Website was hacked and webhost suspended website on March 14th.

Quite clueless and way out of my depth, webhost wasn’t much help either.

Finally, got some help and fixed it. I was attacked by a “ubh” plugin – United Bangladeshi Hackers. Man, these guys…

Will post more later… But it’s good to be back!

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six and half years, without fail, you make our lives so much livelier. there is no leftovers with you around. we revolve our lives so much around you.

six and half years, you have taught us so much, teaching us to be humble, accommodating, adaptable and be kind to everyone. you truly have a big heart. and all this while you have never complained about anything, not even a whine. biggest lesson of all, cherish everyone you have while they are still around.

six and half years, our lives have been enriched in ways we never thought is possible. we have truly become better persons thanks to the lessons you taught us. who knew a four legged furry animal has so much to teach us?

six and half years, we have been truly humbled and grateful for your presence in our lives.

six and half years… it’s still too brief.

we are really sorry we have failed you. if only we could have done more for you.

you may be gone but your daddy and mommy will always remember you as our baby.

our dear tonto
run free
your body may have failed you
your spirit remains
you will continue to live inside us
and we shall meet again

our tonto boy

it is a privilege to have you in our lives!

31st January 2017. A tribute to tonto.

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Finally! The inaugural DIYERs Meet Up here in Sunny Penang!

As you can see, Steven brought his Fostex FE167E, built as recommended here. Thank God they remembered to bring some CAT5 speaker cables, as poor me only have one pair of speaker cables. And they are soldered on to the crossover of my Hammer Dynamics.

This is a first visit for CY Liew and, not to be outdone by Steven, he brought his 8xTDA1543 non-oversampling (Damn Evil, Has No Right To Sound So Good) DAC here. And he was thoughtful enough to bring his digital interconnect! Such nice guys!

 CY Liew’s 8xTDA1543 non-os DAC.

 I like his PCB for the 8pcs of TDA1543. Note that macho heatsink underneath.

First off, we began by… me showing off. Everyone got “acquainted” with my system before we started trying things out. We began by trying CY Liew’s DAC. Since I can’t access the SPDIF output from my CDPRO2 (I accidentally destroyed those darn connectors), the old workhorse, the Marantz CD63, has to be called in for transport duties. Well, I’m also using 8xTDA1543 so sonics wise, not much different though the difference in transport mechanism could be heard. My DAC is also battery powered now, so we could hear the (ill) effects of not using batteries. In short, the highs are nowhere as clean and clear, and voices are not as natural. So go batteries, go!

Then, we had more fun! Disconnected the Hammers and wired in the tiny Fostex speakers. The touch of perspex at the speaker binding post lends it an air of sophistication. In DIY Paradise, let only Yours Truly hog the Horrible Craftsmanship award. I intentionally build my stuffs to look so bad so that anyone (you, you, you) can be inspired to do better. (Ha! Ha!)

But bass it not all there is to music. The Fostex not only managed to make beautiful music, it also did so with aplomb. Personally, the Hammers better it in a few areas but the Fostex at almost 3x cheaper, doesn’t even reveal its 3 times lesser price tag. To me, THIS IS CLASS!

All in all, it has been a wonderful afternoon. Not only we finally put some faces to those names, we also learned that there is more to DIY audio than just letting Diana Krall/Norah Jones/Jennifer Warnes/Etc wank you off with their latest and greatest. There’s a community out there and it’s more satisfying and fulfilling to be out there with them. Though this time I played host and didn’t need to take a single step outside but there’s always next time!

So you DIYERS out there! Get off your butt! Call/E-mail your DIY buddies in your neighbourhood and Meet Up!

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Most items on this page no longer available. Check out the store.diyparadise.com, Clearance category for such parts.

Yup, odds and ends. Some are stuffs that I have acquired but forgot what to do with them. Some however, are such great deals, you’ll be daft to pass up. Click on pics for larger image.

Wood chassis with nickel top plate. 17.5″ x 15″ x 4″. RM100.

Nippon Chemi-con 12000uF/100VDC Big Macho “Stud” Electrolytic Cap. RM30 each.

Nippon Chemi-con 2200uF/400VDC Big Macho “Stud” Electrolytic Cap. RM30 each.

MK Tough Plug. Hospital Grade. 2 pieces only. RM26 each.

Ferrite clamps. You know what are these for! 12 pieces. RM12 each.

Power trans wound for my 12B4 “Etude” preamp. Usable for Simple 5687 preamp as well. Used. RM40.

This pair of output transformers came from a World Audio Design KT88 Parallel Single Ended amp. Yours for RM200.

Nice industrial grade chassis for your CDP/DAC/Amp project. Or whatever project you can think of. RM50.

15A 120VAC Wiremold Multiple Power Outlet. RM40.

NOS Mullard EF86. Some customer asked me to get for him. I did, but he didn’t keep his word. Ah! The perils of the tube business… 2 pieces. Asking for what I paid for. RM150 each.

NOS paper in oil capacitors. 5687 tube beside for size comparison purpose. (you can see the photog)

Gudeman 0.56uF/600VDC. 4 pieces. RM40 each.

Sprague Vitamin Q 0.1uF/600VDC. 4 pieces. RM25 each.

Matsushita 12AX7. Bought NOS. Never used, so it’s still NOS. Have 2 pieces only. Asking for what I paid for, RM40 each.

Please check also Consignment Sale page.

store.diyparadise.com

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Never Listen to Untreated CDs Again!

What began as a social visit to buddy MKC’s place yielded one of the most fun tweak I have come across. Dang, this tweak is not new but if you haven’t heard about it (like me), then it’s new!

Okay, to fulfil the above pledge, you have 3 choices.

Choice #1. Get a can of Pledge Furniture Polish and polish all your furniture. Then listen to music. As your furniture are all freshly polished, the aroma and look will create an ambience that is conducive to listening.

Choice #2. Get a can of Pledge Furniture Polish and place it on top of your speakers. Ideally the nozzle should be facing the listening position. Be rewarded with improved imaging and spatial resolution!

Choice #3. Get a can of Pledge Furniture Polish and spray on your CDs, then wipe them off gently with a soft cloth. Then listen.

Ready? Made your choice?

Choice #1 will be your wife’s suggestion.

Choice #2 *could* be ripped verbatim off a hifi mag!

Choice #3 is what a Diyer will do.

Seriously, when MKC had me listening to untreated, then treated CDs, I was just speechless…. Trying to pick my jaw off the floor!

Try it, and be rewarded with lower noise floor, less splashy highs and smoother mids with more prescence.

If it doesn’t work, there’s always Choice #1.

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When shown a circuit, you can almost always find fault with it. You ask yourself, "What’s wrong with amp designers these days?! Can’t anyone design competently?".

The pen is mightier than the sword, but not mightier than a soldering iron.

Your toilet has tube, DIY parts’ catalogue.

Your cell phone’s speed dial has at least 2 DIY gurus. And the marking on these keys to invoke the speed dial is blurred.

You have no problem remembering plate resistance, operating points of 2A3, 300B and 845, but struggle to recall your house phone number.

You want to name your daughter Svetlana.

You know more about the different dielectric materials in capacitors than an average Chemical Engineer.

Would cryogenic treatment turn your wife into a better wife?

You want to name your daughter Sylvania.

Your amp wears more silver than your wife.

You don’t think there is anything wrong with amps that weigh 100kg, consume 60W of electrical power and puts out only 3 miserly Watts of music.

Your idea of financial security is a stash of Telefunken/Mullard 12AX7s and Western Electric 300Bs.

Your wet dream is finding such a stash!

You want to change your family name to Mullard.

Your monthly household budget spreadsheet has one column for DIY parts.

That’s all I could think of. Send me your suggestions and I’ll add to the above list.

www.diyparadise.com

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Actually all the info on this page no longer valid. Go to my e-store for updated list of stuffs that I sell.

My day job boss asked me to relocate. So I’ll be moving soon to the bright lights of Kay El. So asking the help of you guys (my night job bosses) to give a home to these items…

Make an offer for my Hammer Dynamics speaker, Simple EL84 amp.

Make an offer for anything else you need but not listed on this page. At my current state of mind, I may do stupid things…

The post MEGA SALE!!!!! appeared first on diyparadise.

Yeah folks, proud to say I’m done with moving house! The past few years have seen me move from one "shanty hut" to another. : ) All because the Tube Mafia has put a price for my big fat stupid head! So is it any suprising I’m venturing more into solid state these days?!

After a few moving sales, I learned to appreciate the value of simplicity, the value of minimalism. Now, not just "less in more" in circuitry terms, but also, "smaller is bigger". See above. CDPRO2 SPDIF output feeding "3-some" ( Monica2 and Charlize in gorgeous teak wood) driving a pair of Coral Flat 6s.

The magnificent hardwood enclosure is a Spiral Horn done by VMPS Audio! It’s just partly finished but typical of a True Blue DIYER… let’s listen to it first! And what can I say? I have never heard Flat 6 do such good bass! To learn more, read Masaaki Takenaka’s excellent "3D Spiral Horn Speaker Building" I like speakers that you can tune to suit your room and this Spiral Horn is just like that. By adjusting the height, you are adjusting the bass quality. That’s why we have bricks as speaker base to get the required height. The bricks have to be wrapped in environmentally unfriendly plastic bags, otherwise my wife won’t even let it pass the front door. Man! She doesn’t understand a man must have his brick!

On the left, close up of "3some". On the right, another Charlize dressed to impress. Again, beautiful teakwood chassis.

Here’s 2 ways you can sit Charlize. Either way, she looks great!

Hopefully in the next few weeks, we could offer Monica and Charlize in such gorgeous teak wood chassis. Tell you wife these are audio jewellery boxes, housing audio jewellery. : )

diyparadise.com

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Or would you prefer this "conventional marketing drivel"? Courtesy of MKC.

There you go audio nuts!

Are you DESPERATE ENOUGH?

How now brown cow?

USD300. Lead time about 2 weeks. Fully handmade.

Fedex to USA, USD17.
Fedex to most countries in Europe, USD25.
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Working with Promitheus Audio, here’s a few popular iron sets for discerning DIYers.

Darling Set

So called as it’s meant for low power amps.
Power trans. 240-120-0. Air gapped for 5mA. No need for DC blocker!
Secondaries. 220-190-0-190-220 @ 100mA, 12.6-0V @2A, 6.3-0V @2A.
Choke. 10H 100mA, 130ohm DCR.
Output trans. 5kohm:8ohm. 5W. Potted.
Shipping weight 7.5kg.
USD145 (RM520) per set.

DHL to USA, Canada – USD72
DHL to Belgum, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Scotland, United Kingdom – USD93
DHL to other parts of Europe – USD130.

 
 
The power trans comes with a cover so you display it on top of your chassis.
The potted output trans is threaded so it’s easier to mount on your chassis.

Simple EL84 set

Designed for Simple EL84. This is a special set. Iron cores are all Z11!
Power trans is smaller, lighter and regulates better than standard core. Also, it doesn’t get as hot!
Choke has better high frequency filtering. Output trans is specified up to 20W for pentode mode Push Pull operation!
Power trans. Primary 240-120-0. Air gapped for 5mA. No need for DC blocker.
Secondaries. 220-0-220V @330mA, 3.15-0-3.15V @5A.
Choke. 4H 380mA. 16ohms DCR!
Output trans. 8kohm:8/4ohm. 20W.
Shipping weight 9kg.
USD280 (RM1000) per set.

DHL to USA, Canada – USD92
DHL to Belgum, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Scotland, United Kingdom – USD114
DHL to other parts of Europe – USD175.

Power trans also available separately at USD83 (RM300) each.

diyparadise.com

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