Who's Gone Topless?


The idea of this goes back decades. Amps and preamps (for the most part) are designed on chassis free breadboards, then voiced, THEN are packaged inside a chassis, which can be the weakest link to hearing what the designer intended. In most cases the chassis sidewalls and bottom are essential, but the top?


First off, beware that doing so will likely affect your mfg warranty, but, if you live in a pet-free, child-free home, then the benefits can more than offset concerns about something getting in that could harm the components. Case in point my Ric Schultz Class D EVS 1200, dual mono IcePower 120as2 modules. HOWEVER, unlike others using the same or similar modules, Ric then sprinkles many decades of modifying pixie dust all around them which are mounted inside an understated (sans bling) Italian sourced chassis.

When I ordered mine it was mandatory to purchase 2 Cubes ($200) which are to be butted up against each board, requiring the owner to remove the top. After doing so, I was anxious to put it in my rack so I could properly isolate it from bad vibes, when I should have listened with and without the Cubes and top.


Ric is also a proponent of weighing down components, but due to the unnecessarily large chassis, it barely fit in my rack, but I had a 5 pound divers belt lead weight that I squeezed in. Now, because RIc chose to put the mute toggles on the back I placed the amp on the first shelf from the rack's top (but out of sight out of mind: I never mute it when done listening), upon which was my CD player/Transport, which I raised up to provide ~ 2" of air space above the top of the 1200 and the bottom shelf of the player. Even though the rack is open on all sides with plenty of air space all around the rack, the amp ran warm

Fast Forward to yesterday. I was listening to Leonard Cohen Essential songs, mostly instrumentally sparse. I removed the weight; and found the music much more open sounding. Encouraged, I FINALLY removed the top. Honestly, I was not prepared for how HUGE doing so could be. It was like the music went from a confined space to an open air 3 dimensional venue. This is so amazing that I am going to get a handle on it via different music before removing the Cubes. Oh, and the amp is now cool as can be. 


So, if interested, stay tuned
tweak1
djones511,723 posts04-27-2020 2:37pm
If we don’t try to understand why then what’s the point? I guess we’re here to...read page after page of vague useless pabulum.
Based on participation on these forums, "we" seem to be fairly satisfied with the group, so please speak for yourself rather than pretend to speak for others.

If you’re not interested in what you read here, perhaps this isn’t the best group for you.
If you thought about installing a electrostatic filter system then you could have both a topless and better sounding audio system and a house that was virtually dust free. Oh and add some UVC while your at it. All of the above works. Tom
Now, on the lighter side, my wife isn't going topless, but she did ditch the bra while we shelter in place
CLICK BAIT!!! It did get me thinking as the title intended, tho. My 300B and 45 amplifiers may not be applicable to removal of the top plates and the tubes are already exposed. I WOULD enjoy seeing a nice pair of juicy Globes up there! Even my Preamp has eight tubes with exposed nipples!