# Have Replaced X-Can V2 Capacitors.. WOW!!!!



## PinkFloyd

Finally got round to fitting something a little more exotic than the"Jamicon SK General purpose caps" into the X-Can V2.

 The change of Valve to the Mullard E88CC made an improvement to the sound but the capacitor upgrade has turned this amplifier into an absolutely STUNNING sounding piece of equipment.

 All I can say is "oh my God, yes yes yeeeees yeeeeeeees!" This is as close to an aural orgasm I've ever been! The caps have only been in for about 5 hours and they are getting better and better and better and better and better!!!!!

 Don't "think" about performing this upgrade... get your soldering iron out and "do" it NOW! The sound is incredible! "never heard those violins before" "my God there's a french horn!" "That guitarist just farted!" The detail and insight is unbelievable!!!!

 At Last......... the X-Can V2 sounds like a Sennheiser Orpheus!!!

http://freespace.virgin.net/rock.grotto/index2.htm the Capacitor Upgrade can be viewed in the new "Musical Fidelity X-Can V2 Projects page"

 This is no "subtle" improvement this is a full out sonic attack on your eardrums......... Best ever upgrade for sure.

 Pinkie


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## PinkFloyd

7 hours in and sound is improving hour after hour!!!

 I can't wait for the amperex bugle boys to arrive. If they sound as good as the reviews then the X-can V2 will take, yet another, leap forward!!

 Now... just gotta get to work on that horrible little potentiometer.

 At this rate I'm going to rename to X-Can V3 Turbo!!

 (Cracks bottle of champagne on amp) "I name this tube amp X-Can V3 Turbo" God bless all who listen to her!

 Pinkie


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## ddriveman

Good job ! Now you have me hook on doing a similar capacitor upgrade. Need to first find those Caps here in Hong Kong and get myself a soldering iron. By the way, ehat type of solder did you use ?


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## ServinginEcuador

Pinkie,

 Well, you final;ly arrived with the MF tweaking. Aren't you glad you got rid of the Creek?? 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 Probably the second best desicion. The first being the upgrading on those caps.

 Maybe you should rename the unit Ex-Can V2. This would commemorate its departure from the norm.


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## ddriveman

Pinkie,

 Are you also going to look at replacing the resistors and diodes on the X-Cans V2. There are several interesting posts on the HeadWize DIY forums that dwell on such upgrades. Check this one out :

http://headwize2.powerpill.org/ubb/s...20&srch=x-can;

 I have hesitated (other than tube rolling) so far because most of nthe upgardes hav ben on X-Cans V1 and older versions of the V2 which are based on opamps. Yours is the first that I have seen with dual transistors in lieu of the opamps (like mine !) that have had capacitors upgraded and sounding better.

 Onward and upward.


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## elrod-tom

Quote:


 _Originally posted by PinkFloyd _
*Don't "think" about performing this upgrade... get your soldering iron out and "do" it NOW! The sound is incredible! "never heard those violins before" "my God there's a french horn!" "That guitarist just farted!" The detail and insight is unbelievable!!!!

 At Last......... the X-Can V2 sounds like a Sennheiser Orpheus!!!

http://freespace.virgin.net/rock.grotto/index2.htm the Capacitor Upgrade can be viewed in the new "Musical Fidelity X-Can V2 Projects page"

 This is no "subtle" improvement this is a full out sonic attack on your eardrums......... Best ever upgrade for sure.

 Pinkie * 
 

Pinkie:

 I've visited your web page, and want to thank you personally. What a wealth of knowledge for us X-Can V2 users. I'm going to (one of these days...very soon) have to do this cap replacement myself.

 However, X-Can w/ new caps = Sennheiser Orpheus? In the words of Vincent Vega, "That's a bold statement!"


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by elrod-tom _
*Pinkie:

 I've visited your web page, and want to thank you personally. What a wealth of knowledge for us X-Can V2 users. I'm going to (one of these days...very soon) have to do this cap replacement myself.

 However, X-Can w/ new caps = Sennheiser Orpheus? In the words of Vincent Vega, "That's a bold statement!"




* 
 

It May be a bold statement yes......... truth is........ X - Can sounds a million dollars......... the difference is phenomenal!!


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## elrod-tom

Quote:


 _Originally posted by PinkFloyd _
*It May be a bold statement yes......... truth is........ X - Can sounds a million dollars......... the difference is phenomenal!! * 
 

Well, if that's the case, I'll have to get started right away!!


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## PinkFloyd

That's about 3 days the caps have been in now and the sound is getting better and better all the time.

 I am really "not" exaggerating here.... the difference to the sound is absolutely incredible. The sound is not only "out of the head" but "over your head" and "behind your head". The space between performers is so real you could walk around the soundstage.

 There is detail I have never before heard. This is a must for any x-can v2 owners. It may take you months to obtain the capacitors but man... it's worth the wait.


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## Budgie

You should hear the difference with Black Gates!
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	


















 (My evil side just want'ed to mess with ya. Sorry!)


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by Budgie _
*You should hear the difference with Black Gates!
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 I tried to incorporate some Black gates but they were too big to fit into the X-Can V2 so they really don't play a part in this scenario?

 Rubycon produce a capacitor which will only fit into a circuit board with 3 metres headroom..... a lot of use that is! 

 I've "heard" the difference the ELNA's have made and they do it for me (and they fit)

 ELNA "fit"
 Pinkie














 (My evil side just want'ed to mess with ya. Sorry!) *


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## PinkFloyd

Just popped in to say...... the capacitors are "even" better today! I reckon they will take a good 2 weeks to fully form and will report back then.

 All the best

 Pinkie


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## Tube_Pete

Since I have a heavily upgraded Marantz cd-player, newest version of X-can V2 with external power supply and Sennheiser HD600 just like your rig this capacitor upgrade seems tempting to say the least..

 I have looked everywhere on Internet and ELNA Cerafine seems almost impossible to get at least here in Sweden. My CD player uses ELNA Silmic capacitors for the vital signal filtering, so perhaps upgrading X-can V2 with ELNA Silmic would be wise.

 The question is why Musical Fidelity used cheap Jamicon SK general purpose caps all over. I guess it's because the caps aren't processing or filtering the signal at all. Probably noise rejection is used as well on the main board and eventual noise or hum from the PSU board shouldn't be a problem. Therefore it seems a bit odd that your capacitor upgrade was so substantial.

 Will receive a HD 600 equinox replacement cable soon.. can't wait!


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by Tube_Pete _
*Since I have a heavily upgraded Marantz cd-player, newest version of X-can V2 with external power supply and Sennheiser HD600 just like your rig this capacitor upgrade seems tempting to say the least..

 I have looked everywhere on Internet and ELNA Cerafine seems almost impossible to get at least here in Sweden. My CD player uses ELNA Silmic capacitors for the vital signal filtering, so perhaps upgrading X-can V2 with ELNA Silmic would be wise.

 The question is why Musical Fidelity used cheap Jamicon SK general purpose caps all over. I guess it's because the caps aren't processing or filtering the signal at all. Probably noise rejection is used as well on the main board and eventual noise or hum from the PSU board shouldn't be a problem. Therefore it seems a bit odd that your capacitor upgrade was so substantial.

 Will receive a HD 600 equinox replacement cable soon.. can't wait! * 
 

I can answer your question with a quote from an e-mail I received today from Sean Redshaw (designer of the highly acclaimed rennaissance series of Valve amps here in the UK) http://www.highendaudio.co.uk

 I quote Seans e-mail: "Dear Mike,
 It sounds like we have helped to spur you on to great things. Your
 discovery that audio-grade capacitors make such a difference reveals quite a
 lot about the X-Can design. We went through a similar exercise in the
 development of our power amps. That's how we arrived at our choice of
 Danish paper in oil copper foil capacitors costing an arm and a leg instead
 of the usual "cooking" capacitors from the corner shop.

 This is the kind thing which a lot of people find extremely hard to believe.
 It is not until you hear it with your own ears that you realise just how
 important it is to select the correct component parts. Of course, in the
 world of mass production and commercial imperatives, it can be very
 difficult to justify the use of 60p capacitors instead of 8p capacitors.
 It's even more difficult to justify the use of £17 capacitors! The way
 things are done in industry is to verify that the prototype meets the
 specification and then churn them out. Putting in better components will
 (typically) make no difference whatsoever to the measured performance. Few
 engineers are brave enough to include the level of musical enjoyment in
 product specifications. The sad fact is that we live in a world of facts
 and figures rather than value judgements. Because it is easy to measure
 things like frequency response and total harmonic distortion, these have
 become the dominant measurements. It is just a shame that we don't have an
 electronic instrument which can tell us whether a circuit is going to sound
 right. Trusting your ears is not fashionable.

 Amperex "Bugle Boy" valves: these are the made-in-Holland types, I believe.
 I shall try to establish a sensible source of the things (I see that some
 people are charging $45 each for the things). How would you describe the
 improvement which the Bugle Boys bring?

 Thank you very much indeed for mentioning us in dispatches. So far, as well
 as the order from your pal, Neil, we have had an enquiry from Canada.

 If things go on like this, I shall definitely need to get hold of some
 unwanted X-Cans and go to town on upgrade kits. The interesting thing is
 that the biggest improvement probably involves the lowest component cost
 i.e. changing some of the power supply capacitors. Of course, the
 attraction of swapping valves is that you don't need to get involved with
 soldering and desoldering.


 I sincerely hope that you now feel free to enjoy listening to some music,
 Mike.

 Well done!


 All the best
 Sean"

 "P.S. In our original application for the JJ's (the front end of our power
 amps), they did not sound bad at all. Remember, we are using them in an all
 valve application where circuit conditions are completely different from the
 X-Can."


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## ServinginEcuador

Pinkie,

 sounds like you've started a trend with your cap rolling discovery on the X-Cans. You got any plans to try some of those caps your friend recos for 17 pounds each?? HAHA, I doubt it. I hope that many people find out how greatly they can improve their sounds with some easy component swaps. It's been said here time and again that it makes a huge difference, but I hope it catches on more and more in the future. 

 You've done us all a great service doing all that work and reporting what you found. Thanks.


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## raymondlin

That's a lot of work for upgrading an amp! how long did that take?

 You took the thing apart, I don't think it's even class as an X-Can anymore! apart from the case. X-Can v3 turbo indeed! It'll be interesting to see if MF's next Headphone amp will be comparable to yours.

 btw, how much were those capacitors ?


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## Tube_Pete

I might replace all caps with Panasonic FC in my X-Can V2, since they are easiest/cheapest to get. Are the cap on this link the cap type you have used in your X-Can V2 pinkie?

http://international1.farnell.com/Se...archform.jhtml


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## Tube_Pete

Anyone thought about changing the volume pot to some Alps pot. In that case which Alps model should fit the bill, i.e. has the right voltage rating, pin configuration and size?


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by ServinginEcuador _
*Pinkie,

 sounds like you've started a trend with your cap rolling discovery on the X-Cans. You got any plans to try some of those caps your friend recos for 17 pounds each?? HAHA, I doubt it. I hope that many people find out how greatly they can improve their sounds with some easy component swaps. It's been said here time and again that it makes a huge difference, but I hope it catches on more and more in the future. 

 You've done us all a great service doing all that work and reporting what you found. Thanks. * 
 

Erm.. £17 per cap is a little over the top and I doubt they'd be too large to fit in the X-Can V2.. I bet they sound lovely though 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 Cheers for the compliments I think it's good to share upgrades with others and hope this will spur them on to trying the upgrades themselves.

 I'm getting to work on a X-Can V1 this weekend and will be replacing all the caps and also the op amps so will upload all the details when I'm finished!

 Pinkie


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by raymondlin _
*That's a lot of work for upgrading an amp! how long did that take?

 You took the thing apart, I don't think it's even class as an X-Can anymore! apart from the case. X-Can v3 turbo indeed! It'll be interesting to see if MF's next Headphone amp will be comparable to yours.

 btw, how much were those capacitors ? * 
 

Hi Raymond!

 To remove the circuit boards and disconnect them 10 minutes
 To desolder all the caps 20 minutes
 To solder in new caps 10 minutes
 To reconnect everything and insert into X-Can 10 minutes

 Obviously you can take as long as you like but I'm a great believer in getting that soldering tip on and off the PCB as quickly as possible.... nothing worse than lifting a track with too much heat!

 Just ensure none of the capacitors touch each other and try to fit them as straight as possible.. a tidy board always looks better!


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by Tube_Pete _
*I might replace all caps with Panasonic FC in my X-Can V2, since they are easiest/cheapest to get. Are the cap on this link the cap type you have used in your X-Can V2 pinkie?

http://international1.farnell.com/Se...archform.jhtml * 
 

Hi Pete,

 That link you provided is not working but all the caps you need are available from RS components website. The caps I am going to fit into the V1 this weekend comprise ELNA cerafine, ELNA Starget, Panasonic FC and Rubycons. Everything apart from the Cerafines is available from RS.

 I've got 4 35v 1000uF Cerafines left and 2 of them will be going into the V1 upgrade (you can only physically get 2 in) Replacing all 6 of the 35V 1000uF with panasonic FC caps will bring about a major improvement though.

 The ELNA Starget is a super audio cap and the price is very good too! here is my RS parts List along with the part numbers... if you visit their website and put the part numbers into their search box it will take you to the relevant page. Alternately, go to Electrolytic capacitors (radial) and you'll see the stargets and FC's on that page.

 RS Stock No. Qty Description
 (Click to see product information) Units Unit
 Price Goods
 Value Remove
 Product 


 Capacitor, aluminium electrolytic, low impedance, radial, wire ended, 35V, 1000UF EACH £0.62 £3.10 Remove 
 In stock 



 Capacitor, aluminium electrolytic, audio grade, solder tag, 16Vdc, 1000uF EACH £1.858 £9.29 Remove 
 In stock 



 Capacitor, aluminium electrolytic, audio grade, solder tag, 35Vdc, 470uF EACH £1.89 £9.45 Remove 
 In stock 



 Capacitor, aluminium electrolytic, audio grade, solder tag, 35Vdc, 10uF EACH £0.304 £1.52 Remove 
 In stock 



 Capacitor, aluminium electrolytic, audio grade, solder tag, 35Vdc, 100uF EACH £0.788 £3.94 Remove 
 In stock 



 Capacitor, electrolytic, 16V, 100uF EACH £0.168 £0.84 Remove 
 In stock 



 IC, Op Amp, Voltage Feedback, dual, OPA2134PA EACH £2.03 £4.06 Remove 
 In stock 



 IC, socket, low profile, DIL, 8 way EACH £0.82 £4.10 Remove 
 In stock


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## PinkFloyd

crap that didn't work!!

 Here are the part numbers:

 315-0754 
 215-5663
 215-5720
 215-5685
 215-5714
 224-4173
 285-8069

http://www.rs-components.com Remember that these parts are for X-Can V1. All the values you need for V2 can be found at RS.

 Get as many Stargets in the correct value that you can and for the other values us Panasonic FC

 Hope this helps

 Pinkie


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by ddriveman _
*Good job ! Now you have me hook on doing a similar capacitor upgrade. Need to first find those Caps here in Hong Kong and get myself a soldering iron. By the way, ehat type of solder did you use ? * 
 

I used the best type of solder.... "Free" dunno what the exact grade is but I got a few reels of it when I worked at Arcam many years ago.

 Pinkie


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## PinkFloyd

These punters do some nice ELNA caps but they also know how to charge crazy prices! http://www.audiocom-uk.com/Merchant2...S&Store_Code=A

 I got my caps through a friend who works for ELNA and, even through him, they took 3 months to arrive from Japan. It's very frustrating that you can't buy the values you need off the shelf and it's, in a way, ELNA's own fault. Their UK distributor "ACAL" has a MOQ of 1000 units so if you want to buy 7 capacitors of differing values you'd have to buy 7000.

 Considering elna have hundreds of different values of Cerafine what company is going to stock each value? Imagine 120 capacitor values x 1,000..... 120,000 capacitors they would have to buy and remember........ then they have to sell them all to people looking for 6 or 7 at a time. No wonder suppliers are hesitant to stock them.

 If everybody here wrote to ELNA it would prove there was great demand and maybe ELNA would realise it would be in their interest to sell them direct to the public.

 Ah...... dream on

 Pinkie


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## raymondlin

For Soldering, try to get Silver Solder, it has 5% of Silver mized into it to increase conductivity. I use it to make i/c.


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by Tube_Pete _
*Anyone thought about changing the volume pot to some Alps pot. In that case which Alps model should fit the bill, i.e. has the right voltage rating, pin configuration and size? * 
 

I'm working on a replacement pot at this very moment pete and will advise you on the best pot as soon as I manage to source it!

 The thing musical fidelity fitted is far from ideal is it? It does the job I suppose but it just doesn't feel right.

 I like the old 70's style pots which were the size of a can of baked beans... dont think I'd manage to squeeze on of those in however! I'll have a good look at the pot at the weekend and may even ask musical fidelity what a better replacement would be.

 Pinkie


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## Tube_Pete

I bought a DIY external power supply to x-can v2 from a friend some months ago. He then replaced the PSU upper board in X-can with some kind of adaption card that adapts the external power supply to the mother (lower) board of x-can. The power supply is in a separate box with detachable power chord.

 Yesterday I opened the power supply box and inside were for example Elna Stargets, Large Rubycon caps (6800 uF) and a 50 W Talema toroidal transformer. The adaption card that he replaced instead of the PSU upper board had lots of Elna Starget caps on it. So it seems my cap upgrade would only be to replace the 6 caps on the lower board. I don't know their function though, if it's worth the effort to swap these at all.

 I also rolled in a matched pair of 6922/E88CC Ruby Tubes Sovtek. I don't know if these are the ones you gave 4 of 5 stars in your test pinkie. Anyway they sound a lot better than my National ECC88 I had before already. Great transient response, bags of details, wide soundstage. That smooth tube-like sound isn't completely there though.


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by Tube_Pete _
*I bought a DIY external power supply to x-can v2 from a friend some months ago. He then replaced the PSU upper board in X-can with some kind of adaption card that adapts the external power supply to the mother (lower) board of x-can. The power supply is in a separate box with detachable power chord.

 Yesterday I opened the power supply box and inside were for example Elna Stargets, Large Rubycon caps (6800 uF) and a 50 W Talema toroidal transformer. The adaption card that he replaced instead of the PSU upper board had lots of Elna Starget caps on it. So it seems my cap upgrade would only be to replace the 6 caps on the lower board. I don't know their function though, if it's worth the effort to swap these at all.

 I also rolled in a matched pair of 6922/E88CC Ruby Tubes Sovtek. I don't know if these are the ones you gave 4 of 5 stars in your test pinkie. Anyway they sound a lot better than my National ECC88 I had before already. Great transient response, bags of details, wide soundstage. That smooth tube-like sound isn't completely there though. * 
 

Hi Pete,

 Sounds like a pretty cool power supply, do you have any pictures of it you can upload?

 The ELNA Starget is a good capacitor and, yes, it would be worth replacing the caps on the lower board with Stargets. The top board deals with power supply and the lower board amplification.

 The sovteks I auditioned were the 6922's... I don't know about the "ruby" but these were simply known as "sovtek 6922". I agree with your appraisal of the Sovteks but they are not "valve" like, sounding slightly more solid state (very Good though!) The mullards would probably give you the "smooth tube-like sound" you're looking for. I'm about to audition a pair of Sylvania gold pin 6922's and some amperex bugle boy 6922's so will let you know how I find them.

 Thing is..... where to stop! we could all go on for ages trying different valves.. there has to be a point where listening to the music and being satisfied enters the equation!

 Pinkie


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## Tube_Pete

Of course the music comes first... doesn't hurt though when you feel the ambience/sense of occasion of a concert hall/recording studio as you do with great sounding equipment. 

 The new Camel album "A Nod And A Wink" contains lot of subtle details and some great music as well. And if you haven't got it already you ought to buy Michael Hedges "Aerial Boundaries". Absolutely stunning acoustic guitar album from 1984 with great sound as well. The guy plays solo acoustic guitar on almost all tracks (additional flute and fretless bass on some track) and sometimes it sounds like there are three playing not one! 

 Album contains everything: emotions, dynamics, transients, ambience (guitar sounds echoes in the studio), superb guitar playing!


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by Tube_Pete _
*Of course the music comes first... doesn't hurt though when you feel the ambience/sense of occasion of a concert hall/recording studio as you do with great sounding equipment. 

 The new Camel album "A Nod And A Wink" contains lot of subtle details and some great music as well. And if you haven't got it already you ought to buy Michael Hedges "Aerial Boundaries". Absolutely stunning acoustic guitar album from 1984 with great sound as well. The guy plays solo acoustic guitar on almost all tracks (additional flute and fretless bass on some track) and sometimes it sounds like there are three playing not one! 

 Album contains everything: emotions, dynamics, transients, ambience (guitar sounds echoes in the studio), superb guitar playing! * 
 

And your point is??


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## kpfeifle

Pinkie:

 Any thoughts on when/if you are going to change the volume pot? Any ideas on what would fit?


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## Tube_Pete

Sorry for that uninformative post..

 Seems like the pot on X-can V2 is imbalanced at zero to low listening levels, at least mine is. The balance is left of the center at low volumes. But this also holds for my Marantz Pm-17 amplifier at low volumes to some extent. Changing to an Alps pot may not change this. 

 Does anyone have experience with swapping volume pots resulting in enhanced sound?

 Look forward to your report on swapping the pot to an Alps pot if you're going to carry it out!


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## elrod-tom

I saw a pot replacement on Headwise. It required replacing the face of the X-Cans v2 with a newly-machined cover to accomodate placing the pot in roughly the 10 O'Clock position (moved from the 7 O'Clock position). I recall that the size of the replacement pot was such that it would not fit without major changes.

 Imagine that...mods that don't fit inside the X-Cans.


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by elrod-tom _
*I saw a pot replacement on Headwise. It required replacing the face of the X-Cans v2 with a newly-machined cover to accomodate placing the pot in roughly the 10 O'Clock position (moved from the 7 O'Clock position). I recall that the size of the replacement pot was such that it would not fit without major changes.

 Imagine that...mods that don't fit inside the X-Cans. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	


* 
 

Yeh, and he didn't exactly "rave" about the changes (if any) to the sound did he? http://au.photos.yahoo.com/bc/michael_rookster/ click the "headphone amp" link


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## Tube_Pete

Are all Alps pots this huge  

 Does anyone know what type of volume pot is included on the X-can V2?


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## ddriveman

Don't mean to dampen the sprit of this thread but what I am about to post is to compare the X-Cans V2 (NoS Tubes) with the ASL Head MG/OTL. Its relevent to this thread because it whats got me started for this post.
 I decided to go for the caps upgrade ala Pinkie and went shopping for soldering iron, hunting for caps etc. Bought the soldering iron but could not find the caps but ran across a dealer for the ASL products. The ASL MG Head DT/OTL was selling for about US$225 which is about $100 less than normally advertized on websites. Now I am a die hard X-cans supporter having spent lots of money on PSU upgrade, numerous NOS tubes, power cords and interconnects matching etc. But the price was attractive and I was dissapointed not finding the Caps, so I bought the ASL Head.
 First impressions was not good. Bass was good but highs were veiled and rolled off. Very soft dynamics and I was beginning to regret my decision. However, I also found a Mullard 12AX7 NOS tube during my shopping for $35 and having read that tube rolling the ASL MG Head can yield good results, bought it.
 Once I switched over to the Mullards, it was night and day. Holy Smokes ! The soundstage open up. Spaciousness was huge (compared to X-Cans). Dynamics returned and comparable to X-Cans. Bass was better (deeper, fuller but still detail and good impact. Leading edge of double bass as good as X-Cans V2). Mid was so lush and spacious. Vocals better. This is my first experience with an all tube product and boy am I ever impressed. If this is what everyone is referring to as tube sound, then I am never going back to solid state. The highs were smooth and detail as compared to X-Cans. Perhaps the impact on highs is not as good as X-Cans but the margin is very small. Overall I prefer the ASL MG Head with Mullard 12AX7 tube to X-Cans V2 with either Siemens 6922 or Bugle Boy 6DJ8 plus X-PSU. Hands down.
 A good CD to compare is the "O brother were art Thou" soudtrack particularly track 4 (Going to the river to pray). This CD has been highly recommended by numerous Hi-Fi magazines. Although the recording is good, I was wondering wondering what the fuzz was all about. Hearing track 4 on the ASL MG Head, I was suddenly transported to a cathedral. Alcion Krauss and her backup choir was so lush and so much ambience and spaciouness, it made the X-Cans sound real flat. There was no going back after hearing this track.
 So my point here for this thread is that before you go off and spent time and money on PSU upgrade, tube rolling, caps and pot replacements, go listen to the ASL MG head. Its cheaper than X-Cans V2 with X-PSU to begin with and tube rolling the MG Head should be no more expensive than the X-Cans (although the MG Head has 3 tubes total, the single/middle 12AX7 tube is the one that makes the most difference). You could end up asing a lot of time and money.
 However, if I can get my hands on those ELNA cerafines, I will make the change (hvaing bought the soldering iron and all) and can then report back the differnece between ASL MG Head with Caps upgraded X-Cans.

 Cheers to all.


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## HanssoN

PinkFloyd, could you approximate the ammount of money you've put into that X-can of yours??


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by HanssoN _
*PinkFloyd, could you approximate the ammount of money you've put into that X-can of yours?? 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	


* 
 

Apart from the valves (£30) everything else was free.

 Pinkie


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## london luke

Pink

 I have fallen into deep water.................

 Ihad to sell my Hifi (£££££)and ive just started to get back into it all again!! But this time with cans.

 Ive just bought a pair of HD600's and some mint Jecklin Flaots 2's.

 between these cans I should be happy. I made my first upgrade today after burning the cans for over 60 hours with "AC/DC" !!
 I changed the thin foam to some sections of my wifes black tights (She doesnt know and I aint telling her!!) I Dont have a mistress...... I gather their tights have a warmer sound???(!!)


 I have been offered a Xcan v2 full working condition for £65.00.

 I like your ideas and will be going to follow some of them.

 As in all Hifi i found that power supplies upgrade makes some big changes.... So that will be the main focus point after the Valve change.

 I am almost thinking about throwing the case away......... And re-housing the whole lot so I have plenty of room for the mods etc. Also I hate the look of it!! It would look better in a nice case.

 I do know its going to have a Crystal blue LED!! And a great funky crome volume knob of an Old pioneer amp that Ive got That feels a million dollers.


 So..... i could do a few hours of "search" or see what you think


 Cheers 

 Luke................. Drowning in the hifi ocean again !!


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## lengcm

Hi Luke, Pinkie recently did a valve and caps upgrade on my X-cans and that was the best money I have ever spent. For sonic nirvana, just add in the X-feed.


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## london luke

Hi

 thats what I'm thinking!!! getting it all in one case. Power supply as well Shielded with copper walls etc. Big fat power supply. Top switches and pot............ o yes a blue LED!!


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by london luke _
*Pink

 I have fallen into deep water.................

 Ihad to sell my Hifi (£££££)and ive just started to get back into it all again!! But this time with cans.

 Ive just bought a pair of HD600's and some mint Jecklin Flaots 2's.

 between these cans I should be happy. I made my first upgrade today after burning the cans for over 60 hours with "AC/DC" !!
 I changed the thin foam to some sections of my wifes black tights (She doesnt know and I aint telling her!!) I Dont have a mistress...... I gather their tights have a warmer sound???(!!)


 I have been offered a Xcan v2 full working condition for £65.00.

 I like your ideas and will be going to follow some of them.

 As in all Hifi i found that power supplies upgrade makes some big changes.... So that will be the main focus point after the Valve change.

 I am almost thinking about throwing the case away......... And re-housing the whole lot so I have plenty of room for the mods etc. Also I hate the look of it!! It would look better in a nice case.

 I do know its going to have a Crystal blue LED!! And a great funky crome volume knob of an Old pioneer amp that Ive got That feels a million dollers.


 So..... i could do a few hours of "search" or see what you think


 Cheers 

 Luke................. Drowning in the hifi ocean again !! * 
 

Hi Luke,

 I don't quite understand the question...... are you contemplating using your wifes underwear to perform this upgrade or do you need part numbers from me?


 Pinkie.


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## london luke

Pinkie

 No !!

 Just your thought about a project i want to do. A one box containing massive power suply .Amp and one of your Xfeed devices.

 With the Amp coming from a Xcan v2.

 possibly with a 2 way switch for impendence levels To drive my HD600's and jecklin Floats 2.


 Ive got to start somewhere!!


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by london luke _
*Pinkie

 No !!

 Just your thought about a project i want to do. A one box containing massive power suply .Amp and one of your Xfeed devices.

 With the Amp coming from a Xcan v2.

 possibly with a 2 way switch for impendence levels To drive my HD600's and jecklin Floats 2.


 Ive got to start somewhere!! * 
 

That sounds like a very good and reachable plan Luke and I'll be more than happy to offer you any help I can. If you're housing the X-can circuit in a new case you'd be as well fitting a 50K ALPS pot whilst you're at it 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 You could also look at replacing the transistors and resistors with a better grade though I doubt these would bring about the same audible transformation that the caps do.

 Go for it!

 Pinkie.


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by PinkFloyd _
*That sounds like a very good and reachable plan Luke and I'll be more than happy to offer you any help I can. If you're housing the X-can circuit in a new case you'd be as well fitting a 50K ALPS pot whilst you're at it 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 You could also look at replacing the transistors and resistors with a better grade though I doubt these would bring about the same audible transformation that the caps do.

 Go for it!

 Pinkie. * 
 

PS... I'd be inclined to leave any crossfeed circuits seperate from the amp


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## samhuff

Quote:


 _Originally posted by PinkFloyd _
*I can answer your question with a quote from an e-mail I received today from Sean Redshaw (designer of the highly acclaimed rennaissance series of Valve amps here in the UK) http://www.highendaudio.co.uk

 I quote Seans e-mail: "Dear Mike,
 It sounds like we have helped to spur you on to great things. 

 <Snip>



* 
 

Well, if you are making tube equipment you already know you cannot beat solid state on specs.
 So all of us owe a debt to the people who make and buy tube gear. (Keeps the pressure on solid state.)

 But the spec thing and mass production makes possible the whole music in the home for everyone. Without it you have home music if you can play it or hire musicians. A dilemma for sure.

 A $20 capacitor adds $60 to the price, zo . . .
 It has been observed that companies who get too far away from this markup do not survive. A few mods as suggested later in this thread could bring the price up to the $1000 level, which is a completely different league.


 The solution may be to make the product as easy to modify as possible.

 Anyway the mod 3 is out.


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by samhuff _
*Well, if you are making tube equipment you already know you cannot beat solid state on specs.
 So all of us owe a debt to the people who make and buy tube gear. (Keeps the pressure on solid state.)

 But the spec thing and mass production makes possible the whole music in the home for everyone. Without it you have home music if you can play it or hire musicians. A dilemma for sure.

 A $20 capacitor adds $60 to the price, zo . . .
 It has been observed that companies who get too far away from this markup do not survive. A few mods as suggested later in this thread could bring the price up to the $1000 level, which is a completely different league.


 The solution may be to make the product as easy to modify as possible.

 Anyway the mod 3 is out. * 
 

Hi Samhuff,

 This is an old thread and I'm not entirely sure I understand what you are saying. what is Mod 3 ?

 Pinkie.


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## NotoriousBIG_PJ

Quote:


 _Originally posted by PinkFloyd _
*what is Mod 3 ?

 Pinkie. * 
 

X-can v3... 

 Biggie.


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by NotoriousBIG_PJ _
*X-can v3... 

 Biggie. * 
 

Oh right............ no big deal then?

 I auditoned 3 (yes 3) V3 X-cans and they were all faulty............ MF blamed it on their production facility in China..... hmmmm

 I just can't get into MF the way they are now sorry.......... the X-can V1 was an awesome amp made in the UK.... the V2 was contracted out but was also a good amp but suffered from high failure rates due to the low temp. caps in a high temp.enclosure

 The V3 is the same amp.......... they have added £100 onto the price......... 

 V1 and V2 were ok but I can't recommend V4

 :


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## PinkFloyd

Quote:


 _Originally posted by PinkFloyd _
*Oh right............ no big deal then?

 I auditoned 3 (yes 3) V3 X-cans and they were all faulty............ MF blamed it on their production facility in China..... hmmmm

 I just can't get into MF the way they are now sorry.......... the X-can V1 was an awesome amp made in the UK.... the V2 was contracted out but was also a good amp but suffered from high failure rates due to the low temp. caps in a high temp.enclosure

 The V3 is the same amp.......... they have added £100 onto the price......... 

*


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## samhuff

Quote:


 _Originally posted by PinkFloyd _
*Oh right............ no big deal then?

 I auditoned 3 (yes 3) V3 X-cans and they were all faulty............ MF blamed it on their production facility in China..... hmmmm

 I just can't get into MF the way they are now sorry.......... the X-can V1 was an awesome amp made in the UK.... the V2 was contracted out but was also a good amp but suffered from high failure rates due to the low temp. caps in a high temp.enclosure

 The V3 is the same amp.......... they have added £100 onto the price......... 

 V1 and V2 were ok but I can't recommend V4

 : * 
 

Thanks.


 And just when I was going to order one. I suppose that is one purpose of this site. And no if you cannot escape blame on your production facility, you put your name on it, it's your rep on the line.

 And as a consumer why I should care?


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## PinkFloyd

Don't let my comments put you off buying a superb amp... if you get a good one the X-Can V3 is a Very good amp indeed. I'm just not entirely convinced that Musical Fidelity are doing much in the way of quality control. The major culprit is the valves (tubes) and they appear to be fitted without being tested.

 The MF engineer told me to "send it down to us and we will match a pair of valves up and it will sound great" ummm...... I would have assumed the way to go would be to match the valves up "before" sending the amp out but apparantly not.

 You can easily swap the stock valves for a matched pair of Mullards or Sovteks for between £20 - £30 but I feel the amp should arrive with fully checked / matched valves and not with valves they have slotted in from a huge batch.

 Maybe I'm just being overly fussy here? 

 Pinkie.


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## samhuff

Quote:


 _Originally posted by PinkFloyd _
*Don't let my comments put you off buying a superb amp... if you get a good one the X-Can V3 is a Very good amp indeed. I'm just not entirely convinced that Musical Fidelity are doing much in the way of quality control. The major culprit is the valves (tubes) and they appear to be fitted without being tested.

 The MF engineer told me to "send it down to us and we will match a pair of valves up and it will sound great" ummm...... I would have assumed the way to go would be to match the valves up "before" sending the amp out but apparantly not.

 You can easily swap the stock valves for a matched pair of Mullards or Sovteks for between £20 - £30 but I feel the amp should arrive with fully checked / matched valves and not with valves they have slotted in from a huge batch.

 Maybe I'm just being overly fussy here? 

 Pinkie. * 
 


 Maybe matched tubes are not in the original design? I am surprised that they use push pull, I woulda thunk that single ended for a head amp is the way to go. And it neatly avoids the problem of matching.

 If the tubes are not matched what would I hear?

 Being a nubie I don't think I could point out flaws, and not really having a reference as to what it should sound like.

 Perhaps someone could suggest a good dealer in the US preferably in the NYC area, who would do set up and verification. If you don't know what you are buying know who you are dealing with is always a sound strategy.


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## Hirsch

Quote:


 _Originally posted by PinkFloyd _
*I would have assumed the way to go would be to match the valves up "before" sending the amp out but apparantly not.
* 
 

When I tested the tubes that came with my X-Can v2 sometime ago, one of them had bad grid emissions and wound up in my junk pile. The tubes appeared to be simply thrown in the amp with no testing at all.

 That said, the X-Can can be tweaked to sound very good indeed. I wish I had tried the cap upgrades before selling mine. It might be time to try another. I've already got an X-PSU about with my X-LP2...come to think of it, I wonder what upgrades could be performed on the phono amp...


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## samhuff

Quote:


 _Originally posted by Hirsch _
*When I tested the tubes that came with my X-Can v2 sometime ago, one of them had bad grid emissions and wound up in my junk pile. The tubes appeared to be simply thrown in the amp with no testing at all.

 That said, the X-Can can be tweaked to sound very good indeed. I wish I had tried the cap upgrades before selling mine. It might be time to try another. I've already got an X-PSU about with my X-LP2...come to think of it, I wonder what upgrades could be performed on the phono amp... 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	


* 
 

You are saying the x-cans should be considered a kit?


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## Hirsch

Quote:


 _Originally posted by samhuff _
*You are saying the x-cans should be considered a kit? * 
 

To some degree almost any commercial product can be considered a kit. Take a look at the modifications being done on Melos amps, for example, or the strong CD player aftermarket modification business. Build something, and there's almost always a way to make it better...


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