Transcendent Sound "The Masterpiece" Pre-Headphone amp

[erik2A3]

I've complimented TS OTL amps and preamps multiple times over the years, having built them in the past both for other forum members and myself -- who some older folks here will remember as writing under my original Klipsch forum handle -- Erik Mandaville, which goes back to about 2002. Some years those early years were, too! Whew!

I recently completed their new Masterpiece Pr-headphone amp, and I confess that I initially found the name of the product -- I don't know...perhaps just different from what I would have expected. However, this thing is staggeringly good, flawless, and probably the most transparent and musical component I have built or heard. A must hear, and an insane bargain if there ever was one.

[erik2A3]

Note! the image above was taken just after voltages measurements, and the first listen to music. Bottomless and control knobless, just to give it a first listen. Honestly something very special.

I beg you to NOT ask me the brand of coupling capacitors it uses......

[CECAA850]

Looks great.  I'm a fan of their stuff as well.

[Schu]

why do more "Tube Amps" or "pre's" NOT use toroidal power?

 

this has always bugged me.

[erik2A3]

Moth Audio (now Eddie Current) used them in the first edition of the si2a3 amp. However, in that design, all tranformers and filter chokes are under the hood in a very deep chassis (top to bottom), and thus are out of sight. Toroidals are excellent, and I agree in many circles they are considered to be superior to what is more commonly seen.

BTW: I built Rozenblit's very first linestage from scratch from the schematic published Glass Audio back in the early 90s. It was a dual-output impedance (high and low) which, while very good at the time, does not come close to the performance of this latest design using 300Bs.

[MyOwn]

I've complimented TS OTL amps and preamps multiple times over the years, having built them in the past both for other forum members and myself -- who some older folks here will remember as writing under my original Klipsch forum handle -- Erik Mandaville, which goes back to about 2002. Some years those early years were, too! Whew!

I recently completed their new Masterpiece Pr-headphone amp, and I confess that I initially found the name of the product -- I don't know...perhaps just different from what I would have expected. However, this thing is staggeringly good, flawless, and probably the most transparent and musical component I have built or heard. A must hear, and an insane bargain if there ever was one.

Nice Erik, Gotta say I'm jealous...I'm using his GG Preamp and SOB. I've been wanting his Masterpiece for some time now.

http://www.transcendentsound.com/Masterpiece.html

[erik2A3]

Steve, GG and SOB must be a really great combination! I've built several GGs, but never for myself! My wife recently bought me one for an anniversary present; She knows how much I liked every one I've built, and we have need for another preamp in a second system. I'm intending to use the Masterpiece primarily for its much greater immunity against the negative effects of capacitance associated with long runs of interconnect, but I am enjoying it so much as such really, really fine headphone amp that I've been slow in getting into the main system.

Thank you for including the TS link. Meant to do that, but just forgot. I think the high power OTL 'Beast' would be lots of fun, but with speakers with an efficiency of 104 and 105 dB/watt, I have no need of that kind of power. I have two T-16s soon to be rewired as monoblocks, and that is even far more than I need. Amazing to think that's a total of 44 valves between the two amps....

[MyOwn]

Steve, GG and SOB must be a really great combination! I've built several GGs, but never for myself! My wife recently bought me one for an anniversary present; She knows how much I liked every one I've built, and we have need for another preamp in a second system. I'm intending to use the Masterpiece primarily for its much greater immunity against the negative effects of capacitance associated with long runs of interconnect, but I am enjoying it so much as such really, really fine headphone amp that I've been slow in getting into the main system.

Thank you for including the TS link. Meant to do that, but just forgot. I think the high power OTL 'Beast' would be lots of fun, but with speakers with an efficiency of 104 and 105 dB/watt, I have no need of that kind of power. I have two T-16s soon to be rewired as monoblocks, and that is even far more than I need. Amazing to think that's a total of 44 valves between the two amps....

Pictures????? Man Id love to hear those.....And this is what I want to hear on them

 

 

Edited April 9, 2016 by Steve_S

[erik2A3]

Very nice! Right, so on the T16, only one input tube compliment is used, thus the three unused punch-outs for tube sockets on each amp. I built both of mine as stereo amplifiers - I bought the second off a friend from Mexico for whom I built it a couple of years or so earlier. He went solid state with everything, that he said just sounded better with his low efficiency monitors and original Quads. So, with those socket holes already occupied, I was going to leave them as is - or maybe just for fun, disconnect grid, cathode, and plate connections in place on the one unused input/driver stage, leaving the filament suppy in place. Or, who knows, possibly just sell the second stereo T16. I have never really needed that much power, but was going to use them as monoblocks for the Lascala bass bins with a plan for an open baffle using our Lowther PM5A drivers, with a low pass filter to the woofers at around 200 cps, or so. I've already experimented with this a bit, though the choke I happened to have on hand crossed over at a slightly higher frequency than would a final rendition. The LS bass bins were placed in corners (though not tightly the way we did the k-horns once upon a time), wired out of phase, with the mouth of the horns firing toward the corners rather than the listening position. This was a simple, bi-amped system, using a rebuilt Leak ST 20 (with on-board volume control I installed -- essentially an in-line attenuator (aka 'passive preamp), and Transcendent SEOTL (original version) on the 15 ohm Lowther drivers.

Many Lowther users (including Nelson Pass) have abandoned the back-loaded horn approach, for which these full-range (not quite) drivers were traditionally used, opting instead for open baffles, and I have to say the sound the arrangement provided was positively superb -- electrostatic-like, with a fantastic and lively sense of air and space. I have been using the Fostex T90A super tweeter with the rear loaded horns, with a series poly film cap giving a response at around 10K Hz, but with the Lowther driver positioned on the open baffle on-axis at ear-level, I found the HF response of the Lowther alone very satisfactory. I ordered these particular drivers with silver voice coils, which seems to have a bit pf a taming effect, without any dulling of clean, clear transient response. Totally attention grabbing sound! Grand Funk!

[joessportster]

On 4/6/2016 at 8:26 AM, erik2A3 said:

I've complimented TS OTL amps and preamps multiple times over the years, having built them in the past both for other forum members and myself -- who some older folks here will remember as writing under my original Klipsch forum handle -- Erik Mandaville, which goes back to about 2002. Some years those early years were, too! Whew!

I recently completed their new Masterpiece Pr-headphone amp, and I confess that I initially found the name of the product -- I don't know...perhaps just different from what I would have expected. However, this thing is staggeringly good, flawless, and probably the most transparent and musical component I have built or heard. A must hear, and an insane bargain if there ever was one.

I realize this is an old post, I am curious if you still feel like the Masterpiece is a steller product ?  I am seriously considering getting 1

[HPower]

Bump,

I would also like to hear Erik’s longer term feelings on the MP?

 

[JoeM38]

I have looked at their kits a numerous times.  lots of great reviews.Looks like a fun project. 

[MyOwn]

Another Beast rises from the ashes

Not to take away from OP...But good stuff...

 

https://tubehifi.websitetoolbox.com/post/another-beast-rises-from-the-ashes-10031539?trail=15

 

PS:  Speaking of pics, if you'd like to sneak a peek at the best looking scratch-build BEASTs I've ever laid eyes on, check out this thread.  Builder Mark is an absolute perfectionist!

(And a heck of a nice guy...)

 

http://sharksphotos.yolasite.com/