Shock-Late

OK so i'm not spending all my time on this forum but I come here quite (very) often. So did i miss something? Can somebody explain to that humble me what exactly are all those "see you later" threads? Thanks. i'm confused.

In any case, the network sounds better with the zeners diconnected... it's quite sublte, but you can hear it.

My birthday is approaching! On the 27th of June I'll be 26. And i plan to buy myself a nice gift. My heart is balancing between two things, at very different prices; and i don't know what to choose. should I: -buy and install a pair of Beyma CP25 in my LaScalas (around 160euro) or -buy a nice big Magnat Omega 380 active high efficiency subwoofer? (around 650euro, I'm gonna eat pastas for three months if i buy it)) in other terms, should I improve the low end or the high end of the spectrum? i feel both should be improved, but I'm too short on money to do both! from what would my beloved Scalas benefit the most? I listen mainly to rock, electro, jazz and baroque music. My system includes vintage Technics SE-A5 power amp freshly installed, NAD C320BEE integrated (only preamp section used now), Kenwood DP7090 CD player with SuperSpikes feet, Nordost and Monster interconnects, QED speaker cable. Thanks for your advice!

Thanks, Chuck. i personnaly believe that if a 3000$ interconnect cable doesn't always make your system sound better, or even good, one can't deny it DOES affect the sound. I'm personnaly extremely happy with my Nordost solar Wind as well, wich isn't very expensive (obviously VERY expensive compared to Home Depot cable) and brings so much clarity and precision in the sound of my system. As for SET amps... I doubt they're "uncoloured" amps. that doesn't mean they don't sound good. Maybe the closest thing to a "theorically" perfect amp is a digital amp. That doesn't mean it will sound good. I'm sick of that kind of thread. What about respect? I'm not laughing at people who use 8 watts of SET to drive their horns. They probably get the sound THEY are after, for THEIR taste, and THEIR music. I'm using "high" power SS amps, because they're able to stand the kind of output level I ask them for the music I like, wich includes rock, jazz, and electronica. And if probably Mozart's Requiem would sound better on a SET amp (?), it doesn't sound bad at all on my system. I'll never say the kind of amp i use is the only way to achieve good sound. When I read a high-end hi-fi mag, i marvel at every product shown. That's what i call loving audio gear.

The preamplifier that came with my SE-A5 was the SU-A4. It's a very well built unit, controls are not flimsy at all, the units weights more than many a "good" integrated amp. search on internet reveals that this preamp was actually more expensive than the power amp. Unfortunately I didn't hear mine in the shop, and when I came back home i found out that the preamp had a failure: sound from the right channel is louder than the left channel, and distorted; the guy from the shop, unable to repair it, told me that the unit was "not broken" and the only problem was that I was using the amp with horn speakers. bull**** as even with the volume knob at "12" the unbalance and awful distortion is still there. Meanwhile I tried to listen to the power amp with the Cd player directly plugged in it (my CD player has output level control); the sound was awful, and i decided "this amp is ****" and bought a new NAD amp the day after (forgot to mention that the technics amp cost me a fortune, more expensive second hand than the brand new NAD) Now I realise that i shouldn't have judged the amp without having a good preamp connected to it; some power amps just can't be used directly. i'm really happy now that i didn't sell the power amp; it sounds like heaven with the PRe section of the NAD. now i don't know what to do with the SU-A4 preamp: it has such a good reputation that a fellow in France is ready to pay a huge price plus shipping costs to buy it, as long as I can find someone who will fix it. Maybe if I heard the repaired preamp i'd regret I just bought the NAD in a hurry... That amp is the smallest of a very high end line of elecronics made by Technics (the "R&B serie"), the biggest one, the SE-A1, is a monster pumping out 300watts rms/channel in Class A (seems to be REAL class A here, but don't ask me what they use to cool the amp down) that costed back then twice as much as a Volkswagen Fox. the intermediate one is the 200w/channel SE-A3, very similar to the SE-A5 I own (120w/channel)

Nevermind... you have the AL network... Ooops

Wanna hear the tweeters like you never did before? If you have the AA network, try the following mods, recommended by Al K.: 1) remove zener diode (just put them out of circuit by unscrewing one of the two leads) 2) remove tweeter inductor screw (the screw that holds the inductor against the x-over board) 3) put 1uF polypropylene capacitor in parallel with the two 2uF in the tweeter circuit (not sure about the "parallel" thing, search on this BB you'll find the mod and some picts) you won't believe your ears at how better your highs will sound. Absolutely stunning.

Further listening impressions: technics SE-A5 (compared to my little NAD): VERY detailed; hearing things on my favourites CDs i never knew were there; very flat balance, a tad dry in the bass (would work better with reflex loaded speakers); stereo image a bit less "3D" than with the NAD but more "air" and clarity; classical music sounds less warm but you suddenly hear every instrument in the orchestra... Loads of "purity", very clean, absolutely NO distorsion. Rock music a bit less "wild", better focused, detailed, less bass "thump", but seems to dig deeper; here again, hearing new things in the mix. "cheap" recordings never sounded that bad... Incredible jazz performance, every note stands out clear, you can hear the pianist breathing. Electronic music never sounded so... well, electronic. The NAD amp seems to round the edges, making for a more confortable listening; the Technics lets you hear everything that's on the recording; good recordings sound awesome, bad ones are almost unlistenable... Very nice amp in the end. Can't believe I almost sold it for cheap, because of the "bad" preamp. Think it's gonna stay in my system. Just going to add a nice big sub...

picture didn't show here it is... beautiful, heavy amp.

Just rediscovering my old Technics SE-A5 power amp that was lying in my bedroom. That huge beast was a very high end design from beginning eighties. Never sounded good on my Scalas with the matching preamp; but connected to the pre out of my little NAD, it seems to sound way better than it used to do. Extremely detailed; a bit "dry" in the bass but as I'm planning to add a sub, this might be just the ticket... Does anyone has exp with that amp or the SE-a1 / SE-A3 serie?

Thanks guys! Just moved the speakers about 6 inches forward into the room... and it solved the problem. Amazing room acoustics! That said, i'm annoyed what you said about the EV horns. Was sure they were designed for a 400hz crossover, just as in the EV Sentry, and that's why i picked them up. I don't hear any "hole" in the midrange, tho.

As some of you may know, i'm using EV SM120A midrange horns in place of K400 in my LaScalas. it's been one year now, and i've always been very happy with the sound. but recently I had to move the speakers into the corners of the room; the bass boost provided by such a placement makes the midrange sound too soft; sometimes I wonder if theres any midrange at all, between the somewhat boosted midbass and the rather harsh treble i'm using AA x-overs, and until now i was delighted with the sound; but the LS were far from the corners... I suspect the EV horns to be slightly less "loud" tan the K400, when used with the K55v drivers; but they also sound way smoother and have wider dispersion, and i don't wanna go back to the K400. Is there any cheap way I could boost the midrange level (x-over mod?) until i have enough cash to buy ALK networks? Or should i just fight with my flatmates until i can move the speakers back to their previous, out-of-corners place?? thanks for any advice...

I d say think NAD. Audiophile sound at "supermarket hi-fi" prices. Great amps and receivers.

DJK, sorry, dumb me, i always say "biradial" for "sectoral"... I know the SM120A is a sectoral horn. I m a bit sceptical about all JBL horns sounding like "frying bacon", tho. Does a Everest or a K2 sound like frying bacon? i never heard any of them, but for the price they were sold I hope they don t... lol that said, I dont really understand why the throat in the SM120 has 2,56X the throat area of the K400... since the K55 driver fits in both horns without the need of an adapter, arent the throats the same on both horns?? or is the throat on the K400 actually smaller than the K55 ouput? (dont remember, dont have any K400 left here...)

Greg, fantastic work!!! and excellent idea to flush mount the horns and dissociate the top bin from the bass bin on the Rosewood Scala. Nice car too... looks like people who like great speakers also like great cars. Probably because they like great engineering... Frans

May I suggest something else? look at NAD products. Their smallest amp, the C320BEE, is an absolute gem. I m using it with my Scalas and it s absolutely smooth sounding, but very detailed and extremely dynamic. A real rollercoaster. they have great receivers too... just my two cents and welcome to the club! you ll enjoy the cornwalls for a very, very long time.

djk, i think the K400 doesnt sound right for MY tastes. Its way too much "in yer face". sounds great with rock music and jazz. Less so with classical IMHO. that said, of course the K400 isnt THAT bad; if it was, Id never had bought a pair of Scalas. I used them stock for quite a while. Still think they sound WAY better with biradial horns; again, my own taste...

one more reason not to keep pigs at home then

rather than modifying a K401 to try to fit abother pricey driver, I would recommend using another, better mid horn. IMHO the stock horn is not a very good horn, it projects sounds in your ears, especially is your room is not very spacious; and it sounds, well, "horny"... The biggest improvement I ever made to my Scalas was changing the HORNS. When done, the K55V doesn't sound that bad. Later you can always think about changing the drivers. but to me, playing (for example) a TAD driver trough a K401 horn is like feeding pigs with Beluga caviar. Just my humble opinion of course...

Was just having fun watching those beautiful Cinema pro speakers, then I thought: why doesnt anyone use them for home audio, or at least the HF section? that 2inches titanium midrange driver (KPT 941 HF) is supposed to cover 300Hz - 19khz bandwith in 4dB. That would be a good match for any K-horn, LS or Belle bass bin, wouldn't it?

I'd say it's well worth bidding on it! You have what's great in a Scala, the bass horn, and you're free to decide what you're gonna use as mid/high horns. That's what I did with mine; they were also the Pro version, i don't use the top cabinet anymore, only the bass bins.

It looks like the foam surrounds are rotten; it is "normal" and always happens with old foam surrounds. Chances are you have to change BOTH woofers because next time you're gonna play music loudly, the second woofer is gonna fall apart too. That said, woofers may generally have their surrounds replaced; it's never cheap, but it might be the only way as you're not likely to find a pair of woofers that's going to have the exact same datas as those. good luck!

Just by curiosity, now that I'm using EV SM120A horns in my Scalas, i'm wondering if (as suggested in the beyma CP25 thread) using EV 1823M or 1824M instead of my old and beloved K55V could do any good. Also, wonder if i could use them without having to change anything to my existing AA x-overs?

I find the concept very interesting. Why say it's crap before hearing it? each musician having his own amplified speaker should overcome usual limitations of bose speakers.

While I may understand why a direct radiator could sound better than a horn loaded driver, i must say i find that a little sad... efficiency put aside, an all-hornloaded speaker should IMHO stay an all-hornloaded speaker. For the beauty of it... but your website is great and i'd kill for one of your tweeter and stand assembly. especially the grey one...