The Grasshopper

Fidelity is the same through a monster cable or a coat hanger. I choose not to believe.
Copper is normally coated in nickel too, then gold (nanometers). Electron transfer still has to travel through oxygen free copper or a bare metal capacitor. (Silver if you're serious, and why not with a $10k set up or the likes).
I own gold plated cables because I like their braided look and they have good shielding (this is what you want) and don't mind spending a bit for the sake of aesthetics.
But it really is for specific resilience to corrosion.

That's funny with the battery, I found the pic and linked the attached thread to explain what it was.

I think the added resistance from a dirty contact is causing heat build up.

There's also the hard to clean contact on the PCB which might have a bad effect on the overall circuit.

 

And I get to try that fix for the flickering blue lights... Thanks so much for that tip @johnnyCanuck !

So...first test failed, but the battery died mid test. So when I went to swap out batteries, I noticed a little "dirt" on the end of the battery. I was able to scrape it off with my thumbnail.

Then I looked at the end of the gh (the contact point for the battery). And there was more gunk there. I was able to remove that stuff with my thumbnail too.

Replaced the battery and took it for a test run. And no more flickering blue lights!

Moral of the story... In addition to @johnnyCanuck's twisting solution, look for buildup on the end battery contact point (and on the battery), and remove.

Happy hopping!

 

I actually agree about the choosing not to believe about monster cables and coat hangers. I myself cannot tell the difference.

Ok so it's settled: dirty contacts suck. Watch for them and keep them clean.

 

I find the best material to improve listening quality is cannabis
Or a tryptamine, or a phenethylamine depending on the beat.

I think that's probably good advice, but it's hard to say how much of an issue it is.

It seems likely that this latest 'fix' to the blue light flicker may have something to do with gunk in the threads limiting conductivity, where a proper ISO + microfibre wipe may be a better solution.

 

Another entry for the Fix-it resource?

 

So both my SS hoppers worked perfect in morning but finally got fed up with the goo build up in the mouthpiece as it was starting to clog and decided to clean them. I had yet to clean beyond brushing after every load for about 2 months. I did as they say and just dropped the mouthpieces in iso only for about 30 sec as it made me nervous (everything does with this damn thing). Used a q tip to wipe until shiny and clean. Let sit for a few hours and made sure no iso was left. Even gave them a few dry runs before loading. Now the blue lights flicker right away on full batts, the back end seemingly heats up way too quick and too much and the vapor and abv are very light...For both hoppers....That were both working fine hours before. I have had inconsistencies with my 5 batts but for the most part they all gave me at least a solid load with 4-5 good long strong hits that leave perfectly extracted dark abv. I'm addicted to this damn hopper and nothing else seems to work as well...the small silver lining is it is so damn powerful that I seem to still be getting a lil medicated from the whispy pulls..lol..I'll take what I can get.. Any advice is appreciated I know I've heard peeps mention issues after cleaning...hence my apprehension ...​

 

Check out the gh resources page for fixes you can try. Hope that solves all your problems!

 

There is a difference, but you have to either be able to detect it electronically with meters or you have to be in some pretty close to perfect acoustic conditions.

As an electrician, I was remodeling a very large electronics retail store when a Bose rep came in for a demo. They actually build a room inside the store with each and every speaker placed in its optimal position. It's really something to hear. But there is ZERO furniture and nothing but people which they limit and other speakers breaking up the sound. The two same speakers from the same source playing the same channel did have a difference in sound, to my ear, mostly volume lol. But to test him I went behind the equipment and changed the speaker wires to make sure his special track that played the same sound from right and left channels wasn't rigged, the same speaker was still softer in volume.

With all that said, I have very cheap speaker wire for all my short runs except the subwoofer to about $4k in Klipsch speakers. I believe in the theory, but real world is where I live and the benefit doesn't match the price in my mind lol.

Gold conducts electricity incredibly well, but has so many limitations including cost that it's only used at the termination ends of cable. It would make for a great set of contacts on this device IF it can withstand the heat.

I stand by my original belief that all of the back end and blue light issues are because of poor connections. Their decision to make this a wireless unit still needs some fine tuning in the design. Until then, check the battery and contacts for pitting/tarnishing and make sure all the threading is iso clean. As long as the clip stays firmly connected so it's not a hotspot, the only other item is the temp dial. Sounds like compressed air might be the easiest even though the thought scares me. Blown out or deeper into crevices is what you get with air..... I like to vacuum.

Sorry for the off topic, but it's sorta theory based for the GH electrical heat issues.

 

Added to Grasshopper Fixes resource. Keep those contacts clean people! I give my battery contacts a quick wipe with a soft cloth every time I insert a new one into my hopper. I usually just use my shirt. I've never noticed any buildup on the contacts.

 

I'm rather with Molten on this....gold is for corrosion resistance and I don't think it justified in audio cables (but it looks nice) and suspect it would not be useful in the GH.

I'm with Molten on twisted shielded cable for noise reduction...but we are talking conductivity

On the other hand, I'm about 1/2 deaf these days so don't listen to a thing I say about audio quality! LOL

 

Thanks Vapor_Eyes!

So I just had those two more things happen (first time so far):

1) Red lights flashed when I gently tapped the housing while it was upside-down to ABV out of the chamber. I've done this frequently, but this is the first occurrence.

2) Rapid clicking sound during heat-up cycle, and stopped after light's went Blue (just for the few seconds it took to heat up).

I know I've read something about these things happening, but it was quite a while ago, wasn't it?

 

This is a cool story, I would love a Bose built room in my house.
However, what was the gauge difference of the wires? This is the only factor that counts audibly, unless one cable is damaged or purposely faulty.
http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm

I still think that if you were to be measuring, the bottle-necks of solder, components and the Ti shell would mean we would not see much, if any, benefit from gold instead of brass contacts. I am sure you could measure it to expose minor difference, but would you not need extremely precise gear, meaning any gain is effectively negligible?
But my main concern lies with the accumulation of gunk. If this is caused by arcing, does that mean there is a fundamental connection problem, or is this normal for contacts of this nature (unavoidable)?
Check out my PCB

Put gold under that carbon and the problem doesn't go away, it is a problem right?

*On further inspection (gave it a wipe with a dry q-tip) it seems that the majority is actually discoloration of the metal plate. It's either scratched or... something
It has gotten worse since I've had the hopper, it's probably caused from the battery terminal scraping the contact when the back end is twisted on and the spring depresses.

Also, @JoeMama after cleaning all the contacts, I get a louder click. The click is a good sign and it is power being sent to the heater in pulses. If you turn the dial up when this is occuring the clicking gets louder. If the clicking stops it means the target temperature has been met and less power is being sent accordingly (hence it can stop with blue lights).

 

I get the red flicker sometimes when I tap the barrel and occasionally get the heater click.

 

OK, so that's two of us.... lol

I sent an email to GHL asking about this as well.

EDIT:

MoltenTiger, thanks... the clicking is a good sign? It didn't click for several days when it was brand new; why wouldn't it have been clicking all along? Am I misunderstanding your statement?

Also to be clear, "Cleaning all the contacts" means cleaning the backend threads, the backend battery contact, and the battery terminals themselves... correct?

SECOND EDIT: I just realized that picture you took is of the inside of the back end; and when I looked, I also had some gunk. How the hell do you get in there? A Q-tip doesn't really work well enough because it's too short and I'm worried about it losing cotton fiber in there while I'm trying to "twirl-rub". But wow, it made a difference in the "actual" heat delivered. I was wondering why I felt as if I wasn't getting the same hit-density as before by the 2nd hit.

I appreciate the info about "pulses" - Interesting design. It certainly does stop as soon as the steady blue lights come on.

 

I don't have a good explanation for why it happens sometimes and not always, but I do think it performs best when it's loudest. I'm not sure on the specifics of the hardware that makes the noise.

Yes, I cleaned both ends of the battery, both battery contacts, the threads on the back end (body and cicker). I actually cleaned the entire device quite thoroughly, I think for the first or second time in over a month.

 

Thank you again! I have asked GHL about the clicking and I'll certainly post the response for everyone.

Wish there was a "tool" to make cleaning that inside contact easy. I don't trust myself with a cotton swab.

 

I just used a q-tip, the one I had was just long enough. There's nothing a q-tip will do, even with a little force behind it, to damage the PCB. I'm not sure about ISO, but as long as you use 99% and let it evap, it should be fine. But it's not needed.

Yeah it'll be interesting to see what they say about the clicking, I'd assume they will just say that it's normal and to not worry.
It could be a relay component (electronic switch), but if that was the case I'd expect the sound to be consistent, which it isn't.

 

My relationship with cotton swabs for device cleaning greatly improved when I got some of these.

They do a great job without leaving any stray fibers. Don't know if they will reach the deep end of the hopper battery chamber but otherwise highly recommended.

 

Dude!!


So I went shopping and found these: A MUST HAVE in my book!

I love this place. D'aawwww

 

Glad I could help. SWAB ON DUDE!!!!!

 

Way back we used erasers to clean contacts, Terry using the eraser :/ the end of a pencil.

 

Thanks..cool this is here! Good on ya Vapor_Eyes for putting this together!!

I did end up using a little ISO on a qtip and wiped the back end threads...black qtip. Didn't expect that...looked clean to the eye but was certainly dirty. After this the performance did seem to get better although still not where it was but fingers crossed...I only tried it once..tired...try again in am.

Still no clue why 2 working hoppers would suffer such immediate performance degradation after cleaning the mouthpieces...?

Perhaps before I cleaned it the golden gooey buildup in the MP was actually adding to my cloudy hopper hits..

Just need more goo. Guess I better get to work..

Or......

My batts are shot...2 months in.

I knew I medicated a lot but yeesh..

 

I use this length of cotton swabs. They are plenty long enough to reach the inner battery contact of the GH.

They can be found on ebay at a reasonable price.

http://m.ebay.com/itm/351410973754

 

*Great powerful vape, I did my best, but just not for me...
Tx for all your help! See ya later GH.

 

The most expensive voodoo is usually the most effective. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_dissonance

This will mainly affect your ability to notice high frequencies and maybe fine resolution. When it comes to cables, they will mainly affect the ability to ship huge amounts of electrons at a time, and it will mainly influence the dynamic. Which in my book is at least as important for higher fidelity as a perfect frequency response. What I'm trying to say: even Pete Townsend will be able to tell a shitty soundsystem from a good one.

And ^that^ might be the parallel, getting this out of the off-topic zone: The Hopper needs to get insane amperes thru the whole device and every chokepoint will affect the performance. Also if other parts than the heating element heat up, a part of the battery life will not be used for its purpose.

What really seems to help is somehow getting rid of the gunk a) between temp dial and clicker and b) between the battery and the contacts. For a) the occasional dry-turning seems to help. I also started using (unwaxed!!) floss dipped in 96% grain alcohol, for b) its just a q-tip and 96% alcohol. Gravity helps preventing anything running into the body. So actually less than 99% iso / 96% grain alcohol may also be fine - I just love the 96% vodka from Poland. Any residues from that will actually taste fine and even elevate my mood.