Lobby > Head Amps, DACs, Sources, Portable Equipment Discussion
Bottlehead Crack
OJneg:
Just got a BH Crack on loan from a friend.
I know at least a few pirates own this amp. Discuss.
kothganesh:
As can be expected, lovely match with the HD 6x0s, not as much with the HD 800 (but then it is unfair IMO to compare the Crack with , say, the ZDS)....definitely needs the Speedball upgrade.
CEE TEE:
Upon comparison with your Torpedo, OJ...my Crack without Speedball was not clean or fast or resolving but had a big sound. Your Torpedo Amp made me finally install the Speedball upgrade and it cleaned up/tightened up considerably. Thank you for that loan!
Crack was really cool to put together and at the price, with HD580/600/650 it is a no-brainer and a great amp. I should listen to it more. Has a nice small footprint. Not as hot as other tube amps. I haven't even upgraded caps or gotten any other tubes for it. I should!
Punchy, forward, thick, fun. Satisfying at lower levels if your volume pot is good enough at R/L channel balance for the resistance of your headphones...it seems like a natural "loudness" function of Bass/Treble compared to some amps.
Just say yes to Crack & Speedballs. For many, it is as much fun as you need. You're just hanging out with crazies here that want all kinds of amps and rigs. (Self-awareness. :)p8 )
kothganesh:
CT, I upgraded one cap ( its a larger one, forget the name) but there was no space for the other (I bought two). Definitely punchy and I never bothered using the stock tube. I plugged in an Amperex Golden Globe and very happy with the results. Thad E Ginathom (on this forum) has the amp for now and if I remember right, he did post hearing a more satisfactory SQ from his HD 600 and the Gungnir.
Add: I bought 2 of these (200 uF Clarity Cap TC) and a choke to replace the resistors in the power supply (got these ideas from the BH Crack forum).
http://www.partsconnexion.com/capacitor_film_clarity_tc6.html
OJneg:
My buddy gave me all sorts of stuff to play around with. 3 output tubes, 2 driver tubes, a choke (that might not work?). Output caps are not stock. Also want to swap out the pot :)
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