jazman

Wes, No doubt I'm going to finally roll Mullards in the EZ81 spots. I have them, just have not felt an urgent need to get it done. I like the '60 EZ81 Brimars that are in now and all the other tubes including EL84s are NOS Mullards. Maybe next week or next weekend I'll get it done. I like the Mullards so much, I put two of my new Mullard EZ81 tubes in the Cary SLP90L. The X factor is the set of four new EICO branded EL84s I have purchased. They're printed with "made in Holland", were part of an HF81 kit never assembled which dates them in the 60's. The 60's Amperex, if that's what they are, are supposed to be great. Tube World says "very sweet, incredible midrange, a reference quality 6BQ5, probably overall best sound". Maybe TubeWorld can help decode the date and batch printing. I will have to roll them in sometime soon just to hear what they add, but I want to keep something premium in reserve for the future. BTW, the Amperex 7189 is a highly regarded and valued EL84. No wonder they sound great. I'll keep my eyes open for Mullard EL84s and drop you an email on any sightings. Like me, I can see the HF81 sound has you looking at the Welborne site until you finally get snared. Which speakers are you driving with your HF81? Klipsch out.

Mike, Congratulations on your purchase. I think Ed is right that if you decide you don't like the monoblocks, you can probably get all of your investment returned to you upon sale. I'm not sure about the AE-3, but you should be able to hook the phono pre directly to the Laurels so you can listen to vinyl at least. I made things simple for my connect. Some think it best to locate each block at each speaker and keep the speaker to amp connection short. Others feel that if there is to be a long connect it should be the speaker wire from amp to speaker instead of amp to preamp. I opted for longer connects to speaker, centralizing the mono blocks with short connects to preamp. This may not be technically correct, but was partly dictated by location of components, location of speakers, and shape of the room. I also think you have to be aware of the ratio of cable lengths to each other, one should not be over 20% less/more than the other. Beware that you're going to yearn to hear the Laurels in full bloom on something more than the Heresys. Most of all, enjoy your new purchase! Klipsch out.

Mike S., I have the original stock 2 Phillips tubes that came with the Tjoeb I bought. I'm certainly not using them presently. How about I float them to you no cost. When you're able to get what you want, just send them back. No deal necessary, no time limit. If it works for you, email me your mailing info. Klipsch out.

Mike, Very Sweet! I hope you land them. Klipsch out.

Shapeshifter, Sorry to take so long to post this, but did not get this done until today. FYI. I pulled my Amperex Buble Boy EC88s from Richardson from my Tjoeb and they are printed, Made in USA, not China, Russia, etc. I have recently purchased some NOS EC88 Amperex Bugle Boy labeled and printed Made in Holland. The construction of the two tubes is indeed so very very close though not "EXACTLY" identical. I don't think enough to matter. I'm rolling them today. I do not expect to hear a major difference. Time will tell. Klipsch out.

Someone got a good deal. Closing price $1,025.00 . Klipsch out.

Edster, Mobile The Rega has landed. The Belles connected to the Moondogs system, the Cornwalls connected to HF81 with Rega Planet(no turntable yet because I'm trying to enforce a spending freeze upon myself.) The Cary SLP90 now has Telefunken 12AU7s. All speakers filling the front of the listening room. The speakers can be connected to either system, Rega and Tjoeb99 can be swapped between systems. Let the fun begin! Klipsch out. 2 Channel system #1 1974 Belle Klipsch Welborne Labs 2A3 Moondogs w'43 RCA Black Plate tubes Cary SLP90L Preamplifier Asusa modified PP-1 Phono preamplifier Rega 3 turntable, Rega 300 tonearm; Elys cartridge AH!Tjoeb99 CD Player 2 Channel system #2 1983 Cornwalls Eico HF81 All NOS Mullard tubes except '60 Brimar 6CA4s Rega Planet CD player

mobile, IMHO, I think that factory wiring job can only be done by someone with intimate knowledge of the amps. There's no margin for error or change with the length of wire run, their routes, no loops. I don't think many can do it that way. Klipsch out

Chris, I paid $1800 for mine with 2A3 Sovtek tubes, but I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Mine are wired every bit as well as the factory shot Mobile posted, have the ultimate upgrade kit, plus the maple wood base. See the post "Welborne Labs 2A3 Moondog Monoblocks - Jazman's amps? " All I can say is, someone should move on these before I look at my bank balance too long.... Just kidding! Klipsch out. 1975 Belle Klipsch Welborne Labs 2A3 Moondogs Cary SLP90L Preamplifier Asusa modified PP-1 Phono preamplifier Rega 3 turntable, Rega 300 tonearm; Elys cartridge AH!Tjoeb99 CD Player

The '83 Cornwalls are in the house! The second 2 channel system is underway. They were purchased two months ago. Picked up from Los Angeles and transported home as of last evening. Treated to a rubdown of Liguid Gold, the Medium Oak finish is looking good and ready for some action. The amplifier to drive these will be the Eico HF81, but I don't think I can resist hooking them up to the Moondogs at least once before lifting these heavy units to the second floor room that will be their eventual home. It's so easy to forget how large these speakers are when you don't see them every day. They're taller than my Belles, though not as wide or deep! This will be an interesting listening experience. Klipsch out.

Jobman, I hope you bag those Wrights! That would make for some interesting listening sessions here in the East Bay. Klipsch out

This HF86 closes in three hours. HF86 Klipsch out

Jobman, Congrats on YOUR new amps. Sounds like you were able to get a great deal. Let me know when you get that setup going, I'll hit the road to Vallejo and you can treat me to a session with them and your Khorns. Of course you'll get a session with my Belles and Moondogs. Should be great listening days ahead. I'll send you an email with my telephone number when I get back from LA next week. Klipsch out Edmond PS. The same listening session invite is extended to all other known Bay area Klipsch lovers, Klipped and Shorn, Fini, Mdeneen, and anyone else. There's a lot I'm sure I can learn from each of you. My present limitation is my son's hockey travel schedule which crushes most weekends, but should end in April. This message has been edited by jazman on 02-14-2002 at 04:09 PM

mobile, I have read a short version of that article, but this is much better. Sounds like Miles at the Blackhawk will be on my turntable later tonight after hockey practice. The 6SN7 mod is something I can work toward after the Rega. What we need is a pair of Khorns, a pair of Belles, a pair of Cornwalls,(Lascala's are welcome also) a bin of Jazz LPs, at least three days, a steady supply of catered food/wine, all three pairs of Moondogs, and a good listening room. That would provide the opportunity to really flesh out the differences and similarity of the three pairs of Moondogs. Klipsch out. This message has been edited by jazman on 02-13-2002 at 06:23 PM

mobile, I've been lurking on that GZ37 since it was posted, waiting for the action and bidding to start. Maybe people are leary of the Hong Kong address? The 2A3 RCA in question is from the same person I got my present RCA's from, so he is credible and has been good for 2 other RCA's, a 1944 and a 1946, both also in their original RCA boxes. I verified all of the above dates with the owner of Tube World as well as the 1943 pair I am currently using. May I ask what you generally pay, which you can email to me if you'd prefer. I've also located a guy selling tubes who lives in here in the SF/East Bay area. He may also be a possible source for the GZ37. I plan to call him today. Klipsch out.

mobile, What year is the JAN 2A3 RCA shown on your page http://66.155.4.65/hifi-online/tubes/6sn7.htm. I know someone with one who may sell it to me. What do you think it's worth? Klipsch out

Ed, I don't think I listed what tubes I have so here goes. 2-NOS Amperex 5AR4's As you see in my previous post, I'm going back to the original equipment Mullard GZ37 rectifiers to replace the 5AR4's. 4-NOS 6SN7's The 4 NOS 6SN7's appear to be Brimars from the best I can tell. They're 6SN7GT/ CV1988, brown base, black coated glass tubes. 2-2A3 RCA Black Plates 1943 vintage. These were new tubes when I rolled them in last week. Your Moondog/Khorn combo must be a great one, so what are you using to drive the Belles, or are they idle? I would certainly be interested in your impressions of the sound of the Moondogs/Belle combination, as well as a comparison to the sound of the 'dogs/Khorn combo if you ever get around to it. I play mostly Jazz, but not always. I like the sound of an upright bass rendered from the Belles when listening to Jazz so I do not feel a need for a subwoofer to augment low frequency response. Low frequency response is also very good with other source material. Ed, you could buy a lot of vinyl with the money you might spend on that shinny new preamp........ I'm fortunate when it comes to vinyl. I never gave up my Jazz collection, never will. I'm enjoying it more than ever now. Klipsch out.

UPdate: The system sounds awesome to me, but I don't have the most discriminating ear. I listen for shortcomings, but I can't find any since getting rid of the Gold Aero 12AU7s in the Cary SLP90L. The 2A3 Moondogs now have the '43 RCAs Black plate tubes rolled in. This was accelerated by a low level pulsating hum by one of the 2A3 Sovteks. Needless to say the RCAs not broken in yet, but are already more mellow sounding than the Sovteks. Initially the bass response was not that of the Sovteks. That has been changing the last two days. Does mellow describe a sound characteristic? When I purchased the Moondogs, they came with 2-NOS Amperex 5AR4s as rectifiers because one of the Mullard GZ37s(the large tube with the brown base on the left side of the amp) had died and Welborne was out of stock. I'm planning to replace the faulty and missing Mullard GZ37 to return to stock with rectifiers. I've rolled the '58 RCA black plate 12AU7s for NOS Mullards in the Cary SLP90L so it now has the new Mullard 6CA4s and 12AU7s. I plan to try some NOS Telefunken 12AU7s also before I settle on a final tube setup there. No problems with the phono preamp. I know it was not a favored addition by Mobile, but it's been flawless, plus it was great when connected directly to the Moondogs. I have a lead on 3 NOS 12AX7 Telefunkens(in the box) but will wait before springing the dollars for them hoping he'll come down. The Belles sound awesome with these pieces. So clean and smooth. Seldom have I read anyone raving about their Belles in the Forum. They should. I never tire of hearing them. I know the Khorn is the king, but the few dollars I spent for these Belles are great Bang for the buck, and they look so good. Edster, are your Moondogs connected to your Belles? The few chips in the face veneer of the Belles have been masked with dabs of Minwax walnut wood putty, and will be addressed at some later date with new stips. This entire tube system with the Tjoeb, TT playing vinyl, is everything I wanted it to be and more. I'm sure the setup will be improved with more dollars for interconnects and speaker cables, but that is many more dollars down the road. Some experimentation with speaker position may produce sound stage improvements. It will be some time before I scrap this setup to upgrade anything other than maybe a cartridge, a TT motor upgrade and tonearm wiring upgrade. There's a lot of good music here. The upcoming Cornwall system will be in a smaller room and has to be called the "small" budget, but high audio performance system. Cornwalls, HF81, Rega Planet. I need to pinch myself! A TT will be added eventually. Do you think I've got enough audio projects going on? Klipsch out. 1975 Belle Klipsch Welborne Labs 2A3 Moondogs Cary SLP90L Preamplifier Asusa modified PP-1 Phono preamplifier Rega 3 turntable, Rega 300 tonearm; Elys cartridge AH!Tjoeb99 CD Player This message has been edited by jazman on 02-12-2002 at 03:17 PM

Yea Mike! I've had it, the Jazz vinyl bug, since age 13, and it was the inspiration for the music only, 2 channel system. Vinyl Lives! Klipsch out.

May I also submit Betty Carter, Dinah Washington, Nina Simone, as a few others ahead of MS Krall in the pipes and life experience department. Now I must play something by Betty Carter. Klipsch out.

TBrennan, The word respect has many definitions. It sounds like you're hung up on the "reverence" track. Respect also may be defined as appreciation, esteem. Appreciation and esteem for excellent industrial produt design is not a new concept. In fact, they have awards for such. So if you've got a thirty year old Whirlpool or Vegi-matic that is as competent as it's modern counterpart, and still in demand thirty years later, they may qualify. Though I may not challenge you on audio techinical subjects, I know the english language very well. Klipsch out. PS. In case you can't tell, this is a humble apology for the vague usage of the word "respect". This message has been edited by jazman on 02-11-2002 at 02:11 PM

deang, Sorry to sound so abrasive. I'm sure everyone in this forum has anguished much over each speaker selection before layng down their dollars. The bottom line is we all chose Klipsch, and each selection filled a particular need or requirement at that time. Even if you make an incorrect choice, what other speaker will provide such a large willing marketplace of people willing to take it off your hands. My point, it's a simple one, lets not knock one to elevate the other. They all bring something to the table. PEACE! Klipsch out.

Mobile, As the under 30 crowd would say, "That's what I'm talking about". Sounds like a sure Win, Win, situation on the music systems and the wine if it doesn't make me a split personality. Maybe having both could be the basis of a never ending discussion of which is best. Yeah, how about that? Let the Rega CDP lookout begin! BTW, check this out. Cornwall eval conclusion Klipsch out.

deang, I normally don't take time to chastise, because I usually prefer to stay in the positve lane of life, but I think maybe you should take a moment to read some of the references in the AudiogoN ad for the Cornwall sale. I'll give the the long version url of a review done by a Belgian audiophile group and the short version, or Conclusion url. Take the time to educate yourself and remember it's "Cornwall", not Cornbreadwall. Show respect for the Heritage that enabled you to enjoy what's in your residence. The complete evaluation The bottom line Klipsch out. 1975 Belle Klipsch Welborne Labs 2A3 Moondogs Cary SLP90L Preamplifier Asusa modified PP-1 Phono preamplifier Rega 3 turntable, Rega 300 tonearm; Elys cartridge AH!Tjoeb99 CD Player Additional 2 Channel system in the works. 1983 Cornwalls HF-81 X= unknown, but likely Rega Planet CDP HT KLF-20 fronts KLF-C7 center RS3-II surround KSW-15 sub KSW-12 sub 55" 16x9 Mitsubishi Yamaha RXV 795 Toshiba SD-3105 Panasonic VHS DISH Sat This message has been edited by jazman on 02-08-2002 at 06:22 PM

Tim, Congrats! You've got everything already done that you'll need to connect and enjoy. What speakers are you planning to use? Do you mind if I ask how much it cost? It may give others a benchmark value/cost of these units. My HF81 was quite a revelation with very average tubes. I initially used the matched EI output tubes to replace unmatched Teslas and liked them. Add NOS and it gets even better. Save that for later. For the present though, just connect and enjoy. My HF81, with a full chasis of NOS tubes, will soon be driving a pair of Cornwalls and I can't wait to hear it again. Tell us what YOU think, AFTER you've listened. Beware that you may want to make other upgrades to your system after you hear what the HF81 does. Enjoy! KLipsch out 2 Channel 1975 Belle Klipsch Welborne Labs 2A3 Moondogs Cary SLP90L Preamplifier Asusa modified PP-1 Phono preamplifier Rega 3 turntable, Rega 300 tonearm; Elys cartridge AH!Tjoeb99 CD Player