keithpgdrb
Super Member
I just took a look at bluecircles website to check the price of the thingee. How exactly is this a "budget" phono stage? it starts at $385 with the standard power supply. am I wrong? Did I miss something?
Fon Lo Thingee Review Impressions.... Amazing!
- Thread starter MuthaFunk
- Start date
MuthaFunk
Vinyl Addict
Who said it was a budget pre?
I don't recall saying it was a budget pre... I was trying to communicate that for those who are shopping for a phono pre in it's price range (Jolida JD9, Project Tube Box, Gram Slee ect.) it was IMO a bargain.
Since writing this thread I have further developed the resolution of the Fon Lo Thingee by purchasing D Cell battery holders and a XLR plug for cheap from that auction site. We have dollar stores around here that I can purchase decent Panasonic D-Cell batteries by the pair for $1.
I now run my FLT with pure DC like some of the exotic phono pre offerings from the uber high end manufactures like Sutherland. One could order just the FLT without the standard power supply at a reduced price ($310 when I ordered) and assemble a battery system like I have to run it for under $15 plus $10 batteries and achieve similar results to Blue Circles own SP pack + Biggie power supply. Those upgrades are all well reviewed but they shoot the cost of the FLT to over $1000. I did it with $335. I did purchase the Biggie Pipe supply because I wanted to make sure I could run it while I didn't know how the batteries would work out.
I'm now going to house all of the parts in it's own chassis and use a switch to switch between the wall supply and the batteries for detailed listening. I'll post a new thread with pics when I'm done.
When achieving this level of vinyl production for $335 I might even say to some people it is a budget pre. I guess it all depends on your system and what you consider budget. IMO a buget pre would be the hagermen bugal or my project phono box II. To some, those are huge money for just a phono pre amp.
I don't recall saying it was a budget pre... I was trying to communicate that for those who are shopping for a phono pre in it's price range (Jolida JD9, Project Tube Box, Gram Slee ect.) it was IMO a bargain.
Since writing this thread I have further developed the resolution of the Fon Lo Thingee by purchasing D Cell battery holders and a XLR plug for cheap from that auction site. We have dollar stores around here that I can purchase decent Panasonic D-Cell batteries by the pair for $1.
I now run my FLT with pure DC like some of the exotic phono pre offerings from the uber high end manufactures like Sutherland. One could order just the FLT without the standard power supply at a reduced price ($310 when I ordered) and assemble a battery system like I have to run it for under $15 plus $10 batteries and achieve similar results to Blue Circles own SP pack + Biggie power supply. Those upgrades are all well reviewed but they shoot the cost of the FLT to over $1000. I did it with $335. I did purchase the Biggie Pipe supply because I wanted to make sure I could run it while I didn't know how the batteries would work out.
I'm now going to house all of the parts in it's own chassis and use a switch to switch between the wall supply and the batteries for detailed listening. I'll post a new thread with pics when I'm done.
When achieving this level of vinyl production for $335 I might even say to some people it is a budget pre. I guess it all depends on your system and what you consider budget. IMO a buget pre would be the hagermen bugal or my project phono box II. To some, those are huge money for just a phono pre amp.
Stanton681EEES
Addicted Member
How long do the batteries last, any idea.
Oh and take no notice of the budget remarks, if it's as good as you say it's a bargain, that's all one needs to know.
Shackman55
Super Member
You might also try some non-Dollar store variety batteries, I have been working with batteries for decades and there are huge differences between them. Output can vary wildly from 1.40v to over 1.70v with no load. Since the cheapy variety usually crap out pretty quick a quality battery might actually prove to be a better investment both in sound and duration.
MuthaFunk
Vinyl Addict
I can't say for sure as I haven't had too much time to run the current ones dead. So far I have about 4 Hrs on them and they have dropped .5 of a volt on both the + and - sides of the supply. I plan on installing voltage meters on my chassis when I build it so I can check the remaining voltage while under load with the push of a button.
Indeed! The Panasonic branded ones were all consistent as I tested each before trying them out, however they are still the Carbon based ones and not Alkaline. There is definitely room for performance improvements moving away from dollar store batteries. Having said that, my next move would be to buy Nickel Metal Hydride rechargeable AA's in a lot from Hong Kong via " *Bay" and use a trickle charger to top them up when not in use as Blue Circle has done with their Batchee Thingee. I recently bought 20 piece lot of 3000 mAHr AA's to run some under the counter lights I have and they work well. I think I may buy a 48 piece lot for $24 shipped and run 24 batteries per +/- rail in pairs to get better capacity and the proper voltage out.
I went to "Tuesday Morning" here in Houston not sure where else they are located. I bought a charger and a bunch of these:
http://www.depoteco.com/SPD/powergenix-batteries---4-pack-aa-1-6v-2500-mwh-nizn--nickel-zinc---8000025C-1244227054.jsp
Got them for $7.99 for a pack of 4, they are 1.6v and last for ages in my digital camera where the regular NIMH battery's crapped out.
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What was the difference in voltage you noticed between the standard power supply and the Biggie?
I've had a couple of highly regarded DIY designers tell me that adding a bank of capacitors to a battery powered supply will improve it, as the capacitors can discharge power more quickly than batteries alone.
James
I've had a couple of highly regarded DIY designers tell me that adding a bank of capacitors to a battery powered supply will improve it, as the capacitors can discharge power more quickly than batteries alone.
James
Really..........:scratch2:
MuthaFunk
Vinyl Addict
I have a hard time buying this notion as well. Batteries ARE the supply. They don't discharge and recharge, they are the source of voltage, not just temporary storage. The only benefit I might be able to entertain using caps coupled with batteries is if the draw on the batteries was so large that the voltage could drop during heavy passages. In the case of op-amp driven phono preamps like the FLT the maximum current draw is so minimal compared to a batteries supply, it's somewhat unlikely that heavy passages will drop the voltage of the batteries. Slowly over time the batteries will deplete and the voltage will drop but that would happen even with caps installed.
I started this thread a while ago and if I remember correctly the Biggie supply actually was 1.5 volts less than the standard but I imagine it was a much cleaner DC due to the added capacitance. The difference between running batteries and the biggie supply was hard to hear on my modest system. I didn't hear any tangible gains and couldn't justify the added cost of completing the project. I already have all the parts so perhaps I will just for kicks later but I won't be expecting any huge gains. After my test runs it fell to the bottom of the project list.