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Showing content with the highest reputation on 11/30/20 in all areas

  1. Hi all, it's been a while since I posted here. I wanted to share some of my experiences with Jubilees, running actively through a Xilica XP crossover / eq. One of the main reasons for this is that when I was purchasing my Jubilees, I think I misunderstood information I had read about powering them. Basically, I had thought that the Xilica would be a 'great leveller' making all amplifiers sound the same - that I could pretty much buy any old amp and turn it into a killer with the Xilica and high-sensitivity Jubilee combo. I can now say that whilst it is an amazing bit of kit, the Xilica does not fundamentally alter the personality of amplifiers - in my experience. I am not an expert Xilica driver, nor am I an audio reviewer - so all that follows is just FWIW. I have used several different amplifiers on both the bass bins and the K402 horns and am going to give a brief description of my observations, NOT to extol the virtues or otherwise of these components, but to highlight the importance of finding the right amplifiers if you own, or plan to own Jubilees. The revealing nature of the Jubes, when run actively, is not to be underestimated. I want to add here that the Xilica certainly gives the ability to make the most of both the Jubilees and your chosen amp, but that does not mean that other choices aren't better. Like with any audio decision, listen to as many options as you can! My upstream gear is a PC optimized for audio (Tidal), running to a Chord M-Scaler and Qutest DAC combo, then to a Wyred 4 Sound pre-amp, the Xilica, and then out to the amps. The factory compression drivers on the 402 have been replaced with Faital HF200 8-Ohm units. Bass Amplifiers I started out with some serious grunt here after buying a bulk lot of Crown professional amps - including a Macrotec 2400 and some of the lesser models in the pro range. All of these have had use, and (unfortunately) all of them have noisy fans, eventually leading me to seek more suitable domestic gear. In all cases, the Crowns delivered fast, superb bass, with massive grip and speed throughout the range. With the Macrotec especially, I was barely aware there was an amplifier in the signal path, there was just bass - clean, mean bass. All of the Crowns were between 300 and 600 watts per channel. Next came another pro-amp - a Phonic 3000, with controlled fans - I'd hoped it wouldn't require installation OUTSIDE (I actually set the Crowns up in a box under my house because of the fans..). I knew nothing of the brand when buying it - it was simply cheap and nearby. The thing weighs considerably more that even the Macrotech - and claimed 600wpc. This amplifier has been checked as functional by a tech, but it doesn't sound like it. It is comparatively slow and very quiet compared to the Crowns. Gain has to be boosted up, and straight away the bass sounds like a cardboard box being walloped with a stick. No amount of Xilica treatment, or the on-board options, can take away the annoying aspects of this amp. I took the Phonic to be checked out, and put in a QSC 100wpc pro amp I had bought for $10. All PEQ settings had to be altered - with only the general trend in the Xilica's curve remaining. The sound is lively, bloomy and fun - it sounds positively old-school. The Jubilees sound like a good old box speaker with this one in place - but in a charming way. I knew I wasn't getting the best out of them, but the warm, wooly sound kind of took me back to yesteryear. An entirely different experience to the other amps. Then came a Cambridge Audio 841 domestic amp, for which I had high hopes. 200wpc and well-reviewed. This amp had the grip and speed of the Macrotech, possibly just lacking a fraction of knock-out dynamics. Awesome. This amp helped confirm that quality kit was going to be needed ultimately. But, sadly, it hummed 140hz (in both my system and elsewhere). Through the efficient Jubilees at idle, this livened-up my room and was intolerable. It was returned to the shop for credit. and this is where things get really interesting for me..... Mid-Hi Amplifiers The benchmark here has been my First-Watt F1J. I have extolled the virtues of this beautiful little amplifier elsewhere on the forum. Extremely precise, but perhaps a fraction cool? I started to feel a sense of fatigue from it at times, even with careful attention to the parametric EQ on the Xilica. I would go and listen to a friend's AK6 K-Horn / Leben CS600 and come home feeling like I was missing atmosphere - but that my system sounded more precise and without the shortcomings of the K-Horn system (I love K-Horns, but after owning the Jubilees, K-Horns seem 'wonderfully compromised'). I decided to try another Class A solid state amp to see if I could get some more magic out of the big 402's - this time a Sugden 30 wpc unit - another hi-hope item for me. It delivered, but not in spades. Presentation was similar to the First Watt, with slightly richer vocals, and better imaging - which projected out past the horns a bit more than with Nelson's baby. It was enough to make me decide to buy it, but I could have lived happily with the F1. I also tried the above Cambridge on the Faital/402 matching. It proved to be a far better bass amp than for use up top. Detail was smeared and unnatural sounding. It was clear that the Xilica was not going to add refinement to this amp - helping make up my mind to return it. The owner at the shop taking the Cambridge back offered me shop credit, but had nothing in stock I wanted. I did see he carried Primaluna gear and so I asked about the Evolution 300 power amplifier - approx 40wpc from two EL34 tubes per side. He had one coming, and sent it straight to me the following day. Within 10 minutes of the Evo300 being plugged in, I knew I was in love. Again, the PEQ had to be radically altered, but even using the Sugden setting, my room was bathed in rich, fulfilling ambient sound. Totally incomparable to the solid state amplifiers. 3-dimensionaltiy is complete - whereas in the F1 it was like looking at a flat fish-tank and the Sugden a round one, listening to the Primaluna is like plunging your head into the water. This did NOT come from a Xilica PEQ setting - this amplifier it simply a better match for the drive units - there is no doubt. The Primaluna brings me everything I wanted from the top end of my system. I'm back running the Phonic on the bass until I can sort out Bryston or some other decent bass amp. I will of course try other things that people bring over, etc - in the spirit of the open-mindedness I am trying to encourage with this post. A footnote regarding the Primaluna. I've had two amplifiers from this company now, one an integrated that I drove Altec 19's with, and the one above. Both have been very sensitive to EMI and dirty power. The Evo300 produces a noticeable hum through the Faital/K402's which diminishes and grows depending on what household appliances and audio gear is switched on and off. A Triode Wire Labs power cord literally HALVED this noise over the supplied power cord. No joke. But even at the reduced level, it was not at all acceptable. The Faital drivers have a sensitivity of 109db, so I do not blame the amp, per se. In an effort to reduce the hum, I borrowed an Al Klappenberg autoformer and installed it between the amp and speakers. This unit offers the ability to choose your reduction from zero to -9db in steps. At full -9db, the hum was virtually gone - but so was the 3d magic. I called this the GoneBerger Effect, and moved on to a hastily-wired up L-Pad. This took -10db off the sensitivity, and again reduced the hum to almost nothing. If it took a fraction of the magic out of the system, it was so very slight. I hope to build a better L-Pad using Deuland resistors to maybe restore that last fraction, and maybe drop to -12db. Having massive gain adjustability in the Xilica is great and appreciated when employing the above work-arounds. Anyhow, hope this has been useful, and hope you are all enjoying the music out there. Zig.
    8 points
  2. Great blue heron showing off plumage in the back yard.
    6 points
  3. Just call the zip ties Cable Clinchers.
    4 points
  4. Post sunset the other day, the Island of Catalina on the horizon.
    4 points
  5. it´s always fun to watch the world´s most famous christmas movie
    4 points
  6. "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" - I try to see it every time when it airs on TV.
    4 points
  7. one of those car stereos that you can hear the sub 1/2 mile away
    4 points
  8. @grasshopper You've got to elaborate man. What's a "Buffalo fart car stereo" 🤣
    4 points
  9. The stereo I built for my son's minivan actually separated the roof panel from the bows and cracked the window frames.
    3 points
  10. 3 points
  11. You can always use a Y splitter to connect a 2nd sub. One sub might work well in a small room like that.
    3 points
  12. My next door neighbors mom put that on us if she heard us make a painful sound outside her place when we were little. My mom had a nurse sister and two nurse friends that were here all the time. She put iodine on it before the bandaid. Now what was your funky tincture all about? *My analog is all packed away, I'll leave the cds available because they are dual purpose, here and out and about. Since it's just me against the world, I won't squander my time while there is an unknown probate issue at play here now.
    3 points
  13. Oh, the "got a wrench?" cars that must need Loc-Tite on every bolt! I was thinking blown, rattling woofer sounds.
    3 points
  14. Here he is . The zip ties that Rick magnetizises are used for the mysterious helmet
    3 points
  15. OK Here is a larger one and the last for this week. Of the three larger wood horns I have cut this one is by far the best and I may be done tinkering for a free standing horn. The one above is stacked on the new one for reference. The larger one is a 6.75 deep, 16" long and 9" tall and the mouth is 14" x 7". I am impatiently waiting for the second one to finish cutting so I can hear a pair in service.
    3 points
  16. Surfer dude music. In love again:
    3 points
  17. Then we now know what is missing in our record collections , the music and vid is great
    3 points
  18. Was going to put on some digital and share but darn @MicroMara I can not do another thing until your Eric Burdon & War finishes.... except sip on my early 7pm single barrel. ** Folks in that club in Denmark got their moneys worth that night!! Fine jam session five posts up!🤘
    3 points
  19. Heck yea, pretty lady and a disco royalty queen!
    3 points
  20. I have not yet found a thread that shows self-made audio cables. I mean speaker cables, power cables and RCA cables. In this community w´ll be build, modified, tuned, like in no other audio community in the world. So I thought to open this thread to show what is possible with DIY. This thread is not meant to be a discussion platform, about the sense or nonsense of different AWG standards, it´s only meant to show what you can achieve yourself. After all it saves a lot of money if you make your own audio cables. Since I have some experience in this area, I would like to share this with you and also show examples that DIY cables don´t differ to expensive brand manufacturers, which cost a lot of money. Here´re some examples from my own D I Y Loudspeaker Cables ... My own Bridges for Bi Wire Terminals Connection example
    2 points
  21. Finished a long term project today and it is a stacked BB horn lens with removable clamp plate for 4" center line diameter four bolt drivers. The block is 13.5" x 9" x 6.875" deep. Mouth is 11.5" x 7". Stacked and machined with no steps and very little hand sanding. These had a pair of N314X drivers on there and they sound very good. No testing done just listening. I have been kicking around the idea of making something like the Elliptracs which are no longer available and this is the first version. Meant to be free standing and might add a bracket to tilt and swivel in time. For now I am just sticking them on top of a speaker I have sitting around and enjoying them.
    2 points
  22. Hello, I'm new to this forum and also new to the Home Theater world. I want to build a 7.2 HT (both for movies and music), that's my long term plan because I cant afford buying all the equipment at once. My room is 4m x 4m x 4m (height). I know it's a small room, I use it only for a HT and a small home gym and I guess I could fill it with smaller/less expensive speakers, but who doesn't love some extra headroom to blast music/action movies. I want to start with the Left and Right Channel and of course the AVR and I need some opinions, since I don't have the proper experience. Since it's Black Friday period, some stores in my country got great (I guess) prices on Klipsch Tower Speakers. - R-620F from 800euros down to 550euros. - R-820F from 1000euros down to 650euros. It's +100euros for 1point of sensitivity, better low ends, more power, bigger size.. As for the AVR's I've seen. - Denon X1600H at 450euros. - Denon X2600H at 600euros. It's +150euros for a few more watts, some upscaling as I've read, is it worth it? Or do I need to get a bigger AVR watt-wise for more power in the long run, when I complete my 7channel setup? My wallet could go for the expensive options of those two cases I've mentioned, but is it worth it? The wallet wouldn't do it thaaat happily but I wouldn't want to feel the need of an upgrade in 2 years etc. Also, I'd love it if you have some other idea for speakers &/or AVR's. Thanks for reading this.
    2 points
  23. https://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/ele/d/hillsboro-klipsch-cornwalls-1963/7239226701.html "1963 Cornwall's in the black "utility" cabinets. These were recapped using Sonicaps. 15" woofers, horn midranges, and horn tweeters. I would not sell these, but they are too much speaker for the small room they were to be used in" no pics in ad
    2 points
  24. Maybe it's to easy and that's why they get confused... let's complicate it and let a Chinese translation agency to the write up.
    2 points
  25. I worked in the machine end of a bowling alley for 25 years..... not deaf, but tend to talk loud. Most place are built to knock the sound levels down a little.... except one place. A metal quonset.. That place was LOUD. Hearing protection????? Whatever for? OHSA... oh, them. Observing our new right to enjoy a joint... been on medical for several years, but they don't want people saying they like their meds... still upset about that stupid pre-cooked turkey. Wife is getting tired of hearing about it... It is about gone... er, we are into the soup stage. I tapped the pot for a few cups of broth and used it to make some dumplin's in. That was breakfast.
    2 points
  26. @mikld How far is Knoxville? I'm volunteering @Coytee to audition for you. Idaho was more than a days drive for me. BTW if you're ever in So Cal you could come my way.
    2 points
  27. He's online buying right now. At least the prices seem good.
    2 points
  28. A meal for one ended up as four meals for me. Yummy. Duck!
    2 points
  29. Yeah he shall make a decision without beeing under pressure....Time enough
    2 points
  30. Obviously I don't have the experience, that's the reason I asked those things ☺️
    2 points
  31. Thank you for your reply! I have good access to the basic brands: Sony (STR-DH590 @270euros, STR-DH790 @440euros, STR-DN1080 @610euros) Denon (X1600H @450euros, X1500H @460euros, S-750H@490euros, X2700H @550euros, X2500H @570euros, X2600H @600euros) Yamaha (RX-V385 @330euros, RX-V485 @410euros, RX-V585 @510euros, RX-V685@ 610euros) some of those are 5.1 though Marantz (The models I have access to are @800euros +) Pioneer (VSX-531 @340euros, VSX-534D @420euros, VSX-830@460euros, VSX-832 @480euros, VSX-831 @530euros, VSX-934 @590euros) some of those are also 5.1 too. Onkyo (TX-SR494 @510euros, TX-NR474 @505euros, TX-NR696 @720euros)
    2 points
  32. I was able to work out the purchase but I wont call it a deal.... but they are my 76' so I paid $650. The seller was a super nice guy who lived in a beautiful area of Stl and it was a treat to meet him and see his 110 year old house. Im not sure what the future holds for these guys but for now I think I have an idea how to cover up the ugliest parts. Its likely down the road they will get the Super Cornwall treatment and refinished but for now Ill jsut listen and enjoy.
    2 points
  33. I believe that many/most of the TADs running on Jubilees were bought in a group buy in 2009, with MikeTN and Marion I believe slightly leading that group buy pack. As you know, the TAD TD-4002s were discontinued, probably due to the neodymium magnets (prices have risen significantly). Since then, all the 4002's I've seen are coming second hand, and mainly from commercial venues (as I'm also sure you know, and these can be problematic, since the diaphragms alone at running about $1k USD each, and that is the reason why many of the older 4002s are being sold--instead of refurbished). Neodymium magnets also don't like to be overheated--like you get in discos and other very high SPL/long operating period applications. Their Curie points are much lower than ferrite magnets. That's why the TD-4001s (same diaphragm with a 20# ferrite magnet instead of the ~11# neo magnet in the 4002) are still being used, I would guess. The 4001 prices have always been a higher than the discontinued 4002s. So you can get the performance of the 4002s--but using the 4001s. __________________________________________________________________________ I wouldn't go that way now that I've discovered how to dial in and bi-amp a BMS 4592ND to get about the same performance as the TD-4002--and without the FM distortion of having such a wide band of frequencies being reproduced on a single diaphragm. A Hypex FusionAmp (FA123) makes that very easy to do and replace the DSP crossover, two stereo amplifiers, and a couple of speaker wires to each loudspeaker, instead using a signal line from a preamp, player, or computer (running a PCIe to AES card), or an unbalanced RCA analog, balanced XLR analog, or S/PDIF [coaxial or optical] input. Chris
    2 points
  34. I respectfully disagree. How many of the people who spend $$$$ on Ferraris, Maseratis, Porsches, etc. know how to work on them? Also, everyone who values the excellent reproduction of music is not necessarily in the “hobby.”
    2 points
  35. Howdy mikld, I am mahlman over at the other place. Check out my personal system and then realize that center to center they are 20' apart (that is center to center on 60" wide bass bins by the way) and I typically sit maybe 15 feet away. FAR larger than anything you are contemplating and let me assure you they sound phenomenal and are not too big. The idea a jubilee is too big is amusing and all I can say is hearing is believing. You owe it to yourself to be patient and seek out some of these larger all horn systems in order to be able to make an educated assessment of relative sound quality in a room environment. A fair number of people have never heard these bigger systems and therefore make statements based on what they think and have been "told" and never realize what they are missing by regarding something like a K-Horn as the ultimate. K-Horns are good so don't get me wrong but they are not in the same league as the better Klipsch pro gear. All these people with opinions, me included, need to be verified by YOU personally for veracity. Please do not make a purchase based on only what you have others tell you. You do this right you only have to do it once more. One more thing. You mention more volume than one might need. What that prodigious output potential does is give you better sound quality at any volume. A speaker that hardly has to work to produce the sound levels you want will have less distortion and that 30hz organ note will be much richer than it would be on a speaker that struggles to get there. My two favorite genres for some time now are pipe organs and Cellos. I want to pretend I am right there next to them being played and I rarely go above 80 to 85db any more. Now Japanese Fireworks as any visitor to my place knows IS played at volume because damn, you are right there and the booms shake you.
    2 points
  36. While the other several hundred reading this forum are shaking their heads.....
    2 points
  37. He was so cute and the best " roadrunner " ever ...
    2 points
  38. No Joke, I enjoyed it!
    2 points
  39. They’re really dialed in. Though 12 feet apart the vocals just seem to come out of the top of the MAC7200 dead center. Funny enough I had a friend over recently who has a nice Heresy setup and first thing he said was, “Whoa they just disappear.” I would encourage everyone to try them in true corners, crossing in front of listening position 👍
    2 points
  40. @Full Range Dionne Warwick is famouse. She is the sister of Dee Dee Warwick, a niece of Cissy Houston and a cousin of Whitney Houston.
    2 points
  41. We like your Christmas lights too ..
    2 points
  42. oh... no... I was thinking of mercurichrome Tinctures... We can lawfully admit to enjoying weed tomorrow, I guess. Recreational becomes legal as soon as the "Certified Election Results" and made public. I am I gonna lose standing if I was to say I have not been "Pissing off the neighbors". She likes us. Doesn't ever mention the stereo... Says she notices when boy comes in with his buffalo fart car stereo... Gave us money to put up our annual Christmas lights in the trees. Wife told her it wasn't a matter of money.... It is when Bill gets to doing some shopping. She insisted on giving us $20 anyway. That will pay to keep them lit for a while. For some reason or other, she likes our [rather random] lights hanging in the trees... or maybe that we have big enough tress to do it... I dunno.
    2 points
  43. 2 points
  44. A great female voice She changed her artist name from "Warrick" to "Warwick" because her name was misspelled on the labels of her hit record "Don't Make Me Over". They even made another spelling mistake on the cover of this album - can you spot it A nice compilation album that I inherited Artist - Dionne Warwick Title - The Best Of
    2 points
  45. Visited a nursery yesterday, looking at plants...
    2 points
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