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Scott 299A and Forte IIs - How will they sound?


boomac

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Fed Ex delivers here on saturday !! It should of easily made it there what is there problem they put one amp on the wrong truck last week. It was headed to LA and turned around and went back to chicago !

I'll tell you shipping is the biggest headache of this business !

What a bummer

Craig

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Out for the usual Friday Night Fish Fry and guess what the main topic for discussion was? Why do men find it necessary to buy toy after toy after toy. Two of the guys have Harleys so I said, hey what's a turntable compared to a motercycle? Big mistake! Why on earth would you want a turntable when you have a million CDs? Hum, thinking quick I suggested that I might find one at a rummage sale for 5 or 10 bucks. IT worked so guess where I'm going to get the new Scott 299A from? What kind of turntable should I look for at these "rummage sales"?

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Gary, You saw an MMF-7 at a rumage sale? Isn't that the turntable you have Craig?

I listened to some vinyl eariler tonight and I have to say I was less than impressed. Some classical, Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition and an LP by Chicago, (not my favorite). There was considerable surface noise. We actually had a CD of Pictures at an Exhibition and switched back and forth several times. Although the vinyl did seem more full, (room filling)? the surface noises were very obivious. Is this the norm for all vinyl? He has a Benjamin Mirachord, I think.

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I've been enjoying vinyl all weekend on my new MMF-5 which I got 30 days old w/cart for $350. This was a big upgrade from my Denon w/Grado Red.

If you are getting a lot of noise on a decent TT system then the lp is either dirty, worn from play or scratched...maybe all the above. Classical can be a pain with some low sound level recordings which require high volume and much louder pops and surface noise than some of the quiet passages. I've also found what seems like a unscratched clean classical record can have more surface noise than I want and expected. This was with my older consumer grade TT's. I'll try again with my Music Hall.

The only pop/rock record I heard tonight that had distracting noise was my 1st Buddy Holly lp - "Chrippin Crickets" in 'G' condition. But even with constant noise the music was wonderful.

I just love pulling out a stack of lps and reviewing the jackets and sleeves while listening to tracks. I played a couple songs from about 15 lps tonight and had a blast.

I love music from the vinyl era and I like shopping for used lps. I like the memorabilia, collectibility and the sound. In many cases the price of 50cents or $1 is nice, too. Of course I never stopped liking records, I just started liking CDs, too.

Storing a few thousand lps and filing them after play has it's challenges and I do wish I had all the music digitized for jukebox play on a storage system.

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Gary, FINALLY!!! I kept thinking it must be one heck of a neighborhood! The ground work has been laid but I'm not sure about spending a lot on a new turntable. After hearing the contrast last night, (see post above) I'm not too convinced. Maybe the equiptment wasn't the best but this guy is meticulous and he said the record was well taken care of.

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Boomac - I finally got my 299b today. I have to wait until tonight to hook it up though. I'm also looking forward to hearing what my new TT cartridge will do. I got the best Shure had to offer (at a great price thanks again to Craig). I'll give you my opinion on TT vs cartridge as far as bang for the buck. I have a late 70s technics SL1800 DD TT. It's done well over the years but I've never had a really nice cartridge.

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Define what you mean when you say "surface noise." I hate surface noise, which I define (and most of us vinyl guys do) as constant background staticy noise that really gets in the way of enjoying the music. I associate this sort of noise with VERY dirty or worn-out records with groove damage. Once in a while really excessive amounts of static electricity will cause this as well.

The random soft tick or pop is not "surface noise" and those of us who enjoy records seem to have the ability to totally tune this stuff out--a soft tick or pop here or there doesn't bother me at all.

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Gary, I bet you're excited to get home and hook it up. We're all anxious to hear what you think. Like to hear how the new cartridge performs as well.

Allan Songer said:

"The random soft tick or pop is not "surface noise" and those of us who enjoy records seem to have the ability to totally tune this stuff out--a soft tick or pop here or there doesn't bother me at all."

Good to hear Allan. I wouldn't be bothered by "a soft tick or pop here or there" either. What I was hearing must have been true surface noise. It did get in the way of enjoying the music. This guy just moved into the house and there has been a lot of traffic, new carpeting etc. Perhaps all that caused an exessive amount of static electricity. Next time I go over there we will experiment a bit further.

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Boomac - Look at the thread, "those of you with scotts" My cartridge will come today but I love the amp. More than pleasantly suprised. Until I get it upstairs in a better room I'm going to hold off on a detailed review. Suffice it to say however, anyone thinking of going this route should do it! Much richer sound, much better soundstaging and (what was my biggest concern) plenty of smooth heart-thumping bass. It's pretty too. Biggest improvement was vinyl. Listening to all my albums again for the first time.16.gif

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Allan, I took a couple newer LPs over to my friends house and gave them a spin on the turntable. Much better and I did enjoy the sound. Had not heard Grover Washington Jr's "Masterpiece" (13+ minutes) in many years. (not on any CD) There was an occasional tic but otherwise pretty clean and that record has never really been cleaned. I guess his record was either damaged, or a dog because the difference was day and night. With the 299A coming, I've been checking out the turntables.

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The 299b seems to sound better every time I turn it on. I still can't believe the soundstaging (or lack of it all these years with my kenwood). Even in my basement with rafters overhead it is amazing. I'll probably install the new cartridge tonight. Our carpet comes the 18th so I can't move my equipment to a good room for another 2 weeks or so. Boomac - you may be able to give a good review before I can.

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Gary,

Not sure if this is true or not but someone told me open rafters are actual good for the acoustics ?? Something about sound diffusion. but concrete floors and walls are not the greatest from what I understand.

Craig

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----------------

On 6/5/2003 10:02:32 AM NOSValves wrote:

Gary,

Not sure if this is true or not but someone told me open rafters are actual good for the acoustics ?? Something about sound diffusion. but concrete floors and walls are not the greatest from what I understand.

Craig

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Really? I have my speakers sitting on carpet but it's just a 3 foot wide runner. The walls are cinderblock. It definitely sounded better upstairs. The carpet we ordered is about as plush as you can get (Fabrica, Chez). At $11/sq ft it better be! I'm a little worried it may be too thick, especially for the sub.

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Craig said:

"Not sure if this is true or not but someone told me open rafters are actual good for the acoustics ?? Something about sound diffusion. but concrete floors and walls are not the greatest from what I understand."

What if the concrete/cinderblock walls are insulated then covered and the floor is carpeted?

J-Malotky has a set up in his basement, (which is completely finished), and I didn't notice any negative sound characteristics in either 2 channel or HT. I would assume his walls are either block or poured concrete. His ceiling is drywalled.

And, as Gary asked, does the carpet thickness (inc pad) affect the performance of the sub?

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I just opened the Shure v15vxmr and man that is one slick package! Comes with everything under the sun. New hardware, brush, screwdriver and a protractor that fits on the tt all in a nice velvet lined box. The store even sent a demo CD of some local band. Can't hook it up till the wife's out of the basement. Maybe tonight. I hope it sounds as good as it looks. 1.gif

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