dkbks

It is my belief that they were all Rosewood vinyl and that ebay seller is full of it.

Good discussion here between Mobile & HDBR. I would agree with Mobile regarding reliability of SS equipment from the manufacturers he mentioned and similar lines. Most of the stuff I've seen fail come from low cost Technics, low-end Sony, unheard of names from chains, etc. In order to keep the cost very low, components in these pieces are very very cheap. Reliability is much higher in the better built items. My Adcom 535 amp had been run almost daily for near to 12 years with no problems. The GTP 400 tuner/preamp has been almost as good though it did need the source selector switch replaced twice. I will concede that the jury is still out of much of the stuff which is now made in China.

HDBR: Yes, I concur there are good used amps out there if you know what to look for. Not everyone, however, is able or willing to go that route. What I meant was that with quality speakers such as Klipsch you cannot expect to go out & buy Technics or Sherwood or such from your local discount chain & expect it to sound good. My H/K 330B (I've read your comments) served me well for more than a decade, but once I got my Cornwalls, I realized it was not adequate.

Ah...I love a classy forum.

Sorry, see the speakers. Are you replacing the Denon or adding on?

Need more info: What speakers do you have? What kind of music do you listen to? Do you want more than 2 channel? What sources do you use? Dorm room, apartment, or big house? Amp alone or integrated amp or receiver?

What specifically are you looking for? A receiver (tuner, preamp, amp); a surround sound receiver (5.1 or 6.1); a intergrated amp (no tuner) or a preamp/amp separate combo? Yes, the Technics was a mistake. Klipsch will always reveal weakness upstream. You need be prepared to spend some bucks on amplification to get some quality. A highly regarded 5.1 surround sound receiver is the Outlaw 1050, $499 list with occasional used ones showing up. Its bias is toward music reproduction rather than film sound. At the moment, I am listening with great pleasure to internet radio thru a NAD T760 (purchased used off Ebay for under $400) with an Adcom 535 powering the Cornwalls.

To get back to the original issue: fatiguing. Have you ever listened to a system and after a hour or so (sometimes less), just wanted to turn it off & do something else? This is what is meant by "fatiguing". It just tires you out though you may not be aware of the cause. It could be the speakers (non-Klipsch). or, as you said. poor amplification or crappy digital source. The nastiness in the sound may be subliminal but it doesn't take long to tire of it. When you read a post of someone unable to turn off their system for hours, then they have source, amplification, and speakers working all together. I very rarely tire of hearing my Cornwalls with low power SS amp and other posts here indicate the same with Heresies, K-horns and similar. Haven't tried tubes yet but want to eventually.

The RCA "shaded dog" LPs are famous in the world of vinyl collectors. Even better then the mono recordings are the early stereo ones - usually marked "Living Stereo". Avoid the later RCA records, especially those marked DYNAGROOVE, which was a process meant to make records sound better on the cheap players of the time. Some of the stereo 'dogs' in mint condition are worth some real bucks. Do a google search for RCA shaded dog & you'll turn up some good material.

A day after I submitted mine (about a week ago), I got a message from an email server that the delievry had been delayed. I then submitted the entry again using direct email to the individual listed on the contest page. I never received a confirmation but the entry appeared a day later. I'd suggest submitting it again, directly if need be. I hope you did keep a copy.

Whhen my interest in quality audio revived back in the '80"s, the I thought a graphic equalizer would be just the thing for my hi-fi. When I visited an audio store (an early version of Tweeter, I think), a very sensible salesman (which you don't run into too often in chain stores) said don't waste your money - put it instead into better components and wire. I don't believe you don't really need EQ, especially with Cornwalls. Experimenting with speaker placement in the room or room acoustic treatments are likely to be more effective - and cheaper - than another component in the sound path. There was a good thread here a few weeks on the use or non-use of bass & treble controls. The consensus was not to use them.

Actually, the large majority of the list is American designed/made equipment despite the fact that the editor is a Brit (who picked the Linn Sondek as #1). My one piece is the Adcom 535 amp - the pick was the 545 but admits the 535 probably sounded better. The "high-end" mags have almost always ignored horn speakers (unless they cost $70K or more), so we at this forum can only smirk at their not knowing.

OT but I agree with HDBR about chestnut. The wood moldings in the living & dining rooms of my house (built 1933) are all chestnut, moderately stained. Windows, floor and wall/ceiling. My Cornwalls are laquered oak but matching chestnut would be lovely.

Yes, do not put Mr. Kloss down. My first foray into quality audio was the Kloss designed KLH model 11 - I had the portable "suitcase" style that went from place to place with me as a student. It was terrific for parties where it would blow away the record players of the '60's & 70's. When I sold it (to a young college student who was thrilled to get it), I replaced with it with a home system with the Smaller Advent speakers - also with Kloss's hand in the design. KH never stayed long with any one company. He moved on from KLH to Advent to being instrumental in the development of projection TVs. Those Advents were used for many years until replaced by my Cornwalls.

I believe Dec 16th is release date. Trailers are on the web. Looks great! The Two Towers is actually my favorite book of the trology. I find it amusing that none of the trailers or ads show anything about the Ents. I think they must be saving some good effects.

Interesting. I have an original pair of the Smaller Advent, also with the surrounds gone. These links might prove helpful for speakers I was about to toss, Thanks!

ditto no processing; leave treble & bass controls on neutral or bypass

I too am a big "Van the Man" fan. Too Long in Exile is one of my favorites. The live "It's too late to stop now" is terrific (& the vinyl is even better than the CD) Early Morrison besides Moondance: St Dominic's Preview. Later: Hymns to the Silence. There are also 2 excellent 'Best of" CDs especially v1.

I have not heard the 4 CD set but for later Hawkins you might see if you can find "The Genius of Coleman Hawkins" Verve (1957). Its Hawkins with the Oscar Peterson group. Thanks, Kelly for the Mood Indigo. I have the Impulse CD (Duke Ellington Meets Coleman Hawkins" & its quite nice for a CD. As for Johnny Hodges, I could go on and on but this is not the thread for it. His is the most romantic, indeed sexiest, sax I've heard. Try Duke Ellington & Johnny Hodges "Side by Side" and "Back to Back" both on Verve.

Wow! what a great thread. What we are after is the best reproduction of music we can produce. These forums attract those who feel Klipsch speakers get closer to this goal than most others. (BTW, feeding Klipsch with better electronics & better sources makes them sound even better). I'm also impressed with the number of jazz fans here. I'm a fan of the Ellington tradition - that is, the Duke was one of the great American composers and his band, his "instrument" produces some of the great American music. For me, Johnny Hodges is the best alto sax. I'll side with Kelly about the best jazz players versus many of todays' 'light' or 'smooth' (i.e., no emotion) musicians. Just finished listening to Ben Webster's "See You at the Fair" as I started reading this forum. (There are good contemporary players too: Hargrove, McBride, others). Kelly: if you save that Billie Holiday, any chances of making it available? A singer -not quite jazz- that I think is greatly underrated is Jo Stafford.

I haven't heard the RF3s but I do use the NAD 760 in my system. The pre-amp mains go to my previous amp, an Adcom 535 which powers my Cornwalls. The 760 powers the center & surrounds (currently an SC-1 & KSB 1.1s until I can afford Hereseys). No subwoofer as yet. So far I have been very pleased with this arrangement. I listen mostly to 2 channel music and a occasional movie and NAD has always emphasized the reproduction of music rather than a lot of bells & whistles. You might also consider an Outlaw 1050 which has many simarilarities to NAD.

Ebay does not handle merchandise themselves. Your transaction is with the seller who could be an individual or a business. Usually there is no warranty. Ubid sells their own & selected companies goods--there are no individuals involved. The merchandise is usually refurbished or discontinued, but often is covered by a warranty. Like most "auctions", it's a crap shoot - good buys can be had but not as often as you might think or wish. One feature that I do not like is that the auctions don't have an exact ending time (unlike ebay.) They will keep extending the time as long as there are recent bids. I bought a HP 3-in-1 printer for a decent price but found that the ink cartridges had dried out.

Jim, The percentage of people who appreciate quality audio reproduction of music and film is surprisingly low. Many think you're crazy if you spend more than $500 or so for the whole system! Even fewer have discovered Klipsch. (I've read Stereophile & The Absolute Sound for years and they never mention Klipsch.) So I try not to get annoyed at the Yorx rack systems and pasteboard speakers. When I can, I try to encourage friends toward better equipment but don't expect anyone to droll over my stuff. I found these forums 2 months ago & it seems like a very pleasant bunch of people - a great way to share our hobby when there aren't Klipsch fans in every neighborhood.

HDBR- Re the article file from Mobile Homeless. Do you have Winzip and Acrobat Reader installed on your PC? You'll need them to read this. A trial version of Winzip can be downloaded free at winzip.com and Acrobat reader is free at adobe.com. If you can't get it, I do have a copy of the article if you have a fax number.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1390777472 These seem to me to be quite possibly a very good deal especially if you live on the west coast, (I already own a pair of Cornwalls)