artarama Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Ok, now I know the old saying goees that "opinions are like --------, everyone has one" but I think this crowd has some good ones! Actually I think we have some of both at times, but not often. Here's the deal. My main set up is a C-28 with a Kenwood Basic M2 running two pairs of forte II's and one pair of Lascalla's. All of this equipment is in really good shape but has never been serviced. Everything sounds great though. 99% of what I listen to is vinyl. I love what I have but..... I have a line on a Scott 299a Type II for about $300. I would use this either stand alone, or most likely as the preamp replacing the C-28. My question is this: Do you think the Scott would be an improvement or should I spend the loot starting to refresh everything down the line? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tube fanatic Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Just wondering how you have the speakers connected; do you run all of them simultaneously, or just one pair at a time? Is the Scott restored or not? If not, you need to consider the cost of a full restoration by a competent technician. Personally, I prefer the sound of the 299 over any solid state amp/preamp. It has more than enough power, especially driving the La Scalas. Using the the front end (preamp section) of the 299 will certainly alter the sound of your system. Only your ears can judge if the combination sounds good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artarama Posted August 31, 2010 Author Share Posted August 31, 2010 Just wondering how you have the speakers connected; do you run all of them simultaneously, or just one pair at a time? Is the Scott restored or not? If not, you need to consider the cost of a full restoration by a competent technician. Personally, I prefer the sound of the 299 over any solid state amp/preamp. It has more than enough power, especially driving the La Scalas. Using the the front end (preamp section) of the 299 will certainly alter the sound of your system. Only your ears can judge if the combination sounds good. I have the Forte's wired together as channel A and the Lascalla's as channel B and either run the Lascalla's alone 50% of the time or both channels all speakers 50% of the time. Now that I have the Lascalla's I never run just the Forte's. I should have mentioned I also have a sub connected directly to the C-28. The 299 has been updated by a professional about three years ago. All new tubes and some capacitors. I don't know about the rectifier. The seller say's it is very quiet and everything works as it should. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tube fanatic Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 I'm a bit confused about the wiring of the Fortes (getting old!). Do you have them connected in parallel (i.e. plus to plus and minus to minus, then connected to the speaker A terminals of the M2), or in series (plus to minus with the plus lead of one and the minus lead of the other going to the speaker A terminals)? If the former, the impedance that the amp "sees" when used simultaneously with the La Scalas is quite low. The 299 would have problems using such an arrangement. The series connection of the Fortes would work out better- impedance would be a bit high for the 4 ohm tap, and a bit low for the 8 ohm tap. If the critical caps have been replaced in the 299, the price isn't bad. Will the seller allow you to take it home to try for a few days, just to be sure that it serves your need? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artarama Posted August 31, 2010 Author Share Posted August 31, 2010 I'm a bit confused about the wiring of the Fortes (getting old!). Do you have them connected in parallel (i.e. plus to plus and minus to minus, then connected to the speaker A terminals of the M2), or in series (plus to minus with the plus lead of one and the minus lead of the other going to the speaker A terminals)? If the former, the impedance that the amp "sees" when used simultaneously with the La Scalas is quite low. The 299 would have problems using such an arrangement. The series connection of the Fortes would work out better- impedance would be a bit high for the 4 ohm tap, and a bit low for the 8 ohm tap. If the critical caps have been replaced in the 299, the price isn't bad. Will the seller allow you to take it home to try for a few days, just to be sure that it serves your need? They are wired in series, good call. I had not thought about that. If I use it only as the pre amp, sould the impeadance still be an issue? I doubt the seller will let me do a trial run, but maybe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tube fanatic Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 Speaker impedance will not be an issue if the 299 is used as a preamp since the speakers will not be connected to it. However, because of the design of the 299, you will need to take the signal for driving the M2 from the "recorder out" jacks, and then use the input level controls of the M2 to adjust volume. The volume control of the 299 will not be usable in this application, and must be kept all the way down to avoid potential damage to the output tubes from being driven without a load (you could, of course, put a 4, 8, or 16 ohm/25watt resistor across the appropriate speaker terminals of the 299 to eliminate any concerns there). It's probably not worth using the 299 in that fashion. I'd use it in place of your current equipment and enjoy the true benefits of using such a fine amp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artarama Posted September 1, 2010 Author Share Posted September 1, 2010 Speaker impedance will not be an issue if the 299 is used as a preamp since the speakers will not be connected to it. However, because of the design of the 299, you will need to take the signal for driving the M2 from the "recorder out" jacks, and then use the input level controls of the M2 to adjust volume. The volume control of the 299 will not be usable in this application, and must be kept all the way down to avoid potential damage to the output tubes from being driven without a load (you could, of course, put a 4, 8, or 16 ohm/25watt resistor across the appropriate speaker terminals of the 299 to eliminate any concerns there). It's probably not worth using the 299 in that fashion. I'd use it in place of your current equipment and enjoy the true benefits of using such a fine amp. Thanks Tube for all the insight and advise you really brought to light some very good points. It sounds like I should just enjoy this amp as it is and a way to "get a taste for tubes" if you will. I am sure the resale if needed would be close to the $300 spent. My trouble is I just have such a hard time parting with any nice gear. One final question/clarification. Do you think I can run all speakers at the same time with the Scott or is that working it too hard? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tube fanatic Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 Since you have the Fortes connected in series (16 ohm impedance), when placed in parallel with the 8 ohm La Scalas, you will have an impedance of about 5.3 ohms. As you know, this isn't cast in stone, as speaker impedance varies with frequency. There's no reason why you can't try using all of them with either the 4 or 8 ohm taps of the 299. The slight mismatch will cause some sonic differences- use the tap which gives you more of the sound that you enjoy. The 299 is a great amp, and I'm sure you will enjoy using it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.