codhead

Here it is... Let's see if a .PDF will post.

My eBay D-45 arrived today. It's brand new! Just one small problem... there was some adhesive residue on the back panel - where the serial number used to be. This one must have fallen off the truck. Oh well, guess I can't ***** too much for 180 bucks. Absolutely stunning sound. Smooth, balanced, and plenty of tight, controlled bottom end. If this is any indication, SS has come a long way since my mid 80's gear. I have to admit, I was pretty skeptical after my experience with that dreadful (IMHO) little Teac. I was curious about what it would take to trigger the IOC (clipping) indicators. Those Cornwalls sure put out a whole lot of volume before the red lights start to flicker. Kind of hate to admit this, but the D-45 seems to be a better match with my Corns than my SET amps. With SET, the Cornwall squawkers seem to run a lot hotter. I don't notice this with the Chorus, but I sure do with the Corns. This has been a major source of irritation ever since I got the Cornwalls up and running. Not so much a problem on good recordings, but the hot mids make bass deficient recordings sound really bad. For some reason, these same recordings sound a whole lot better with the D-45. Guess I need to hook up my Dynaco, and see how it sounds on the Corns. Wonder if this is an impedance issue, as the Chorus uses a more modern crossover design? Right now, I'd give the nod to the Chorus as being a better sounding speaker with SET gear. At any rate, I'm very happy with the D-45. It's a fine sounding, well constructed little amp. If any of you have been sitting on the fence, I don't think this is a purchase you would regret.

From the subject of this thread, I thought you found your "special purpose".

"The problem as I see it is how do you transfer that 'magical first watt' into more magical watts for those, like me that prefer more loudness for our larger rooms with that musicality?" These big triodes (211's) sound very nice, and are good for around 20 watts.

This screams fraud! Look at his other auctions. No freakin' way is this legit.

Bob, Hope you're correct. At $1,995 a pair, I don't think I could hold back. The dealer that took that guy's $3,300 would certainly have some explaining to do!

Seti, There are two things that will have a huge impact on how those amps will sound: 1) The signal driving them 2) Tube selection Driven by a Cary SLP-88, your amps (and the identical pair I still use) had a significant bottom end. I later switched preamps to the AES AE-3 DJH, and even though it is a very similar circuit (but tube rectified) the bottom end just vanished. I initially thought there was something wrong with the new preamp. After driving the amps directly from the variable output of my CD player, I discovered that the SLP-88 seemed to have some kind of loudness contour which was lacking in the AE-3. Up to this point, my favorite tube combination had been the KR 300BXLS or JJ 300B, driven by an RCA 5691. I did a lot of experimentation (Cetron, JJ, WE, Valve Art, KR/AVVT, Svetlana, Electro-Harmonix, Sophia/TJ Full Music) and the difference with the Sophia/TJ mesh plates is just staggering. I think I pretty much covered the spectrum (at the time) of available 300B tubes, and if you're looking for more bottom end, the Sophia/TJ will provide it in spades. I now use these tubes almost exclusively, driven by WWII vintage Sylvania VT-229's. I have Chorus I and Cornwall I speakers, and I can relate to the sound you describe. If your amps are being driven by a flat signal, you'll be shocked at the difference a tube change will make. If you're interested, PM me and I'll let you borrow my spares for a listening comparison. Almost hate to set you up like this, as I don't think you'll continue to be satisfied with what you're listening to now - the difference is that significant. - Jeff

CTP, Don't sweat it. You may very well make a fine engineer one day. How many 15-year-olds do you know that have performed mods on anything? I seriously doubt that removing that unused board caused your problem. Every unit has what they call a Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF). On average, it may be several hundred thousand hours. One unit out of 100 may fail at 500 hours - you just happened to win the failure lotto. If you've ever seen gear advertised as "B stock" or "factory refurbished", there's a good chance that it was one of these failures. The unit was replaced, and the faulty one went back to the factory (or their repair depot) where it was repaired and repackaged.

SET Fraternity meeting. Hey, I own a few - and I still think these threads are entertaining!

SET Fraternity test CD?

I was always partial to Agent 99 myself. Still ain't bad for her age!

http://cgi.ebay.com/Horn-Load-PILLOW-Speakers-earphone-iPod-mp3-CD-WH-PI_W0QQitemZ5810713340

I say $3,499. With a street price of $3K, it still leaves about a grand for Klipsch and the dealer.

Dee, I heard the same thing regarding construction. I posted this, as it gives a look inside the top section. I can't decide what the mid horn is made out of in that picture. It looks almost like a composite, but I remember reading something about the builder welding them up out of aluminum. If it's aluminum, he does a heck of a nice job! I see that you can buy a Belle clone, minus the components (just the cabinet). Would sure be a nice way to resurrect a trashed pair of LaScalas. I don't know about the sellers claim that they're made out of better wood. Less layers in the plywood, from what I see - but the veneer sure looks nice. I've actually considered sending him an E-mail to see if he'd make me a pair of Cornwall cabinets out of 1" birch plywood.

"So do I still need to call the Waaaaaaahhhmbulance? The driver will be pretty busy with some of the folks on this forum." Fritz, You have to remember to log out when you're done. Looks like the kids accessed your account again! []

"Perhaps you would like the skilled AMERICAN factory workers to take a pay cut or even better have it outsourced to China?" Jeff, Judging from your system, you may wish to rethink your position. I can assure you that your contributions to Far East, Inc. greatly eclipse those of my own.

At least you can take some comfort in knowing that you have a $700 power cord! I've never had something like that. []

A bit of history... this is from the guy that Andy spoke to, that claimed to have sent his design to PWK - which became the Belle.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Shinall-AFS-2-Klipsch-LaScala-but-Better-Quality-woods_W0QQitemZ5812755593 Has some pics, for anyone wanting to get a better look at these.

I've never heard one, but there's something about the name "Flying Mole" that fascinates me.

"Some examples of sales lost came from China where rich guys would come in the store and say, "OK show me all your speakers over $10K" In some circles Klipsch is not taken seriously because it is such a bargain." I really hope this did not contribute in any way to the stratospheric retail prices. Would be a shame if the American consumer is getting hosed in order to appease wealthy communists. Perhaps it would be more beneficial to have Chinese dealers throw in a copy of Ravel's Bolero, and a bottle of powdered rhino horn.

Thanks for your responses on this. I'm thinking about upgrading my Cornwall crossovers, but I'm a bit leery about adding additional parts if I don't need 'em (need all the efficiency I can get with SET amps).

"Why on Earth would Klipsch build a huge box Stateside, only to ship it overseas, that just plain doesn't make sense." Michael, Check out the label from my '77 CDBR. It went to Germany - but thankfully it found it's way back home. Damn, sounds like an episode of "Lassie".

The man is a moron. Somebody should fire him before he destroys something. Ooh, ooh that smell Can't you smell that smell? Ooh, ooh that smell The smell of [component] death surrounds you.

John, From the .PDF, it looks like there's a peak at 5250, and 8750. Wonder why no one makes an issue of the 5K peak?