3rd Gen ODS by FictitiousFuzz

[ijedouglas]

One more question Martin, someone above mentioned the 3rd gens had the foil opposite of convention, is this true and what is your belief on this? Sorry if it comes up a lot, i have found conflicting info on this specific detail. I always go with what Aikens site says on the matter but after reading how drastic the perceived change is in tone i figure its worth digging. By digging i mean bug someone with far more experience than i. Thanks!

That was me and yes, it does make a difference...

[martin manning]

…the CMF60s at 1w 500V should be fine right?

That sounds fine, but do you have a link to the datasheet you posted? It seems to show much higher wattage ratings than the one I linked.
[edit: found it, CMF series. Those should be fine. Even though 0.5W is enough for plate loads, I'd go with the CMF65 just for the physical size. Under $0.80 each for 100 ppm in quantity 10.]

One more question Martin, someone above mentioned the 3rd gens had the foil opposite of convention, is this true and what is your belief on this?

I’d go with the outside foil lead to the lower impedance to ground, but I’ll have another look at the 2nd gen layout.

[Fictitiousfreedom]

Thank you and I’m glad my questions were helpful - it took me a long time to work up the courage to start asking, lol.

This community of experts is so very generous and helpful to the new guys like us! I’ve learned so much on this site from these great folks and truly appreciate all the knowledge and patience they’ve extended.

Now on to your next one, lol…

Yes, i too am extremely grateful for all of these generous folks. The world is so full of greed and disappointment It’s very nice to know that humanity is still sharing and kind, at least when it comes tube amps lol

Yup, after how good my 3rd gen sounds i have no choice but to do a high plate skyliner. If nothing else it will keep me from experimenting on this one. I really want to do a version of the SSS or even the Manzamp but the daunting amount of work required to pull those off scares me. I look forward to your future builds man!

[Fictitiousfreedom]

…the CMF60s at 1w 500V should be fine right?

That sounds fine, but do you have a link to the datasheet you posted? It seems to show much higher wattage ratings than the one I linked.
[edit: found it, CMF series. Those should be fine. Even though 0.5W is enough for plate loads, I'd go with the CMF65 just for the physical size. Under $0.80 each for 100 ppm in quantity 10.]

One more question Martin, someone above mentioned the 3rd gens had the foil opposite of convention, is this true and what is your belief on this?

I’d go with the outside foil lead to the lower impedance to ground, but I’ll have another look at the 2nd gen layout.

Thank you for your time Martin, i have No problem flipping them And listening to the results. It’s just a bit strange that HAD seemingly did it opposite of convention on purpose.

That was me and yes, it does make a difference...
[/quote]

Sorry wasn’t trying to say you were wrong or go passed you by asking Martin. I just saw the opportunity to get his opinion and took it. In your build did you try the foils both ways? If so what was the perceived change? Thanks man!

[martin manning]

Is it known that HAD oriented the caps in any certain way? I don’t see any obvious marks indicating that they were tested, and factory labels, if they have outer foil markings, may in fact be random. Without solid evidence I’d opt for the possible reduction in noise floor.

[Fictitiousfreedom]

Is it known that HAD oriented the caps in any certain way? I don’t see any obvious marks indicating that they were tested, and factory labels, if they have outer foil markings, may in fact be random. Without solid evidence I’d opt for the possible reduction in noise floor.

I am not sure myself but Ijedouglas at the beginning of my post recommended i flip them and that it makes a difference, and i trust his experience. I am intrigued for sure but id rather not flip them because if i cant hear a difference than ill have to swap them a second time to return it to how it is..

Also i hate to waste more time on this but the CMF60s on mousers site have two different data sheets with very conflicting specs, this is the source of my confusion. If you care to look i attached the data sheets.

Thanks again Martin



Also, i could not resist and experimented a little. My build is now a little different, ill update the layout to reflect these changes but the summary is…..
V2A
A2-220k
A1-150K
K2- 3k3
K1- 2k2
Mid cap - 6PS - 302
Iv tried a few things with the Bass pot to make it work more efficiently. I tried the 0.001uF across outer terminals and a few other values but i think i need to change the pots value because it’s still not perfect.

I prefer it this way for sure, but its a fine line and i don’t want to get too far in the weeds, that being said if i can find a way to implement the OD trim Pot i think that would be a great addition. The high plate values smoothed the OD a lot and increased headroom, i also seem to be able to get the same tone as before if i run the OD low and the first volume high. I will do another tone demo once I'm completely set and done tinkering.