scotbuck Posted July 27, 2005 Share Posted July 27, 2005 Greetings, I know you folks have likely heard this all before from others but..... After some careful toob rolling on my Audio Note OTO SE -- now a mix of Telefunken 12AX7 and Amprex 6922 in the phono stage, Mullard 12AU7 in the line stage and Mullard 12AT7's in the driver stage (a little cleaner and tighter than the specified 12AX7's), and Sovtek EL84M's in the power amp -- I carefully toed in the La Scalas and put them quite close, but not touching, the back wall (getting this right actually proved to be somewhat tricky but highly rewarding in terms of dynamics, slam, and overall "rightness" of sound). Since we're scheduled to record some solo piano at the studio tomorrow, I decided to listen to some piano recordings to refresh my memory as to how a properly recorded piano should sound. Man was I in for a surprise! First off was Vladimir Ashkenazy's London ffrr recording of Chopin etudes. The solo piano had a real-life weight, size, and a woody "thickness" that no other speakers I've owned were able to achieve. And the dynamics not only captured the big, blossoming lows and chiming highs, they also reproduced the low frequencies associated with the high notes (the "plunk" of the hammer on the string) with startling accuracy. Big smile there... Next up was an early pressing of an RCA "Victrola" recording of Gary Grafman and the San Francisco symphony performing the Piano Concerto No. 3 by Prokofieff. Even though it was obvious this was an o-l-d recording, the dynamics were fantastic. At one point a cymbal crash even made me jump, which in turn made me laugh out loud! The performance of both these artists never sounded so good in my home. Truly, the happy mix of a good toob amp and the La Scalas have reintroduced me to the pure, unadulterated joy of an evening of listening to music. Thanks PWK!!! Take care, Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edwinr Posted July 28, 2005 Share Posted July 28, 2005 Thanks for your thoughts, Scott. The Audio Note Oto is a nice little amp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.4knee Posted July 28, 2005 Share Posted July 28, 2005 Excellent post and description of your efforts thanks for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KlipsDude Posted July 28, 2005 Share Posted July 28, 2005 Yeps, very much the Klipsch signature sound that Klipsch is known fors, that is whys we LOVE Klipsch speakers!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotbuck Posted July 29, 2005 Author Share Posted July 29, 2005 Greetings, After reading a number of posts extolling the virtues of the Scott 299B amp, I decided to dust mine off and try her out on the La Scalas. *** WOW!!! *** Whereas the Scott sounded very thin on my 6-ohm kg4's, it sounds *amazing* on the La Scalas -- effectively retiring my Audio Note from La Scala duty. The Audio Note still sounds wonderful, but in comparison to the Scott, it sounds more thoughtful, polite, and well mannered -- like a respectful guest wanting to do the right thing. The Scott, on the other hand, sounds more like a family member with nothing to hide and, consequently, the amp lets its guard down, rolls up its sleeves and *dives* into the music. Very much more of a live sound (I base this statement on my memory of last night's session of live acoustic music both at a bar and in the studio as a reference). Anyway, many thanks to everyone for chatting up the 299B -- otherwise I might never have though to check it out... Take care, Scott EDIT/Postscript: After some more toob rolling, the AN definitely has its place ... and I find that it's more reserved manner is a little more neighbor friendly here in the condo! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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