Kev the ironworker

There are two Luxman tube crossovers on ebay right now (very rare and perfect for Bi-amping) …. guys been selling some good stuff (Audio Research, Power conditioners, Antique Sound Lab, … and pots ! good pots though … All Clad... guy's selling quality and has a 100 % rating...

that just goes to show...more expensive doesn't really mean better.... I think the jbl's are either sold or that the ad was a fake. I would buy them at that price no matter... there's always the resale value (I'm sure I could flip them)... and... I don't know anyone that owns 30 grand speakers (it really is stupid even if you're mega rich) ... really, how much better could they be ? esp. for me ! I'm probably 1/2 deaf from gunning up bolts ... lol... I'm probably more interested in "bragging rights"... even though even I think that having such speakers are just such a waste of money (buying new)... but for 5 grand....

I guess they could be sold...then they should take the ad off ! (their email is filling up with just my messages !).... and, I imagine I could double my $$$ just buying them and reselling... it's also fun watching the girlfriend's face whenever I buy more stuff...I almost could start a 2nd hand stereo store... I do like my rf-7ii's though...I guess I'm just greedy...

looks like dean was right (and tiger too).... too good to be true... I've replied to the ad a few times but have yet to receive an answer...too bad ! why would a person put a fake ad on craigs ? to what advantage ? (it's a new ad...4 days old and I replied right away).... if they plan on "robbing" a potential buyer (as Sancho warned me) or even if it's a "fake" pair of speakers it would make sense for them to get back to me and grab the cash ! ...other than that, they only have replies from unknown sources (messages go through craig's messaging system and the email accounts are hidden from them)...how would they profit from doing this ? DARN ! I almost already had plans for them !

thanx to both replies so far ! dean...are you the "famous" crossover guy ? if you are...then I'm on my way right now ! and Sancho... thanx for that advice ! (it took me a few seconds to understand what you were telling me)...i'll make sure to let the seller know that he will be paid only with a bank cheque AFTER I see them, test them and have them in my car !...lol...I'm in Canada ... we don't have guns here ! (but the bad guys do...lol...)

hi everyone ! I have another question for you.... there's a "mint condition" pair of JBL K2 9800's on craigslist for 5 grand and I'm thinking of replacing my rf-7ii's with these...(I'm only at this point "thinking about it"...I'm happy with my rf-7's but for some reason I keep wanting better (and I'm not sure if really the jbl's are) they are 7 hours away so before I take the hike I'm hoping someone here can tell me if the trip would be worth it... the jbl's sold for $30,000 around 2003, I've tried looking them up on the net but most reviews seem to be from dealer ads (I know that they wouldn't be a common speaker at that price so the lack of reviews seems appropriate...I think)...lol...anyway, they also are horn speakers, (horn mid and horn tweet) are almost 200 lbs each and....pretty (as far as I see on the ad) can anyone convince me NOT TO BUY THEM please ! ... I know that a higher cost doesn't always mean better...but, I am very interested ! my room is 19'x19', 8' ceiling (with an 8' opening to my dining room that's 12'x15'.... is it big enough for these speakers ? any suggestions would be appreciated immensely ! thanx for the help...have a great day !

quick question....how do i upload pics here ? (from my i-phone) ....

hi thad ! I actually wasn't really planning to sell it....not that I need it... i'll take some pics and post them within a week or 2...(holiday season...kinda busy) ....as far as an asking price is concerned....I paid around $ 1500...there is one on ebay right now for $ 1400 (but it has defects that won't affect the sound quality) ...I'd probably accept what the seller gets on ebay (and I bet it will be for sale for a year at least because people have no idea what this is...) there are a few issues about this crossover however....it's "old school". it's not a "plug and play" item... you have to change the molex connectors to change the x-over settings depending on your speaker's x-points. on my a-2003 I paid $ 800 to have this done (inc. all other upgrades, caps etc.)... so, in all it's at least a $ 2300 investment (unless you can do it yourself) I was planning on upgrading to k-horns or belles and using the 2003 for these and the 2002 for the sub woofer....but the rf-7ii's sound too good to ever think about this....(I'm not an audiophile...but I know what sounds good and what blows me away)....anyway, i'll post a few pics....i'm not in this to make any money (I'd like to get what I paid)...I know most here are afraid of biamping....(I took the jump and can honestly say that it does make a huge difference) i don't have a friend that understands how I've set up my stereo....they just drool....lol !

hi, for those interested in biamping, I have a luxman a-2002 tube electronic crossover for sale (2 way) .... I can email pics if you are interested... not much on the web about them, just that they are very rare and very well made. 6 and 12 db slopes...and can be fine tuned also....I currently have a lux a-2003 hooked into my system (3 way) and it is amazing (not so noticeable at lower levels but very as the volume goes up) I'm not in a rush to sell...wasn't thinking about it actually....but it's just a dust collector now....

hi, I know that this post is a bit old (6 months) but I have to toss in my 2 cents....I got the biamping bug and spent a lot of money on it....a pair of bryston 7 b-st monoblocks, an audio research vt-50 tube amp for my horns, a luxman a-2003 tube crossover (and $ 1000 worth of upgrades on it) a Richard grey power conditioner, a monster voltage regulator and another conditioner....antique sound lab tube preamp....jolida tube cd player...new rf-7ii's, rc-64 center, a sw-115 sub and my back speakers are rf-82's...(that are powered by a Yamaha m-85 ....sever overkill)... for movies, all this is powered from a cheaper onkyo ht-rc 370 through it's preout jacks. for music everything goes only through the tube pre....does it sound good ? you bet ! would I ever do it again ? no way !...lol....at low volumes there really isn't a noticeable difference in biamping....but every time I turn it up I have to take a step back and smile...the luxman lets you adjust the low, med and high octave range (the horns are almost not even on) but what it's done is now the speakers aren't at all bright....beautiful sounding and powerful.....detailed....I listen mostly to r&r and some female singers as well ....all I need now is a better preamp (looking for an audio research sp-11 if anyone has 1.....) and a much bigger house too...if anyone is interested I have a luxman a-2002 (2 way) tube crossover for any reasonable offer....to sum it all up...I think biamping does make a difference in sound but it's expensive...

hi, looking back i realize that i didn't need to snip the wires (the wires are all connected to the speakers with plugs) but...i did....i did use a good silver based solder and there's no hint of any crackling or hiss...i guess my point of posting on here is becuase there seems to be so many people that think biamping is a waste of time...i just wanted to say that it's by far the biggest improvement i've done to my system. (from using just a receiver, then adding a seperate ss amp, then adding a tube amp, then adding even higher powered ss monoblocks....tube cd player, line conditioners (huge diff with those) etc. etc.) it's cleaner, fuller, louder (to the point of "feeling the bass" if/when i want) and i control the horns now...(the high channel is set to just above #1 on the luxman, the mid channel at #7 and bass at #3) i used to feel the horns "cutting into my ears" before...not so now but the highs are still very much present , just enjoyable instead of painful...

hi again all... well against everyone's advice (and including klipsch themselves) i hooked up a totally refurbished (to the rf-7ii's specs) luxman tube x-over (a-2003) on my new rf-7ii's...took a bit of "guts" to cut those wires....i had them "passively biamped" with a pair of Bryston 7b st monoblocks running my woofers and an Audio Research vt-50 running my horns. that already sounded great but the biamp bug had me... (i also have a sw-115 sub in there too)...i snipped those wires anyway..., at first it didn't sound any better, worse actually...it sounded good but "tinny"...i was a bit "upset" needless to say...then, i started playing with the dials on the lux...the old "luxman a-2003" is a 3 way x-over, so it's running my horns, woofers and the sub... it is such an unbeliveable difference....(esp. when you "crank it up a bit") clear, clean, super, super crisp bass (that's adjustable...just as the horns and mids are now...) i can feel the "thump" now, i used to own a bar that had the best bands... now they're in my living room...it's incredible actually !. the mids and high's are perfect... i'm an ironworker and shouldn't admit this but..i could listen to.rhianna"s (sp?) "love the way it hurts" song all day long...lol !....Unchain my heart (joe cocker) is unbeliveable (and i've seen him live...) Aaron lewis's "black" (accoustic") rolling stone's "black"....no need to go on... i wonder why klipsch isn't offering an external x-over ? if anyone is ever in saskatchewan (why would you be ?) you're welcome to bring your fav c.d....take a listen.... my stuff (so far) jolida 100a tube cd player bryston 7b-st monoblocks antique sound lab otl32-dt preamp (headphone amp but very nice) audio research vt-50 luxman a-2003 tube x-over richard grey 1200 something power conditioner monster hts 5100mkii power conditioner monster avs 2000 voltage regulator rf-7ii's (with no factory warranty anymore...lol) a pair of rf-82ii's for my surrounds runned by a yamaha m-85 and an onkyo htrc for movies....and a rc-64 center....(i can't get the "perfect" balance for movies that the onkyo offers becuase i only have my center and the surrounds coming from it....i just turn the onkyo up till it sounds good and i'm happy!)

i skipped your answer to me becuase i read it but it didn't seem important....but now it's sinking in....and i thank you for your input !...now do i need a better preamp ? omg ! maybe you can explain something to me ?....i'm running all this stuff from an "onkyo ht-rc 370" (the stereo guy told me it was good....) i do have an "audio research sp-9" preamp sitting unused...should i use this instead ? (the onkyo can switch from 2.1 to 7.1 at a push of a button and the sp-9 is 2 channel only...but it's tube...) i'm told i can use the onkyo for movies and the sp-9 for music ... the onkyo preouts (L&R) to the sp-9, to my tube amp for my horns and brystons to my mains....i also have a cheap blueray for movies and a jolida 100a tube cd player.....i was thinking of hooking them up to the onkyo......(for music it would be...tube into S.S into tube again)...i'm trying to get both ht and 2.1....and it seems it's not going to work ! .....thanx for opening my eyes...

yeah...i'm not too proud of that night....a coworker needed a place to camp for the night and i had to show off....one thing for sure...that yammie-85 plays "loud and clear" ! lol !...had alot of fun though !....maybe i should buy a farm ? move to Alaska ? ....thinking a dance bar ? (with good music though.....)

as soon as i get them i'll get back to you....i have a funny feeling i hit the jackpot on these .... (bought them on ebay) ....i've watched brystons for a bit and never thought my speakers would ever need that much power (they don't ...we all know this) but i offered a price below the "starting price" and they accepted... .2 grand less than the 2 sets on ebay right now...(i think those are way over priced but even the 3 and 4b-st's seem to be going for 1500-1700 EACH...anyway, i told him how happy i was and he told me how "excited he was for me !" told me they were always fan cooled in a smoke free house in a "dedicated electronics room" also told me i'll LOVE these amps...i like this person ! ...he also is buying new boxes from bryston to ship them...(i offered to help with the cost and he refused...(140 bucks) told me it was his responsibility to ship them properly). to me he seems like a "top notch person" to say the least ! (i told him that if he's ever in Saskatoon that "i'm buying the beer" !....but who in thier right mind would ever travel to Saskatoon ? lol ! anyway, i'm biamping them (doing only my mains) with a small Audio Research vt-50 pushing my horns and soon ...i have a luxman a-2003 electronic tube crossover that i'll toss in there (passively) as soon as i find someone who knows how to set it up for me......thanx for getting back ! i'll let you know if i can hear any kind of difference between the brystons and the yammie...

Wow ! so hard getting back into the system...(i know i can change my password but i....don't know how !) thanx for getting back to me ! anyway, i was thinking of a speaker tall enough to hold my tv....(i like the tv "higher up" so i don't have to look down to watch) i've heard so much about the center being the most important for watching movies so i thought that a large la scalla or belle would do double action as a tv stand and as a great speaker too...(however i could just get a rf-64ii and put it on a higher stand...) but i'm really thinking this might actually sound better ? maybe even take up "less space" (it's hard to find a stand or table 40-50 inches tall and only 2-3 feet wide that's strong enough to hold my tv...) as far as the brystons go (i'm still waiting for them) i think i'm "hooked" on bigger power = better sound (even at low levels)....i'm not sure that is even true but the reviews seem to go that way... for sure these will be my last amps ever (i do hope to outlive them but they have 8 years left on the warrenty and i'm 51....good shape though ! lol !) i have the 7's hooked up to a yammie m-85 now....had a few the other night and yup...cops were at my door ! (oops ...happened only this time ever in my life...lol !) ....thanx for getting back to me......kevin

hi again everyone ! i'm sure this has been brought up a few thousand times before but my new specific amps haven't really been talked about much (as far as i can see....) anyway....i'm as dumb as a stump as far as stereo stuff is concerned....(but i'm learning thanx to you folks !) ok, here is what i have....a pair of rf-7ii's with an audio research vt-50 powering my horns and a yamaha m-85 powering my mains...(right now) .i just bought a pair of Bryston 7b-st mono blocks for my mains (biamped) (500 watts/channel mono) and i'm wondering if it's going to ruin my speakers ? i like loud sometimes....lol ! (i've been told that you can't get enough "clean power" and that's what brystons give) i'm going to use the yammie-85 to power my rf-82ii's (surrounds for movies) i'm also wondering if i could use either a belle, cornwall, la scala as a center channel...(something big enough to hold a 50" plasma and loud enough that i don't have to strain my ears to hear what the actors are saying) ....any opinions would be great ! thanx again ! (i love you folks !)

....i'm still stumped ! but, thanx for the reply !....i think i spent alot of money for what i've been told is a super top notch crossover (and not from the seller) but "you gotta know how to use it"....(it was actually described as a f-16 fighter jet....if you're a trained pilot you have the best...but if you're a regular guy.....it a'int flying and it's gonna run like s#@* !) i guess i'll have to figure this thing out....the luxman has molex connectors that the crossover points can be changed by swapping caps...it also can be "fine tuned" after that (dials and stuff)...i'm still convinced that it's a great unit and that i want to try going active... i just have to figure out how to set it up...i think i've started a new "obsession"....lol !...problem is i'm as dumb as a stump and...bullheaded too...no electronics experiance what so ever...no friends...lol ! well, some but they look at me like i have 3 heads when i talk about "biamping" or "tubes".....

Thanx for the response ! (not really what i wanted to hear...lol !) I'm not afraid of going active. (at least to try it) it's a simple operation on the speakers and easily converted back if i don't like it. it seems everyone that's gone active loves it and the folks that haven't are afraid to try (therefore they don't like it) the hard part is setting up the crossover to match the speakers (and that is what i don't know about )...lol ! i'm hopeing someone could explain this to me...i did hook up the crossover for a few mins and it sounded good (the highs were too low becuase the crossover isn't yet set up properly) but i can tell that there's a definite "possibility" of it sounding great...do you (or anyone out there) know if all the highs are above 1200 hz and all the lows below ? is that what the 1200 hz crossover point means ? thanx again !

hi again everyone, in the last 6 months i've gone from a little "ghetto blaster" to now i'm ready to biamp my rf-7ii's... i think i have all the toys i need... all i have to do is set up my tube active crossover...i just have no idea what this means....(besides i have to "operate" on my speakers) here's what i have : pair of RF-7ii's (fronts) Audio Research VT-50 (tubes for my horns) Yamaha M-85 (solid state for my mains) Luxman A2003 tube active crossover (6 or 12 db slopes) this is a 2 or 3 way crossover and the crossover can be changed by changing the caps on the molex connectors Onkyo HT-RC370 receiver (somehow i'd like to keep this in my system becuase i can go from 2 channel to 7.1 in a flick of a button) Audio Research SP-9 tube preamp (not hooked up at this point becuase i don't know how or where it fits in the system) Klipsch SW-115 subwoofer pair of RF-82's for my surrounds RC-52 center channel (way too small but for now all i can afford) here's my question.......the crossover point on my RF-7ii's is 1200 hz... becuase it's a 2 way speaker do i set my active crossover to 1200 hz and up for my horns and 1200 hz and down for my lows ? am i way way too far in left field ? (i know i know nothing about what i'm about to do ! lol ! but i'm going to do it anyway ... everytime i "do something different" to my gear it sounds better....biwiring, then having solid state and tube amps working together...now i want to take the plunge, go active and never ever EVEN THINK ABOUT buying more stereo equipment ! lol ! ....i can't afford it any more !... thanx for the help everyone ! i've read and used almost everyone's advice so far and it's really helped !

Inside my mains.... Ok ! I'll try it ! Thanx ....I'll let you know what happens

Here's another question.... When you folks answer my question I get an email in my Hotmail box. If I want to reply, do I just answer here or must I also reply through my email ? (to let you know I've received your answer and to ask another question.... )

Oh... And I do have 2 subwoofers... (SW-450's) I'm not sure about them... I can't "feel them" but I THINK they add to the sound ... I've been told by Dennis that one sub is often better than two subs but I put them together in the same corner and the sound is great... Just not much "punch"... In the day I owned a bar that had live bands...then I could "feel" the base (and that's when I'd be screaming at them to "turn it down" ! Lol ....

I never thought of that ! Right now I have a pair of Rf-82's but I'll be getting Rf-7's in a week or so (unless something "pops up" on C.L. But I've been looking for awhile and I don't think that'll happen) I know the bi-amp thing isn't needed but it's only a few bucks and it drives the wife batty so... It's worth it to me ! I was thinking In lines of controlling the "horns"... if I vertically bi-amp I can turn the gain down on the horns to control the "brightness" (matt 1970 told me about doing this but he was horizontally bi-amping 2 different amps) if I do the horizontal "thing" I'd be pumping 260 watts into each horn and I'm thinking that's a bit much ! Lol...are you suggesting that my avr's auto calibration would calibrate my horns and bases ? (Becuase I'm bi-amping those 85's anyway !!!) lol ! See, I was thinking that having the "low" channel on full and then adjusting the gain on the "high" channel till it sounded good I'd smooth out the brightness...its 4am... I'm cross-eyed and repeating myself... I hope you get what I mean ! Thanx for getting back !....

Thanx for getting back ! ...I guess I messed up trying to describe what I'm trying to ask. The main question is if the "Onkyo is a quality Preamp" ? I'm using it for 2 channel (my subs run off the Onkyo and my fronts from my amps (which are running off the Onkyo too) the volume goes up & down using the Onkyo but Becuase each speaker is running off it's own amp I would use the gain controls to set the amount going to my horns. (that way I can control my horns) By switching the wires, i meant that for a period of time one channel would run the "lows" and the other channel run the "horns" then by switching it would be opposite channels running the "lows" and "horns" I was thinking that by doing that I wouldn't overload one channel while the other channel has an easy time running the horns. (I don't know if something electronic can experience "fatigue" so I just figured I'd switch it around sometimes...) I hope that explains my question better ... Thanx again ....