kjohnsonhp

Front with cage.

Here's a shot of the wiring.

SOLD I'm selling my recently restored Dynaco ST-70. The objective of the restoration was to replace the signal path with new audiophile capacitors, replace the tubes, and perform the most common mods without "hot rodding" the amp into something different. This is an execellent looking and sounding example of this classic vintage amplifier. PRICE $450 plus shipping. The work was done by an electrical engineer and anitque audio technician. I am currently enjoying the amp with my Cornwalls. The stock ST-70 had the following new parts: 4 EL34 Eiectro-Harmonix tubes by Sovtek 1 GZ-34 Rectifier 4 Hovland Caps 2 .047uF/630V 2 47uF/160V 1 JJ 20/20/20/40 Filter Cap (4 section electrolytic is mounted under the chassis, and the original has been left in place)) 2 470 ohm 1/4W Res 1% 1 1N4007RT 5A diode 1 16GA H.D. Line cord 4 STD Rubber Feet 4 Gold RCA Jacks 8 Gold Plated 4-40 screws Please email me if interested. kjohnsonhp@comcast.net

Amazing! I will be 41 on October 8....

It will also be interesting to see what Mark Shifter brings to the digital amp game. Where he feels he can't play in the same consumer AVR game as Denon he has expressed a perception of being able to add value to digital amps and is also coming out with a standard pre/pro & multi-channel amp product (~$2500 pre/pro & $1500 amps) a la Anthem AVM20, etc. His connections with Asia (price) and engineers from the industry (Dan Laufman Jade Labs Inc.--do you know this outfit?) along with a manufacturer direct model may provide some interesting products. Using Mark Levinson products as aspirational the upcoming 2-channel, HT stack and digital amps may be worth checking out. Mayb a nice "in the middle" between big companies and "mom & pop"? Of course the electronics are designed with modern cone and ribbon speakers in mind and not horns thus 200w, etc.

Is there are short list of tape decks to consider if found at the right price? I assume they will strat flooding the market as are the tapes as consumer retire yet another format. I'm aware of the Nakamichi Dragon and wouldn't mind a lower price Nak. Are there certain models to focus on. I also assume most will require cleaning and adjustment which would probably cost more than the unit itself unless I do it myself. Any thoughts on what to expect from an 80's Nak in used condition off ebay? I have a 70's Fisher cassette deck--pretty typical unit that works. I also have an 80's Hitichi $300-400 unit that has a lot nice features but the tape moves slowly and stops at times. I've put aside two cases of tapes for give-away/sale but want to keep one case which contains local bands, my radio shows, and other odd items. It's very possible that just using the old Fisher is enough but if I find a Nak for a cheap price I might grab it. There are some local band tape only releases I will be copying to CD. Just curious where the cassette fits in other's system. I have an 8-track component deck in the closet and a few Elvis and other tapes I kept as nostalgia. I thought if I got an old late 60's muscle car I'd try to use an 8-track player in it.

How do you think the REf 30 sounds in 2-channel mode vs an Anthem AVM20? How do you think it would compare with a $1,000 used 2-channel pre off Audiogon? I've been tempted by the Ref 30 because it's now discontinued and deep discounted and used to sell for around $3k, but it appears I may need to look at tube pre-amps w/HT pass-through.

Is this the first Stan Getz cd to buy? Is this like telling a kid from Mars to explore classic Rock and Pink Floyd by buying DARK SIDE OF THE MOON? I love the mp3's....I almost have enough to dump to CD for listening in the car.

Perhaps there will be some $500+ CD players there for comparison to the audio server. I'd really like to hear the DAL Card Deluxe vs sub $1k options.

Yes..I found the flow and switching comment rather interesting. I remember reading articles from Julian Hirsch but don't know is current status...HP is or just recently spoke at Atlanta Audio Society meeting. I'll have to ask my friend from work what he thought of the presentation. Both TAS and Stereophile have their recommended or Class A/B/etc equipment lists out this month. I'm not sure how much one can glean from these lists but I did note that Musical Fidelity --especially the A3.2CR amp and pre-amp seemed to get a great review in Stereophile (Class A for ~$1600 each) and TAS like the A308..has anyone tried them? They don't seem to be a good match for Klipch though given the comments about being matched with less aggressive speakers.

Dave, Too bad there probably won't be any DIY horn builders...although this show is clearly open to DIY designs of all styles so maybe we will be suprised. I'm looking forward to the event. Danny's Alpha Line Arrays are supposed to be awesome and have compared favorably vs the critically aclaimed VMPS rm40. I think chatting with speaker designer Danny Ritchie and tube amp designer Gary Dodd alone with be enjoyable, plus there should be several other DIYers there with their designs (not sure how many designs vs GR kit and cabinet builders). It would be interesting to compare the Scott/Dynaco combo vs the Dodd...

I found it interesting to read the original glowing 1973 SP3 review and then HP's comments today. It was odd, however, that he didn't audition the unit today. Instead he simply revisited his 30 year old review. I think it would be very interesting to read his review of an AR updated SP3 vs today's pre-amps...say the AR SP16 for starters. From the review the SP3 seems to have good "liquidity" (although he noted perhaps too much) where the newer AR designs may be a bit "dry"...sterile I think was Kelly's term. In restrospect the SP3's extension above 10K is questioned while credit is given for a natural sound. It was interesting to read that "flat, uncolored response in the bottom two octaves lay two decades or so ahead". The SP3 had bass that compensated for the equipment shortcomings of the day. The article contains a comment about tubes vs transistors where tubes are described as producing a continuous flow of electrons where transistors are at heart switching devices. Our minds have to coalesce the switching into the continuousnes we hear in music. Doug Sax is referenced as saying "digital finishes what the transistor started" THE ABSOLUTE SOUND current issue 144

The maple boys do push the cables, power cords, cable elevators, vibration isolation, etc. Their Scott for example is on spikes with a maple wood base. I guess you could have a thread debating the benefits of each of their tweaks....ie have you ever compared a 4' speaker to an 8' run? The more people pushing the value of these amps the more they can bring on the market...

Just to be clear, my point is not to recommend this other outfit...it's just to highlight that the value of vintage gear is gaining popularity. I agree that with more interest there becomes more value. They seem to hype the Scott tuner which makes me smile having a Scott 355 tuner pre-amp which seems to be pretty hard to find. And for the record the pre-amp portion has been updated by NOSValves.

Great stuff! The file swapping police are sure to get us now. If they don't hurry we might all run out and buy a stack of these recommended Jazz CDs we are sampling. There's one shop I have in mind that might actually have the vinyl locally. Just when I was scared away from ORNETTE Coleman I find myslelf jamming to "CHRONOLOGY" tonight with Don Cherry's cornet in the right Cornwall and Ornette's alto sax in the left.

Stolling through Borders I found several of the CDs on this list but also a lot of compilations. Would you recommend any of these artists samplers as a decent starting point or just jump right into the recommended albums? Examples: * Ken Burns put out a string of CDs per artist on his box...someone just gave me the box so I have "St. Thomas" for example but there are entire CDs of just one of the artists * "THE DEFINITIVE" Sarah Vaughn...."Sarah Vaughn is for Lovers", etc. * The Definitive or best of SONNY ROLLINS...etc. My gut tells me to stick with the albums--especially the better versions you note.

The next best might be the 1970's with Alnico Tweeters. I have 1977 according to the board. I perceive the more recent II's to be the least popular.

Big news: "High end tube magic for under $1k". Looks like another group got the memo. "the fully hot-rodded Heathkit and Scott were both whipping $5,000 solid state amps... They used Maggie 3.6 for testing. http://www.mapleshaderecords.com/tweaks/tubeamps.php

double post

I used to use Cornwalls and my Carver C500 for our band's PA during college parties....They also worked well for low SPL level HiFi. 6.25 woofers sound pretty big....how about 4.25" mid driver and a tweeter...that seems more typcial these days. Do you like any of these monitors: mbl 321e, ACI Saphire, Onix Ref 1, ProAc Tablette, Sonus Faber Cremona Auditor, B&W Signature 805, etc? What if you took fast musical woofers and stacked them to fill out the sound? After owning Cornwalls I'm trying to determine how best to appreciate monitors.

Finding one of these old consoles for $10 and then spending $200 on having someone update the electronics might be an interesting option vs spending $200 on the popular integrated units and another $200 getting them updated. It would be interesting to hear the difference. I have a Fischer console we still use as a console.

I have found that when sampling new styles I like to start with the most accessible tracks and work my way up to the more challenging pieces. This has been very true in my classical music pursuits where I have a list of recommended cuts starting with "MILD" then moving to "MEDIUM", "MEDIUM HOT", and "HOT" with Shoenberg being an example of "HOT". The concept of "free jazz" and if I can assume that's similar to what I have called "free form Jazz" has always made me run for the exits. I believe my live jazz club experiences with the more improvisational jazz jamming has been one of the reasons I've never really pursued the style further. At the other extreme I probably haven't been too thrilled with "cool grocery store jazz" either. The Sonny Rollins and Mile Davis tracks I'm enjoying have peaked my interest so I'll build up from there. I don't think I'll go out of my way to jump into Ornette Colemen quite yet. I need to pass JAZZ 101 first--I'm a freshman. I'll let the upper classman follow these recommendations. I have enjoyed all the album covers... I like comparing the JOE JACKSON cover to the original.

I've been listening to short samples of the Sonny Rollins albums on CDnow.com. This isn't great hifi but a start.

$20 delivered for these AND the 19 rock lps in the post above. 3 box sets plus the Beethovan Greatest Hits lp The TIME LIFE GREAT MEN OF MUSIC box sets include a nice booklet as does the Music of the World's Great composers which has a torn spine on box. Condition is VG+ and better. I"M TRYING TO MAKE ROOM FOR MORE LPS and these are doubles, etc.

$20 DELIVERED for these rock lps PLUS the classical in the next post. that about 40 disks. 19 albums seen in photo. These are VG+ or better: ELP hits (NrMt), The Tubes, Peter Case (nrMt), Rainmakers, Del Fuegos, Peter Gabriel, Van Morrion - Inarticulate speechof hte heart. The rest are vg the other Van Morrison lp, Tom Petty, Santana, Robin Trower, Steve Miller, etc.