mobile homeless Posted March 1, 2003 Share Posted March 1, 2003 Dale has been busy polishing and getting his amps up to visual snuff. He just got the transformer endbells back from chroming. Excellent Work, Dale! He has the Pantheon 6SN7 SRPP in-house and is ready to see how it all comes together. Hope it goes well. Looks like a million from this end. kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted March 1, 2003 Share Posted March 1, 2003 Are these the butt ugly amps Craig worked on? Man, what a transformation! I think Craig would saw off his soldering hand to get these. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted March 1, 2003 Author Share Posted March 1, 2003 Yep. The ole Mk III. Dale's well on his way to perhaps shuttin' down that big ole rack of SS, all seven feet of it! At least for a bit. kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Mandaville Posted March 1, 2003 Share Posted March 1, 2003 Awesome, Dale! Looks like a real-world class system. (I haven't quite figured out what 'world-class' means, but it's supposed to be really, really good!) The Chrome of the Dynacos and understated elegance and warm wood of the Pantheon look fantastic together. Looking forward to your report, Erik Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dale W Posted March 1, 2003 Share Posted March 1, 2003 Thanx guys, they are starting to take shape now. I was still working on these this afternoon when i snapped a picture for craig and kelly. I replaced all the transformer and driver board machine screws with stainless allen head. The tube sockets i'm working on right now. I have some 6SN7 GTB NOS tubes in transit as i speak, once they arrive the pre-amp can be fired up and coupled to these spit polished dynaco's. Can hardly wait to hear this combination with my k-horns . KELLY : Thanx for putting up the picture , i'm a little busy these days to report in very often. More to come as time permits Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dale W Posted March 2, 2003 Share Posted March 2, 2003 Finished off as much as i could last night, have order'ed some different binding posts ( as per craigs suggestion) from tubes and more. They should be in early next week, i don't have a socket at home with a thin enough side wall to get at the nuts on the bottom of the tube sockets (tight fit). So i'll bring home some tools from work on monday to finish. I've been surffing e-bay for some golden monark and or golden lion kt-88 tubes for the future. ( expensive as hell) Anyone have another source for these tubes ??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Robinson Posted March 2, 2003 Share Posted March 2, 2003 Dale, if you're open to putting a pair of cathode "hats" on this custom job, I've got a pair of Marconi TT22's at Kelly's ... I've never heard them, but Tube World says they sound even better than the GEC's ... They're rare as hen's teeth but require a minor mod to run. Since your amp is just about totally custom, I thought I'd throw that out there as an option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted March 2, 2003 Author Share Posted March 2, 2003 First of all, you might want to consider getting binding posts with metal nuts vs the plastic that have a tendency to strip. I dont see those offered at AES; perhaps I need to look more carefully but I do know that if you are going for a long term solution, it pays to overlook the plastic nuts. If having to do that route, the hard plastic is much better than the soft. I have had a pain putting heavy duty cable via this average plastic posts. They will strip in a matter of time, which defeats the purpose. As for the tubes Chris mentions, this look to be excellent! There are actually five of them here and if you do some online research, you will see these beasts are in demand. They are definitely one of the neatest looking tubes and cosidered a sonic find. See below. kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted March 2, 2003 Share Posted March 2, 2003 Dale, I'm sending some repo men to come get those amps !! What a transformation I am truly impressed ! The binding post you have ordered will work fine with the minimum drilling and modifying to get them in there. If you strip anything on them It sure would surprise me and would most likely be from misuse over tightening besides if it was me I would switch to bananas on my speaker cables anyway I think they make things simple I switch all my cables to bananas here. But you know to some people if it isn't audiophile grade its just not good enough ! Great job I just can't wait till your fire them up ! When changing those tube socket screws make extra sure you get the lugs attached to them securely grounded !! Be very careful under there moving wires around can stress the circuit board so check all connection with a ohm meter after your all done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted March 2, 2003 Author Share Posted March 2, 2003 Craig, is has nothing to do with audiophile grade. IF you USE HEAVY SPEAKER CABLE the plastic nut binding posts CAN and WILL strip. It's not a matter of if more than a matter of when. I have been using binding posts for 20 years and have had all sorts of types of cable. It has to do with mechanical integrity. Listen, the el cheapo plastic nuts DO strip in time, especially if you use heavy duty speaker cable with substantial spades. I have seen it happen on amps AND on speakers. Do some research online. This is almost accepted across the board. And it makes sense when you consider PLASTIC THREADS on a metal rod. Of course, changing wire a lot brings the problem home sooner. And Bananas, while convenient, dont have the best mechanical contact. The simple terminal block is actually better contact than the banana. It is one of my least favorite connectors but is SURELY the easiest. That has it going for them. As stated, the SCREW TERMINAL BLOCK is preferable to some of the cheapo plastic nut binding posts. I never would purchase the plastic option again due to the failure rate. If you read magazine reviews of gear over the years, mainly speakers, you will see them groan at the site of the plastic nuts. My Plastic nuts on my monitors were shot after 9 months while using the Transparent Cable, a cable that is LESS hefty and bulky than Dale's cable. kh Note: There IS a more solid, harder plastic nut that is not as bad. You see this option on the likes of Adcom/B&K/Rotel amps etc. Still, I have even had problems here. All my dedicated amps since the early 80s have had binding posts of one kind or another. The metal nut option is significantly better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted March 2, 2003 Author Share Posted March 2, 2003 Indeed. I am just thinking sweet Yahweh that he didnt put GOLD PLATE on those endbells! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dale W Posted March 2, 2003 Share Posted March 2, 2003 MARK : plating was done free of charge. One of the perks of my job. As you are well aware the end covers " cannot" be taken off without dissconnecting all the wiring. I cheated and took out the stay bolts then the bottom bolts. Gently i pulled the covers out as far as the wires would strech ( about an inch) then i used some very sharp tin snips and cut a path into the bottom hole of the end bells to release the wires thru. Once there back together you cannot see the path i cut as it is on the lower inside bottom edge. The stainless machine allen heads cost $14.95 canadian for 16 for the transformers (mounting) plus the stay bolts and a box 100 real tiny ones for the driver boards and tube sockets. All in all my labour out wieghs any costs for parts etc . I'D MAKE SURE CRAIG DOES NOT KNOW WHERE YOU LIVE OR YOUR MARK III'S MIGHT GO MISSING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT . LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted March 2, 2003 Share Posted March 2, 2003 Mark, I'm knew you were holding back on me !!! You sneaky sly dog you Kelly, I am absolutely sure that the posts could get stripped but again if care is used and your not constantly changing amps they will last a life time !! Bananas work fine mine tighten into the post so hard that I defy you or anyone else to pull them out ! Oh and one more thing is I agree a all metal setup would be better but I haven't found a option made that will easily install in this amp without major construction. This is a reasonable purchase and if it does give problems down the road what have he lost ? Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leok Posted March 2, 2003 Share Posted March 2, 2003 Dale, Its worth having amps look as good as they sound. Nice work. Cathode "hats" .. that would make it look straight out of Fritz Lang's Metropolis. Is there a 2A3 with a "hat?" leok Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted March 2, 2003 Share Posted March 2, 2003 Well I sure have a place for them here my good buddy If you sell those I better be the first person you offer them too !! Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrot Posted March 2, 2003 Share Posted March 2, 2003 Kelly, Congrats on your new name. I hope you're going to give Andy a royalty each time you post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyKubicki Posted March 2, 2003 Share Posted March 2, 2003 I was going to ask about the name LOL! You're a good sport Kelly! Will that be permanent? BTW, what was the meaning behind Mobile Homeless??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrot Posted March 2, 2003 Share Posted March 2, 2003 By the way, Andy, I didn't mean you, but the other Andy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted March 2, 2003 Author Share Posted March 2, 2003 Mobile homeless actually was a band I was a member of in the 80s. We made a lot of racket that was a cross between Dinosaur Jr., Big Black, and Richard Hell and the Voidoids. Indeed. Mobile Homeless has so many meanings, no one could even decide which one fit (no one was associated with a mobile home however). Alas, the idea of a mobile home was painful but adding "less" brought it to roost. I have always liked things that turned the meaning inside out. So here we stand. Of course, I dont know where pompous azz fits in, sufface to say, it will probably be gone in 24 hours...heh. Then again, maybe not. kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyKubicki Posted March 2, 2003 Share Posted March 2, 2003 Yeah Paul, I know from whence it came! Love the idea of paying royalties too! Kelly, you play bass, right? You'll appreciate my new avatar...if you can make it out... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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