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MHDT Havana Questions

To all MHDT Havana owners out there - do you leave your DAC on 24/7 or turn it off after a listening session?

I just got mine, so it's not broken in yet. Has about 5hrs playing time on it and left it on over night.

Now, listening to it this morning, at the lowest volume level, of the duet (my transport is squeezebox > MHDT DAC via coaxial cbl) there is considerable noise level throughout the low volume levels. In between song fade out/in at the lowest levels the sound is distorted and compressed before it kicks in at the start. Take the Havana DAC out of the chain and no noise at low vol levels or the inter-song distortions. Changed the PC with no effect as well as direction of coax cbl. Haven't tried the optical digital out yet of the DAC.

Those with Havanas have you experienced this with yours? Wondering if the low vol harshness/noise will go away as it breaks in?
notec
karmatogdral
66 posts
 
I used to leave it on 24/7 when i was breaking it in, now i only switch off after i'm done for the day.
Don't mean to sidetrack, i'm using Tungsol tube at the moment and loving it, just last night i put on WE tube back for another try to see if i like it better this time, my thought on the two tubes was, tungsol was great with rock and jazz, so dynamic and soundstage is so deep, and really good bass.
but WE gives a little more forward presentation, the high is better, i know this is strange, it's punchier but only with purcussion stuff, it flows better with violin music. But there's something wrong with the upper bass department, sounds like the bass is meshed so i have to listen very hard to hear it, which reminds me why i am staying with tungsol now.
Is anyone using tungsol here? If yes, could you please tell me where you get yours, i'd like to audition and collect some good tungsol tubes.
thanks
ejk2003
7 posts
 
@Karmatogdral
Got my Tungsol (NOS 1959) from Tubeworld.com. Good guy and reasonable. I've been wanting to try a WE. When I got my Tungsol, they explained it as more detailed than the WE. It really works well in my Paradisea 3.

For those that leave theirs on 24/7, how long do the tubes last. My Paradisea is on about 8 hrs./day. I've been doing this for about 9 months. That's a couple of thousand hours. I think I am beginning to hear changes.

Ed
karmatogdral
66 posts
 
Ejk,
I also own WE tubes made in the 50s, in comparison to Tungsol for me they(WE) produce details in quatity, i hear more low level sound, but for my system the upper bass seems so mashed in to the midrange that to an extent i can't pinpoint where the bass notes are, im pretty big on bass, everytime i feel like giving WE another try, i ended up removing it and put back my tungsol.
Tungsol produces a much more "engaging" details, it adds more intensity, better dynamic and the soundstage is a lot deeper as well, in other words, more musical for me, i could just listen to music and forget about hifi.
That's why I'd like to collect more Tungsol tube. Hope you have a great time with yours.
Andy
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