Stereo stuff...
- Thread starter JeffKeryk
- Start date
I still use a 1970s receiver for our home theater system. No remote, so I have the volume set as close as possible for movies, and plugged into a smart outlet, so I tell google assistant "turn on the stereo" and then the old receiver comes to life. An odd mix of old and new tech.
If only I had kept all of mine 
. Had some pretty esoteric pieces, including my Mac C22 tube, but all went over the years (including my vinyl). Wife got evil this year and bought me a Jimmy Buffet album for Christmas released on Calypso Blue vinyl. Started looking at turntables and she was like"why are you looking at more stuff to buy?" I said it was her fault and how was I supposed to play my new Christmas gift? Needless to say, a Pro-ject Carbon EVO is on the way.
. Had some pretty esoteric pieces, including my Mac C22 tube, but all went over the years (including my vinyl). Wife got evil this year and bought me a Jimmy Buffet album for Christmas released on Calypso Blue vinyl. Started looking at turntables and she was like"why are you looking at more stuff to buy?" I said it was her fault and how was I supposed to play my new Christmas gift? Needless to say, a Pro-ject Carbon EVO is on the way.Still listen to my records every time I'm home alone. Got one spinning right now. First time I listened to this set (box set of 8 albums) and boy did they put a lot of bass in the mix
The turntable is about as old as I am, but the amp is only 20 years old
The turntable is about as old as I am, but the amp is only 20 years old
It is so easy to fall into the stereo upward spiral spending trap...
While I never had tube equipment, friends did and they seem sound better. Guitar amps,,, tubes are by far better sounding
Agreed, but I feel I've reached the price/performance ratio I aimed for. All I would spend on now is remotes that unlock all the functions (either original or aftermarket replacements).
And more tapes, vinyl and cd's
I paid $150 for a Sansui 9090DB 20 years ago, and just put $400 in parts and about a week's labor into restoration. I could sell it for $2500 today, and still have no desire to do so, because it has presence in the room and just sounds spectacular compared to the modern stuff I have. I regularly play vinyl and even have a bluetooth interface on the aux input that I stream through at times.
I have a rather nice Kenwood KR-9600 that I restored too. It doesn't handle the low end as well as the 9090DB, and the fear of damaging an unobtanium TA-200W power pack is real.
I have a rather nice Kenwood KR-9600 that I restored too. It doesn't handle the low end as well as the 9090DB, and the fear of damaging an unobtanium TA-200W power pack is real.
Ages ago. I was into Vinyl as I couldn't afford a nice vacuum tube reel to reel - or the pricy tapes
Went from a BIC 960 with a SURE M95HE, To a DUAL with a Signet then some b&0 carts, then to an AR with a Grado F3E+ with a Linn Basik Las Vegas 10 (aka: LV X) tonearm.
Tried some upscale cartridges for a bit, kept improving the preamp trying the middle conrad-johnson PV series and Hafler DH110 kit and then an SAE Mark XXX.
Finally settled on a Thorens TD-160 with a Grace F9E and the Audible Illusions Modulus 2B preamp. Still wasnt wild about the Modulus. Sort of grey cast and noisy. SOmtimes a lowly, inexpensive Radioshack discreet preamp box was more liquid and sweeter - though it had very narrow sound-staging.
Then it was on to try and get good sound from CD. Uggh. What a flawed medium not ready for prime time.
I am mostly deaf now above 7 Khz, so it is just headphones HP chip on board sound and flawed std YT. Thinking of improving my desktop setup with a outboard DAC and a belt drive CD transport. Maybe check out lossless streaming too. Sounds complicated.
- Ken
Went from a BIC 960 with a SURE M95HE, To a DUAL with a Signet then some b&0 carts, then to an AR with a Grado F3E+ with a Linn Basik Las Vegas 10 (aka: LV X) tonearm.
Tried some upscale cartridges for a bit, kept improving the preamp trying the middle conrad-johnson PV series and Hafler DH110 kit and then an SAE Mark XXX.
Finally settled on a Thorens TD-160 with a Grace F9E and the Audible Illusions Modulus 2B preamp. Still wasnt wild about the Modulus. Sort of grey cast and noisy. SOmtimes a lowly, inexpensive Radioshack discreet preamp box was more liquid and sweeter - though it had very narrow sound-staging.
Then it was on to try and get good sound from CD. Uggh. What a flawed medium not ready for prime time.
I am mostly deaf now above 7 Khz, so it is just headphones HP chip on board sound and flawed std YT. Thinking of improving my desktop setup with a outboard DAC and a belt drive CD transport. Maybe check out lossless streaming too. Sounds complicated.
- Ken
Correct. There's a distinct quality of sound that only tube amps can produce.
I had a Yamaha receiver from the late 70s-early 80s, model CR620. Wish I could get it back after I foolishly sold it for a relative pittance. It was so great with the 2 channel analog stuff compared to the late model receivers.
There was something really nice about quality 12 inch woofers powered by a hefty amp way back when. Strangely, it is difficult to replicate today. I tried, and while what I have sounds good, it's not the same.
Silly picture, but those are my Polk Rti A9 speakers. Tall, with 3ea 7" woofers, and completely devoid of any real bass.
Silly picture, but those are my Polk Rti A9 speakers. Tall, with 3ea 7" woofers, and completely devoid of any real bass.
I think I just picked one of these up for a restore...
I used to visit manufacturers for product safety certification inspections (Think UL or CSA) and one of our customers was a prominent guitar and amp manufacturer.
I'll always remember a conversation I had there about the amps and how, as you said, you can't replace vacuum tubes. And that the best vacuum tubes come from this shop of old ladies in Russia.
My wife says we need a newer one with a remote.
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I had the CA610 II Still have the brochure. Nice looking silver face unit with wood case and cute little meters. Thing was bright and strident as all get out - unless you were running old Bozaks
My last Yamaha was the A1 integrated. Pretty decent for Yamaha-ha, A good phono stage. Top of the Mid-fi heap. But, I think Nikko and Hitachi made better consumer level stuff.
What many call Tube Sound is mainly the V-I Output Transformer coupling. They exhibit a signifcat reduction of Damping Factor and exhibit a pretty significant frequency response modification to the loudspeaker.
But they are quite mellifluous - even in a gain stage or as an inter-connexion input filter. I played around with them (1:1) a bit in the CD age trying to fix wrongs.
But an ecc83 RCA dual triode makes a decent gain stage, resistant to EMI RFI that just decimates the typical and ubquitous IC op amps- and our environment is now overly saturated with radio
If you heard a few different modern low-distortion tube preamps, they are anything but warm.
But they are quite mellifluous - even in a gain stage or as an inter-connexion input filter. I played around with them (1:1) a bit in the CD age trying to fix wrongs.
But an ecc83 RCA dual triode makes a decent gain stage, resistant to EMI RFI that just decimates the typical and ubquitous IC op amps- and our environment is now overly saturated with radio
If you heard a few different modern low-distortion tube preamps, they are anything but warm.
