ned

I have the 2, with the decorative meters. It is dead quiet...until its not! Sorry you are having this experience. You clearly have done and bought everything for great sound. I have the volume knob on the amp at ~75% for whatever that's worth

I'm running a UFO through KHorns without any issue or noise at all. Here is the stupidly obvious question - have you ruled out the preamp? If so, I think I would approach this in two ways - 1) unplug or turn off everything you can in the house and/or 2) use an extension cord to put your amp and pre amp on different circuits. I agree with everyone who mentions dimmers, LEDs, neons, fluorescents or anything that is using a transformer. Good luck. You should be enjoying amazing sound.

New Mexico delivered yesterday.

good question. Let me clear that up. I am high in the Rocky Mountains. I live at 7,000' above sea level

I see the Mcintosh in your system. That'll do it! I have a few mono push/pull amps (Fisher 200s) and they are sweet. too hot for summer and not warrantied for life. I'm enjoying the plug and play lifestyle and the SET sound.

Executive summary of a long post: the Decware SE84UFO sounds great through 1979 Klipshorns and 2021 Cornwall IVs. It sounds better through the KHorns. My system hasn’t changed in years apart from a cartridge here and there. And then suddenly it changed a bunch, all at once. I went onto the Decware list in September of 2021. A month ago, the Zen triode SE84UFO2 arrived. I hooked it up to my 1979 KHorns and it sounded great. Plenty loud, very open presentation - I could hear more distinction between instruments and very crisp starts and stops to notes like the crack of a snare or a dampened string. I hadn’t started to listen critically but I liked it from day one. Days later, a friend’s widow asked if she could store my late friend’s Cornwall IVs at my house while she makes some decisions. So, now I have a couple of amps, a couple of pairs of heritage speakers and a preamp that has outputs for two amps. The Parasound A23+ is fed through the balanced outputs, the Decware is fed by line. Yes, the balanced outputs are louder but it is easy to adjust the gain on both amps and I’ve got the A23+ dialed back. So, the Cornwalls went on the Decware and sounded great. The midrange was forward and clear and everything sounded as it should, although the room was not as sound-filled as I was accustomed to with the KHorns. So, I put the CWs directly in front of the KHorns and powered everything on. Wow. I was swimming in sound and it was clear and lovely. (Let’s not talk about comb filtering just yet). I lowered the KHorns a couple of dbs and it was the best sound I’ve ever heard. Mono recordings were brilliant, small jazz ensemble, opera, hip-hop, girl with guitar - all was wonderful. Loud or quiet. I powered on just the KHorns alone (through the A23+) and I felt like I was missing some life in the midrange. Since these are my forever speakers I was concerned. Then I switched amps. The KHorns alone through the Decware sounded better than the CWs through the Decware, they sounded better than both sets of speakers together. They sounded the best I’ve heard. I’m thrilled. By now the Decware has 100 hours or so on it. I believe in psychoacoustics. The mid horn on the CW IV is a thing of beauty - in fact the whole speaker is. The mid horn on a KHorn is a thing of utility. It does not excite the eye into thinking that magic would emerge. But it does. This is neither an amp or speaker review, It might be a wordy explanation of finding synergy between amp and speaker. I'm putting the CW IV in the bedroom. Boom chicka wow wow.

Welcome to the forum. Simplicity is not my strong suit, but it seems like you might consider getting a front end for your fine amp. A streamer like the Bluesound node (I haven't heard it; just an example) would serve as a DAC and is controllable from your phone. It would support bluetooth in and out which opens up some options also. There are lots of streamers around and it is a growing segment. A preamp such as a Parasound P6 would provide a good DAC that you can plug into via USB from your Mac laptop (as in my system, I think it's great) or optical which is good for a CD transport or bluetooth unit. A preamp will provide lots of options if you go down the rabbit hole into HiFi. It will also give your amp a consistent signal and a volume knob if you were to go with multiple inputs, home theater, etc. I listed a mid-priced model. There are zillions of choices. Your excellent speakers and amp are a foundation from which you could build whatever you like. You're very much on the right path starting with speakers and working up the signal chain. Enjoy!

Artto - thank you for the review and the wide range of music you've detailed. Somehow I trust your ears..... I went onto the list in September - 17 months ago - and hope to receive my UFO2.1 in the next couple of months. Your review will help me pass the time. I am not entirely clear on your various systems - are you using these to run your KHorns?

all is good. thank you for a nice clean sale. N

Sam already asked my question. Thanks

wouldn't the tube amp want a dummy load when the other amp is selected? I would't want my output transforms playing to an open circuit. Am I missing something about the solutions offered?

pm sent

I've been curious about Goldring. They come up on forums regularly. you are in good company. If you would, How does it drive the Cornscalas? how it the upper midrange? Is it "warm" (I think I mean is there a smoothness and softness) or is there more space around the instruments and crispness?

Sir Duke, How would you describe the high mid and treble resolution? That's what bit me about the Blackbird. 58 year-old ears may be part of this quest. Also in the back of my mind is the thought of updating some of the Khorn drivers.....it never stops.....

Just read the 6 Moon review. Thank you for bringing this cart to my attention. It may be just what I'm looking for. It is certainly in the running

Here is a review of the Parasound I posted a few years ago. It was definitely written during the honeymoon period. I am now in the stable easy years of a long marriage.

Thank you! I've been here a while but I'm quiet. I'll check in with my local HiFi shop. This is probably the best advice I've seen online. The online reviews are all over the place and I seem to only pay attention to the ones that confirm my bias. Someone's experience with Magnaplaners is of questionable value to me. I appreciate the response. If you want a blackbird, now is probably the time to buy. Its been discontinued for years and its successor, the Starling, costs the same as a round trip flight to Asia. The Evo III which has a similar physical appearance has been discontinued as well. I am curious about the Amethyst and some others that are currently in production. enjoy, Ned

I can only speak to the Parasound and I'll say good things. I have a vintage Fisher 400-c pre that has 7 tubes (some for the phono section only) and it is very sweet but is not as crisp as the Parasound. I would not say it represents modern tube pre amps but it gives me the chance to change things up if I want. It is definitely fun listening to tubes and getting involved with the equipment. I also have the Parasound P6 and I love it. It is in service almost all day every day and requires absolutely no attention. As you know, it has its own D/A converter which allows me to bluetooth in optical (avoiding what ever step-up is in the cheap BT receiver), bring a CD player in optical (its just a fancy transport now) and the phono stage seems very good. I use a laptop for streaming with the USB in. Nifty. It has a summed mono channel out (for a subwoofer, but can be run full frequency) and I have a Heresy playing quietly in the middle and I love it. The outputs to the amps have gain attenuation which is useful with sensitive speakers in allowing the volume knob to have some travel. I am listing features because its sound is certainly good enough that I don't have to question the fidelity. One thing I particularly like about the Parasound is that I don't think about it at all. When I obsess over my sound (and I most certainly do), I look at cartridges and amps. I leave it powered up for long periods of inattention and don't worry about it. I did a review of it when I bought it years ago (I'll post a link if it still exists) and I haven't really thought about it since. If you are chasing sounds and your ears are better than mine, the Parasound would not be as much fun as tubes. If music is almost always playing in your house, it will provide excellent service and it will serve as a clean audio appliance.

Hi everyone I'm a long time Grado guy. I am very happy alternating between a Gold (8mz stylus) and a Sonata 3. But then...a friend lent me a Sumiko Blackbird and it was a really different sound and I liked it. The highs sparkled, there was a sense of airiness and lightness. Bass was present, mids were present although not as saturated as with the Grados. Have any of you been here before me? Is there something in the current Sumiko line-up that will scratch this itch? Should I forget that I ever heard something different and stay true to the Brooklyn sound? My system is a Technics sp-15 currently running through Parasound P6 and 23+ into Khorns (newish Crites type A). In the winter I run tubes - more detail in my profile. I am number 400 waiting on a Decware Zen and that will change things again....eventually. Thanks a bunch Ned

The rosewood rocks. I bet the speakers do too. That floating shelf looks great. I think the speakers would probably be happier coupled to the tile floor. Good old Craigslist. Congratulations on your sonic home improvement

I've asked my utility to change the can on the pole to a dual coil single C-core style with taps for core air-gap for Push-Pull or Single-Ended applications. (apologies to Lundahl)

Is it for the KEF or the Heresys? I bet it sounds great. Of the 350,000 sold, yours is just about perfect.

Not sure I agree. The Victrola vs. Edison Diamond Disk thread has been open since 1913......

Sounds like you might consider keeping the Sansui and changing the entertainment center. People move for the sake of KHorns.

Me too. I use one of the sub channels with the low pass filter defeated to feed a center Heresy III between Khorns. There is a volume control on the front and so it makes it easy to balance the center channel. I like having optical and usb feeding the DA converter. This makes consumer quality bluetooth a $30 plug in (as well as bypassing an vintage DA converter in a Tascam CD player - its just a transport now. I also have the Marantz 7t and it has a center channel out but the volume control is on the back. The Marantz is much nicer to touch and interact with - the big aluminum tone knobs are smartly indexed, the big switches have long throws and make a satisfying stop. The P6, in contrast has tiny knobs and recessed lights that make the whole thing a bit fiddly. It is difficult to see at a glance if someone else in the house has been messing with the balance control. The volume knob on the P6 is as satisfying as the Marantz's but needs to be spun a few times to do what the 7t can do in an eighth of a turn. The phono input seems just fine - someday I'll demo an outboard unit to be sure, but good pressings sound great.