CAJames…Very nice looking unit. Al’s black oak 1002 cabinet is my favorite. I am starting to regret getting the runt of the litter 🤔….but man this Str 104 has blown me away with its SQ improvement.  You should be amazed with your Str 1002!

Al is the man and his service is impeccable …. Amazing how he builds units while responding to email question interruptions.  Hope he did’t forget or misconnect  any parts  with all my distracting questions and trouble shooting interruptions! 😳. Enjoy the Music!🕺

I started messing around with things tonight and ended up with two Sophia Aqua II 274Bs in the STR. I immediately realized that I've been so i infatuated with the whole concept of mercury vapor that I hadn't really considered giving more familiar rectifiers a spin in my new toy.

That was a mistake. These sound great! I put an old GE 5R4GYA in the ZP3 to take the place of the 274B I swiped for the STR, and apparently it is no slouch. I'm going to leave things like this for a while, at least until I get the 866A adapter from STL.

My girlfriend thinks I'm crazy, but at least she always knows where I am...

"But recently it occurred to me I could buy STR-104s for my UFO25s and deploy 2 rectifiers where I'm only using 1 now"

It's rectifiers all the way down!!

Right on! Are you getting any adapters?

845 to 866A adapter arrived today. This rectifier combo sounds amazing, btw.

One more thing: I didn't like how tubes were kind of loose in the STR sockets, so I've been adding a layer of electrical tape to the base of my tubes, just above the guide pin. Now they are sitting nice and tight and straight.

CAJames --

The only 10v tubes I have so far are the Psvane 805A pair that came with the STR. Honestly, they sound pretty good. I just love experimenting with more esoteric stuff. I'll probably try some more big tubes sooner than later.


So far, the Sophia Aqua II 274B plus the two 866s is the best combo I've found. I have some RCA JAN CRC 5R4GYs coming my way, and a couple of Chatham JAN-CAHG-3B28s. The experiment continues!

I am looking forward to hearing how you like yours once it arrives. I suspect you'll be pretty happy!

Bloodlemons-  Yikes on the Mercury…I was kinda wondering if that might be the case.

I really like the RCA JAN CRC 5R4GYs. I bought an unused pair ST bottle, brown base, white lettering 1958 and they have been king of the hill in my Supratek Preamp. Just such a full, warm SQ that checks all the boxes for my preamp.

I just received a pair of RCA 3B28 Xeon tubes today and they sound very good.  Not quite as good as the 866A/300b or 83/300b combos.  Still need more time to get them settled in and also try some additional combo’s with them. The permutations of all these STR tubes is going to require a  spreadsheet🤪.

Look forward to hearing your take on these tubes.  Fun toy!

I haven't mailed a mercury tube yet, but I have received several already... They've all been fine!

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Technically the box says it, not the tubes, but yes LinLai. And they are clear glass where yours are smoked, yes? I don't think it is a big deal, my guess is whoever pays the licensing can use the name.

I got a tracking update that my STR landed in LA this morning, so hopefully only a couple more days. I'm getting excited!

I meant to type 104. I blame my hyperactive finger for the extra zero. I assigned it to the zero 'cuz it is one, but it still messed up the job.

CAJames, yes, mine are smoked. Odd and makes sense at the same time I guess. Exciting that it's almost to you!

BL, I've been running KT170s in my DAC. I don't think any Decware amps can run the KT170s.

Funch, gotcha.

CAJames - 😂😂 Good to hear you are amazed and I am not surprised.  I had the same reaction 🤯 with mine. Were you the one wondering if the STR would make much of difference since your system already sounded good or was that someone else?🤔 Al is the Man.  I’m thinking DAC now with built in STR even though I don’t have space for it…Ughhh down another rabbit hole or cavern should I say!

What component do you have plugged in to?

James, I don’t recall seeing this much emotion from you previously—that speaks volumes (no pun intended).

Congrats!

CAJames, Yahoo! Your description sounds similar to my experience.

The way you describe the 805As that shipped with the STR is also spot on with how I would describe them.

I’m looking forward to more reports as you get more time and try some more tubes. The jumbo tubes can take 100-150 hours to settle and show you what they can do. Some are much faster than that.

HK, More like a vortex of sparkling light that takes you a new plane.

I haven’t tested with aftermarket PCs with the STR. I do have a SRA cable on it, only because I have an extra one. I haven’t compared to other PCs.

The STR-104 MK2 isn’t compatible with the 4 pin jumbo tubes (845, 805, 211, etc.) The STR-1002 is.

CAJames --

Awesome to hear that your mind is blown, as was mine. I literally not understand why more audiophiles aren't using some form of outboard rectifier. People will spend hundreds of dollars on rocks to put on top of your components, but somehow scoff at Al's designs. Like you said, the STR is the biggest upgrade in the sound of my system since getting the Decware amps themselves. And it is so simple to integrate. Pretty much just plug it in and you're off to the races.

As for cost, the STR-1002-Mk2-Super I got cost approx 1/3 of the ZMA, 2/3 of each the CSP3 and ZP3, 1/2 of a Sorcer, 2/3 of my turntable cartridge, 1/3 of my tonearm, etc... The STR is hardly a huge outlay in comparison to the rest of the system. I'm not saying it's inexpensive, but there are people with $100K speakers out there (not me)...

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For sure, as a "component" it is perfectly reasonable. As a "tweak" like a cable or fuse or rock it is a lot of money. But whatever you call it for what it does it is a screaming bargain.

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Yes and no. There is certainly a bigger headscape, but not as dramatic as with speakers. This is consistent with my experience through the years: speakers are much more revealing of spatial effects than 'phones. It is a nice upgrade but I wouldn't have spent the money just for headphones. That is what I expected going in.

Early returns on Cossor/LinLai 211s are very positive. The sound is faster and more dynamic than the 805A and if not exactly warm, it has a very solid low register. The soundstage is huge, but not as huge has the 805A. Will it get even better with more hours? Almost certainly, but I also want to hear the 845s so I'll listen to the 211s through tomorrow than swap in the 845s.

So the 211 tubes sounded pretty much the same after 30+ hours as they did after 10 so I put them away to get a head start on the 845. I liked the 211 a lot, it had a really solid, "tactile" tone with tons of detail and dynamics. Downside was the sound stage was compressed compared to the other tubes in the STR or my favorite conventional rectifiers. The center image was great, but it ended at the edge of the speakers and I'm used to it extending well beyond. I've seen NOS or good used 211s at decent prices so that might be something I'll look at down the road.

I've got about 6 hours on the 845s and I don't want to say much. Right now the soundstage is certainly big and airy, but too airy and the sound is a bit thin and/or veiled. But we'll see how it sounds tomorrow.

FYI/FWIW I also tried swapping my decent power cord with the throw away that came with the STR and didn't notice any difference. So if you need to go cheap on a PC the STR would be a good candidate.

Bloodlemons,

Roughly speaking I am thinking it is like adding a sluggo, compared to fuses... I think a sluggo increases power supply push and all beyond. To a point this can enhance the signal in balance. But after that point, it can push the power supply hard enough to cause the rest of the component parts to load enough to consolidate the mids, reducing finer information that supports a good soundstage and a real music feel.... while beefing bass up too much, the bass thicker, darker, and more muddled... and leaking into the mids, masking finer textures, ambient info, etc. A balancing act that reveals differently in different setups and components.

Power cables are the same, perhaps especially with our tube gear. Don't know as I have not used solid state amps for a very long time. I am guessing they are effected, perhaps as much, or perhaps they are a little more tolerant...But in my experience, with simple circuits in tube components, wire size is a big player in sound qualities... not just at the power cord.

So I suspect what folks who prefer the stock cable with super rectifiers are hearing is likely less the cable quality, and more the cable quantity. Associated, I am guessing a cable with the same gauge and really nice wires and ends would sound better. Have not looked to verify, but memory says a lot of these stock cables are about 14 gauge??? a lean sounding cable in comparison especially to a 10-8 gauge cable that many "audiophile" cable makers think are "better" ...which can be true, but not necessarily. Also some audiophile cables are intentionally made to be "warm" and euphonic in the right setups, but if not right, the affects applied in design to make them warm and euphonic can go too far, and darken/thicken/slow/mask.

I am guessing in your comparison the Super Piggy covers both toward a more revealing sound from the super rectifier... likely a lighter gauge than your other cable, while being designed/made to read neutral and transparent...

It could be one or the other, or both you are liking, pushing and/or coloring the super rectifier parts less, including tubes, and letting the super rectifier do its thing without consolidation and thickness. Worth checking out I think.


Will

You are welcome. I think for many of us it is well known different power cables have different sound, but how much gauge can effect this, not as much....  it definitely does in my systems... gauge and materials, and geometry all effect the speed, revelation, and colorations of the sound for better or worse. Power cable rolling, finding the best one for a component in the matrix has been a big thing here to get the most complete and musical balances all together and without sacrifices. I find internal wires the same, and ICs, and speaker cables in my systems.