kdcarroll

stereo_dog, Rhetor, and sasqwatch - YOU'VE GOT MAIL!!

Bump for the weekend

For Sale: great sounding Jolida 502, with 2 sets of Valve Art KT-88's and 1 set of EH 6550's. I purchased this amp from Dave Harris at Fastlane Audio, and he describes the following tweaks to the amp: "I removed the lowsy passive preamp section , and upgraded the capacitors to Dayton film and foil + added the capacitors to power supply section deleted by Jolida's bean counters." $500 shipped to CONUS. Professionally packed and shipped: will arrive as advertised! This is a quiet, great sounding amp! I've decided to stick with solid state. Link to upgrade pics. http://community.klipsch.com/forums/p/149889/1550535.aspx#1550535

HOG FAN - You've got a PM . . .Thanks!

(posted in Garage as well..) Anyone have a set of surrounds (RS-42's.....) that they would like to sell? I'm looking to "add to my addiction" and replace my present surrounds. Thanks for all the help! My best - K

Does anyone have any experience with the copper micro platter and outer ring produced by TT? The video on you tube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnzDGGAmtDo) looks interesting, as does the product advertising on their web site. I'm interested what your experience has been before I consider this tweak. Thanks in advance for the help! Ken

Man, did I have the wrong impression about this thread based on the header. Sorry, Trey.

The 2150 is a great fit for heritage (I heard it on both Heresy and Lascala). The sound is very similar to HK, or Sansui; lush, warm with good definition. Ample power for any sane application. The phono section is very good at this price point. The build quality is outstanding. You have no doubt noticed the absence of any significant 'grey" market - most of the units sold remain very popular with the buyer. My only (!) complaint about the unit is an absence of digital input: i.e. no direct input for wadia 170i or DAC/transport in digital. The Outlaw "B Stock" sale is currently listing the RR2150 at 499.00. I am confident that no receiver offers the quality of the 2150 at this price point. I presently use an HK 3380, and an old twin power, and the 2150 is my next purchase. I get the usual requests for recommendations for fellow musicians looking to replace vintage equipment or "start" an audio system: I always start with the RR2150. Besides the great sound, great value and excellent feature set - the thing just looks sexy. Hope this helps!

wuzzer is dead on - set the H/K directly on the CD player. There are threads here and other forums that support the idea of adding mass to the top of transports to reduce vibration (not to be confused with jitter, etc.). I have 3380, and I doubt you can do any better FOR THE MONEY. They sound great and have all the necessary features - I'll buy another when I need it!! My best!

I have read a few glowing reviews, but also seen a few "careful" ones. Has anyone had any experience with the Wadia 170i? If so, did you use an outboard DAC, or one in a receiver/integrated/etc. Thanks as always for all the help! Digging my "new" Lancer Studio Monitor speakers; but almost dropped dead on the spot when MY WIFE asked if we could "move the Heresies into the living room". She's a keeper! Ken

Looking to buy a pair of Lascalas in/near Arkansas. We have Lascalas in all the rehearsal facilities at ASU; I am very interested in hearing how these great speakers will sound in my room, and compare them with my Heresy. Anybody have A/B thoughts? The room is 18 by 13, ten foot ceiling, speakers on long wall. Ken

Family and I on a "road trip" to Nashville for the extended weekend. What to absolutely not miss? Where is THE great audio gear/store? Thanks in advance! Ken

Welcome!! My room is exactly the size you mentioned and I have a great pair of Bob Crites - ized Heresies. I run a sub as well, and the sound is rich, deep and all you could ask for or want in that room. You will love them. You've already gotten great advice about the crossovers. One last thing; the cornwalls are great speakers, but they would be considered by most to be "a large speaker" - roughly twice the footprint of a Heresy. Don't worry about that - get the Heresy and fall in love. You'll get the bug soon enough, then you can be poor like everyone else!

arf - They are already purchased - that decision was made almost a year ago. The thread was mainly seeking impressions from Cornwall users in advance of my pair (Spring Break road trip to Texas!). While I have heard all of the heritage speakers (we are lucky enough to have them all on our campus; Dan Ross and PWK were good friends, so as the Music Department was constructed, all Klipsch heritage speakers were used. We have Lascalas in three rehearsal spaces, Heresys in all class rooms, and even have a set of Jubs built into the performing center. The tiny black box theatre has a set of lascalas (sitting on the floor) to be used for rehearsal music (sob....). Tell me what you hear as a difference between Heresy and Cornwall . . . Thanks again! K

Thebes - Thanks again - you never cease to bring a smile to my face, even on the worst of days. I look forward to getting my stallions at Spring Break, and "riding them all day". I'll send photos and report back on placement when I recover from any fainting. Ken

Thinks Rich - appreciate your input, and WELCOME TO THE INSANITY. This thread really deals with Cornwall placement, and a general comparison of Heresy and Cornwall. There have been several (SEVERAL) threads detailing the great work done with Cornscalas which you can bring up using the forum search: just type in Cornscala in the search box. Thanks again Michael on the scoop - looking forward to finding out what works best in my room. I don't have to concern myself with WAF; my lovely wife is a musician as well, and loves the sound. I've been showing her pictures and scale models for a few months to prepare her, and she is going to Texas to pick up our new adopted babys. Have seen a few threads lately on "harshness" - I'm hoping the Cornwall is not "in your face" and edgy. There do seem to be a number of threads concerning "fixing" Cornwalls through horn dampening and/or crossover adjustment. Michael, do you have ANY of your 219 pairs of Cornwalls "adjusted"? K

michael - I like balance. Of course I like bass; not more than any other frequency, but that certainly was one of the driving factors in starting this project in the first place. I've just heard conflicting opinions about Cornwall placement, and since I don't have 87 pairs sitting around like SOME PEOPLE, I have to ask questions until Spring Break. Can you be just a bit less cryptic?? K

Seadog - What does the P-trap do specifically in the crossover to dampen resonance? Thanks!! K

Thanks thebes et al. I appreciate the images. I thought Cornwalls needed/liked space behind the box: i.e. away from the wall, out in the room. Did I miss this? My Heresys sit almost "in the corners", and tucked up against the walls on small angle stands. I will basically place the Cornwalls in the same spot, unless they should be moved out into the room. Thebes (I love your writing), when you toe in, are you looking for a more specific image; more focused into a small spot? I like the idea of a drive-in movie size image across the entire wall. I don't have the Heresys toed in - what's the thought process here? Thanks in advance for all help past and present - (it was 72 degrees here yesterday, and it will snow 2 inches tonight. Weather, like the economy, is just not stable)

Everybody chime in here and give me an impression: My present two-channel rig is based on Heresy1's (Crites tweeters/cross) and a very musical sub. Front end is a HK pre with ATI 1202 power amp. CD is Cambridge 640C-II, and tons of vinyl on JVC table (next on the upgrade list). My listening room is 15/15 square, carpet floor, 9 foot ceiling with a desk, and a small leather "listening" loveseat. I love the sound and image - not a giant stage, but very real. After reading/hearing everyone preach the beauty that is Cornwall, I have finally been lucky enough to locate a pair in great shape that I will go pick up (7 hour drive to TEXAS.....). My question is this; what will be the difference in sound/image from my present kit? How will these speakers change my life (I'm only partially kidding). I listen to virtually everything; mostly jazz, symphonic, band, some pop/country/rock/folk. Let me know "why you love these speakers, and why I will too"; what will they sound like in my room, how will they be different than my Heresys? Thanks (again) ahead of time - ready to learn again! Ken

a resounding "yep"! And a bigger smile yet is when a twenty-something with IPOD permantly attached comes in with a "new" Monk tune he discovered on ITUNES and really digs it; not just for the "hip" of listening to jazz, but really hears the communication. My dad (and my grandfather) are/were both saxophonists, and genetically altered me to be drawn to "communication" arts: i.e. "is the artist communicating someting" or is it ars pro artis. From my earliest memories, I was a GIANT fan because there were so many storys, and so many ways to tell it. Desmond "talks" differently than Bird, who has a different story than Sonny Rollins, and on and on and on. I know some "collect" jazz. I am moved by it. Like the preacher said, "whatever gets them in the pew". My only wish is that jazz (America's only indiginous musical genre, protected by the Joint Act of Congress 1984) would garner a portion of the financial success that some other more transitory music has. That's a big can of worms for another time. Glad I could help at all. One last thought, "Phil Woods: Live at the Showboat" is probably one of the best jazz albums (playing, recording, tunes, etc.) of our time. Man, what a player. (Listening to Bob Parlocha's syndicated show on Heresies.....swinging baby, swingin!) Ken

I know all lists are somewhat limited in their compass and application, so my complaint is somewhat tempered: however, a list that includes 12 Chet Baker recordings, only one Cannonball recording, and NO PHIL WOODS?? I teach Jazz History, and my favorite approach is to introduce musicians to a single historical figure, then branch out to all related supporting musicians ("sidemen"). After that relationship, the "fun" part of discovering the musicians that influenced the historical figure; i.e. who did Bird listen to? Who did "they" listen to? It really can be like "six degrees", only involving musicians. Take a pivotal figure like Miles Davis, and with work, you can get to a bulk of recorded jazz. Buy "Kind 'a Blue", then purchase one recording of all the musicians on that recording under their name. After reading the liner notes of the individual albums, buy one album of each of the musicians mentioned as "important" to that artist; buy "Blue Trane", and find out who John Coltrane listens to. Buy ANY Gil Evans album ("Africa Brass"), and look at the list of musicians. Pick an instrument a month, and purchase the best recordings of the most influential artist (just imagine how many saxophone albums I must own...........) Just another way to look at it. The journey is more fun than the destination. Ken

You are getting great advice! I sold my Fisher 500C two months ago. It was a fantastic unit that had been updated very well. It sounded great in my room through Crites-updated Heresies. My reason for sale was I didn't want to make the investment of time that great tube gear takes, in addition to the cost. The power tubes for the Fisher are somewhat more difficult to obtain (there is a legend of Eastern visitors buying all the tubes in the '70's). The quality SS units today rival all but the best tube gear (not an invitation to flame, YMMV), and certainly can do so at much less investment of time (no bias adjustment, tube rolling or replacement, etc.). I will freely admit the best sound I have heard is from tubes; but it just wasn't for me. I actually listen for my job and my hobby; so I spend more time listening to music, and less time worrying about each component in the chain. Another angle - if the majority of your listening is digital from a server, you will gain little benefit from tubes (as said by others this evening); especially if your digital files are compressed at all. I would recommend buying a Harmon Kardon two-channel SS receiver and enjoying your music, rather than diving down the rabbit hole in search of "something else" - a search that never appears to end. The Fisher has a fantastic phono amp, a really great FM section, and some great warm tendencies. If they are rebuilt by experts (like NOS), then a bulk of the attitude can be preserved. Some units get stripped and gutted in a burnt Earth approach to "modernize" the unit, which leaves us none of the great old character, and all the headaches of "tubes done wrong". This of course is just one opinion. While looking for my Fisher, I did a great deal of research and discovered the "cult"of Fisher fans, some of whom had SEVERAL units in various states ("in case this one goes bad"). That many people can't be wrong! Good luck, and welcome to the insanity! Ken

Michael - So sorry to hear of your friend going home. I will keep he and his family in my heart today, as well as all those who might suffer at the loss. "Sad we all at summer's passing" K

Doesn't really help my cause, now does it Bob?? How about a bone for the rest of us? When I see people with umpty pairs of all manner of Cornwall, and I don't have a single one, I just feel sorry for myself. I mean, you can only listen to so many speakers at one time - how about releasing one pair back into the wild? (hope you/yours doing well) K