perhaps can try.


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## mz5

ccschua : oscon is good for digital and i agree with that.BG too expensive 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 but if you can find them with good price please let me know. replacing all the yellow caps would be real pain here 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 IMHO replacing the R feedback for the pre and HP-amp to something like Dale or even Caddock Resistors - Caddock High Performance Film Resistors would gain more SQ. BUT which one are the feedback ???? i have bad eyes with this little thinks 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 (i will have to consult my guru for this)

 some said caddock would give a tube like and more detail (got it from some review on Thai web site)

 for the best result : do them all ... cheer 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 ps: i did add some pics of my Zero on the earier posted


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *espressogeek* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_This thread is a great idea so you don't have to parse to the dozens of pages on the other Zero thread. Perhaps I will get a Zero when I complete some of my current projects. Kudos to all !_

 

Thanks eg...hopefully with a little time, it will be a complete resource that will be easy to reference for prospective mod junkies....

 Peete.


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *ccschua* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_For the RCA connection, kingwa told me twice that the insulation material at the inside of ZERO dac should not be used. Meaning the ground pin of RCA will touching the casing. I doubted what kingwa say at first but then from many photo of the cdp, I saw the internal insulation piece is not used. wonder if this is correct. 

 pls see photo by Kindwa. The coaxial and RCA ground is connected to casing. 



_

 

But then you loose the benefit of Audio ground versus chassis ground don't you ? I've always used the washers in this way. Both sides of the chassis hole. Maybe that's been wrong all along ? 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 WBT suggests and has suggested for years both sides of the chassis the washers have to be used to isolate the jack from the chassis.....

 I'm not saying what Kingwa recommends is incorrect, I just don't see why he'd suggest that. Makes no sense to me.

 What about you CC ?....doesn't that seem a little odd. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Every after market jack I've bought in the last 25 years has 2 plastic washers with a lip on the inner circle to locate the jack washer in the center of the chassis hole. 

 It sounds great to me with both washers used ......just looked at other gear using top quality jacks...washers on both sides for RCA and speaker jacks (all WBT, some Neutrik , some AQ and Edison Price Copper billet speaker Jacks)

 Not a single one does without a plastic spacer of some kind/thickness on either side.



 Peete.


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *ccschua* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Haliluya,

 PP u got the cap modded. I thot u would go Oscon. how about Blackgate to replace the Blue KLE.

 also the yellow cap, when u gonna replace with red WIMA.

 Our modded unit replace the rca decoupling cap with Silver mica, which serve as ground look breaker. perhaps can try._

 

It'll be a while before I do anymore to the Zero. I have other projects on the go...but I'm keeping a close eye on this thread and the other 2...since my heart is with Frank every time I fire up the comp based system and listen 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 The only thing I may do is replace a couple more 100uf KLE's and maybe swap the Panasonic FC 100uf 25V for OS-CONs (same value 16V if I can find some locally for not much money). BG's are out of the question and WIMA's I don't really like their sound sig too much (except the Black Box caps).

 Which cap mod are you talking about CC...there are so many now it 's hard to keep track of them all..
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	






 Mz5 I didn't say it wasn't worth upgrading the clock can in the Zero, all I said is it's a fairly decent clock in there now and it might be better to spend that money elsewhere. Any new clock can will cost 30US minimum...a TentLabs TX02 kit is over 100US, and TX03 with SPDIF re-clock 135US..add in the power supply and reg board your well over 250US....makes no sense to me to spend that on the Zero...a killer CDP or much higher end base unit DAC ...(if compatible) then Yes. No doubt it would be fun to see what a new hi end clock and PSU would add to the mix....If I upgrade my TX02 unit + custom PSU to a TX03 I can do it but I'd need that new 49.XXXX MHz can to try.

 If you want to though, then I say go for it.....once caveat, it's hard to locate a 49.1520 Mhz clock. I looked around for one that didn't cost a fortune (*cough LC Audio cough*). Tentlabs may have that frequency but you'll have to email Guido and ask him. I don't see it listed at DIY HI FI supply or at Guido's web site (Tentlabs....Guido's surname is Tent).

 Peete.


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## Currawong

Out of interest, my Lavry DA10 arrived today and I have started to compare it to the Zero. The Lavry's HP amp demolishes the one in the Zero, not surprisingly, but the HDAM upgraded Zero with superfluous caps snipped is not _that_ far off that I can't imagine upgrading the RCA jacks and caps wouldn't bring the DAC section tantalizingly close.


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Currawong* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Out of interest, my Lavry DA10 arrived today and I have started to compare it to the Zero. The Lavry's HP amp demolishes the one in the Zero, not surprisingly, but the HDAM upgraded Zero with superfluous caps snipped is not that far off that I can't imagine upgrading the RCA jacks and caps wouldn't bring the DAC section tantalizingly close._

 

It would be interesting to pit the FrankenZERO against the Lavry......that sure is a nice DAC CW !!!

 Not surprised by the DA10 H/Amp stomping the Zero's....

 I bet your having a lot of fun lately with the new gear 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Peete.


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## espressogeek

And it should for the price, no ? 

 I have not seen the schematic for the zero headphone amp but it looks like a cmoy with a couple of buffers thrown on the outputs. A good cmoy can sound really good with high impedance phones but it definitely can be improved upon. I wonder what it would take to bring it up to snuff.


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## Pricklely Peete

Agreed eg,

 Check out what I did to it (Zero's H/Amp) on page 1. It's way better than stock now.

 Heres a couple of crappy pics....























 Peete.


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## espressogeek

Wow, thanks for sharing! Do the discrete op amps really sound that much better than a good National op amp or 627? I want to buy some but the shipping is crazy for just one or two. Also, is that a dedicated power supply for the head amp? What voltage are you sending to it? Do you have the schematic for the head amp?

 If the discrete op amps sound that good I want to try them in my pimeta!


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## Currawong

Yes, they do sound that much better. I'm going to try a pair of them in my LD MKV and I'm hoping more people will give them a go in other opamp-based gear.


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## mz5

Thanks Peete,
 i won't do anything for the clock anymore  
 and what do u use for power cable ?

 will show you the pics after RCA, coax connector and signal cable mods

 has any one try this setup? earth on the pre and mood on the hp/amp . how is it compare to sun on the pre and earth on the hp/amp?


 Thanks


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *espressogeek* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Wow, thanks for sharing! Do the discrete op amps really sound that much better than a good National op amp or 627? I want to buy some but the shipping is crazy for just one or two. Also, is that a dedicated power supply for the head amp? What voltage are you sending to it? Do you have the schematic for the head amp?

 If the discrete op amps sound that good I want to try them in my pimeta!_

 

Hi eg,

 Sorry for taking so long to answer your questions...I've been very busy of late as you can well imagine.

 I'll answer what I can...the schematic has been requested but no one is filling that request ( I guess they want to protect the topology from copy cats....wise idea when you consider all the clones in China).

 That is a totally separate power supply for the H/Amp. It completely isolates the H/Amp from the Zero's power supply and takes the strain off the 2 regulators in the Zero's analog section. There are cheaper ways to achieve this same result. I paid quite a bit for this kit (and had to assemble it all) so my advice would be to source your PSU from Chinese suppliers if you should go this route.

 You need a +15 0 -15 VDC output from the regulator board to the 3 pads underneath the Head amp board where the old black 3 wire power cable attached (now unattached ). The transformer is a basic toroidal that delivers 50MA is configurable at the primary for either voltage standard with the secondaries delivering 25V x 2. Most places you buy their psu module from will be able to help you select the proper spec transformer or will have the exact specs you'll need to submit to another store so that combination will function properly. The rule of thumb is the transformers secondaries are higher in output going into the reg board. The voltage regulators need a higher voltage on their inputs in order to output the regulated target voltage for the amp/dac etc's requirements.


 Shipping for the audio-gd HDAM's is very reasonable compared to eBay stores. I think my shipping charge is 15US for DHL Express which has to travel from China to N America.

 That's a pretty darn good deal not to mention the bonus extra's Kingwa includes with each order. Check the website for news on those offers.

 I think that covers everything that I can answer eg 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Peete.


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## mz5

just change my RCA and coax to CMC RCA 805-2.5-Ag Silver Plate and interconnect with kimber pbj

 also the picture of HP-amp external power connector


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## ccschua

Nice work.

 Lately I had some problems with hunting on the Coaxial input of ZERO DAC. I somehow stick to optical connection to avoid the hunting problem.


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## bgt

Redid the position of the HDAM
 Much cooler now.










 BTW the offset mod. really works well. Very happy with it.


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## bgt

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Asylum years* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Is the HDAM sticked to the 2200uF cap? I woulnd't feel too confortable about that. It could put strain on its legs and compromise its reliability with time._

 

No problem, by the time it would give a problem the zero is old or replaced by a better 1.


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## Pricklely Peete

removed


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Asylum years* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Headphoneus Superbus. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	





 And paranoiac._

 

More useful contributions.....

 Peete.


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## MasZakrY

I couldn't find any detailed information about the HDAM capacitor mod. Can anyone provide some pictures and how this mod effects the SQ? Thanks


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *MasZakrY* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_I couldn't find any detailed information about the HDAM capacitor mod. Can anyone provide some pictures and how this mod effects the SQ? Thanks 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	


_

 

Page 1 has the details but no SQ reviews. I find it adds some tangible benefits.

 YMMV...

 Peete.


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## bgt

so, time for another mod. is recase and redo the parts(some) on the PCB.


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## Pricklely Peete

I'm lovin' the way you think Bert.......I'm as intrigued with where you are headed as other's are I bet 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 I look forward to the end result (if there is such a thing ) !!!

 Peete.


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## ccschua

Can I know the main 2200uF KLE cap is taking what voltage ? is it taking in at 17V or 15V ? Can I use 16V cap ?


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *ccschua* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Can I know the main 2200uF KLE cap is taking what voltage ? is it taking in at 17V or 15V ? Can I use 16V cap ?_

 

Hi CC,

 I wouldn't go below 25V for that pair. Voltage is +21.2 and -21.5 VDC on mine, just measured it now with my DMM.

 Peete.


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## sennsay

Although not a difficult job, this rebuild can be rather fiddly and there are a number of things to watch out for, especially for noobies and these tips are mostly for them. If it seems daunting, please get some more skilled help, as I cannot be held responsible for Zero's going phut! This is your own choice to take this task on board. 
 While a number of Head-Fi readers have already modded their Zeros to varying degrees, I am going to focus specifically on the FrankenZero, though these tips can apply to any circuit board mods or creations from scratch. There will be a few photos along the way to add to my meaning, something I've always appreciated when building kits. 

 Firstly, some essential tools:

 A nice fine tipped soldering iron, no more than 25W is needed here. I also used a very fine tipped battery powered iron, which came in very handy at times.

 Solder wick - preferably the fine stuff, 1.5mm is plenty, you'll use a bit of it and it's particularly useful reaching under raised parts on the top of the board.

 Solder sucker, de-soldering pump, whatever name is appropriate for your country of origin.

 An old toothbrush and some Isopropyl alcohol to clean the newly soldered areas underneath the board when you're done. 

 An old white towel. Once you've taken your main board (and amp) from the case, lay it on the towel, it stops things moving around and it's a heck of a lot easier to see any parts that you are about to put onto the board and any that you may drop. 

 Other tools you'll need are some tweezers (I've used a terrific pair of medical ones for many years) or fine long nosed pliers, small wire cutters for trimming legs after soldering. 

 I also found a small 1mm drill bit was necessary in a couple of places to clear holes that were rather tight. You may be able to get away without this, but I found it invaluable, particularly for parts with thicker legs like the diodes and the larger power caps. 
 I used a battery powered hobby drill for this job, like a Dremel or similar. 
*A brief warning here: be very careful that you don't over do it and wreck a soldering pad that is part of a copper track!! 
 The copper tracks in the Zero are rather thin! While I have a warning here, please don't use too much heat on the solder pads to remove a part, you might end up lifting the copper and worse, cracking or tearing a pad away from the track! It happens, I did it with a pad that fortunately wasn't attached to a track and there are a few like that. 
 You ought to be ok with it, just be aware though. *

 Righto, let's get into it. 

 The board itself is pretty easy to remove, don't get too boisterous prising out the two sets of power connectors though, I noticed one of mine by the 5V regs was already cracked on assembly. 

 A tip here, especially for taller folks like me, find a platform to raise the work area to near chest height, it saves greatly of the back and shoulders! The lay your old towel over the platform. Take your HDAM or op-amps out of the socket and put it away somewhere, then I tend to start with the tall components and get them off the board first, it lays flatter after that. Remove the 4 power supply caps; put the tip of your iron on the solder pad and apply heat enough to melt the solder, then using the solder sucker (I'm used to that expression) place it right over the tip of the iron and suck up the solder. Eject the solder from the pump and push the plunger down again ready for the next pad. 
 You'll get the hang of it after several goes. Once you've done, say, one capacitor (two pads) use the solder wick to suck up the remaining solder; lay the end of the wick on the pad around the part's leg and apply the side of the iron's tip on top of the wick, you'll literally see the solder disappearing from the pad once it's done correctly. Please don't hold the iron there too long! If the solder is not sucking into the wick, just change the position of the iron's tip to give it a bit more heat, it's easier to do than describe. Once you've got it, you've got it. 
 You will need to use the wick on the pad at the top of the board under the component as well, in many cases. Please be patient here, this is the most time consuming and trickiest part of the whole job, I reckon. 

 Once the caps are done, then do all of the diodes, as specified in PP's instructions. Do all at once is easiest. Do this for all the remaining parts. Use the solder wick to clean up all of the solder pads, carefully. I specify 1-1.5mm wick because it uses a lot less heat to desolder than wider wick. If you have a hole with solder in the middle of it, sometimes it can be sucked out with the wick, or, if you can stand the board on it's edge, heat the pad on one side of the board and use the vacuum of the solder sucker/pump on the other side to remove the solder. If that fails, that's where the tiny drill bit can come in handy as a last resort. I needed to a couple of times. 

 Ok, then you are ready for the next stage, once all components that need to be are removed. 

 It's good practice to always start with the lowest/smallest parts on the board and this applies to starting from a new board as well. Start with the diodes then, pre-bending them and lay them out on the towel. You can use one the old diodes that you've removed as a pattern if you like. Bend them gently with the long nosed plier or tweezers. See pic below. I wanted the pics with the associated paragraph, but it may not turn out that way. 

 Start in one area with a small group of diodes, say, the ones around the digital power supply (PS) on the corner of the board near the transformer. Be very watchful that you replace the diodes exactly as is marked on the board, the cathode end of the diode is marked with a white bar, as is also marked on the board, see pic below. If you don't, you will be sending smoke signals that you got it wrong on firing up again! The silk screening on the Zero's board is correct, follow it and you will be fine. 

 Same goes for the capacitors, the barred side of the silk screened circle under the caps is the NEGATIVE side of the polarised capacitor, which is also clearly marked on the cap body itself - the white stripe with the - - on it is NEGATIVE. 

 Something to watch for: some of the capacitors are raised above the circuit board, there's an extremely good reason for this, you have to solder those legs on the top of the board as well! It becomes obvious when you look closely at the board, but if you miss one you may have a problem later. There are a few of the caps that are soldered to tracks on the top of the board and underneath to a pad only that is not connected to a track. IF you lift one of these pads that are connected to no copper track, just don't worry about it at all, just solder the top pad and you're done. 

 A soldering tip. When soldering, you apply the iron FIRST to the pad and component leg TOGETHER. If you heat the pad and not the leg, the solder won't stick to the component leg very well and a dry joint could well be a problem later. This is especially essential when using silver solder if you choose to use it. Once the leg and pad are heated (gently) apply the solder so that it flows around the leg and pad, then remove the iron. I always let the legs cool before snipping the extra length off, usually soldering several components first then cut all the legs later, this lets the join solidify. I've had joins fracture when cutting them too soon. There's a picture here of a group of diodes I've soldered, note also that the solder is shiny and bright, unlike many of the joins that came with my unit. *A dull join is a bad join, more often than not! *

 Now we're getting somewhere, if all that has gone well, then comes the addition of the Russian Beauties! This can get tricky from the point of view of placing the green caps around the board so that they all fit in without shorting other components. I find the neatest way is the best way (pics below). Straighten the legs first and heat shrink the protective tubing onto them, then bend the legs into the required shapes, the pics below and those that PP has given you with the kit instructions are a good guide. Once you've done a few, it's pretty straight (um ... bent ..) forward. You'll need to shape them so that the capacitor body lies very close to the board to fit between the board and the case when reassembling. Do your best to get this right first up, as relying on squishing the caps flatter when you put the board back can easily strain a solder join! 
 On firing my board up for the first time, I had no power to the front panel or the digital stages, yet had power to the analogue stages and amp. The problem turned out to be a cracked copper track where I had soldered a Russian Beauty to one of the power supply caps in the digital stage. This is very thin copper and it's not hard to crack a track when bending a PIO cap a little flatter! All became well when I made a new little bit of track with a leg cut-off and Frankie fired up to my great delight!

 I will reiterate that neatness assembling the line-up of PIOs makes things easier! Be careful with the four around the DAC, I have included a pic here, though I believe PP has more with the instructions in the kit. 

 The amp mods are pretty straight forward after the main board! 

 Lastly, there is the big 1uF PIO for the HDAM, if you have one (For God's sake, why NOT? 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




) Pic below. I found it fit quite well as shown in the photograph, I don't like adding extra leg, so to speak, if I can help it. Well, not in this context, anyway. 
 My HDAM sits quite nicely in there with the cap just resting on one of the relays. 

 CHECK ALL SOLDER JOINTS for clean and shiny solder and that there are no tiny cracks in the copper tracks around them! Better now than later. Use a magnifier if you have to. Many techs do. 

 Once the boards have all the parts soldered in, use the toothbrush dipped in a little Isopropyl alcohol to scrub up your joins - not too forcefully - and remove excess flux, either on your own joins, and/or the original soldering on the board if it needs it. 

 Well, that's about it for the moment, if there's anything I've forgotten, I will add it in later or someone will remind me about something. I welcome any other questions you might have and I will answer as best I can, or PP too. 

 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Now for the very best part! If all has gone well and Frankie has fired up ok and you have music streaming from the DAC, you have many many hours of delights that await you. 
 My God, do you ever! The effort is worth it, persevere if you have an issue here or there, there are a number of us who can help out. 
 In fact, the joys of Frankie are so great that I feel a little emotional even starting to talk about it now. Forget how the old Zero used to sound, it's gone now. Even from cold and new, things are quite different, if a little cool and edgy for the first couple of hours. You ought to notice that everything is bigger and this will increase as time goes by. I'm not going to go too may details here, Penchum has a no doubt magnificent write up and review coming that will describe in his inimitable way pretty much what I and PP have experienced. It will stun you, knock your socks off, take you into a realm where the meaning of budget audio is completely blasted into whole new dimensions of musical expression. You may find yourself not even considering price any more, as it has become rather meaningless in light of how Frankie transforms over time into something vastly beyond such considerations. It takes time. The PIO caps take a long time to form, some 250 hours plus. My Frankie is only at the 100 hour mark and has gone through several stages of quite gobsmacking shifts in all areas of musical expression. So have I, for that matter! 
 Ah me, sometimes I have been completely lost for words, (though when I could find them, PP's had a few!). True musical expression comes from and moves to the heart and this is where Frankie excels magnificently, stunningly, gently, stupendously, exquisitely. Beautifully. I am utterly spellbound, even at this very moment, by an effortless flow of musical art flowing into my being that transcends the very electronics themselves, a gestalt of beauty. 
 Albums I could barely listen too previously have become gems, old favourites are shifted into new realms of musical communication and expression, all instruments and human voices gain a level of reality and solidity that I have rarely heard from megabuck gear, let alone anything remotely considered quality budget kit. We're talking quantum leaps here in ways that are very difficult to describe, though I'm pretty sure Pench will take you much closer to that understanding. Best of all, experience it for yourself! 
 Here's something I didn't expect, Frankie's amp has turned into quite something else! 
 True, it is still no KHA (speaking personally, of course), but this amp is an absolute hoot of a ride with my Denon D1000's!! Man, did I have a ball with the B52s this evening! 
 I had originally found the amp somewhat lacking in pizzazz, chutzpah and general interest, likable enough at times, but not really my cuppa Joe. Well, that's out the window now, she's come to life and kicks butt, even if the highs are still not that extended or the lowest bass for that matter (the Meier 2Move cleans it up for neutrality and extension both ends of the spectrum, as I found out this evening with Frankie's DAC connected). It's a blast and good news for Denon owners who choose Frankie as a new life. 

 PS Gear used by myself for these musings are, FrankenZero (Frankie) with OPA Earth HDAM in the DAC; KHA (my kit amp) as Mk I.5 with with OPA Moon onboard, amp is upgraded with Nichicon Muse FG and FA caps and Elna Silmic II caps in power supply and on the main board and Russian PIO caps in the output stages. Headphones are Senn HD 650 and Denon D1000's. 

 Adding the higher SQ cps to KHA has taken it to new heights of musical expression as well and is still burning in, with the same number of hours as Frankie. Stunning upgrade! 


 S-Man 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	





Attachment 9815

Attachment 9817


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## Pricklely Peete

Wow...great job Sennsay !!! I'm a little speechless...which as you know is an usual state for me 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 When you find the time could you carbon copy this to the FrankenZERO thread please. 

 Thanks for doing this wonderful "how to" guide....this will surely help those attempting the mod in the near future (you know who you are people 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 ).

 Many many thanks !!!

 Best Wishes and Regards to all,

 Peete.


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## sennsay

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Pricklely Peete* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Wow...great job Sennsay !!! I'm a little speechless...which as you know is an usual state for me 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 When you find the time could you carbon copy this to the FrankenZERO thread please. 

 Thanks for doing this wonderful "how to" guide....this will surely help those attempting the mod in the near future (you know who you are people 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 ).

 Many many thanks !!!

 Best Wishes and Regards to all,

 Peete._

 


 Hey, PP, done dude, now it's in two posts. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 It's had a couple of minor edits as well. I think it's done, for now! If I think of anything else, I'll add it as time goes by. Sorry about your speech impediment. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 S-Man


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## Pricklely Peete

I seem to be slowly recovering my vocabulary S-Man 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




.....now for the onslaught of goblins and ghosts from the 5 ft and under club.....some of the outfits leave me just as speechless (LOL).

 Happy Halloween everyone !!!

 Peete.


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## bgt

modded zero:
 all supply(+decoupling caps. at IC's) caps. are rubycon ZLH type.
 V regulators are the Recom 78xx series SMPS's.
 Toroid is 7VA. Housing = Galaxy 247 from audiokit.
 Heat=just warm, only the HDAM earth.


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## Currawong

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *bgt* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Oops, put my mod. in the wrong thread.
 How to move it to the Zero MOD thread?
 Currawong, yes its a pitty the HDAM is in the place it is right now although I can hear no effect of it being where it is now.
 But ofcourse the best is to have it directly at the 8pin socket.
 I am still not sure though if I keep it in? I will burn it in for 300 hrs and than compare it again to the OPA627 and LM49722's._

 

I'll reply to you in this thread. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 I'm burning in some new Earth, Sun and Moon HDAMs, which I'll report back about fairly soon. I found I could squeeze a couple into my LD MKV, so i'll be able to get a better impression.

 What I'm interested in is, since I'm not _that_ great with electronics, is what I need to do to sort out the Zero's switching for coax/optical and if there's anything i can or need remove beyond the wires for the pre/head amp to do essentially the same mod as you've done.


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## bgt

Currawong, I did not change anything on the switching part of the SPDIff input.
 You don't have to. It will sense what you're using. Either coax or optical. The mod was very straitforward. Just changed the caps and regulators.
 What I hear is that in direct comparison with my Buffalo it sounds more unbalanced. I find the zero a bit too sharp/messy when there is a lot of music/instruments. Maybe its the HDAM. The Buffalo+Ivy is better in separating the music instruments. But with single singers/instruments it is very nice.


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## sennsay

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *bgt* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Currawong, I did not change anything on the switching part of the SPDIff input.
 You don't have to. It will sense what you're using. Either coax or optical. The mod was very straitforward. Just changed the caps and regulators.
 What I hear is that in direct comparison with my Buffalo it sounds more unbalanced. I find the zero a bit too sharp/messy when there is a lot of music/instruments. Maybe its the HDAM. The Buffalo+Ivy is better in separating the music instruments. But with single singers/instruments it is very nice._

 

Hi bgt, I am curious to know your reasoning behind the mods that you've made to the Zero. You've done nice work on the case and rewiring, yet I am extremely puzzled as to why you _appear_ to have detuned the power supply. Why, for instance, is there a cap missing (?) in the analogue PS? Or am I wrong here? Why the sizes for the PS caps you've chosen? 
 The stock Zero transformer is 100VA, why 7VA?
 I am not surprised that you find the DAC sharp/messy where there are multiples of instruments playing, the energy to create this mass of orchestral - or other types of massed instruments - comes directly from the power supply. 
 Forgive me if I seem critical, I don't mean to be, yet I am somewhat curious as to your choices. My recent and ongoing experiences with the quantum leaps that the FrankenZero provides in effortless plentitude, is lightyears removed from what you describe here and what the Zero is awe-inspiringly capable of creating. 

 Curious regards, S-Man


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## bgt

S-Man, there is no cap. missing from any power supply, its just different. The +&- 15V come from one +20V line. Its the way the regulators are wired up. The caps. are very good quality low ESR caps. specially used for the SMPS V regulators. High uF in small cans. Look in the specs for the ZLH caps. The toroid is 7VA because thats enough VA for its purpose. I don't have a headphone amp. in there which could use a lot of peakpower. The power supply "power number" is not so needed as for instant a Power Amp.
 I have tested it and came to the conclusion that this is enough. Remember that I compared it directly to the Buffalo/Ivy combination which is based around the same power supplies but is a bit different from pcb design. This could be an issue also. Maybe I am spoiled by the Buffalo/Ivy. I will try and improve the sound of the DAC if possible. For me it is easy to do a direct comparison agains the Buffalo/Elektor2000 DAC. They still sound the best(after days of testing). And its done on high Power PowerAmps and speakers!!(see sig.) No headphone for me(still have an old Pioneer=sound horrible). But remember, these are all my experiences and nothing is more personal than music experiences.
 And S-Man, always be critical!! After all, its quality that counts.


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## bgt

Just had a bunch of younger people listening to the differences of the DAC's and they found the zero more full bodied than the Buffalo. So....its all relative.
 I say no more.


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## ccschua

Just done up on ZERO DAC. I have take a different route though. I have switched to Panasonic FC for the power supplies and added a 2x22pF silvered mica for the output. photo to come.


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## Pricklely Peete

Hi CC,

 What size FC's did you use and the V rating ?

 Peete.


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## ccschua

35V3300 x 2.

 16V1200 x 2 -> should have gone bigger, say 2200uF.

 The measurement is 22V dc over the cap.


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## Pricklely Peete

Looks good to me CC.....going to 2200uf on the 1200uf caps won't yield much....the real key is bypassing those FC's now with a film and foil compliment.

 IMO at least.

 Nice job on the rebuild....
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Peete.


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## ccschua

Hi PP,

 Most bypass for film cap is 0.1 uF. instead of choosing 0.033uF pio, would it be better to try 0.1 uF PIO ?


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *ccschua* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Hi PP,

 Most bypass for film cap is 0.1 uF. instead of choosing 0.033uF pio, would it be better to try 0.1 uF PIO ?_

 

If you can find .1uf 160V k42Y-2 then yes...the hard part is finding any because the size of them at that value in a 200V rating won't fit underneath the pcb....forget about 250V.....everything is a compromise these days. I ordered a huge pile of .047uf 200V K40Y-9's only to find out they wouldn't fit under the pcb...had to use the slightly smaller (though rated far higher V wise) .033uf 500V K42Y-2.

 OTOH the .033uf 500V do a great job IMO. The prototype Frankie had .047uf 160V K42Y-2....now very hard to find with the resulting difference in sizing indistinguishable SQ wise. I don't want to go with other brand because they don't match the performance or price of the Russian greenies.....the bass with the Russian caps is untouched which is something the Vit Q cap cannot duplicate at any price.

 Peete.


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## powertoold

Does adding a fat cap between the 4 and 8 pin of the HDAM really make a difference? What's the purpose of it anyway? Would it be wise to use a 4.7uf + .25uf in parallel?


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *powertoold* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Does adding a fat cap between the 4 and 8 pin of the HDAM really make a difference? What's the purpose of it anyway? Would it be wise to use a 4.7uf + .25uf in parallel?_

 

Yes...it does make a difference. Burson Audio is the original source for this mod. They recommend a cap no bigger than 1uf and greater than 50V DC rating across those pins.

 I wouldn't anything larger than 1uf.

 Peete.


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## ccschua

I have a feeling the 4 nos of cap supplying DAC is critial. in fact, the analogue chain after DAC is critical. So I have a feeling the 4xOscon plus the bypass is very important. what do u think. 

 I am even thinking of putting a socket so that I can swap in out the cap. 

 I have also 4xNOVER 100uF 63V which is known for neutral sounding.


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## DaMnEd

I will be putting the 4 OSCON (no bypass for now) on my dac in a few days, I plan on doing the RMAA before and after so see if it will affects performance in a measurable way 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




.


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## sennsay

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *ccschua* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_I have a feeling the 4 nos of cap supplying DAC is critial. in fact, the analogue chain after DAC is critical. So I have a feeling the 4xOscon plus the bypass is very important. what do u think. 

 I am even thinking of putting a socket so that I can swap in out the cap. 

 I have also 4xNOVER 100uF 63V which is known for neutral sounding._

 

Hiya cc, actually, that's what I did with my Frankie, put 4 Os-Cons in there around the DAC. I found them easier to fit than the larger 100uF Silmics. Also my Os-Cons are 180uF 16V and I did bypass them with the PIOs that PP sent me. Initially I didn't bypass them, but PP made me see the error of my ways! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 It *is* worth it! 
 I also popped a couple more of the little purple delights in front of the optical input, the same 180uF 16V caps. I may do more yet, as I've just had some Os-Con supplies land on the doorstep.
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 S-Man

 P.S. Speaking of the Nover caps, I installed the audio-gd PS into KHA I.5 yesterday and it uses two 3300uF 63V Nover caps and I chose them for neutrality as suggested by Kingwa. The optional Silmics are slightly warmer sounding. 
 BTW, the PS gives the upgraded stock unit a serious arse-whomping in some areas! Even barely run-in. Not only exquisitely built, but sonically awesome potential in there! Popped a couple of .047uF PIOs on the Novers while I was at it.
 It needs a serious heatsink though, it runs very hot, as it runs in Class A, something I didn't realise until I fired it up! I didn't really get the hints enough from Kingwa, when he kept saying to me, did you put it on a "hitsink"? Needs a hitsink, several times. Yes, Kingwa, it certainly DOES!!


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## ccschua

Wow fry. that's real serious. are u saying the cap needs a heatsink ?

 I just learned putting higher voltage such as 63V has a thicker film which reduce microphobics. 

 Now my Panasonic FC begins to reveal its true color. When I first put in (without the green PIO bypass yet), I was like so so ah. then I just wait curiously for it to unfold. after nearly 5 days, I begin to hear the warm of it and the transparency. The punch and the body begins to throw in.

 my ultrafast diode is also on the way.






 I am just waiting for the PIO to arrive and I hope to be Penchuum, give me the last green sausage.


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## sennsay

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *ccschua* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Wow fry. that's real serious. are u saying the cap needs a heatsink ?

 I just learned putting higher voltage such as 63V has a thicker film which reduce microphobics. 

 Now my Panasonic FC begins to reveal its true color. When I first put in (without the green PIO bypass yet), I was like so so ah. then I just wait curiously for it to unfold. after nearly 5 days, I begin to hear the warm of it and the transparency. The punch and the body begins to throw in.

 my ultrafast diode is also on the way.






 I am just waiting for the PIO to arrive and I hope to be Penchuum, give me the last green sausage._

 


 Oops, no sorry, cc, I meant the output transistors are running in Class A and _they_ need the heatsink! The caps are just fine. 
 I've put the PS on a much larger heatsink and it has been running for nearly 24 hours just fine. This is a stunning PS! Doesn't really alter the frequency balance at all, but enhances all the fine qualities of Frankie passing through KHA I.5, a lot like replacing a pretty good 50W amp in a system with a 200W beauty, effortless power from top to bottom. It hasn't had 30 hours on it yet. 
 Green sausages rule, dude! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 S-Man

 P.S. BTW, all of the UF diodes on the audio-gd PS are bypassed with .01uF MKPs on the board, or MKCs, I'm not sure which, but a lot like you've done.


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## Pricklely Peete

Hi CC, S-Man,

 CC check out Rock Grotto's take (Mike of Pink Floyd mods) on snubber caps on the UF4007 diodes. It might just save you some time and money ......The Nover caps are cool but the OS-CON around the DAC are the top of the heap, I'd even use them ahead of Black Gates after much research on the subject. Don't go higher than 25V rating if you can help it. You could go as low as 6.3 V on those caps (opens up a couple of possibilities not normally thought of like HQ solid polymer Mobo caps, computer rated stuff etc). I prefer Audio caps myself but that's just me.

 I'm still using Panasonic FC's from the original prototype (of Frank)around the DAC. So I'm not even up to current FrankenZERO specs yet 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 That will change soon since I now have 3 options, thanks to friends and a local supply of hi end caps for a reasonable cost. 

 It's funny with all the activity of late I've actually had very little time to concentrate on the Zero at all. Some unforeseen issues (like my tube amp taking a piss didn't help...now fixed (DIY of course) for 3 dollars worth of high quality resistors 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 ) 3 other projects waiting in the wings....fun times ahead but now I need a real soldering station....money money money.....
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 S-Man,

 That A-GD PSU is a top priority (suddenly I can't spell for s**t, third attempt is the chaHrbnhM ? Nope, LOL.)....sigh...must be sleep deprivation or I'm a closet Crylic specialist with a English keyboard...

 Let's try this again....that PSU is my next pruchase (oh man...that's it no more curritcions) 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 For 25US ...I mean holy mother of God that's a great deal for a PSU such as that.....I could have bought 4 A-GD BEAST's + 2 toroidal transformers for the price of 1 Welborne Labs PSU1 kit !!! No offense Ron...I like the PSU1 kit...but that A-GD PSU is a far better buy by a 1000 miles.

 Anyway......CC your definitely on the right track just don't worry about the diodes too much...(the UF factor is the most important aspect). Concentrate more on bypassing the caps you swap in...you'll get far greater gains SQ wise that way. As you know my cap of choice for that is the K42Y-2,K40Y-9 types.....So far I've found only two sizes and voltage ratings that will fit......160V .047uf (hard to find), .033uf 500V (much easier to source) and the .1uf 160V (sometimes hard to find). All three are K42Y-2 family which is what you want. There is now sonic difference nor construction difference between the K42 and K40 families....exactly the same caps...I'm at a loss why they need to different names....just another *"Crazy Ivan" perhaps ?

 * See the film Hunt for Red October for a definition.

 Caps that won't fit are .047uf 200V K40Y-9 and anything else from the Russian line up not mentioned specifically in the previous paragraph....found that out the hard way...but it worked out since I needed more bypass caps for other (low voltage ) projects I just didn't know it at that time 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




. 

 BTW low voltage to me is anything not tube based 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	





 One mod I can now tackle is the wiring harness's from the H/Amp to the main board....so that will be the next Frankie mod of note (along with the DAC section lytic update ). I'm going to ditch the connectors in favor of hard wiring direct to the pcbs.....should eliminate some SQ losses due to less than desirable connector metals carrying audio signals.....steel or pot metal tin that is nickel plated is not exactly hi fidelity (IMO at least).


 That's the next job on the plate for Frank 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Peete.


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## sennsay

Hey, PP, welcome to the Dyslexic Nutbars Club! (DNC). If I left my musings and writings as they come from my hands to the kepboard, you _would_ need a Cyrillic specialist to interpret the mess!! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 That audio-gd power supply is not only a mil-spec work of art, but the effect it has on the sound is to take, say, a good 100W amp in a system and replace it with a you-beaut 500W amp. Effortless power! 
*NB* Yes, that means I've uprated the power wattage effect from my previous post as it's run in some more! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 I have never heard the great chorus from Carmina Burana, off The Doors soundtrack, without compression and distortion before. Now it's like a completely different recording, open, effortless, clean and undistorted, and as for that tympani drum, WHOOOOF!
 Feel da air, man! 
 My new stock of Os-Cons will be making a larger purple appearance in my Frankie once KHA II is sorted. Now that she's around the 200 hour mark, I have a much more refined, all-singing, all-dancing Frankie. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	







 S-Man


----------



## ccschua

Oh my. I made a mistake in ordering.

 The ultrafast is supposed to be UF 4007 which I order UF 4001 (as copy from the pcb). 

 Should I switch back to 4007, is it the important factor is the voltage or reverse recovery response time ? which is better ? higher or lower ?

 == 

 I have further listened to the mod as in my picture, wow. I really can feel the fidelity at works. my god.
 tht sausage is going to push me a few step to nirvana.


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## ccschua

From my initial impression about the cap mod, the noise level is lower. The signal seems to be cleaner, in that the detail is more transparent. I can hear timbre such as Jazz at the pawnshop more accurate. The bell is less bright, non fatiguing. The acoustics, and its reveberations seems to last longer. 

 However on the bass department, it seems to be lower but less authoritative. The punch is not delivered real deep and solid, instead of heating [see, I am having the same D factor like PP] the drum with vivacity, the sound seems to appear from a bigger drum, and thus lacks punch.

 Seems the capacitor need really filling up the empty spaces.


----------



## ccschua

With regards to mod, I wonder what is the best way to remove a cap. 

 My problem is I cant seem to get the pcb hole clear up for the new cap insert. 

 This is what I did. First I use solder wick to remove the bottom solder. Then, I started heating up 1 leg and then the other leg. While keeping both leg warm, I started to pull and wiggle out 1 leg, then the other leg, vice versa.

 When I want to insert the new cap, since the pcb hole has some solder remaining, I heat up till I cant get the long leg thru, follow by the shorter leg. till both is through. In doing so, If I heat slightly longer, or pushing too hard, the pad just peel off or the track will be out too.

 I wonder what would be a good solution. or else I keep using jumpers.


----------



## DaMnEd

Sometimes only a little solder is left in the hole and it can be a PITA to remove, the best way I found is just to add more solder, and then use a solder sucker, cleans it right up, much easier to remove them you have plenty of solder 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




. Them I use the braid to remove the remaining solder around the hole.

 ------------
 Anyway, yesterday I did some RMAA testing on the ZERO, pre-OSCON and latter with OSCON, no measurable differences, this is not to say no sound changes occurred, I am still assessing that atm.

 What I did found that is that with the _OPA-Earth_, I get A LOT of stereo crosstalk, ending up with a result of _"Poor"_ (-51dB) on that particular test. Then I tried a opamp I had laying around (_LM4562_) and the stereo crosstalk was "gone" leaving me with an _"Excellent"_ (-92.8dB) on that test, I am still trying to find why the earth is so weak on that test, I want to try connecting the ground leg and test again to see it it clears up a bit, and them I am going to test the _SUN_.

 I am going to host the RMAA results and post the url's latter so that you guys may compare to your own if you so choose. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




*- E D I T -
*

 ZERO RMAA's

OPA-Earth - 16-bit, 44 kHz
LM4562 - 16-bit, 44 kHz

OPA-Earth - 24-bit, 96 kHz
LM4562 - 24-bit, 96 kHz

 Pay no special attention to the htm names and "Testing device" description, I was testing as I was going along paying no special attention to the names I used, just go with the titles used here 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




.

*- E D I T II -
*
 ZERO w/OPA-SUN

OPA-SUN - 16-bit 44 kHz
OPA-SUN - 24-bit 96 kHz

 Similar results for both the Earth and Sun, next step: connecting the ground legs of the Audio-GD OPAs to the RCA ground and redoing the RMAAs for both.


----------



## DaMnEd

RMAA's for the Zero DAC - OPA-SUN w/Ground leg connected:

OPA-SUN - 16-bit 44 kHz w/Ground
OPA-SUN - 24-bit 96 kHz w/Ground

 So, there you have it, with the ground leg connected the _Stereo crosstalk_ clears up! From _Poor/Average_ to *Excellent*! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 I expect the same with the _OPA-Earth_ module, I will test it later to confirm. The modules where connected to one chassis bolt with ground, not to the RCA ground (didn't find the time to do it yet).


----------



## Currawong

I'll have to have another listen to all three HDAMs then while grounded. Ungrounded, they have different degrees of soundstage, the Moon having the most. I wonder if grounding them will change that now.


----------



## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *ccschua* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_I have a feeling the 4 nos of cap supplying DAC is critial. in fact, the analogue chain after DAC is critical. So I have a feeling the 4xOscon plus the bypass is very important. what do u think. 

 I am even thinking of putting a socket so that I can swap in out the cap. 

 I have also 4xNOVER 100uF 63V which is known for neutral sounding._

 

Absolutely CC. This is yet another critical area to upgrade...it's as important as the power supply mods.

 Speaking of the PSU, you best order some UF4007 diodes, the 4001 although 25 ns faster do not have the proper rating to match the stock UL4007. The UF4007 is the ultra fast drop in equivalent to those stock diodes.

 All of your parts selection thus far is unique to say the least. I bet once you get all the parts in place you'll have a very very good result similar to the FrankenZERO. Especially so if you use the Russian PIOs where specified in the FrankenZERO mod.


 DaMnEd,

 Good job on the RMAA results. I haven't had time yet to actually measure my Frankie, too many other projects on the go at the moment that take priority. I will get to it soon though.

 I wonder if the BA cap mod across the + - pins of the HDAM cancels out the crosstalk you have observed. The stereo separation of the FrankenZERO is outstanding by my ears...so good in fact it's a lot like a super hi quality cross feed circuit without the added circuitry.

 Of course I need to test this for myself at some point.

 Keep up the good work fellows.....

 Peete.


----------



## DaMnEd

Thanks Peete! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 RMAA's for the Earth module w/Ground:
OPA-EARTH - 16-bit 44 kHz w/Ground
OPA-EARTH - 24-bit 96 kHz w/Ground

 So, as expected, connecting the ground also clears the Crosstalk on the Earth module, *Excellent* results! 

 The _ZERO_ with the _OPA-Earth_ w/ground pretty much give the best _RMAA's_ of all tested combos! So the tests pretty much matches the opinion most of us had, the Earth is the best sounding option for the ZERO DAC! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 (I dot not have the Moon, so.. can't speak to that option)


----------



## Emanuel

And speaking about bypass, I've found some K42Y-2 PIO 0,33uf 160v, they have a diameter of 9mm, and 36 of lenght , could they fit under the zero pcb?
 Thanks!


----------



## bundee1

Can you guys recommend what kind of wire to use to do the RCA mod? 

 Will this do?

Search Results Page

 Where can I buy better wire for a decent price? If I get my Frankenzero kit Ill be spending the weekend sucking solder fumes and I want to get it done all in one shot. 

 I want to order the wire ASAP so I can have it by Friday.


----------



## DaMnEd

Homegrown Audio Co. | pure silver audio cables - Products - Bulk Wire

 This is more like it


----------



## bundee1

What gauge will be sufficient? Will this change the sound signature? Will the copper do?

 What is everyone else using?


----------



## DaMnEd

Copper will do. 22/24AWG will do just fine.

 Copper vs Silver for signal wiring is something that has been extensively discussed in this forum, do a quick search. But yes, it can make a difference.


----------



## bundee1

I dislike brightness but like detail. Anyone using this stuff in their zero now?

 Damned thanks for the help.


----------



## sennsay

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *DaMnEd* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Thanks Peete! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 RMAA's for the Earth module w/Ground:
OPA-EARTH - 16-bit 44 kHz w/Ground
OPA-EARTH - 24-bit 96 kHz w/Ground

 So, as expected, connecting the ground also clears the Crosstalk on the Earth module, *Excellent* results! 

 The ZERO with the OPA-Earth w/ground pretty much give the best RMAA's of all tested combos! So the tests pretty much matches the opinion most of us had, the Earth is the best sounding option for the ZERO DAC! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 (I dot not have the Moon, so.. can't speak to that option)_

 

Ditto on the great job, DaMnEd! Interestingly, my OPA Earth in Frankie does NOT have the earth wire connected, because I have the 1uF PIO BA mod on mine and it's not needed. Like PP, I have stunning stereo separation and big soundstage. Yet, on my KHA amps, I have the later generation OPA Moon HDAMs with the 1uF box caps and I HAVE connected the ground wires on them (as we're supposed to with the box cap modules) and have that same stunning separation. Kingwa does say that technically the modules are better with the ground connected, if not sonically. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 My ears and heart tell me that the communication skills of these marvelous HDAMs used in conjunction with the Frankie mods are taking me/us beyond a level of what can be measured. What's interesting is that the distortion specs are not that great, yet what's coming out of the RCA jacks is far less distorted in a musical communication sense than any op-amp ever did, in virtually every way that musically matters. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 Also, you're on the money with HomeGrown Audio, they have the gorgeous silver plated LOK RCA connectors too. My White Zombie La Cacanya silver cables came with them on and I was so impressed that I found out where WZ got them from and ordered a set! 
 S-Man


----------



## shampoosuicide

I have some very, very n00b questions, so please forgive me, I have no background in DAC modding or basic engineering at all:

 1) How do I remove the stock NE5532P and how do I install the LT1364? Will I require any tools?

 2) Same as above, but how do I install the HDAM? Ideally how long of an extension wire should I get?

 3) What is the purpose of the BA cap mod, and how does it affect the sound?

 4) Will I be able to perform the pot swap with some degree of ease, given I have no soldering experience?

 Thanks.


----------



## bundee1

Oooh oooh Ill take these. 

 I am also a noob but with a tiny bit more experience as I have handled the stuff you are about to do. 

 1) The opamp switch is easy but you have to be gentle pulling them out or you can bend the pins. They feel like cheap tin and they could tear if you rock them back and forth with any force. If you have tweezers or fine pliers you can pull them straight up and out. You can also use your fingers but you might have to remove the board so your fingers fit better. Make sure the crescent on the opamp and socket line up and you are good to go.

 2) I would buy a 200mm extension for the HDAM. I originally ordered the 100mm extension but it really limits your placement options. The extension has a socket on one end and the 8 pin connector on the other. Same deal with lining up the crescent on the HDAM with the one on the extension, then lining up the 8 pin adaptor with the crescent on the board socket. 

 3)Dunno

 4) You should practice desoldering components from a broken piece of equipment. Then practice soldering them back in.
 This tangent tutorial is immensely helpful with equipment purchases and part 2
 has the how to solder:

Basic Soldering Equipment

 I did the pot swap with about a weeks worth of practice. You need good desoldering braid and solder sucker to make sure the holes are clean to install the new pot. Make sure you break off that little tab at the front of the pot so it can fit comfortably. 

 Check out these pics of other successful pot swaps:

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f6/zer...ml#post4880859

 Thanks to everyone (especially Peete) who ha guided me this far and is helping me pass on the knowledge and experience gained from this project.


----------



## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Emanuel* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_And speaking about bypass, I've found some K42Y-2 PIO 0,33uf 160v, they have a diameter of 9mm, and 36 of lenght , could they fit under the zero pcb?
 Thanks!_

 

Nope, anything over 8mm will not fit.

 Leaves very few choices I'm afraid. Besides the .033uf 500V K42Y-2 you can also use these (.047uf 160V and .1uf 160V) from the same line (K42Y-2) of caps.

 One of those three should be available online I would imagine.


 Peete.


----------



## leothan

hi ,forgive me if the question so noob ,I don't know what is the difference between the earth ,sun and moon and if I only use the zero as the preamp ,what should I mod it ?
 Thank


----------



## shampoosuicide

More n00b questions 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




:

 1) This one's for DaMnEd, but if anyone else can answer it, I'd be much obliged 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 How do I 'ground' the HDAM module? I'm guessing this involves the use of a ground wire? Does it come with the HDAM, or do I need to obtain it some place else? Will I have to solder the ground wire, and if I do, where do I solder it to?

 2) Again, what is the purpose of the BA cap mod, and how does it affect the sound of the Zero? Where can I obtain the BA cap? I'm located in Singapore.

 Thanks!


----------



## sennsay

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *leothan* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_hi ,forgive me if the question so noob ,I don't know what is the difference between the earth ,sun and moon and if I only use the zero as the preamp ,what should I mod it ?
 Thank_

 

Hi leothan, let's see what we can do for you here. For starters the Zero makes for a perfectly fine pre-amp into a headphone amp, it has excellent transparency and is as quiet as a tomb, particularly when modded, as in Frankie. I had some noise in one channel from new, right up until the time my Frankie mods ran in, now it's as if the thing is turned off at the wall. Quiet!

 The three HDAMs, OPAQ Earth, OPA Moon and OPA Sun are Hyper Dynamic Audio Modules made from discrete components, ie transistors and resistors and capacitors and are drop in replacements for the chip op-amps in the Zero. You only need be concerned with three of them, one in the DAC (the main board) and two others in the head amp, one for each channel. 
 For the DAC, OPA Earth is regarded generally as the finest of the versions to have in there, it is the most neutral of the three. OPA Sun was designed with an enhanced bass and treble for those who desired such a thing and some people do prefer that, it can suit the balance of some headphones too.
 OPA Moon is the newest member of the trilogy and is a different circuit design again from the others, being what's known as Single-Ended. For me, it maybe what makes this module so special and it has become dear to my heart for the sheer level of communication it brings to the musical event. It suits my amplifiers so well that it's like a match made in heaven. I use the OPA Earth in the DAC and it is utterly brilliant there. Many do and find the same thing. 
 So mate, IMHO, OPA Earth is a very fine place to start, pop it in the DAC and solder the earth wire to an appropriate place nearby. 
 I gather that if you are using the Zero as a pre-amp, you are not bothered about the head amp at all? You generally cannot go past the LT1364 op-amps in there - you'll need two to replace the 5532's that are there now, I am assuming that because I don't know the level of Zero you have there. A number of variants have come out in the last months. 
 If you can provide some more information, we can help you further as far as you want to go! We love it! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Feel free to ask for whatever you need, there are many fine and enthusiastic Head-Fiers here. No question is too dumb, we all had 'em. 
 Cheers, S-Man


----------



## sennsay

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *shampoosuicide* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_More n00b questions 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




:

 1) This one's for DaMnEd, but if anyone else can answer it, I'd be much obliged 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 How do I 'ground' the HDAM module? I'm guessing this involves the use of a ground wire? Does it come with the HDAM, or do I need to obtain it some place else? Will I have to solder the ground wire, and if I do, where do I solder it to?

 2) Again, what is the purpose of the BA cap mod, and how does it affect the sound of the Zero? Where can I obtain the BA cap? I'm located in Singapore.

 Thanks!_

 

 Well, DaMnEd can answer it just fine, but I seem to be the only one around at the moment.
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 Yes, each HDAM comes with a ground wire and yes, you will have to solder it in. Best place, if it is long enough, is to an earth leg of the RCA output jacks. If it's a bit short, just soldering a short extension on will be fine. 

 Ah, the BA cap mod. BA stands for Burson Audio, the designers of the original Burson HDAM, which has since been taken over by audio-gd with adaptions and new models. However, the BA cap mod is their idea and it's a very fine option to the cap mod that a-gd have done to their modules. The configuration is different and apparently has a different sonic signature. I have yet to try the BA cap mod in my amp's Moon HDAMs. The BA mod does NOT need the ground wire and the a-gd mod does. You can have a look for yourself on a-gd's website, address below. 
 My OPA Earth in the DAC has the BA cap mod, using a 1uF Paper In Oil Russian capacitor that is sonically a wonder! 
 In my amps, I use the the OPA Moon HDAMs with the a-gd cap mods and earthed to the boards. These too, are stunningly good in my amps.

 The Russian PIO caps can be bought from a couple of sites, here's one that I use:
USSR tubes, capacitors, sockets, and other military euipment, Vacuum TUBES, Nixies, MAGIC EYE tubes, Sockets, RARE tubes, Capacitors You need a 1uF K42Y-2 PIO 160V cap
 They are unbelievably cheap and about the very best you can buy anywhere. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 The BA cap mod is part of a whole modification process that upgrades the whole DAC and turns a nice little bit of kit into something far far beyond what you would ever expect to hear way beyond it's price class. Way beyond. As for the BA mod on it's own, I don't know. PP is the man to ask about that, or Penchum, they have the most experience of these mods by a long way. 
 All I know is, my FrankenZero is unbelievably brilliant at converting ones and zeros into the finest sound I've ever heard in many years of audio. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 It affects the sound in immensely beautiful ways that you have to wait some 250-300+ hours of burning in to hear and appreciate.
 The purpose of the BA mod has been cause of much discussion and once again, PP may be your best bet for a better answer than I can give. I just know that it works! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 Audio-gd also have an explanation in their site.
 Does this help?
 The address for audio-gd is:
ÐÂ½¨ÍøÒ³ 1

 S-Man


----------



## leothan

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *sennsay* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Hi leothan, let's see what we can do for you here. For starters the Zero makes for a perfectly fine pre-amp into a headphone amp, it has excellent transparency and is as quiet as a tomb, particularly when modded, as in Frankie. I had some noise in one channel from new, right up until the time my Frankie mods ran in, now it's as if the thing is turned off at the wall. Quiet!

 The three HDAMs, OPAQ Earth, OPA Moon and OPA Sun are Hyper Dynamic Audio Modules made from discrete components, ie transistors and resistors and capacitors and are drop in replacements for the chip op-amps in the Zero. You only need be concerned with three of them, one in the DAC (the main board) and two others in the head amp, one for each channel. 
 For the DAC, OPA Earth is regarded generally as the finest of the versions to have in there, it is the most neutral of the three. OPA Sun was designed with an enhanced bass and treble for those who desired such a thing and some people do prefer that, it can suit the balance of some headphones too.
 OPA Moon is the newest member of the trilogy and is a different circuit design again from the others, being what's known as Single-Ended. For me, it maybe what makes this module so special and it has become dear to my heart for the sheer level of communication it brings to the musical event. It suits my amplifiers so well that it's like a match made in heaven. I use the OPA Earth in the DAC and it is utterly brilliant there. Many do and find the same thing. 
 So mate, IMHO, OPA Earth is a very fine place to start, pop it in the DAC and solder the earth wire to an appropriate place nearby. 
 I gather that if you are using the Zero as a pre-amp, you are not bothered about the head amp at all? You generally cannot go past the LT1364 op-amps in there - you'll need two to replace the 5532's that are there now, I am assuming that because I don't know the level of Zero you have there. A number of variants have come out in the last months. 
 If you can provide some more information, we can help you further as far as you want to go! We love it! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Feel free to ask for whatever you need, there are many fine and enthusiastic Head-Fiers here. No question is too dumb, we all had 'em. 
 Cheers, S-Man_

 

Thank for your advise ,Yeb ,I don't intend to use the zero as HP amp ,just use it as preamp for my LD MKIII ,the HP that I am using is HD600 ,i prefer the sound more neutral ,so U think the Earth is the best choice ? How many I will need to replace and how it can be done ?
 Thank alot


----------



## crzystng

Just got my Zero and am loving it. Plan on modding it in the future, but nothing just yet.


----------



## shampoosuicide

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *sennsay* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Well, DaMnEd can answer it just fine, but I seem to be the only one around at the moment.
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 Yes, each HDAM comes with a ground wire and yes, you will have to solder it in. Best place, if it is long enough, is to an earth leg of the RCA output jacks. If it's a bit short, just soldering a short extension on will be fine. 

 Ah, the BA cap mod. BA stands for Burson Audio, the designers of the original Burson HDAM, which has since been taken over by audio-gd with adaptions and new models. However, the BA cap mod is their idea and it's a very fine option to the cap mod that a-gd have done to their modules. The configuration is different and apparently has a different sonic signature. I have yet to try the BA cap mod in my amp's Moon HDAMs. The BA mod does NOT need the ground wire and the a-gd mod does. You can have a look for yourself on a-gd's website, address below. 
 My OPA Earth in the DAC has the BA cap mod, using a 1uF Paper In Oil Russian capacitor that is sonically a wonder! 
 In my amps, I use the the OPA Moon HDAMs with the a-gd cap mods and earthed to the boards. These too, are stunningly good in my amps.

 The Russian PIO caps can be bought from a couple of sites, here's one that I use:
USSR tubes, capacitors, sockets, and other military euipment, Vacuum TUBES, Nixies, MAGIC EYE tubes, Sockets, RARE tubes, Capacitors You need a 1uF K42Y-2 PIO 160V cap
 They are unbelievably cheap and about the very best you can buy anywhere. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 The BA cap mod is part of a whole modification process that upgrades the whole DAC and turns a nice little bit of kit into something far far beyond what you would ever expect to hear way beyond it's price class. Way beyond. As for the BA mod on it's own, I don't know. PP is the man to ask about that, or Penchum, they have the most experience of these mods by a long way. 
 All I know is, my FrankenZero is unbelievably brilliant at converting ones and zeros into the finest sound I've ever heard in many years of audio. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 It affects the sound in immensely beautiful ways that you have to wait some 250-300+ hours of burning in to hear and appreciate.
 The purpose of the BA mod has been cause of much discussion and once again, PP may be your best bet for a better answer than I can give. I just know that it works! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 Audio-gd also have an explanation in their site.
 Does this help?
 The address for audio-gd is:
ÐÂ½¨ÍøÒ³ 1

 S-Man_

 

Hi sennsay, thanks so much for that long explanation 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 I'd appreciate if you could clarify a few more things for me:

 1) I've ordered an OPA-Moon from audio-gd. The ground wire comes with the OPA-Moon, correct? Is the ground wire a separate item from the Moon, or is it attached to it? Could you point out to me where the earth wire of the RCA output jack is?

 2) I'm still slightly confused about the BA cap mod 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 - Would I be correct to understand that there are 2 different cap mods that can be done - the BA cap mod, and the audio-gd cap mod? 

 - What then would be the difference between the BA cap mod and the audio-gd cap mod, in terms of sound?

 - Does audio-gd perform the cap mod, or is it a mod I have to do myself when I get the HDAM? 

 - The last line of audio-gd's cap mod explanation says that: "Our OPAs have upgrade to the best Cap-Mod, so people don't need add capacitors on our OPAs." Does this imply that the HDAMs ship with the audio-gd cap mod already performed? Why would the BA cap mod need to be done then, when it says we don't need to add capacitors ourselves?

 - Lastly, is this the capacitor I want for the BA mod?

 Sorry about all the questions, and thanks so much again!


----------



## Pricklely Peete

Hi Shampoo,

 I field those questions. The ground wire comes attached, it's the only wire sticking out from the module 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 The ground point that is easiest is the pcb hold down screw beside the dac DIP* socket but the preferred connection is the RCA output jack ground. If you look at that section you'll see three solder points, L G R. The middle is the audio ground. That's where most are connecting there modules.

 I hear zero difference with it connected or not...YMMV. Although I can see why it would be advantageous to connect it electrically speaking. It's never made an audible difference for me...maybe my hearing ain't what it used to be 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 The BA cap mod is pretty straight forward....where the confusion lies is with audio-gd and what they think works and BA with what they think works......after trying and knowing the BA cap mod inside and out...and now having heard at least 2 of the latest audio gd modules with the 2 box caps on each (over a fairly lengthy period of time)...well lets just say I much prefer the large single PIO/BA cap mod method. In a head a head the PIO/BA actually does enhance the HDAM IMHO....it adds that last ounce of refinement, transient speed, decay, recording ambiance, it's tough to quantify until you take it away,then you say to yourself where in the hell is that module with the cap...
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




...well it's just a essential mod for me now....so off come those poly box caps...hello PIO/BA cap mod (for all my modules)

 That is the correct cap in the link. 

 Which reminds me I need to get some more of those myself....

 Peete.


----------



## shampoosuicide

Thank you Pete! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 So this means when I receive my Moon there will already be 2 poly box caps on them, which I will then remove and replace with the PIO/BA cap?


----------



## DaMnEd

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *shampoosuicide* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_More n00b questions 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




:

 1) This one's for DaMnEd, but if anyone else can answer it, I'd be much obliged 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 How do I 'ground' the HDAM module? I'm guessing this involves the use of a ground wire? Does it come with the HDAM, or do I need to obtain it some place else? Will I have to solder the ground wire, and if I do, where do I solder it to?

 Thanks!_

 


 It comes with the OPA module, and you do not need to solder, I didn't, I just unscrewed one bolt on the main board, and then I screwed it back again but with the ground wire on the module stuck in between.


----------



## Currawong

In the Zero thread, people reported the HDAMs become very hot if they were grounded on the chassis. The best method was to ground them on the RCA ground, which improves SQ.


----------



## leothan

after few post here ,I think what I need is the OPA EARTH ,only one more question before I order it ,what is the difference between OPA-EARTH Dual OPA and OPA-EARTH Single OPA ?,thank


----------



## DaMnEd

One is single-channel the other is dual-channel, you need the dual.


----------



## sennsay

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *leothan* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Thank for your advise ,Yeb ,I don't intend to use the zero as HP amp ,just use it as preamp for my LD MKIII ,the HP that I am using is HD600 ,i prefer the sound more neutral ,so U think the Earth is the best choice ? How many I will need to replace and how it can be done ?
 Thank alot_

 

No worries, buddy, you need just the one HDAM and I think you'll find the OPA Earth and ideal match for those 600's. Check with Penchum, leothan, as he has a set and I don't, I use 650's. Maybe with PP and others too. Heck, you might go gaga over the OPA Moon with them! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 One great thing with Kingwa at audio-gd is that they have special deals where you can 'buy 1 get two others free' sort of thing. I've got a great mix of parts that way. 
 Yes, if it's neutral you prefer, go Earth, you won't regret it. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 You just gently pull the op-amp out of the DAC on the right hand side of the case, looking from the front and pop the HDAM in place of it, making sure that the half moon on the bottom of the HDAM is facing to the back of the case, matching the half moon cut-out on the op-amp base. Solder your ground wire to the RCA output jack's ground leg and you're away. Now, I realise that you may want to lay your HDAM flat inside the case, instead of having it standing up directly in the socket, as I prefer, and so you will need a set of the extension cables that you will have to order with the HDAM, laying the unit on it's side between the amp and DAC board. There are pictures of this abounding on this site. 

 S-Man


----------



## leothan

great ,thank alot 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




,I will try now


----------



## fdbf

Hi there guys!

 Have someone of you tried the "cap snipping mod" cutting off those capacitors in the Dac and Pre-amp sections?

 I'd like to do it but i fear bad consequences, like sound becoming TOO bright for my ears.... anyone giving me some advice?

 i'm using a pair of HD-600 directly connected to ZERO.

 Thanks


----------



## grkn

I currently have the snipped HDAM Earth + LT1364 Zero, and it seems that the Burson mod is a natural next step, but when first ordering caps from ussr-tubes.com, I guess I might just as well get some for some of the other mods, like adding 0.033 ufs to the DAC chip.


 So, in short, what do I get to do a FrankenZero Light?


 Cheers


----------



## sennsay

Oops, sorry, early morning brain fade! See the next post, heh heh ... 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 S-Man


----------



## sennsay

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *fdbf* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Hi there guys!

 Have someone of you tried the "cap snipping mod" cutting off those capacitors in the Dac and Pre-amp sections?

 I'd like to do it but i fear bad consequences, like sound becoming TOO bright for my ears.... anyone giving me some advice?

 i'm using a pair of HD-600 directly connected to ZERO.

 Thanks_

 

Hi fdbf, from what I can gather after months on the Zero thread, the cap snip (on the DAC board) may affect those headphones that are already a little bright up top, virtually everybody else has only found a benefit to be had by getting rid of them. I don't know of anyone else with either 650's, like myself and many others, or with 600's that has had any problems at all with the 'snip'. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



 You don't even have to pull the board. Only the ones at the back though, by the RCA output jacks. However, in your case, since you are not even using the DAC out to another amp I wouldn't bother yet, you can do that any time. 

 IF you mean the ones beside the op-amps in the Zero's amp, I'm not really a fan of just cutting them out, they usually have to do with the operational stability of the op-amp. They can be replaced for sure with better caps. I've actually replaced some in another amp of mine with slightly larger values to no ill effect - 100pF instead of 22 or 47pF. Just snipping what's there _could_ lead to instability with some cans. 
 S-Man


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## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *grkn* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_

 So, in short, what do I get to do a FrankenZero Light?


 Cheers 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	


_

 

Follow the instructions in the FrankenZERO thread. Do an entire Phase...either 1 or 2 or 1 and 2 is my advice. I strongly suggest you consider and complete Phase's 1 and 2...that'll give you 90 % of the Frankie's sound sig...if you use the H/Amp section for your amp then 1 2 and 3 are worthwhile. In which case a kit from me makes more sense cost wise. Your choice of course.

 Sourcing the PIO caps can be tricky......do not buy any caps with a diameter of more than 8mm....otherwise they will not fit under the pcb. As it is the 8mm caps need to be oriented a certain way to allow the pcb to reinstall without issue. This narrows your choice of cap considerably.

 Use Sennsay's excellent assembly guide and pics for additional tips, bypass cap orientation pattern and general help.

 Peete.


----------



## vitosu

Hey, I have two silly questions. On another forum they suggest getting 3 HDAMs for the Zero. On the Introduction page by Currawong it says "as the ZERO doesn't have enough grunt to power 3 HDAMs." Any chance someone could clear this up for me? How many HDAMs do I get? And assuming getting 3 isn't the worst idea ever, it would be stupid to have say, 2x Moon 1x Sun in one Zero right?

 I don't know if this is necessary information, but I will be connecting headphones directly to the Zero.


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## DaMnEd

You get one dual HDAM for the DAC, using an all HDAM solution (1 for the DAC, 2 for the amp) would require heavy modding to grantee that "grunt".

 The only reason to get more than one for the ZERO is to try to find the HDAM you like to most, most would recommend the OPA-Earth for the DAC.


----------



## vitosu

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *DaMnEd* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_You get one dual HDAM for the DAC, using an all HDAM solution (1 for the DAC, 2 for the amp) would require heavy modding to grantee that "grunt".

 The only reason to get more than one for the ZERO is to try to find the HDAM you like to most, most would recommend the OPA-Earth for the DAC._

 

Grunt to power headphones? If so, my headphones aren't very demanding.


----------



## DaMnEd

To power the HDAM units.

 What you suggest would be a gamble, personally I do not gamble, you may, and you may find it satisfactory, or not.


----------



## shampoosuicide

Hello all, I just received my HDAM from audio-gd. I ordered an OPA-Moon Dual OPA with a 200mm extension wire.

 Here's what I received:










 Is this correct? It looks different from the HDAM on audio-gd's site, which has 3 sides instead of two:






 Lastly, is the white wire attached to the HDAM the wire I'm supposed to ground?

 Thank you all in advance for the advice.


----------



## DaMnEd

Than is a single channel, you need the dual one, so you got the wrong version.. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 The white wire is the ground wire, not the extension lead!

 The corrrect version would look like this:
http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/diy/OPA/OPA-MOON1.jpg
http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/diy/OPA/OPA-MOON2.jpg
http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/diy/OPA/OPA-MOON3.jpg

 And the extension lead would be this "thing" on the side of the HDAM: http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/diy/OPA/lead.jpg


----------



## shampoosuicide

Hi, yes, I did receive the 200mm extension lead (the "thing" on the side of the HDAM in the picture). Am I supposed to ground the extension lead or the white wire?

 Also, does this mean that I received the wrong HDAM?


----------



## DaMnEd

The extension lead is just so that you are able to plug the HDAM from a distance and layed down, instead of directly in the opamp socket, like this: ImageShack - Hosting :: img0089nz2.jpg

 The ground wire will have to be connected to a grounded spot, I used one of the motherboard screws, like this: ImageShack - Hosting :: img0092se5.jpg

 And yes, you definitely have the wrong version, like I already stated, you have the single version, you need the dual.. make sure you did order the dual, and paid for the dual, if so, it was an Audio-GD mistake that must be corrected, have a talk with them, send them a mail.


----------



## shampoosuicide

Sigh 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 I guess I'll have to wait again... Yup, I did order a Dual, highlighted it many times to them in fact, and paid accordingly. Have dropped them an email.

 In the meantime, while I await the correct HDAM to be shipped to me, pardon my ignorance, but what exactly does a "grounded" spot refer to? I've also came across terms like "earth leg" or "earth wire", how do I know what these are?


----------



## DaMnEd

"Grounded spot" would describe a point that is connected to ground, in my case I used a screw on the main board because I know the ZERO chassis is connected to ground, you can clearly see that in the IEC inlet, the ground wire (should be a yellow wire with green strips) connects to the chassis.

 "earth leg" "earth wire" is pretty much the same, in this case it is referring to the wire that you see coming out of the HDAM.


----------



## shampoosuicide

Ah, thanks Damned. What would "ground" then refer to?


----------



## DaMnEd

Ground (electricity - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)


----------



## shampoosuicide

Thank you again Damned, much appreciated.


----------



## DaMnEd

The link was missing one ")" it is fixed now, in case you didn't notice.


----------



## Currawong

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *vitosu* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Hey, I have two silly questions. On another forum they suggest getting 3 HDAMs for the Zero. On the Introduction page by Currawong it says "as the ZERO doesn't have enough grunt to power 3 HDAMs." Any chance someone could clear this up for me? How many HDAMs do I get? And assuming getting 3 isn't the worst idea ever, it would be stupid to have say, 2x Moon 1x Sun in one Zero right?

 I don't know if this is necessary information, but I will be connecting headphones directly to the Zero._

 

I'm thinking of removing that advise now. It was based on people's experiences with the bass disappearing when they plugged in 3 HDAMs. I plugged in 3 and had no issues.

 Secondly, I don't recall where in the Zero thread, but it was advised AGAINST connecting the ground wire to any of the chassis screws. One of the reasons is that the HDAM becomes quite hot as a result, but the main reason was that it was the WRONG ground point. ccshua is the man to explain what and why, but he discovered that connecting the white earth wire to the RCA ground resulted in a sonic improvement. If it's too much hassle to do this, don't bother, just leave the earth wire not touching anything at all is my advise.


----------



## DaMnEd

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Currawong* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Secondly, I don't recall where in the Zero thread, but it was advised AGAINST connecting the ground wire to any of the chassis screws. One of the reasons is that the HDAM becomes quite hot as a result, but the main reason was that it was the WRONG ground point. ccshua is the man to explain what and why, but he discovered that connecting the white earth wire to the RCA ground resulted in a sonic improvement. If it's too much hassle to do this, don't bother, just leave the earth wire not touching anything at all is my advise._

 

RMAA's are quite clear on this actually, when connected to ground (the screw), stereo crosstalk is much improved, and I saw absolutely no increase in temp btw, you can notice this SQ improvement.

 Why would you recommend someone not to have it connected like I did when it was quite clear something got improvement, and a measurable improvement which is more than you can say for most tweaks?

 BTW I'm not saying the RCA connection won't be better in anyway, didn't test it, but that's no reason to say the other way does not have merit, specially when measurements disprove such notion.


----------



## Coreyk78

If the audio ground is isolated from chassis ground in the Zero somehow then I would guess there could be a reason to connect the HDAM ground wire to the RCA ground pad. Otherwise I don't see where it would make any difference where the ground connection is made.


----------



## shampoosuicide

A few quick questions:

 Is this the earth leg of the RCA jack that I am supposed to solder the ground wire of the HDAM to?






 I have my HDAM positioned here. Is this a good spot? As you can see, I have a 200mm extension lead, so I can really move it around.


----------



## Currawong

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *shampoosuicide* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_A few quick questions:

 Is this the earth leg of the RCA jack that I am supposed to solder the ground wire of the HDAM to?_

 

Yes. That's the one. 

 I know it shouldn't matter where the ground is connected, but it does make a difference. I don't recall why exactly unfortunately.


----------



## ccschua

Can the Audio-gd CMC jack be used for Coaxial input. Is it the jack is 75 ohm ?


----------



## DaMnEd

No RCA jack is truly 75 ohm as far as I know, I've seen quite a few discussions on this, and even the ones who claim they are (and CMC does not) when measured are not 75 ohm. Stick with BNC 75ohm for coax, and use coax cable for the connection if you want to make sure 75ohm are really their from the PCB up.


----------



## Pricklely Peete

Shampoo...wrap that HDAM in electrical tape before you have a short with one of those exposed solder points on the main board pcb...(clock can or other metal contacts).

 You've been lucky so far...don't tempt fate bro.

 Peete.


----------



## shampoosuicide

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Pricklely Peete* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Shampoo...wrap that HDAM in electrical tape before you have a short with one of those exposed solder points on the main board pcb...(clock can or other metal contacts).

 You've been lucky so far...don't tempt fate bro.

 Peete._

 

Oh man thanks for the heads up Pete! I probably would have left it there that way until it got a short one day.


----------



## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *shampoosuicide* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Oh man thanks for the heads up Pete! I probably would have left it there that way until it got a short one day._

 

Glad to help Shammer......the middle pin you pointed out (RCA outs assembly) is the correct spot for the HDAM ground lead !!!

 Peete.


----------



## shampoosuicide

Okay so I built a little cradle for the HDAM out of some old callings cards, and covered it with electrical tape. Does this look alright?







 Also, I have no soldering skills whatsoever, so I clipped the ground wire of the HDAM to the earth leg of the RCA jack. Is this okay?






 Anything else I need to work on now? 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	









 Thanks in advance!


----------



## Currawong

Good going. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 This is what I did:


----------



## Pricklely Peete

Looks good Shammer......

 Peete.


----------



## shampoosuicide

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Currawong* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Good going. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 This is what I did:




_

 

Ahh... A far simpler and elegant solution. Should have thought of that!

  Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Pricklely Peete* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Looks good Shammer......

 Peete._

 

Thanks for the help again, all. Now I can sit back and enjoy my music


----------



## Sganzerla

Can someone please post a big picture showing exactly where the soldering or alligator clip touches RCA ground?

 I'm a little confused if I got it right on where exactly I should ground - I mean there are some "dents" (don't know the English term to it) separating L and R channel to ground, right?

 (by the way, if I did right, there was no difference in sound quality to me)

 Thanks!


----------



## Syu

Does anyone know what the blue small boxes that are next to the DAC op-amp are?


----------



## isao2k8

Unfortunately my ZERO was broken because of my mistake. So I got the second unit, removed some components of the first one and took a picture of the PCB around the DAC opamp. Hope this could help someone:


----------



## isao2k8

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Syu* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Does anyone know what the blue small boxes that are next to the DAC op-amp are?_

 

They are 560pF capacitors.


----------



## raekwonse

Has anyone tried upgrading the stock power cable on the Zero? I was thinking of getting an Iron Lung Jellyfish or a Zu Birth cable for it. Thanks.


----------



## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *raekwonse* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Has anyone tried upgrading the stock power cable on the Zero? I was thinking of getting an Iron Lung Jellyfish or a Zu Birth cable for it. Thanks._

 

Yup...just about anything is better than the POS it comes with......well worth trying...no need to spend stupid money on it though...Audio Advisor has a incredible deal on for Tributaries power cords...19.99 for a killer mains cable (1.5 ft) 12 ft is 30US.


 Peete.


----------



## raekwonse

It seems like the Tributaries power cord is sold out now. It's not on the website. I might just go for the Zu Birth cord. Thanks!


----------



## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *raekwonse* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_It seems like the Tributaries power cord is sold out now. It's not on the website. I might just go for the Zu Birth cord. Thanks!_

 

Wow that was fast.........I should have picked up a couple myself but thought they'd be around for a few more weeks.....that was a great deal....sorry you didn't get in on it

 Peete.


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## ccschua

FRANKENZERO DAC with buffer added.


----------



## Pricklely Peete

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *ccschua* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_FRANKENZERO DAC with buffer added.
_

 

Cool CC.......how are the Nover caps coming along (burn in) ? In fact how is your unit's SQ shaping up now compared to stock ?

 What type of buffer ? Diamond ?

 Peete.


----------



## espressogeek

I finally broke down and bought a Zero. It sounds really nice as is to my ears. I'm going to try to address the low hanging fruit on the headphone amp. I didn't realize it uses 2 DUAL opamps. I wonder how they are configured exactly. I really want to either draw the schematic for this headphone amp out and try to figure out why it is the way it is. If I don't maybe I'll junk it and try to slip a PIMETA into the chassis. 

 I swamped out the op amps in the headphone section with opa2132 for the time being and I have a LME49710 in the DAC. I will probably try the opa 2227 in the headphone amp section and maybe I will try an HDAM in the filter. I am trying to keep this thing transportable so everything has to button up well for transport. As a result I dont see how squeezing in 3 HDAMs and a power support for the headphone amp will work, even though that is what i want to do if I retain the headphone amp.


----------



## ccschua

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Pricklely Peete* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Cool CC.......how are the Nover caps coming along (burn in) ? In fact how is your unit's SQ shaping up now compared to stock ?

 What type of buffer ? Diamond ?

 Peete._

 

The Franken mod is already a big league jump. The nover cap is there more neutral.

 The Buffer in fact is from Kingwa which is BU2. That is a JFET and BJT in push pull class B. First impression is the sound is so dynamic and smoother sound. But I still need to improve on the DC offset on the output. Look at the flying wires.

 Finally I got it done. I have found the culprit that causes the DC shift. Kingwa is right again that the RC networks provides the necessary bias to the JFET in order for it to sound right and the 100uF decoupling cap remove the osccilations that causes the DC offset.


----------



## espressogeek

Can someone recommend a good 75 ohm bnc receptacle that I can purchase from mouser or digikey? I like the neutriks at partsexpress but I wont want to pay 20 dollars for two of them shipped.


----------



## ccschua

Try Farnell. Canare or AMP should be good enough, or u can get from audio-gd too if u buy the OPA.


----------



## espressogeek

Thanks but I already have an order that I am placing with digikey so if I could find good one there that would be great. I might just give in and pay the shipping from partsexpress as I want to pick up some rca connectors too. 

 If I wanted to use "snap in" style capacitors, such as the Nichicon KG's, would they fit the board or will I have to mount them off board and air wire them? Any advice here is appreciated.

 Finally, Has anyone considered replacing the power supply 337 and 1117 regulators with something from Paul Hynes? TNT has a pretty good article, http://www.tnt-audio.com/sorgenti/mo...su_mods_e.html on upgrading the Monica 2 DAC with these. I thought they might clean up the highest frequency noise better.

 http://www.paulhynesdesign.com/page6.html


----------



## Coreyk78

If you want some decent prices on Neutrik bits, try going to Dale Pro Audio - Broadcast & Field Audio, Live Sound + Install, Recording & Professional Parts I ordered a bunch of rca jacks from them, and they also carry the D series jacks like the BNC one your looking for.


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## espressogeek

Thanks for the heads up Coreyk78!


----------



## goorackerelite

would it be blasphemy if I asked some one to perform this upgrade for me? of course I would reciprocate with monetary funds


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## isao2k8

I replaced 18 resistors around the DAC opamp with "Takman REY25" and "TamaElectric LF" known as one of the best-for-audiophile metal-film resistors in Japan. They gave more noticeable SQ improvement than I expected. Now sounds are more powerful and clean.


----------



## espressogeek

I have installed the Neutrik BNC in place of the factory supplied RCA plug. I am using a Blue Jeans cable to connect this to a HagUSB and it sounds wonderful! I will be installing my own version of the FrankenMod soon! I will be sure to post plenty of pics as well. Thanks for everyone's help!


----------



## green0153

I could contribute to this thread telling that i have done the Lampizator mod and the difference is huge.
 I have used a different tube stage with great results.
 My Stax and Koss headphones now have a huge 3d sound stage and i have never heard the sound so real behind and over my head.


----------



## mattcalf

Gawd I need to get a job so I can buy this and mod it!

 Also could someone directly link me to the Lampizator mods.


----------



## espressogeek

My ultimate goal is either to do one of the two output sections on that site.  I am glad you like it. Post some pics!
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




  Quote:


  Originally Posted by *green0153* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_I could contribute to this thread telling that i have done the Lampizator mod and the difference is huge.
 I have used a different tube stage with great results.
 My Stax and Koss headphones now have a huge 3d sound stage and i have never heard the sound so real behind and over my head._


----------



## green0153

Here are some photos:
 In the future the PSU will go in the case under and the rest in the upper.Hopefully the tubes will go outside a bit so i can see them glow 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			




 Sorry i don't have time to post some pictures of open units but when i return from holidays i will post them. 









 The CD player Lampizator mod and some of my inventions.For now it's ugly as hell but when i build a new case and suspend the CDM2 on ropes......


----------



## Henmyr

Do removing the two small brown caps beside the RCA out increase the treble? I've have not done it yet because of fear that the sound will be too treble oriented and harsh(K501 and RS1 are a bit treble heavy already).

 EDIT: Read here:http://www.head-fi.org/forums/blogs/...amplifier.html
 that this is the case. Guess I won't remove them.


----------



## Pricklely Peete

Nice job greeno153 !!!

 Gotta love the different variations members come up with. I'd like to try the Lampy Valve mod myself...I need another Zero for that...maybe a Hybrid FrankenLampy of a sort ....hey that's not a half bad idea.....

 Henmyr...I'd say try the removal of them (lift one leg from the board carefully using a fine point soldering iron) and if you don't like it then put them back in...for bright cans you may be better off leaving them in or better yet replace them with some nice silver mica types (anything from 22 to 100 pf >50V will be fine )....a 1 dollar mod 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Peete.


----------



## green0153

Thnx,im now on opa637 my tubes fried 





(( ,expecting new ones from russia 6n3p-dr in two weeks... 

 lampy is great but i will have to build his tube stage because mine has less focus than with the opamp but the stage is bigger....so will see maybe the new tubes


----------



## Pricklely Peete

Always trade offs with every mod....tube type may change that focus somewhat. Maybe some Telefunken or Siemens tubes will recover that detail while retaining the large sound stage...experiment a little with output stage coupling + bypass caps while your at it. 

 Peete.


----------



## fermentol

Hello,

 i see this thread is mostly about the audio (analog) part of Zero, has anybody dwelled into the digital circuits ? I am thinking about doing something about the annoying relay clicks whenever i pause the sound source. Anybody knows whether the relays are controlled from the CPU (89c4051) or the spdif decoder chip? (the D/A chip has also outputs for signal detection, but they doesn't seem to be connected to anything)

 Edit: And they are indeed controlled from the microcontroller. Schema i traced for anyone interested: http://napalm.sf.cz/tmp/digitalpart.png


----------



## Alai

Could someone help me troubleshoot my dead Zero? I don't see anything burnt out or anything but it stopped powering on for some reason. I THINK it's the power supply, but I can't tell since I haven't been interested in DIY until a few days ago.


----------



## fermentol

Following my previous post, tying the output relay to Vcc (with resistor for good measure) prevents it from disengaging, thus eliminates the clicking. It's kind of weird design anyway, as the relay controlls only the output RCA sockets. The opamp and whole headphone amp section is still connected to the D/A output regardless of digital signal lock and so is unaffected by this mod anyway.


----------



## richardh123

Hey guys I just got my HDAM and was wondering if this is an acceptable installation. The extension is really hard to control in that it bend how I would like so i have to route it around as you can see. If this is not a good idea or if you would like to see it from a different angle please let know, thanks!


----------



## Baird GoW

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *richardh123* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Hey guys I just got my HDAM and was wondering if this is an acceptable installation. The extension is really hard to control in that it bend how I would like so i have to route it around as you can see. If this is not a good idea or if you would like to see it from a different angle please let know, thanks!




_

 

I do not have a Zero or the HDAM but I'm pretty sure you need to ground the HDAM to the ground on the RCA Input as shown in previous pages of the thread.


----------



## Infoseeker

I most likely broke the receiver chip of my Zero connecting the zero to my Xbox 360. It was working at first, but I think after I reset my Xbox it went off Digital Stereo back to dolby and killed it. 
 Getting no noise via optical or coaxial to the headphone out. Its not the cable or my Laptop since both work with my speaker receiver.
 Leaving the Zero unplugged for a whole day, and then testing it did nothing. Reset button did nothing. 

 What do I do? yelp!


----------



## Gerykatss

I am new here my web Istockvanities.com: Bathroom Vanities - Bathroom Vanity on Sale have a nice community.
 I want to make some friends.
 We can start today!


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## PabloJovceyJrse

Oral phentermine Hydrochloride (HCL) is sold for weight loss. It is in the Sympathomimetic family of appetite suppressants (used for the short-term management of exogenous obesity.)
 When used in conjunction with diet, exercise, and behavior therapy, phentermine may help you to lose weight while you are learning new ways to eat and to exercise.

*How does Phentermine work?*

 Phentermine works by stimulating the hypothalamus gland and affecting certain neurotransmitters to decrease appetite.
 The hypothalamus is the region of the brain that controls the autonomic nervous system, regulating sleep cycles, body temperature, appetite, etc.
 Phentermine should NOT be used as a substitute for proper diet or exercise. For maximum effects, it must be used in conjunction with a reduced-calorie diet and/or exercise.

 Any modifications in your diet, activity level, and behavior must be developed and continued long-term in order to continue losing weight and prevent the lost weight from returning.


























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----------



## Cya|\|

So guys, if i put a discrete opamp, it won't fit in vertically right? Must i use a prolonger?


----------



## reiserFS

Bump, do I solder the cap right onto the top pads or the side pads of the HDAM?


----------

