Ayre K1X vs K1Xe

My K-1x is being upgraded as we speak. I also think it's addition was the single biggest difference in my system any component (except speakers of course) has ever made. I'll report back in a week or so of the sonic changes.

Kurt_Tank- Can you elaborate on the phono gain of the V-1xe. I just bought a Clearaudio turntable w/ modded RB300 arm and shelter 501 MkII cartridge (0.4mv). I'm considering upgrading the arm and cartridge in the future. What were your discoveries in gain to mv rating and did you mess with the resistance too? Is it just trial and error or are there guidlines you could share?

Mike,

Yes please do let me know what you think after the upgrade.

Ryan

MMike84,

Glad to see you're upgrading the K-1x to a K-1xe!
You won't regret it, IMHO.

Regarding the 1o db additional gain that I mentioned:
Here is a link to a similiar thread on AudioAsylum from a couple years ago.

Similiar AudioAsylum Thread

As you can see, Charles Hansen states that the gain to the phono stage has been increased by 10db. This means that you can use lower output MC cartridges without having noise issues. I believe that means that since the maximium gain (in db) for the phono stage is now in the mid 70's, you could probably use any cartridge without worries about background noise issues.

As an example, a phono stages that only has a gain in the 55 db range, (for example the ARC PH-3, a good phono stage actually, as it preceeded my Ayre), can realistically only handle cartridges with a minimum output of 0.5 mv, give or take, or else the background noise can become objectionable. In fact, I used a Koetsu Rosewood Signature, and there was a bit of background noise, which ultimately lead me to upgrade my preamps. Whereas the Ayre can easily use lower output cartridges like the Dynavector XV-1S I currently use (0.3mv), or the Platinum Koetsus (0.2 mv) or even the Allaerts which only have an output of 0.1 mv (although my guess is that would tax virtually any phono stage!).

Feel free to ask me more questions if you have more.

Kurt_tank- Thanks!

I do have a few other questions if you don't mind. Ejlif I don't mean to hijack the thread so tell me to take a hike if you'd like to.

Kurt_tank- The K-1x has output gain set at 50db with the gain resister at 75ohms. The e upgrade changes the factory set gain to 60db (I assume gain resister stays the same at 75 ohms) with a potential range of 50db to 70db. It sounds like you run your 0.3mv cartridge with a gain of 70db. Is that correct? As a basic rule of thumb would you run a 0.4mv cartridge at 60db and a 0.5mv at 50?

The other option listed in the Ayre manual is gain resister. I'm a vinyl newbie and I'm having trouble figuring out what to do here. Did you change the factory set resister which I assumed above stayed 75ohms? How would one create a basic rule of thumb here?

Mmike,84,

Yes, I run my 0.3 mv output cart with 70 db of gain, although, if I could, I'd rather use about 65 db of gain.
60 db of gain would probably work, but just barely, IMHO.

With a cart with 0.5mv output, I would use about 60 db of gain, and with a 0.4 mv output, I'd use about 62 db. (But of course the Ayre does not allow that level of refinement to the gain stage, so I'd probably just go with 60 db.)

Okay, here is a link, which shows the bare minimum gain needed.

http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/vinyl/messages/27/271912.html

Personally, I agree with garth (see his subsequent response), that these figures are the bare minimum, and really it should increased by about another 3-6 db or so, depending upon the phono stage, or else the signal is either pushed to its limit, which limits dynamics, or it starts to increase the noise floor.

Plus the added benefit of having increased gain, is that you'll have less volume control difference between your sources. (And with the Ayre's rather complex volume control, I prefer to limit its use.)

As far as which resistor I used, I'll be honest and state it has been too long for me to remember which one I inserted. If you have any questions, I recommend that you call Michael at Ayre, 303-442-7300 x 233, as he is really helpful. (If you dislike talking on the phone, you can post a question to Charles Hansen over at Audio Asylum, (in the amp/preamp section), and he'll usually respond.)

Well, I hope I helped.
Good Luck!

PS If you're using a MC cartridge, make sure that your loading is set to about 100 ohms (versus the 50K ohms that a MM cartridge usually uses, and which the Ayre's default loading is set at, as I recall). Some MC cartridges like 1000 ohms, or something between the two, but I find 100 ohms to be a good place to start.