michaelwjones

Fixed. Thanks.

Not mine, but interesting due to its age. https://www.ebay.com/itm/203489860957?hash=item2f60f0dd5d:g:rA0AAOSwbqFgwkxe Mike

Cary SLI-80 Signature F1 with the uncommon British Racing Green chassis and a black face plate. This unit has no issues sonically or cosmetically save a few tiny swirls in the paint from dusting. This integrated is a classic and is good enough to be used by Klipsch for demos. You can actually buy it as a ‘Heritage’ model with side panels to match your speakers. https://www.caryaudio.com/products/sli-80hs/ It puts out 80 Watts/channel in Ultra-linear mode / 40 watts per channel in Triode mode. Switchable for 4 or 8 ohm speakers. It’s a tube rollers’ dream. Aside for the usual signal tubes, you can change the rectifier tubes and run power tubes from EL34 to KT-120. The unit has manual bias. Currently this one is running Svetlana 6550C power tubes. Beside the paint job, the F1 adds: - Jensen copper & oil capacitors - Hexfreds rectifiers in the power supply - CD input wired with Kimber Kable - WBT Speaker terminals; real WBT terminals, not “WBT style.” - Greyhill gold plated switch for inputs I hate to part with it, but I bought another SLI-80 F1 which is direct coupled. It sings with EL-34s IMHO. Includes remote control, power cord, manual, and original packing. $2250 plus shipping to you (it weighs 42#). Please email any questions. Thanks. Specifications - Circuit Type Push-Pull Ultra-Linear Pure Class AB-1 Power Output 80 Watts – Ultra-Linear / 40 Watts – Triode Input Sensitivity .45 Volt for full output Noise and Hum -82 dB below full output Frequency Response 19 Hz to 23 KHz +/- .5 dB Inputs CD, AUX1, AUX2, Headphone jack Outputs: Sub-woofer out Tubes complement is 2 ea 6922 Input Buffer Preamp / 2 ea – 6SN7 Pre Driver/Phase Inverter / 2 ea – 5U4 Rectifiers / 4 ea - Output Tubes

I was stunned as well, but for being 40 years old, it looks & plays as new. Thanks to all. Mike

While I cannot comment on the DDC to DC, my use of the i2s cable/input from CD to DAC made a significant improvement to the clarity of sound. Music is now precise (but not cold & analytical). Mike

Pray tell, what would that be?

A classic tube pre: the Conrad Johnson PV-2AR pre-amp. Originally a PV-2, this particular unit was upgraded to the PV-2AR. It was also rebuilt at the CJ factory with a brand new power supply and tube set of NOS GE and JAN Philips. It has only been used about 25 hours since that service. Works like a charm and sounds great. The tubed phono section while quiet, is not silent. After all, it is 40 years old and has three tubes. A bargain entry into the famed Conrad Johnson sound. Rated as very good condition as noted by the clean front panel as shown in pictures. Even so, I’ll conservatively rate it a 7 due to age. An old, but functioning tube set is also included. Comes with original CJ box, packaging, and documentation included. From CJ website: Inputs/Outputs: 2 Phonos Tuner Auxiliary Monitor and recording facilities for two tape decks Two power amplifier (main) outputs Specifications: Gain: Phono Stage 34.5 dB (phono overload 500 mV at 1kHz) Line Stage 24.5 dB Distortion: less than .05% THD or IMD Response: bandpass 2Hz to more than 100kHz RIAA Equalization: +/- .25 dB (20 to 20 kHz) S/N Ratio: Phono Stage 70 dB below 10 mv input Line Stage 84 dB below 2.5 volt output Phase: Phono Stage is phase correct, Line Stage is phase correct Mechanical: 14″ X 3 13/16″ x 10″ $875 including shipping in the lower 48. Please email any questions. Thanks. Mike

I have a Conrad Johnson MF 2550 SE with 250 watts per side used successfully with both Heresy IIIs and LaScala IIs. Sounds great; never run out of headroom. On the other hand, my 5 watt Gaanam and my 12 watt 300B sound great, too, just different. Mike

And there's nothin' shakey about dealing with Tim. -- Benny, a former LaScala owner

I was just typing exactly the same thing... 😆

Uh oh, Benny saw the picture and now knows where his speakers are. Be careful if you hear a scratch at your door. Have you turned them up yet? 😎 Enjoy! Mike

With mixed feelings, these are now sold. While I shall miss their big voice, Benny is one step closer to his 'horns. Thank to everyone. Mike

Bump with a new price. Thanks. Mike

Different sound, likely not an upgrade per se. But if you buy them you'll know for sure & have another pair a big-*** speakers in the house! 😎

House cleaning continues... This gloss white S.9 subwoofer features a custom, long-throw 10" woofer and passive radiator framed in cast steel baskets for superior rigidity and accuracy. The active driver is paired with a powerful, high-current 350-watt amplifier for deep, high-impact bass. This is a class A/B amplifier. Specs: frequency response: 35-120 Hz (-3dB) 350-watt built-in Class A/B amplifier down-firing 10" long-throw, treated-paper cone woofer with front-firing 10" passive radiator continuously variable low-pass 30-120 Hz crossover phase switch (0-180°) separate auto power on/off and main power switches line-level/LFE inputs speaker-level input Neutrik Speakon® connector separate volume controls for speaker/line-level & LFE input 14"W x 15-15/16"H x 16-1/4"D weight: 46.2 lbs. This sub is ‘as new’ with no cosmetic or sonic issues. No nicks or marks in the gloss white finish or pinholes in the grill. Includes power cable, 30’ Neutrik Speakon® connector cable, manual, and factory double boxing. $500 plus shipping & insurance to you. PayPal is fine as is local pickup. Please email any questions. Thanks.

BTW, these are still available and Benny lowered the price to $4000 so he can get his horns. 😎 Mike

My thought, which with 99 cents will get you coffee at McDonalds, is that within the parameters of your question - you are not worried about symmetry - it does not matter. Buy the best and quietest of everything you can find. But computer geeks will remind you "garbage in, garbage out" implying your pre, where the initial gain is wrought, is where to focus your money. And your pre is where you switch your inputs so it has a variety of electrical issues to deal with. The more expensive, generally, the more sophisticated the approach to resolving those issues. Removing that parameter, my answer is it depends on the speaker. I have some relatively expensive components I will not use with each other because they don't match well. For my LaScala IIs, your tagline is the answer: "toss that pre." My best sound is from the variable outputs of my CD player, tubed or other wise, plugged into an amp. If I tie my tubed CD into my tubed DAC into my tubed pre and tubed amp, it is unlistenable on the LaScalas. On the other hand, placing my Harbeths at the end of that chain is quite pleasant. When I was selling audio equipment in my prior life, I told my customers to focus on the speakers and work backwards. I still think that holds true. My 99 cents worth (pandemic inflation). Mike

I daydreamed about recreating my second* audio system - the one I put together after selling my first one since when I was in school, if I couldn't eat it, it tended to be sold. My "proposed" rules were the pieces should be as mint possible after 35 years, with original boxes and manuals, and working. This was fueled when I found my first CD player, a Mission PCM 7000 for $200. Then, I stumbled across the second piece, a CJ PV2Ar preamp. Cleaned all the connections and fired it up this afternoon. Sounds great, a bit bright with some flabby bass, but if I find my speakers, Magnepan SMGs, they worked well with the preamp's "character." The worst part is, I found a rebuilt pair on SMGs... and the power amp, a CJ MV-75. I actually still have the interconnects & speaker cables from that system. Somebody stop me! *Why not the first? It was all Phase Linear - 4000 pre, 5000 tuner and 700B amp through Bozak speakers. I worked at an audio store at the time and had unfettered access to a service department to keep them running and I feel confident if they weren't reliable in 1978, they sure ain't be reliable in 2021!

Apparently... But what do I do with the other 235 feet of Romex ? 😂

But jerky is not as good a conductor. If it was, we'd be discussing whether sound improves with Jack Links or Lorissa's...

I have a friend who found that in all of Tucson, only one place had any 2" conduit in stock. And I read this morning Costco in some areas is back to limiting paper products to one pack per customer.

On a more harmless note, yet evidencing a bizzaro world; I went to Lowe's for a 15' length of 12/2 Romex. I had to have the fellow repeat several times it would be $28. $28? I guess I should be glad they had it as opposed to WallyWorld not having regular MilkBones. Someone in the house will not understand that at all.

I could missing something, but his prices look the same to me as well. They also match what other dealers are offering the Heritage line. I see some new B Stock Heresy IV on fleabay for $2400. That seems to be a pretty good deal.

As a follow up to this thread, the California Supreme Court denied Amazon’s Petition for Review in Bolger v. Amazon – a landmark case in which the California Court of Appeal held Amazon strictly liable for a defective battery sold on its marketplace that caused catastrophic burn injuries to Angela Bolger. The San Diego-based Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division One ruled in August that Amazon, like other retailers, can be held strictly liable for defective products sold on its virtual marketplace. Following the ruling, Amazon requested review by the California Supreme Court and also asked the high court to “depublish” the opinion, which would strip it of any precedential value. Amazon argued the Court of Appeal drastically expanded strict liability in California and took an ‘unprecedented leap’ when it found that Amazon was strictly liable for a defective replacement laptop battery that exploded several months after purchase. With this denial of review, the case was remanded for further proceedings not inconsistent with the ruling. As noted in the San Diego Metro Daily Business Report: https://www.sandiegometro.com/2020/11/daily-business-report-nov-24-2020/ When I was in law school decades ago, we believed the Kansas Supreme Court had only two sets of law books: Kansas to tell them what the law is currently and California to tell them what the law will be in twenty years.

How about $700?