artarama

I have not heard any of these either, but from my voyeristic reaserch conclusions I would go for the 509U. Maybe a plane ticket to hear some of this stuff first hand should be in the budget. Maybe the "soft music reproduction" goal to "fix it" may point you to a quality tube preamp. I would love to hear the SQN100 tube integrated. $2,100 + $250 frt to check this one out! The price of an education can get pretty expensive!

Perfect! That sounds like a great find. Low use, vintage table from the original owner. This should be just right to find out what the fuss is all about. Just think of it as a gateway drug! Congrats!

I couldn't find much info on that table so I can't really judge, but I will say I like the looks of it, it looks solid. Made in '79 and in good shape, I don't think you can loose from an investment standpoint. You may need a cartridge and needle, hopefully down the road a bit. Don't sweat the direct drive, that can be a good thing. Play it before if you can. If it is solid, quiet and turns on and off ok you will enjoy it. A few choice records will be $80 worth of enjoyment [] On the other topic, I would not buy a new low dollar table. I just don't think it will give you a fair representation of what vinyl will really sound like. A 1979 table is a much more solid way to go.

This is a tough situation to address, so at the risk of over simplifying, here are my thoughts. The cartridge is gong to have the greatest initial impact on the quality of reproduction. The table, motor, drive system all have impacts as well just less than the cartridge initially. As each part improves something else becomes the weakest and most underperforming piece. This is true with each component of your system as well. Soo.., when a decent entry level cartridge would cost say a $100, what do you say about an $80 table? I think you can get an idea of if you are going to like vinyl with a $100 table, but it is just a distant second. No where near the reality of what a more expensive setup can deliver. Similar to the allure of cheap perfume. At that price point you are going to have to decide if it is worth a hundred bucks to get an idea if you will like it knowing that what ever you buy is not going to be "good enough" for very long. If you get really lucky you may find something vintage that cost $1000 in it's day for a couple hundred bucks, clean it up and then save up for a new cartridge and maybe cables. Bottom line, I think that budget is too low for anything to compete with your digital sources. Vinyl can take you places you may have not heard yet, but not for $100. Now I have seen a few B&O tables sell pretty cheap (Too cheap IMHO) for $150 +/- and they can sound pretty darn goon if the cartridge and needle are in good shape.

If you have a preamp that has two pair of main outs, you can run an additional amp dedicated just for the center. Use only one side of the center amp, I have always used just the right channel and then switch the center amp to mono. Set the volume on the center amp to your liking, something below the volume level of the two side (flanking) speakers. Now everything is controlled by the preamp just as before.

Wow! Very sorry to here that! Heartbreaking. Take stock in what you have, your life for one. The vinyl itself should be fine. A huge project, but Denny is right, you don't want mold. You need to get the covers dry asap and out in the sun and pressed flat. Rinse the vinyl, dry and put them in some new polysleeves. Thery are not that much, 20 to 40 cents each I think. Almost any record is worth that. When the covers dry if it is soon and they were pressed flat, they still should be usable. Not like they were but usable. I hate to ask but did you have any insurance? If so, I would fight hard for a good settlement. Good luck man. Sorry!

Around here we have several good Ace hardware stores and they have a big selection of specialty fasteners. A good selection in metric even some black and chrome. you might give those a try as well. Even better if you have one of those hundred year old family hardware stores in your town, find it and go there.

Great, thanks for the advise that makes total sense. I intend to re-cap the whole thing soon. This one has some metalized film caps as well in 1975!

I would start by verifying all connections. Turn the volume down low and then twist the speaker wires near the outputs of the amp and inputs at the speakers. Then I would suggest swaping interconnects. I have had one side of these go bad before.

So my beloved Luxman M4000 has developed a bit of a problem: When powering on it goes through the protection modes and fires up with only the left channel. After about 10 to 15 minutes the right channel will come in and all is dreamy. Coincidentally the right meter light went out at around the same time this problem developed. I can also "bring in" the right channel by quickly flicking the volume up to about 10 or 11 o'clock and back down. I have not opened it up to have a look inside since this problem developed, What is the best guess on the cause of the delay for the right channel? What would be impacted by the quick increase in gain and also "warm-up"? This problem may speak to the debate about some people feeling their equipment sounds better after extended warm up. Thanks!

For that, you get the coveted TRVTH award. Dave Thanks Dave. I appreciate that!

This is my #1 reason I reach for the vinyl more times than I do the CD's. I do have to admit however there are some CD's I have that are well engineered and sound fantastic! (Example: Alan Jackson -"like red on a rose"), Yikes! I feel like I am Blaspheming a bit just saying that [:$] Bottom line, you can't make it sound any better than it was originally recorded! EQing dosen't count, that's altering the sound, not improving the recording. (Example: The Who - "Meaty Beaty Big And Bouncy", those guy's had all the money and equipment but somebody had rolled a few too many and wasn't doing their job IMHO.) Oh yeh, maybe that tin like, transistor radio street recording sound on every song was what they were after [:^)] that record has always made me mad everytime I listen to it. So many great songs that sound like sh.t.

A dream fullfilled! What a great experiance. It really is a relief to feel confident you have that aspect of your system nailed down, they are the foundation or buiilding blocks. Now all your energy, time and money can go into improving the other aspects of your system around the Khorns. They are a constant source of pleasure and amazement. A purchase you will never regret! I would love to see your face when you get #2 up and running! However, this still doesn't mean that additional speakers are not required for additional sytems in other rooms. (A little CYA advise just in case your significant other thinks this is really the end.)

I agree, with Klipsch you can get it loader than you would ever want with only a few watts but the dynamic headroom in reserve on a higher powered amp can make a very audible difference. If they are really good watts then just so much the better. This is due more to the quality of the amp overall than just the power rating however given the exact same quality and condition of amps, the one with more power will be noticibly harder hitting. I also like to look at "slew rate" specs on solid state amps. My experiance here is that the higher the rate the better.

Thebes, I like that approach, each machine seems better suited to that purpose. I don't have any cleaning machine. Do you feel the machines do a better job than cleaning manually or is it mostly for convienience?

Thebes, the zerostat can easily become a "static" gun if you use it incorrectly. I have definately had it intrduce more static to my records on occasion. The main trick is to release the trigger slowly, 2-3 seconds (seems like a long time) and don't move the gun a great deal during the pull and release cycle. I stand the record on edge and hold the gun perpendicualr to the vinyl surface about 10 to 12 inches away. (Aim straight at the spindle hole) Spin and do the other side at the same time. This way the record doesn't pick up any static as you pick it up of the mat or what ever you have it on. I don't "treat" the record while it is on the platter either. I have a table with electrostatic controls and the gun with render them useless. I have also heard snaps picked up through the cartridge. Just like the real thing hold this gun steady when you pull and release the trigger.

I would say cracks and pops are most often caused by dirt and static. To minimize these obviously make sure the record is clean truely clean (lots of advice to be found on the forum here). And you may have cleaned them once but they may still not be clean. Don't give up, clean again. I use an anti-static gun (these have to be used correctly or you can introduce even more charge to the surface, and to the turntable. Keep the stylus as clean as possible. (I use a brush and disc cleaner solution on a foam tip swab), the stylus is the first thing to dig out any dirt that you may have loosened up in the grooves of a dirty record. I also use fabric anti-static spray from time to time on the carpeted area around my equipment. This lessens the static introduced from me touching the equipment (keep the windows open for this application!) After you have the "environmental" conditions the best you can then you will really notice the benefits of proper set-up ie. alignment, anti-skate and stylus pressure. These make a huge difference in sound quality but can't eliminate the cracks and pops. And like most things, "garbage in = garbage out". If the original recording is poor you will never reach that vinyl bliss that can be achieved with due dillagence. Enjoy the journey!

Waaz, Thanks for the lengthy post. [] I haven't fully gotten my head around the argument, it's been a few years since my last EE class, but I will work it! Totally agree with benefits of clean, stable power to spare, Thanks for taking the time to share!

Prof, I didn't see any electronics listed in your system profile, but if you have additional gear, now is a perfect time to try it out again. Some pieces may have new life with your new setup. And hey you have extended listening opportunities now [] sleep is over rated!

I think you will love it. I have them against an exterior wall and feel that wall helps to reflect the sound quite a bit. I have carpet on concrete and it sounds great. Still very lively. The extended listening opportunities from being downstairs and out of the fray is priceless! Wrap them up in blankets, we don't want any chipped corners.

I personally don't think you could find anyone who honestly did not appreciate the quality of the sound of Khorns that were set up and functioning properly and being driven with the "right" electronics. IMHO I have hooked up a fair amount of different equipment to mine tube & SS. Some of the equipment can sound pretty bad with the Korns and still sound good with the Cornwalls. The Khorns are very sensitive and revieling and that can certainly be a double edged sword. Others here know much more about trouble shooting the speakers function, personally I suspect the cross-overs. The Khorns are simply flawless when everything is working properly. They really help to weed out the weakest link in your system and I will guarentee you the weakest link will never be the Khorns. (At least in any system under six figures)

+1 to those statements. I think vinyl is tougher than most people think, it just doesn't like heat or falling sharp objects ie. diamond needles, and hey, who likes dirt. Unless the album is "beat" which is usually pretty apparent, I would say the quality of sound is usually due to the quality of the original recording.

Reading some of the comments below this link is depressing. There are so many mean spirited comments. "Mean people Suck!" - others. We were fortunate to hear what she did create, she had so much more to give in time. If these kids could just make it a few more years they may realize how precious every day really is. To chid people for their lifestyle when they have given so much is just ignorant.

Here you go........ Dennie Awesome! I knew a kid in sixth grade that would throw up at the drop of a hat. One time we were all standing in the hallway waiting to change class rooms and yep! He must of had a gallon of grape juice for breakfast. It ran about 10 feet down the highly polished floor, kind of like the blood in the hallway scene in "The Shining". This kid could also trip anyone, even if you knew it was coming. I wonder what kind of job he ended up with?

Hopefully a bit of clarification here: An "oil" based paint/ink uses a hydro-carbon based solvent and an oil (lindseed, flax, sunflower) as the "carrier" for the pigment. A water based paint/ink uses water (H2O) as the solvent, along with a polymer emulsion as the "carrier", of the pigment. The pigment is what makes the color, the carrier is what make the paint/ink "work" ie.adhear to the substrate, easy to apply, flow out and uniformity. Most commercially available paint/inks once dry are not re-soluable with the solvent they were made with. ie. water will not remove waterbased paints. lindseed oil will not remove most oils. Trying to remove waterbased paints with hydro-carbon based solvents usually 'melts" the polymers and creates a "Goo". What does remove them are your sticky, sweaty fingers like Craig said as they can have acids or oils or any other solvents on them harsher than what the paint/ink was made with. Solvents are on a scale like rocks where diamonds are 10 and chaulk is one. Modern waterbased paints/inks are actually the more durable product for most situations.