FFAAPP VV11
Introduction
55
An Introduction for the FAP V1 by Jim Fosgate:
I
have been a dedicated tube listener for the past 23 years, and have long dreamed of a Surround
Processor that could convert my precious two-channel stereo recordings to glorious three dimensional
"surround sound" while maintaining the sound of tubes. The FAP V1 has been designed with a "no
compromise all tube" analogue audio path, and no "solid state" or "digital" sound is added to the audio
signal. Now it is possible for a tube listener to hear stereo recordings reproduced in true "surround
sound". This product is the culmination of nearly 25 years of surround sound circuit design.
I work exclusively in the "analogue domain" and believe it or not, the first working ProLogic II Prototype
bread board unit was an "all tube audio path" design with 22 tubes. The circuit was later reproduced in
"Solid State form" and analyzed by the engineers at Dolby who converted it to "Digital". Digital circuitry
is employed in practically every audio product these days because of low production cost, high reliability,
and repeatability. Digital circuits can sound great, but some listeners including myself still prefer the
sound of good old tube analogue to anything else.
I have built a number of tube prototypes over the years from a simple five tube passive matrix design,
to the 22 tube beast mentioned above, which was not a practical design for manufacturing! The final
version, the FAP V1, is down to 10 tubes including the power supply rectifier. It uses solid-state circuitry
for the steering logic, and tubes for the complete audio path. "Steering Logic" is the industry term that
describes the circuitry used for "cross talk cancellation" to obtain a high degree of channel separation. In
the FAP V1 the tubes are passing the audio signals from the input to the output. The solid-state devices
are used in the steering logic section and are part of the "cancellation circuitry". These circuits are remov-
ing certain information from the appropriate channels to control channel separation. I have found that
when solid-state circuitry is used in this manor it does not impart any solid-state sound to the audio path
what so ever. There have been other surround processors that have claimed to be tube units but some-
where inside there has always been some digital and /or solid-state circuits that the audio signals must
travel through, making the audio path a hybrid design with a combination of tubes and solid-state
devices. The FAP V1 is the only true analogue (non digital) PL II surround processor designed for the
home, and the only surround processor with an all tube audio path from input to output.
Throughout this manual, you will see comments by Jim Fosgate about the features, settings, adjustments
and considerations when setting up your unit in your home. We hope these will help you in creating a
system and "sound" that not only meets, but exceeds your expectations.
An example of one of these comments;
* Digital circuits can sound great, but some listeners, including myself, still prefer the sound of good old
tube analogue to anything else.
Look for these comments, marked with an asterisk, to help you get an insight of the man who brought
you the FAP V1.
Summary of Contents for FAP V1
Page 1: ...F FA AP P V V1 1 ...
Page 6: ...Timeline 6 6 ...
