Learn me this, Obiwan-2chan-obi.........

[oldmako]

OK...My ignernce is galactic. Please, cut me some slack and lift me from the bilge of idiocy and mediocrity.

I have a very nice vintage pioneer SA9100 amp (80ish wpc). I also have a pair of (schweeeet) CF3's. I just bought a Phase Linear 400 series I (200ish wpc) amp. It is my goal to ruin my hearing, soothe my auditory soul and crack all the plaster in my domo. If I alienate my homies (neighbors) than so be it.

My query for the educated is as follows; How do I wire this new contraption up? Looks to me as though an RCA goes from the Pioneer "pre-out" to the Phase's inputs and the speaks get connected to the Phase. Correk? If so, why is there a "power in" on the back of the Pioneer? I are confused about this and I don't want to screw it up. Yes, I am a moron, but that is beyond the scope of this thread. Can you help a brother out??

Also, there is a nifty little switch on the back of the Pioneer labled "Normal - (on/off) - Subsonic - Separated. It has a plastic guard which mandates the Normal selection. Whut da hail is that for??

And lastly, why is it against the law to remove the tags from mattresses?

Humbly and in stupidity, OM

[Aufwuchs]

The Pioneer is an integrated amplifier, which is a preamplifier and power amplifier in one unit. The Phase Linear is just a power amplifier. By attaching the "pre-out" on the Pioneer to the Phase Linear, you will be using the Pioneer as a pre-amplifier only. The pre-out on the Pioneer would be connected to the power-in via a pair of jumpers if you wanted to use it as a stand alone unit, without the Phase linear.

[jamesV]

How do I wire this new contraption up? Looks to me as though an RCA goes from the Pioneer "pre-out" to the Phase's inputs and the speaks get connected to the Phase. Correk?

You are correct Mr. Lebowski....

Also, there is a nifty little switch on the back of the Pioneer labled "Normal - (on/off) - Subsonic - Separated. It has a plastic guard which mandates the Normal selection. Whut da hail is that for??

Man, I was reading the manual and still didn't know what it is for. Maybe to early in the morning or I am really dumb.

And lastly, why is it against the law to remove the tags from mattresses?

Funny...

James

[Schu]

Can anyone else elaborate on the pre out scenerio please? I am using a integrated receiver now to that does nhave pre outs... how do I set up my system to use these feature?

[jamesV]

I am using a integrated receiver now to that does nhave pre outs... how do I set up my system to use these feature?

With pre-outs you connection a single RCA/XLR cable to the external amp then connect you speaker wire from the external amp to the speakers.

James

[joessportster]

mr labowski

you need to keep a keen eye / ear on that phase linear amp, they were regarded as FLAME LINEAR back in the day, i have used severl PL pieces in my day with no issues however they do get nice and hot and depending how low your speaks dip they will clip as well (could blow your speak if not cought in time) just a heads up

Joe

[oldmako]

All....thanks for the info. I was pretty sure of how to hook itup, but just wanted some verification.

Joe, How can I recognize clipping? I read a thread here recently which had a sine wave/curve chart and I pretty much became a mouth breather at that time. In just blasting this thing...will clipping be audible and something easily avoided?? I always thought that one could hear it when it started to clip...but having never heard it.....how will I know? Obviously I don't want to harm my speaks while enjoying my Creedence.

I read several reviews about Flame Linear, but that really seems to be an isolated occurence. At least I hope so. I plan on putting it on top of my SA9100/Tuner stack so it's heat will not interfere with the preamp and tuner. It will not be enclosed in a case of any sort so the heat sinks ought to have adequate fresh air for cooling. Will that be OK??

Thanks for the info and tutelage.

Jeffrey Lebowski

[russ69]

The Dude (Labowski),

I had a Pioneer receiver that I used as a preamp with a Phase Linear 400. That was back when both were new. Anyway, I drove my amp hard back in those days, no problem. I had the wooden case for mine, seemed to cool just fine, the whole back is open.

I think the switch is a subsonic filter, I'd leave it at normal, especially with a Phase Linear (I think when you blow them up it's because they go into osolation, the subsonic filter will take some load off the amp).

Your next step is a good pre-amp, it makes a BIG difference.

Thanx, Russ

[oldmako]

Russ69....Many thanks for the input.

I often see nice old Marantz preamps sell on ebay for what seem to be reasonable sums. Would something like this suffice or do I need to open the wallet W-I-D-E. If so, I may have to wait a bit as I am currently living in a van down by the river and have limited means.

Any suggestions which would match up with the Phase appreciated. Thanks for your assistance and knowledge.

[oldtimer]

Relax. It's not against the law for the consumer to remove the tags from mattresses. Details. Life is in the details.

[joessportster]

All....thanks for the info. I was pretty sure of how to hook itup, but just wanted some verification.

Joe, How can I recognize clipping? I read a thread here recently which had a sine wave/curve chart and I pretty much became a mouth breather at that time. In just blasting this thing...will clipping be audible and something easily avoided?? I always thought that one could hear it when it started to clip...but having never heard it.....how will I know? Obviously I don't want to harm my speaks while enjoying my Creedence.

I read several reviews about Flame Linear, but that really seems to be an isolated occurence. At least I hope so. I plan on putting it on top of my SA9100/Tuner stack so it's heat will not interfere with the preamp and tuner. It will not be enclosed in a case of any sort so the heat sinks ought to have adequate fresh air for cooling. Will that be OK??

Thanks for the info and tutelage.

Jeffrey Lebowski

you will know clipping if it happens the sound will become very distorted, the flame linear was actually aquainted more with pro use (and not an isolated event at all, happened so often that most pro users quit using the phase linear and moved to crown ) , if your speakers dip down below 4 ohms your phase will heat up and low enough drops in ohms will cause the amp to clip (ask me how i know !!!!!!, i used my amps with infinity rsb2's for awhile and more than once ran the amps to clipping at medium sound levels, had 2 of the 400's one on each channel) and they would get to hot to touch (this is what led me to klipsch heritage speakers, never had the problem again up to the time i sold the phase gear)

have fun Joe

[oldmako]

<<"you will know clipping if it happens the sound will become very
distorted, the flame linear was actually aquainted more with pro use
(and not an isolated event at all, happened so often that most pro
users quit using the phase linear and moved to crown ) , if your
speakers dip down below 4 ohms your phase will heat up and low enough
drops in ohms will cause the amp to clip">>

OK thanks. I have always been under the impression that when the levels get to the point of clipping that you'd be able to hear it. It's pretty much a reflex to lower the volume as soon as it starts to distort, so hopefully I'll be able to recognize it immediately. Hell, hopefully it will never happen. What I don't understand is your second statement; "speakers dip down below 4 ohms". I thought that an OHM was a level of resistance, and that it was a constant depending on the individual speaker......IOW....a 4 ohm speaker is a 4 and an 8 ohm is an 8...... I remember older gear having switches on the back to preselect the OHM of the speaker in use. Your statement implies that this is variable. What am I missing?

Sorry for my obtuse confusion!

Dude out.

[russ69]

Dude,

The impedance of a loudspeaker is an average value. Klipsch are generally easy to drive. The Phase Linears worked fine until guys like joessportser (sorry) used them for professional sound reinforcement. They were not designed for that, the Crown amps are.

I'd go easy trying to deafen yourself, don't turn the volume knob when you have stopped listening and are just seeing how loud it will go. You'll save a lot of money by not trying to blow things up.

Lastly, a good preamp does work with the Phase Linear amp, you can spend as much as you want, I used a rather exotic (Quintesence) preamp back then and I thought to worked really well, I have used seperates ever since.

Thanx, Russ

[oldmako]

I'm just kiddin on the decibels, although my ears did hurt this year on Jan the first. I got a tad carried away the night before. But I am amazed at how these speakers respond with just a slight increase in volume when it's already fairly loud. The change is dramatic and wonderful. It makes me smile like I got away with something. As far as cranking it, I can't get past about 12:30 to 1300 on the volume knob without my head imploding. Usually a loud setting is about 1030-1100.

I'll drone on using the 9100 as a pre for now and start looking for something to replace it with.

Hey guys many many thanks for the constructive inputs. I am a neophyte in the realm of hi end stereo and obviously have a lot to learn. Training my ears after 30 years of mediocre CC type stuff is proving to be one hell of a lot of fun.