I am sick of failing amplifiers

Mikem53 · Oct 16, 2020

Atmasphere said:
There's not going to be heat or dust problems so that's a big help!

that and they ran everything “easy” just enough to get it done.. but for 2k miles under the sea.. amazing.
In mid 1800’s they ran a trans Atlantic telegraph cable across the pond.. that’s a feat in itself..
anyway.. the chief engineer at the time was trying to fix a problem with the line and applied 2K volts and
fried the entire line rendering it useless.. OOPs ! They have his name listed too.. no bonus that year..

BlueFox · Oct 16, 2020

Buy decent gear and it probably won’t fail.

F456GTM · Oct 26, 2020

Kingrex said:
The last 3 amps I bought have all been duds. I bought an Altec Lansing 1570B redone by Tom Tutay with Transition Audio. I had to get into the amp and change out signal caps, input wires and solder a couple loose connections. After that the amps worked fine, but they were not quite what I was looking for.

Please bear in mind that Tom is semi retired and suffering from Parkinson's desease.

Atmasphere · Oct 26, 2020

I'm sorry to hear that about tome- he's a great guy.

Kingrex · Oct 28, 2020

Yea, I heard Tom was sick about a year ago. My Tutay amps were 19 years old when I got them. They needes some tlc and signal caps. He used some not so good signal caps. One was an orange drop. When I put a Jupiter Copper foil beeswax in it was like WOW.

My Audion are back. So much better now. My god they were F up when I got them. I'm still hot over that. These amps were far from functional when I got them. Far from the perfect working order Inwas sold on. Hearing them now is proof how bad they really were. Basically non functioning. I need to give some time before any sort of review. The power supply was totally redone. New signal caps installed including a VCap. I put one of those in my Tutay also. They take 300 to 500 hours to break in. For now all the whistling, screatching, roaring ground short hum is gone. They are very quiet and clean. They operate as a functional amp should.

Macattack · Oct 28, 2020

Glad to hear your amps are back and the hum is gone! Time to enjoy them Rex!

spiritofmusic · Oct 28, 2020

Rex, just majorly solved an ongoing tubes related noise issue in my preamp. The jump in SQ and enjoyment is startling. Good luck on your solution. I know how good the Audions can be.

Kingrex · Oct 30, 2020

RogerD said:
Hey Kingrex, just received my Marantz 4400 back from a experienced long term tech. His letter stated...I put a lot of time into the unit, "everything works". But he said from now on your on your own...old and problematic,which is fine. But he packed the thing poorly and the 60 pound receiver moved around in shipment. So i'm screwed and have a right channel only paper weight...until the next time I feel like dealing with it. Damn....

That sucks

Kingrex · Oct 30, 2020

spiritofmusic said:
Rex, just majorly solved an ongoing tubes related noise issue in my preamp. The jump in SQ and enjoyment is startling. Good luck on your solution. I know how good the Audions can be.

Thanks. Now I am thinking about an 845 tube. I have some Shuguang and a entry Pisvane. The amps are sounding a bit lean. Tilted a little mid and up. Not lacking in the bottom. Just up. I have to do some tuning now. I tried 2 different Amprex 7119 Drivers. One is a PQ Orange O getter. The other Amprex White D getter. The white is more clean and clear. The Orange a little warmer and a touch of fuzz.

I

Kingrex · Oct 30, 2020

I still have a touch of hum with the Black Shadow. Its less than the Casablanca before Ralph fixed them. Those Casablanca are very quiet now. I'm spoiled. It does not fluctuate wildly like the Casablanca did during the day either. At its worst I can just barely hear the Black Shadow at my chair when all is quiet. Would I like it all gone. Yes, but its not intrusive so it will remain for a while.

These amps are tilted a bit up right now. A tad bright. Its making the horn stand apart from the woofers a touch. I'm sure tubes can change that. I have a basic Pisvane hifi 845 and a few Shuguang. All the Shuguang are thinner than the Pisvane. But I remember one shuguang being more clean with accurate bass. The Pisvane is a little muddy, but better body. I really don't want to buy a Pisvane ACME or Elrog. Uggg. $2,000. Yes I see the sets of NOS RCA on USAudiomart. But I have no idea if they are good or not. I don't want used power tubes.

I have 4 sets of Telefunken E88CC. I love those in my preamp. I bought a bunch thinking of the future. I have 10,000 hours on my first pair and they sound new. Great preamp. The Tele are the most clean and clear. To my ears. I may have to look for a pair of Siemens 6922. I use to have some, but I sold them.

For the moment I'm petty happy. It is a gulp these amps turned into a $10K investment. I planned on spending half that. With that sort of money a lot of other options would have been in the mix for consideration. Ayon Crossfire, Mastersound, Found Music Blade. But a totally rebuilt Black Shadow is a decent lens to understand a medium power SET and what they do. The next few weeks should settle them in for a better listen.

Kingrex · Oct 31, 2020

I changed the speaker tap this morning. I have no idea what is what. They are not labeled. Happy to say kt was a transformative change. It all came into balance. Coherent between woofers and horn. Richer and more full. Just more correct all around.

Kingrex · Oct 31, 2020

Wow. I have another set of amps that are no longer failing.

spiritofmusic · Oct 31, 2020

I feared you were gonna say you blew them Lol. Good that you didn't.

My new tube complement in my preamp is showing how broken my sound was before.

Kingrex · Oct 31, 2020

Tubes can make or break the gear. A friend is waiting on a small tube for his Mcintosh tuner. I gather its critical for dialing in the frequency.

I now have a Shuguang 95C in. More clean and accurate. Less smear. Also less body. I'm kinda a fat and full guy. I'm now reading threads on 845 tubes.

I'm a little nervous to try the 70C. I gather they sound good but redplate. And I have been told 845 go down fighting. Lots of noise and possible damage.

spiritofmusic · Oct 31, 2020

The original Elrog 845 tubes I tried to replace Shugangs were a revelation, but frustratingly unreliable. I hear the Thomas Mayer Elrogs are much better in this respect, and even better sounding.

Kingrex · Oct 31, 2020

spiritofmusic said:
The original Elrog 845 tubes I tried to replace Shugangs were a revelation, but frustratingly unreliable. I hear the Thomas Mayer Elrogs are much better in this respect, and even better sounding.

Why do you have to go right to the $2,000 tubes

Kingrex · Oct 31, 2020

spiritofmusic said:
The original Elrog 845 tubes I tried to replace Shugangs were a revelation, but frustratingly unreliable. I hear the Thomas Mayer Elrogs are much better in this respect, and even better sounding.

What happens when an 845 blows. In your experience. Is it bad?

Lagonda · Oct 31, 2020

Kingrex said:
Why do you have to go right to the $2,000 tubes

That is just how Marc rolls

spiritofmusic · Oct 31, 2020

Kingrex said:
What happens when an 845 blows. In your experience. Is it bad?

When it blows, so does your patience Lol. The usual, stress, and a vow to go SS.

spiritofmusic · Oct 31, 2020

Lagonda said:
That is just how Marc rolls

I love spending other audiophiles' cash.

I am sick of failing amplifiers

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