johnellis

Daddy can't fly his kite cause Mama won't give him no tail.

Interesting. Whenever I hear the song "Imagine" all I can think about is "Dead beat Dad". Just ask Julian and his Mum.

Shawn- Thank you so much!!! I'm definately going to build a pair!! Thanks again- John

Count me in as well. What a wonderful, wonderful voice!!! John

Shawn- The ES600 sounds VERY interesting. Would you happen to have a drawing?? Thanks!! John

Colin- The number I gave you belongs to the store that is selling the 4560/Altecs. John

Hi Colin- No, I'm just a consumer. No affiliation with the store whatsoever. John

Shawn- Excellent post. Your idea is another alternative as well. In fact, if cost is a factor, one could use a Gollehon ES-400 or Peavy FH1 cabinet These are much cheaper than LaScala bass bins ($20.00 to $50.00 a pair) yet they are almost identical clones. Slap in a pair of K33's and you're set. As for the 902, yep, this is, in fact, a wonderful driver. One of the best IMHO. As far as using an ALK crossover with the the 902 is concerned, one must keep in mind that the ALK is designed for a three way system. The ALK expects a crossover point between the mid and the tweeter (I think) therefore chances are you will loose some highs from the 902. If of course the ALK does not allow the 902 to roll off. Just a thought.

P.S. If one is patient, you can usually find the JBL 4560 cabinets for $50.00 to $100.00 a pair. Much cheaper than one can build them for. Im not sure where you are located, but at this very moment I know of a pair in Iowa loaded with Altec drivers for $199.00. I'm not sure the model number of the Altec drivers but if they are 515's it's a steal. On average, 515's normally go anywhere from $600.00 to $1000.00 a pair depending on the condition. I've seen them go higher as well. I should add that there is a reason these woofers sell for so much. IMHO, these are the best woofers I have ever heard. The upper mids are incredible. Simply incredible!! So good in fact they are down right spooky!!! John

Colin- I would highly recommend JBL 4560 cabinets loaded with Altec 515B's. The sound is glorious!! As for a crossover, I'm using an upgraded Cornwall @ 600 hz (low end to mid). As you know, it's a 1st order butterworth and it works great with these drivers (be it Altec, JBL or Klipsch). Crossover components are Solen inductors, Hovland caps, Universal transformer and silver wire. In short, the standard stuff for a Cornwall yet higher quality parts. These crossovers sound great and can be built for around $200.00. Give or take $20.00. Anyway, just thought I would throw this in. John

P.S. While I agree that Led Zepplin was a great band, IMHO, they never produced anything near the genius level of Quadrophenia. Nor did Black Sabbath for that matter. This is, once again, IMHO, one of the most under rated ablums of all time. Quadrophenia that is.

I have to agee with Sheltie Dave. The Who, in their heyday, were by far the best "live" rock band I have ever seen. On an average night, they were considered one of the top four or five acts in the world. On an "inspired" night, they were untouchable. Anyone who had the opportunity to see the Who during an "inspired" performance would most likely agree. This of course if just my opinion.

---------------- On 6/1/2004 10:45:39 PM DeanG wrote: "When doing an A/B comparison with another driver of higher quality, it sounds like sh*t and the differences are obvious." Sure, I can believe that -- you get what you pay for. I've heard many a "great" speaker though, and in comparison to those -- the Klipsch stuff as a whole sounds very good. Better parts do equal better sound, of that I have no doubt, and there's always something "better" -- but I would hardly characterize the K55/K400/K77 combination as sounding like "sh!t" in comparison to anything. Not as good, or lacking maybe -- but nothing like you make it sound. Same goes when comparing a properly biamped system to one that is strictly passive." Probably true too -- but "properly" biamping is extremely expensive. If your into tubes like many of us are -- you have no desire to run your gear through a solid state device. Tube crossovers are cost prohibitive for most of us. I also think passives can sound very natural and transparent with the right parts. Parts can make an unbelievable amount of difference. ---------------- Dean, For the record, I do agree with you on all points. I was merely jerking another posters chain. They had it coming!!

Hey "no life". Thank you for the education offer. But, to be quite honest, I would much rather learn from the likes of Tom Brennan, Qman, DJK, AL K, etc. I trust what they say. And I listen. And I experiment. And, I suspect they have forgotten more than you currently know. But, once again, thank you for your offer. And yes, you bet you can tweak a room acoustically. And yes, it all begins with the recording and ends with the room. And yes, PWK was a genius. But you know what? You can't tweak a K55. They still sound like sh*t!!!! Obviously you haven't figured that one out yet!!

When listening to the K55/400 by itself, or, the K55 with a K600, K700, etc., yes, it sounds very good. When doing an A/B comparison with another driver of higher quality, it sounds like sh*t and the differences are obvious. Same goes when comparing a properly biamped system to one that is strictly passive.

If I liked distortion, I can assure you I would still be using a K55 mid.

---------------- On 6/1/2004 5:43:39 PM TBrennan wrote: Johnellis---When writing I think of the writing of Ulysses Grant. If you read his memoirs and orders you'll find an elegant and precise English that is lucid and right to the point; a joy to read. ---------------- Tom- I have never read the memoirs of Ulysses Grant. But, I will. It definately sounds like an interesting read. I'm sure i would enjoy it. A number of years ago I read the memoirs of Winston Churchill. Seven volumes if I remember correctly. His writing, dry humor and command of the English language was a joy to behold as well. I loved it.

---------------- On 6/1/2004 5:09:25 PM TBrennan wrote: I've passively bi-amped Altec VOTs like this with simple 1st order 500hz filters. I've used 800hz 1st order networks with JBLs. ---------------- Tom- It took me an entire paragraph to get my point across and you did it in one sentence!! thank you!!

Actually, I'm doing both. Active and passive. The Rane feeds the JBL subs which in turn feeds a SS amp. The passive feeds the remaining three tube amps. Four amps in total. Like the Rane active, the Klipsch Cornwall passive resides between the preamp and amps as well. Preamp input to the passive, woofer out to one amp. Mid out to another. And finally tweeter out to the remaining amp. All drivers are wired directly to the amps and each amp is only receiving the signal it was intended for. All one must do is replace the Cornwall terminal strip with RCA connectors and ground it accordingly. While the RANE may sound great, as did the DOD, it is, IMHO, better served on the subs. When comparing the RANE to the passive, a passive that resides between the preamp (or source) and the amp, the passive will kick the sh*t out of it. The difference is THAT profound.

This is a very interesting thread. I'm doing something very similar such as using a Rane active. The Rane is controlling the subs from 25hz to 150hz. These are dual JBL 18's (4719). From 150hz to 600hz I'm using a Cornwall crossover with the Altec 515's in JBL 4560 cabinets. The Cornwall crossover is actually between the preamp and amp and the 515's are wired directly to the amp. I removed the terminal strip from the Cornwall crossovers and replaced them with Cardas RCA connectors. Passive bi-amping so to speak. It works great and the bass is extremely clean and tight. From 600hz up I'm using another Cornwall crossover for the Atlec 511b's/802G's and JBL 2404's. All in all I'm using three amps. SS on the subs (2000 watts), PP tubes on the 515's (45 watts) and SET on the 802's and 2404's (3.5 watts). The crossovers have been upgraded accordingly. Hovland caps, silver wire, 8 gauge inductors, etc. So far I am very, very happy with the sound. And, as others have mentioned, I can tweak it on the fly. I too could never go back to a totally passive system. John

If anyone is interested, I am selling off some tube gear and I thought I might offer them to the forum first. Anyway.... 1. Welborne Labs Moondog Mono Blocks 2. Audio Research D90. 3. Conrad Johnson MV-52 (I have two) The Moondogs and the D90 are both in excellent condition and sound wonderful as do the MV52's. Thier appearance, the MV-52's that is, is excellent as well. The Moondogs have some mods plus extra tubes. The D90 has been upgraded to "B" status by Audio Research. It also have new tubes. The MV-52's are stock, tubes do have some age but still sound great. If interested, shoot me an email (taking offers). jellis@ucar.edu.

My wife and I are in the process of moving therefore these cabinets must go. I thought I might offer them to the forum members first. Anyway, I'm not interested in making money on them. That's for sure. Just break even. All four cabinets are excellent from a structural stand point. Appearence wise they are rough from road wear. But, they could most certainly be painted to look like new, which, by the way, was my original intention. They are big and heavy therefore they would have to be picked up here in Boulder, Colorado. As for the price, $10.00 each for the Altec's, $20.00 each for the FH1's. An excellent deal if someone is looking for big Altec's or LaScala clones. If anyone is interested, shoot me an email. jellis@ucar.edu Thanks John

Threaten to build this in the front yard!!! Everything else will be a piece of cake. Needless to say my hideous Altec gear has now found a permanent place in our living room!!

---------------- On 3/15/2004 4:37:18 PM jimbop wrote: Will the #3619 Autoformer from Universal Transformer Co work as a direct replacement for the stock T2A autoformer in a Heresy crossover, or is it only used in the ALK crossovers? ---------------- Yes, it is a direct replacement for the T2A. It's a better transformer as well. At least according to Chris @ Universal.

Kudret- Is this the one??? I've seen it before. And yes, it looks very, very interesting. Have you found a wiring diagram?? I've looked but haven't been able to find one. John