frankphess

Does it look like this?

Here are the plusses and minuses of the two modes per Mark: LoZ + drives very low impedance loads such as 5KO + drives cables up to 50 feet long with no ill effect + drives multiple amplifiers such as main and subwoofer + or — has a slightly more extended (really slight) top end. + often perceived as having tighter bass control, (although that's not my personal opinion.) HiZ + Is the shortest possible signal path (passive components), and least active components between input and output + Has the lowest distortion + Has the lowest noise + Has (IMO) the most clarity + Has the least interaction with the PSU — "Ideally" should be driving modest length cables (6ft) and into a load of about 47KO or more. Even better at 100kO + or — has a very slightly less extended top end.

60 Ultra Linear / 30 Triode http://nosvalves.com/vrd.htm

I purchased a pair of Cornwall bases from a forum member, and he said he had them made by Timbernation in PA. Link below. http://www.timbernation.com/index.cfm

I'm a big fan of decoupling speakers from the floor. I've spiked RF-7's and a RSW15, as well as some others. Spiking the sub showed the most impovement as it kept the bass in the room and no longer shook the whole house. When it was sitting on the floor, all the energy transferred to the floor and the walls. Once up on spikes, the bass is much tighter and you can hear the sound from the driver and not the cabinet resonance. This being said, I do prefer to actually connect spikes to the cabinet rather than just put the speaker on a base. Below is a link with some other type outriggers which may be another option to consider. http://www.oregondv.com/

I use a SET amp (PX25) with single driver Cain & Cain Super Abby's and use (2) Cain & Cain Bailey subs. With single driver speakers the two Bailey's fill in the bottom end quite nicely. The preamp I use has (2) outputs, so I just run the left output to the left in on the sub & the right out to the right in on the sub. I use this setup for music only. For movies, I use the Klipsch reference series.

In the discontinued Tangent 500 and t-5000, the passive was mounted below the active woofer. In smaller cabinet designs, it's usually in the back of the cabinet opposite the active woofer. http://www.klipsch.com/tangent-500 http://www.klipsch.com/t-5000

It's absolutely disgusting. It's now as worthless as Ebay & Craigslist.

VRD's lit up. (Not my pic., saved from somewhere.)

Do you have any pics with the lights out. None that look very good, sorry, I'm not a very good photographer. I've tried to take some, but they don't turn out very well.

C&C

PX-25

Best I've heard with RF-7's is the VRD & Peach combo. With single driver crossoverless, it is the Art Audio PX-25 SET and Art Audio DM VPS pre.

While some/most may come with rubber feet, "after market" spikes can usually be installed in the same hole that used a screw to hold the rubber foot on. The manufacturer should be able to give you the diameter and thread size. Again, this will help with your problem. You can find spikes here: http://www.oregondv.com/spikes.htm. MFR. thread sizes here : http://www.oregondv.com/threads.htm

Subs often have rubber feet on the bottom. If you can replace those feet with spikes, that will help reduce the transference of the bass from the sub cabinet to the floor and walls. Spikes also are usually more stable than rubber feet which results in tighter, cleaner bass in the room.

Yea, they're pretty large to use "normal" speaker stands. I've put them on an end table. While maybe not the most aestetically pleasing, it works.

I'm used to having the volume on the Peach preamp to approx. 11:00 o'clock (normal @ 9:00 o'clock) and keeping left/right balances @ 1:00 o'clock for maximum listtening levels with VRD's. With the Wright's I need to crank the volume to about 2:00 o'clock, then also increase the left right balances to about 3:00 o'clock for sufficient levels, and even then, in some instances would like more volume. The Cain & Cain Abby's/Super Abby's can be purchased with (2) different Fostex drivers. One is called a "nearfield", being a Fostex FF165k for situations where the listener is between 6-8 feet from the speaker, and/or for smaller rooms. The second option is a "normal" driver, a Fostex FE166e which is for larger rooms and listener-to-speaker distances greater than 6 to 8 ft. Currently, I have only the "nearfield" driver but am making arrangements to aquire a "normal" driver which may work better with the 2A3 amplifier. Below is a link with more info. http://www.soundscapehifi.com/cain.htm

Thanks for all the replies. I can get some decent volume out of the Wright's and they are very quiet, and I can see how the "SET" sound is appealing, they just don't produce high enough SPL's in my room that I want on occaision, (without cranking the pre which I'd prefer not to do.) If my room was half the size from ~35' x 15' to say 20' x 15', I think these Wrights would be a much better performer. I was used to VRD's with RF-7's which I ran in Ultra linear. I've since switched to Cain & Cain Abby's with nearfield drivers (and Klipsh RB-75's on occaision) that I started using with the VRD's in triode, and with the Cain's the VRD's sound absolutely wonderful, but of course I wanted to see what the "SET" amp could bring to the table. My next experiment will be to swap out the Fostex "nearfield" driver with a "normal" driver to see how it performs with the Wrights. Thanks again, Frank

By this I mean, if I can't get satisfactory SPL's in my room with Wright WPA 3.5 watt monblocks, would say a Don Garber FI 2A3 possibly put out higher SPL's? I would think the output would still be limited by the low power of the 2A3 tube, correct? Thanks for any insight you may be able to provide, as this is my first venture into the "SET" world.

I started out with a 5.1 Klipsch reference system with receivers, then solid state amps, then more recently quality PP tube gear for the past few years. At the beginning, my musical preference was for loud music, movies & concerts in surround sound. As the years past, I tried to improve the quality of equipment as my musical tastes changed to much more detailed and "mellow" music. Now, I seldom use surround sound and listen mostly to only music with the RF-7's and Peach/VRD's, which have kept me pretty happy until recently. Becoming interested in single driver speakers, which I had not previously heard, I listened to and purchased a pair of Cain & Cain Super Abby's and Bailey Sub. (I've not even had to to set them up properly, but can already tell that they will be taking the place of the RF-7's). While the Abby's of course do sound good with the VRD's, I'm now curious to hear how a low power amp will sound with the Abby's, which of course are made to work with low power amps. So, for now I'll be holding on to the 7's and VRD's, but there may come a day real soon where they need to be moved to make room for new gear.

DVD's for 5.1 Blue Man Group - The Complex Rock Tour Live Bobby Rush - Live at Ground Zero Blues Club Led Zeppelin - DVD North Mississippi All Stars - Keep on Marchin' Rodrigo & Gabriella Norah Jones - Live in New Orleans Dido - Live Santana - Sacred Fire CD's for 2.0 Joe Strummer - Global a Go-Go Natalie Merchant - Motherland Rhythm Country & Blues - Various Artists Fleetwood Mac - Then Play On A3 - Power in the Blood Van Morrison - Live in San Francisco Ray Lamantagne - Trouble Citizen Cope - The Clarence Greenwood Recordings Kermit Ruffins - Barbeque Singers Live Maceo Parker - Life on Planet Groove []

(2) 400 CD changers, file the sleeve in a CD holder kept in a three ring binder and throw the case away.

Krell & Sonus Faber.

While I also was too young, it seems "back in the day" tubes were manufactured to a higher standard, and a lot of them for the military. For whatever reason, current production tubes just don't sound as good as the ones made "back in the day".

I can't say there's a huge difference in sound, but you'll get more power with the KT-88's. I also recall having to use a different rectifier tube when using 350B's. Intead of the 5AR4, I believe a 5U4G is recommended. Check with Craig though.