Islander

In many cases, when a new stylus costs nearly as much as a new cartridge, it makes more sense to get a new cart, since it will likely have updates that will make it sound better. When you're talking about a 37-year-old cartridge, a new stylus will not make it sound like it did when new, since there is probably some deterioration in other parts of it as well. Cartridges have been steadily improving over the years, and a current one could please you more than your old one. A new Shure M97xE sells for only $95 and could take your vinyl listening to the next level.

Thanks for the detailed tips, Mike! I was thinking of starting with the Dx connected to one or both power amps with no input to the Dx. I'll print out your message and get started today. I'll post any successes. If this combo works for everyone else, it should certainly work for me... As for powering up and down, I'm in the habit of turning the volume right down, then turning off the amps first, then the receiver. To turn on, first the receiver, then the amps. Once the Dx is sorted, it will go on after the receiver and before the amps.

I'm using the settings Roy graciously sent me, saved as the U01 program, which over-wrote whatever existing program was at that location. I've used Out1 and Out3 to the LS woofers and Out2 and Out4 to the 510s, also tried Out1 and Out3 to the complete LS speakers, all with the same loud buzzing. When I briefly tried connecting the 510s to the amps without the Dx in the chain, the sound was clear and clean. Although it was not EQ'd in any way, it sounded pretty good, so I'm not giving up on this. When I pick up the Dx from the dealer who tested it today, I'll bring in my cables and manuals for them to take a look at and see if they can spot any obvious incompatibilities. If it still acts up when I re-connect it, I'll try out your suggestions. Thanks, jc. UPDATE: I just picked up the Dx38 and had all the cables tested as well. Everything is in proper working condition, so I'm running out of combinations to try. The E-V dealer suggested I try connecting the DVD player directly to the Dx, so I'll do that next.

I've assembled all the pieces to make my 510 JubScalas, but haven't been able to hear them operating properly. The amps have been working fine, the 510/K-69 speakers work fine, but all I can hear out of the combo is a loud buzzing and no music. I suspected the problem might have been with the used Dx38, but I just had a diagnostic done on it by the local E-V dealer and it seems to be operating normally. Various combinations of cables seem to make no difference. RCA (receiver) to XLR (Dx), XLR (Dx) to XLR (power amps) didn't work, so I also tried the RCA inputs on the amps, using a different pair of XLR-to-RCA cables, with the same result. Has anyone else run into this situation, either with a Dx38 or with other pro audio gear that uses XLR connections?

Thanks for the info, fini, but IE works fine on every other site, so it should work fine here, too, shouldn't it?

14 gauge is okay, but 12 gauge is a little better. 12 gauge at $.55 per foot: http://www.knukonceptz.com/productMaster.cfm?category=Klear%20Speaker%20Kable Better quality twisted-pair cable in 12 gauge at $.75 per foot: http://www.knukonceptz.com/productMaster.cfm?category=Karma%20SS%20Speaker%20Kable

Isn't anyone using plain old Internet Explorer anymore? I'd never heard of Firefox or Safari or Leopard until this site's facelift and I still don't know what they are.

The interconnect cable into the sub should be the first thing to check. I once bought a new sub cable of a better brand than the one I was using, but the "better" cable picked up so much hum that the sub wouldn't automatically turn itself off, even when the receiver was turned off overnight.

Well, it sure looks cool!

I'm a big fan of Yamaha gear, but '70s-vintage stuff like the CR-1020 doesn't sound as good as the later stuff. I replaced my old 1020 with a Yamaha RX-V392, a late '90s bottom of the line model and it sounded clearer than the 1020. The EQ-70 equalizer that improved the sound of the 1020 produced a veiling effect on the 392, since the 392 revealed more of what was going through it. Since then, I moved up to a 2005 RX-V750, which is better yet, but the RX-V392 has a really likeable sound and I'm still using it in my bedroom system. If the prices are comparable, I'd look for newer amps, if you can find them in your price range. They''re likely to be in better condition, be more reliable and be better-sounding, even if they don't have those nice wood housings that the old stuff had.

In case your friend thinks we're all biased Klipsch fans on this site, take a look at this impression of La Scalas from the 6 Moons site. The reviewer thought the specs were unimpressive, but was amazed by the sound of the Scalas, even when driven by a tiny amp. http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/trends/ta10_3.html

I sure will be glad when the intermittent formatting problem gets sorted. I've never seen this issue on any other site. The previous posting was in three paragraphs, not one.

Tell your friend that you listen to the speakers, not the specs. Was he complaining about what he heard or what he read? Some people are very suggestible. If the speakers sound good, but the person doesn't like the specs, he imagines he doesn't like the sound. That's why blind testing can be important. Distortion is when the speaker doesn't sound like actual real voices or instruments. No speakers sound exactly like the real thing, except briefly with certain recordings, in a very few cases. Klipsch speakers come closer than most others, especially in terms of dynamics and punchiness, making most other speakers sound flat and more like a sound system than the original sound. The La Scala bass may not go that low, so a subwoofer is a good idea to supplement them. For that matter, every speaker I've heard so far, including B&W 800s, could really use a sub with them, if you want to hear the full range of most music.

When you want to start a new line, try using Shift-Enter instead of just Enter. The site was given a new look a couple of months ago and still has some quirks.

I've been using a Shure M97xE on my SL-1400MK2 for 3 years and it sounds really good to me, with good clarity and reduced surface noise compared to other cartridges I've used.

Leonard Cohen's Take This Waltz has a deep organ line running through the song. If your system is weak on the bottom end, it just won't be there. On a Cohen/CD topic, I tried three ceramic mushroom-shaped anti-resonance footers from Skylan Manufacturing under the DVD/CD player. I placed one directly under the disc spinner section and the other two so the weight on them was roughly equal. The sound was more clear, but Cohen's deep ominous voice seemed to go from baritone to tenor, which took a lot away from it. A few weeks later, I arranged the footers in a symmetrical triangular pattern, with one front and center and the other two near the rear corners. Leonard's voice regained its baritone sound and the clarity remained, so I'm leaving them like that. Noel Nolan from Skylan told me to experiment with placing the footers, but I thought he was exaggerating about the effects. Not at all. The difference was obvious and the footers produced a definite improvement in the sound.

Bryston makes very good multi-channel amps as well as their stereo units. Build quality and reliability are among the very best. As for reducing power to rear channels, your pre-pro or receiver should have level controls to match all your speaker output levels. Unless there's an extreme power and sensitivity mismatch between the front and rear channels, there should be sufficient adjustment range to match all channels properly. If your front speakers are larger, they'll probably be more sensitive, but the rear speakers will likely be closer to the listening position, so it usally works out okay.

Jeff got a lot done in his 41 years. Many people will miss him.

I listen to music all day, watch one or two movies a week (the video store's only 3 blocks away) and watch the odd concert video (the Devo and Tubes videos are pretty odd) as well as TV most evenings. All that stuff is fine in stereo, but most of the video and some of the music is better in surround. As well as 2-channel stereo, I use Dolby Pro Logic II, DTS Neo 6 Music and plain 7-channel stereo, depending on what's on and what mood I'm in. A surround system doesn't have to compromise a 2-channel system, unless you have to buy cheaper stuff because you have to buy more of it to cover the surround channels. Second-hand Heresy speakers don't cost that much and make great center and surround speakers. Wasn't the Heresy the world's first center-channel speaker? As for the boom factor, if the sub's set up to be accurate with music, it should be equally accurate with movies. If movies with explosions seem too loud, turn it down or use Night mode to quieten the effects without turning down the dialogue. Or just watch quieter movies...

A lot of the time, more money = more paranoia. Enough money to be happy is all you need.

Since most people find that Heresies sound better with a sub, you may want an amp or receiver with a sub out so it's easy to connect a subwoofer. Yamaha, Denon and H/K receivers are popular among forum members. Adding the sub may make the sound smoother, since the bottom will be filled in better and the Heresies may be running at lower volume, since they're not producing all the sound. As for power, more is better than less, since a more powerful amp or receiver will be working more easily and will be running in its low-distortion power range. If you have a turntable or are thinking of playing vinyl in the future, take note that most lower-end receivers don't have a phono input. You can still connect a turntable without a phono input, but you'd have to buy an add-on phono preamp.

Check Needle Doctor for P-mount cartridges. There are some on this page: http://www.needledoctor.com/Online-Store/Phono-Cartridges?search=P-mount The Technics decks have a reputation of working for a long, long, time. The SL-M2 is very rare and that looks like a good example of one. I'd grab it and worry about arm changes way down the road, if ever.

He probably thought it was pretty neat and it didn't cost much. I passed by a thrift shop and was tempted to buy the binoculars that had a built-in AM radio in the carrying case. So you could listen to the radio commentary while watching the game, I guess.

Wotta lotta gobbledegook, and not that funny. This is much better: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgg23zzJmV0&feature=related

BEC's caps were easy to install in my La Scalas and I could hear the improvements in clarity right away. Cost was under $100 and the AA crossover looks more modern and tidy too. Do one cap at a time and there'll be no mixups.