YES, please!! A phono stage! I have been wanting one of your ZP2.0s, but it remains outside my budget.  I have been looking at kits by other manufacturers to replace my less-than-satisfying SS phono stage...

active tube XO / line drive
prettier volume control knobs!
larger power supply transformer  ;D
DAC
From what I can remember the Zen phono stage was very nice indeed, but a simpler kit would be a winner. Would 6N1P or 6922 provide enough gain for those of us happy with moving magnets?


parametric equalizer for Bose 901  ;D

special order wood bases in other species ( eg Cherry, Mahogany)

Lectraset lettering kit for "Custom made for (your name here)" vanity labels

I suspect you're gonna busy around Rancho Decca  mid Oct
to Xmas - thought about starting a gift registry for those wives and friends that just don't know what to buy anymore?

This is definitely going to be my first DIY project (notwithstanding the warning on the site).  It looks like something I could do - plus I've got a couple of friends with a lot of solder-slinging experience who can help me out.

My wife requests a remote ???

It would also be cool if you could order the plate and the metal box to match the Select (probably more difficult to add holes to?)  Do you anticipate a "Select" version of the preamp plate in the future (like before Christmas?)

Someday I'll probably be in the market for a phono stage, but that will be a while - Steve, I can't believe that you came out with this - have you been spying on my internet surfing?

1. A passive preamp, or kit, that uses the S&B TX102 TVC (Stevens and Billington TX102 Transformer Volume Control) assuming it is COMPLETELY transparent when properly implemented.  This passive must of course work better in some way with the SE84CS, SV83M/S, and other Zen amps than the current crop of pre's otherwise what's the point?  

In theory, this would be the ultimate in a preamp - no caps, tubes, or resistors in the signal path - just wire and switches... Very minimalistic Zen-like, no? Of course it must also WORK, which I have not had the opportunity to hear for myself.  What I have read, is that when it does work (sytem synergy) it works F A N T A S T I C.  But we know that opinions are cheap on the net... so the Decmaster (Steve) needs to give a listen .

The name? It's obvious...  the Zen TVC Preamp (ZTVC).

2. If a completely passive pre does not work well, then a active tubed preamp, or integrated amp/kit that utilizes the TX102 in order to (further) minimize the number of caps and resistors in the signal path.  I think?... they call this output transformer coupled instead of coupling caps?  Maybe this is cost prohibitive?

3. An amp that works well with the ZTVC if the present ones do not - if that's possible

related links...

http://www.stevens-billington.co.uk/page102.htm
http://www.diyhifisupply.com/diy_kits/django.htm

[quote author=sargeantbargearse  link=1061610565&amp/0#4 date=1061631945]

a cheap(er) swith for a few different inputs (just two or three inputs would be enough for most).  would be great to put this on the existing plate preamp.

craig
[/quote]

Sarge:  

I've found a very inexpensive series of selector switches at a local parts shop that I've been quite happy with.  Lorlin - $6 (canadian) for plastic body, sealed, silver plated contacts, from 1 - 4 poles, 12 to 3 positions, ( 3 pole would allow the signal grounds to be switched as well - some seem to think this could help reduce noise from "deselected" components)

This is a much better sounding switch than the open deck device included in the Foreplay.   To be fair, Doc makes no bones about using "cost effective" parts - if you build his kit correctly it will work; if you want to then use it as the backbone for your own experimentation and spend 10 times over on milspec, tweak approved boutique parts - knock yourself out - and post your findings.  That's what the brotherhood of DIY audio is supposedly about - not the self-aggrandizing BS and trolling  of which we've seen too much hereabouts lately.


Brad:  with all due respect, you've posted links to a couple of very high quality TVC ( the prices of either I've seen are higher than a single Select) .  No doubt there are more modestly priced TVC or other passive controls (including kits and DIY designs)  on the market or internet.

May we disagree on the merits of passives - I've heard only about 3, and found all of them lacking some ineffable quality.  
That's just my personal experience.

But I think what is  more germaine is that all of us who have listened at any length to Steve's products would agree that he has a talent for designing very musical active devices, with a common sonic signature and aethestic.  I'm not sure that we need another "black box"

If I  thought a passive would work for me, I'd probably take the lazy way out and buy the Creek OB12

http://www.creekaudio.com/products/obh/obh_10_12.asp


anyone want to borrow the soapbox now, I'm going for a beer.

cheers fellow solder slingers

Thanks for bringing this up Cosimo.  I think I would very much like to see a Zen stereo amp with a pair of EL34s and TUBE rectification.  I wouldn't be able to BUILD it, but I'd like to have one available!

I'd like to see a Zen Plate amplifier that complements the Zen Plate Preamp (soon).

I think the idea with the Zen Plates is to offer a solid kit foundation that is tweakable.  Rather than make a bunch of specific plates with varying features, it would make sense to offer the basic units and then create a tweakers library of possible modifications (contributions by Decware and kit builders).  

This allows Steve to keep the price down, it gives us a nicely researched basic DIY kit, and it facilitates all the tweaking we love to do.

I can really see this thing catching on.  For the money, it's a no brainer.  Once word of this begins to circulate, the ranks of the DecHeads will be swelling.

My 2 cents,

Jerry