Some clock related questions that we are asked on a regular basis
Q. Will the Clock 4 upgrade work for my CD player? A. Yes. Clock 4 will upgrade the majority of CD players on the market today. This includes expensive high end machines. See our list for an idea of which players can be upgraded - the list is by no means complete.
Q. Does the Clock 4 require the Power Supply unit to work properly? A. The Clock 4 will operate satisfactorily from an internal digital power supply of the CD player. However there are worthwhile improvements to be gained by using a dedicated power supply. An active clock such as Clock 4 will take more current than the passive quartz crystal circuit found in most players.
Q. Why don’t manufacturers fit a decent clock in the first place? A. This is the most commonly asked question about our clocks. There are several reasons, the primary one being cost. A standard crystal costs only a few cents in a mass produced player. Anything more expensive will put the basic price of the player up and make it uncompetetive. Another reason is that nearly all players are produced with a very standard ‘data book’ implementation of the clock circuit. This will make the player work satisfactorily - but no more. It is obvious that little or no research has been carried out on the sonic impact of this most crucial circuit.
Q. Are there any other modifications that can be made to improve my player? A. Most definitely. The Clock 4 will give you a major upgrade but other improvements can make a real difference. Power supplies have a big influence on how any piece of audio equipment sounds. All power supplies have rectifier diodes - by changing these to either Schottky or Ultra Fast Soft Recovery types, improvements will be made to the radio frequency noise generated by these components. Quieter background noise and improved soundstaging will be attained. Another key component to upgrade is the op-amp (or op-amps) used in the analogue output stage. This particular answer could go on for ever and use a web site of its own.
Q. What are the differences between Clock 2 and Clock 3? A. The Clock 3 retains the same active clock module as Clock 2, but now has a far superior voltage regulation circuit. The new regulator, instead of being a 3 pin integrated type is now an ultra low-noise, wide band-width discrete circuit using a low noise voltage reference, ultra low noise op-amp and pass transistor. oscon capacitors are used throughout this circuit for their unequalled performance in digital circuitry.
Q. Is it worth changing a Clock 2 for a Clock 4? A. If you own a CD player with a Clock 2 already fitted you will have experienced the type of upgrade that changing the players’ clock can bring. However, the difference in sonic performance between a clock 2 and Clock 4 has to be heard to be believed. The Clock 2 player will sound quite ‘grey’ by comparison.
Q. Your Clock is only specified to 5 part per million (ppm), other suppliers claim better figures than this. Is this important? A. The key fact to remember is that the Trichord Clock Module is specified to to 5ppm over the temperature range 0 degrees C to +70 degrees C. At an average ambient temperature of +20 degrees C, Clock 3 willl usually measure well within a +/- 2ppm tolerance. The inside of a CD player will remain at a stable temperature somewhere btween +20 and +30 degrees C. Much more important than the specified ppm tolerance is the voltage waveform that the active clock module generates. It is not a sine wave that is squared-up by an external chip as most other clock designs are. The fast rise time waveform is generated within the active module itself.
