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I had a friend early on that had a full McIntosh setup (Preamp, Power Amps, Tuner, Speakers, the whole setup!) that sounded absolutely super & I really wanted to get a McIntosh system myself. No way could I afford even used McIntosh gear. Years later I put together my tube system through the Garage Sale section here on the Klipsch forum: Forte II speakers, Dynaco ST-70 amp, Dynaco PAS-3 preamp & even my Thorens TD-160 turntable. My St-70 was pretty original but eventually converted the 7199s to 6U8s & substituted a matched quad of KT-77s for the EL34s. Now, I don't remember how good the McIntosh gear sounded but I can't believe it was much better, if any, that the Dynaco gear with my Heritage Klipsh Forte Its. Just sayin', Frank

When I started streaming from computers years ago they really didn't have decent "built-in" DACs. Had to run the USB or FireWire into an outboard DAC to get any signal that even resemble hi-fi quality. 1/8" audio out split to RCAs just didn't cut it. Bought a couple inexpensive units (DACs) to run headphones & they worked OK. Eventually, I got a reasonably priced KACES USB DA-151 DAC to run the USB output of my laptop into & then output RCA to the stereo gear. Still using that DAC to stream from my iPad Pro into my tubes/Klipsch system & I've A/B'd it against vinyl & CDs & my ears can't tell the difference. Sonic BLISS! Here's my signal path: iPad Pro (Apple Music) > KACES USB DA-151 DAC > Dynaco PAS3 (Spare Input) > Dynaco ST70 > Forte IIs. Even though I have a very good CD player & turntable I usually use the iPod Pro. Sounds great through my system & is very versatile. I love Apple Music's Essentials. Very nicely curated. Plus, I don't have to mess with it like I do with records or CDs. Frank

Here's my signal path: iPad Pro (Apple Music) > KACES USB DA-151 DAC > Dynaco PAS3 (Spare Input) > Dynaco ST70 > Forte IIs Even though I have a very good CD player & turntable I usually use the iPod Pro. Sounds great through my system & is very versatile. I love Apple Music's Essentials. Very nicely curated. Plus, I don't have to mess with it like I do with records or CDs. Frank

Snapped this shot while getting the old tubes back in service after several years in storage. Posted this in a different thread but thought it might go here, as well: - New Tubes in PAS-3 preamp - Re-biased K77s in the ST-70 - Caps Reformed (via gradual volt increase) - Using Rega Planet CDP as Source - Klipsch KG 3.5 speakers as Load Trying to make space for it all with my Forte IIs. They really were made for each other. 🙂 Frank

I just re-tubed my Dynaco PAS-3 & re-biased the KT-77s in my ST-70. Can't wait to get them back with my Forte IIs. I won't sell my ST-70 for $400. Hope you were lucky enough to get it! Frank

I started with the Forte IIs & a Marantz 1152DC. A wonderful match! I still have the Marantz but went with tubes a while back for the Fortes. That would be the Dynaco ST-70 amp & PAS 3 pre. The Fortes sound even better (IMO) with tubes! Still using a KECES DA-151 as a DAC. I'm sure there are better but it is very musical, again, IMO. Frank

Recently bought some refinished KG 3.5s from John (Iteachstem). Excellent transaction! Very pleased with the finish. Speakers were exactly as described & we had a fun "garage audition." You can certainly buy with confidence! Highly recommend this seller. Frank

Thanks John! Was worth the trip! Pleasure chatting with you. Took the long way home but it was smooth sailing all the way. Will hook the 3.5s up tomorrow & I'm sure they'll work well in my 5.1 HT setup. They sounded fine in your garage. 🙂 Have a great school year, whatever it brings! Take care, Frank

Yeah, keep the Forte IIs. Love mine. The only reason you might let them go is if one or more of the speakers are damaged. Otherwise upgrades will make them sing again. You can send your OEM crossovers (on terminal cups) to Crites to be rebuilt or have him build you a better set that will come mounted on separate boards. At that point they are all but plug-n-play. I'll also suggest getting the Crites titanium diaphragms for the tweets. Some say they are a bit harsh but I've had mine for several years & think they are great! Well worth the +/- $50 they cost & are very easy to install. Take care, Frank

Currently, I am running a 3.5 HT system with a sub. Haven't decided on rear speakers yet. I'm using a Marantz NR 1509 & finished the setup with Audyssey. So, how would I run a crossover between speakers? I haven't fine-tuned the sub beyond the Audyssey settings but I think it's set around 80Hz. Frank

Well, there doesn't seem to be much interest in discussing rebuilding KG 3.5s, but I thought I'd post my experience in doing so anyway. I ended up replacing both K-1002-K woofers with 8 Ohm Dayton Audio RS225P-8A 8" Reference Paper Woofers @ about $65/ea. from Parts Express. They are not "drop-in." I had to enlarge the holes in the speaker cabinets (a real PITA!) & put bigger push-on connectors on the speaker wires to match the spades on the new speakers. The new speakers have 6 screw holes & the originals only had 4 so I ended up drilling new holes as well. That said, the new woofers sound very good in comparison to the 25 year old OEM ones. Since the KG 3.5s are the fronts in a HT setup I decided to swap out the phenolic tweeter diaphragms for Crites titaniums. I figured it might give the high end a bit more clarity & that might help with cleaning up the dialog a bit. I had done this with my Fortes long ago & liked the mod with them. These diaphragms are definitely drop-in & took me about 20 careful minutes to make the replacements. As expected, they did brighten up the top end & indeed have helped to make the dialog in movies easier to understand. I considered doing something with the crossovers & may someday, but for now, the mods have really breathed new life into these nice older speakers. Even the wife thinks they sound much better & have really improved our viewing pleasure! 🙂 Take care, Frank

One of my Kg 3.5s is really distorting the low, low frequencies in my HT setup. Otherwise it still generally sounds OK. No distortion in the other speaker. Haven't pulled it apart yet but, from the front only, the K-1002-K woofer(?) looks undamaged. I am running a R-100SW sub & R52-C with the KG 3.5s. Haven't settled on rear speakers yet. Might actually end up getting something different for the fronts & putting the KGs in the rear, but either way want to get the KGs working properly. I am considering a crossover rebuild (Crites) but want to deal with the K-1002-K issue first. I've done a few searches & haven't found a source for the OEM speakers (no surprise) & will probably post a WTB in the Garage Sale forum, but do see replacement copies from MA Audio for about $65/each. Anyone have experience with the MW Audio MW-5082 8" replacement speakers? I imagine if I swap out one I should replace both? Any other thoughts/suggestions? Thanks, Frank

Sent PM.

Thanks. That's a great price. Got a couple of audio projects going but will think about it. Frank

To install, would you just set the boards on the bottom of the interior & plug the wires into the 3 speakers & the terminal? No soldering? Looks like a very easy install, right? Frank

You're killing me! I would jump on these in a heartbeat if I were in a position to pick them up from Ohio in the near future. I'm sure it would be March or April before I could make that trip. If you still have them then, though . . . Good luck with your sale! Frank

Wow! I'd love to have someone leave any of those on my workbench! I've now gotten my Marantz 1152DC/Forte II & Marantz 1509/KG 3.5/R-52C/R-100SW HT systems up & running so it might be a while before I get the Dynacos on-line again. Got some shoulder surgery coming up so it might have to wait 'till I'm recovered from that before I get the bug for something new (old :-) to fuss with. Until then, though, I'm in pretty good audible shape. Thanks for the replies! Take care, Frank

They were my first Klipsch speakers. Couldn't afford any of the Heritage ones, but the KG 3.5s served me well for years before I got the bug to do a better system. That's when I found this forum. 🙂 First there was the vintage Marantz gear, then the Fortes, then back to a decent turntable (or two), & finally, tubes. I listened to the KG 3.5s alone for quite a while before I added a sub. Really makes them shine! I hope to find another pair of KGs to go along with the 3.5s in a 5.1 HT setup. I think they are perfect for that application. Take care, Frank

Thanks guys, Yeah, I think I'll let the tech handle it. Just got the Marantz/Forte setup in the living room & am beginning to remember what I liked about "hi-fi." Listened to a couple of favorites & was once again blown away. I'm also setting up a new/old HT system together in the basement. Thought I'd just be replacing the old TV but soon found out my old receiver wasn't going to cut it any more. How times have changed! It will be great, though, when I get everything hooked up & running through my old KG 3.5s, new R-52C & sub. Looking for some KG 3.5s (or others) for the satellites. Nobody told me retirement could be this fun! Take care, Frank

Thanks billybob. Will probably let the tech bring them up & let him evaluate them. I need to replace some tubes in the pre anyway so I will get them first. Its been great to get back to really good audio! Imagine having a set of Forte IIs sitting in a room just looking pretty. After a recent move I'm ready for some good sounding music! Take care, Frank

Sorry, didn't mean to waist the bandwidth with my inquiry. I should have done a search first. My Bad! OK, did a search & found some basic info: - Looks like a cheap, 5A model should work in my case. - Also, seems like once I've gotten the Dynaco gear up-to-speed after being stored for a number of years, I really don't need to use it regularly. That said, if the repairman that checks it out brings the current up gradually with a variac before he does anything else, I really don't need on at all. Right? Am I missing anything? Thanks, Frank

Hi All, Been away from the forum for a while but just retired & am back at it! I recently had my Marantz SS gear checked out & have them driving my Forte IIs. Soon I want to get my Dynaco ST-70 & PAS-3 back in the mix. While I do plan on having them "checked out" before I put them in service, I'm thinking I might want to invest in an inexpensive Variac to regularly bring them up to power. First off, Good Idea? Secondly, I see Variacs on eBay & Amazon & don't know what specs/price point I should be looking at. Any help with minimum specs for use with my Dynaco gear would be extremely helpful. Thanks! Take care, Frank

Mike, thank you for the reply. I do have a VOM, but even though I understood most of your post, there's no way I have the skill to start poking around with the "guts." :-) I'm a little intimidated even with setting the bias with new tubes but I'm going to give it a shot with the next quad I put in anyway. I'm sure it will be an adventure. Bruce, we were trying to sell our house last year to get me a little closer to my work but it didn't happen. We do like our house & where we live, so when it didn't sell, we decided to make a few changes & "move back in." We had stored much of our "stuff" in one of those rental storage units in order to "de-clutter" for the house showings, so we did a bunch of modernizing and are just starting to move back in, so to speak. I'm setting myself up in a new room & am really ready to get my 2 channel system up & running! :-) My Marantz 1152DC is holding its own, but I'm ready for some tubes! Take care guys, Frank

I've got an original-spec ST-70 that started blowing fuses almost 2 years ago & ended up in storage before I was ever able to troubleshoot & fix the problem. (See my old "ST-70 Blowing Fuses" post.) I'm now ready to get back to it & have a couple questions about the process. I aparently didn't remember at the time that I had a spare set of EL-34 tubes available to put into the amp to see if it was, indeed, a power tube that had gone bad. (I did try pretty hard to find a someone with a tube tester at the time but never did.) So now I'm thinking that might be the first step. So, should I invest in a Variac before I try to fire this puppy up with the old set of tubes? If so, will this one currently on eBay work: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Variable-AC-Transformer-500VA-Variac-0-130V-TDGC2-0-5-/380681325334?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item58a2600b16 I'm open to suggestions but would rather not spend more than this if possible. I'm not looking for the "best," really just the cheapest useable one, IF I need it at all. Yes, I've read through a lot of old posts & am still a bit confused about variacs, but I really want to get my Dynaco gear going (& lasting!) so if I need one, I'm OK with the purchase. Hey, I'm going to spend more than that on new tubes anyway. :-) TIA, Frank

OK, no big deal. Just thought maybe some of the older folks around here might remember them. At some point I might try to pair them with a lowish-power tube amp just to hear them again. Was hoping someone was familiar enough with them to give me some tips to bring them back to life. (Not that they're dead :-) They have sealed cabs & was wondering about the best way to access the insides to check out the drivers & x-overs. Frank