Painful Reality Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 I received my Crown D-75 three days ago. I tried it and I can't really say it suit my taste. In order to keep my pile of unused amps to a sane level, I'm offering it for sale here at first. If anyone is interested in buying it, let me know by emailing me (I rarely look at my PM). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedball Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 Did you try it on the RF-7's ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSharp Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 I'm curious. What you don't like about the D-75? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 Poor swine... tried to warn you but to no avail. Only thing worse is a BRIDGED D-75. - Loud. - Grain. - Two Dimensional. - Mediocre transparency - Antithesis of quality tube amplification. Either Leo's D-45 is an amazing sample at lower wattage, he hit some motherload synergy, or the ears are the first to go.... heh. I love ole Leo though. Finding it hard to believe he preferred this amp to his own implementation of the Tripath. Can't explain the rest of the forum. Just goes to show you we all hear and perceive things differently, not to mention the different setups and experiences. I had three Crown D-75 in our radio station in '90-'91. I listened to them daily in the production room and on location broadcasts. They were cute little beasts, easy to cart around and nice with the slimline case imitated by Bryston with their little B-60 integrated. Unfortunately, they sounded pedestrian in every speaker combo I hooked it up to, from Studio Monitors to Fried Transmission Line speakers....both in home and on location. Never powered up a horn system, however. I sold every one and purchased B&K ST-202 MOSFET amplifiers, which were an order of magnitude better on all fronts, IMO. Simply no comparison. MY experience with pro gear for home audio has been almost entirely negative besides a few exceptions. kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbflash Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 Kelly, Glad to see your post. I miss them and all the detail. Danny Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Painful Reality Posted October 6, 2005 Author Share Posted October 6, 2005 I'm curious. What you don't like about the D-75? The crispy "edge" envelopping all sounds. Hard to describe but anytime I listen to a SS amp, it's obvious to me that I'm listening to a machine. There seems to be a flurry of details. I feel these superseed the music and it bugs me somewhat. I mean it's crystal clear and all but to a fault where I feel like I'm listening to music through headphones plugged directly in an OTL amp made of KR tubes... It's not a bad amp per se. I just feel that it's not free of the "SS nasties". Can't help it, I'm a tube guy... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Painful Reality Posted October 6, 2005 Author Share Posted October 6, 2005 Poor swine... tried to warn you but to no avail. You did? Nah! ...or did you... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 Just wondering if the D-75 utilizes a switching power supply. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Painful Reality Posted October 6, 2005 Author Share Posted October 6, 2005 Just wondering if the D-75 utilizes a switching power supply. Well, there is an on-off switch... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dragonfyr Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 Some folks just need the distortion![] Sort of like some babies need white or pink noise in the background to fall asleep...[] [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedball Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 I appreciate the info Painful but for my future reference did you get a chance to try it on some 7's? I haven't yet dipped into the realm of tubes or high power pro amps yet and am trying to gather all the info I can.....[8-|] Hey Dragon, I can't figure out which side of the fence youre on regarding liking that particular pro amp or not...[] Now where is Duke hiding? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedball Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 Just wondering if the D-75 utilizes a switching power supply. Well, there is an on-off switch... .....................................[li]......lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Painful Reality Posted October 6, 2005 Author Share Posted October 6, 2005 No I didn't try it with the RF-7. The only Klipsch speakers I have are my 1968 Cornwalls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 Some folks just need the distortion!I forgot what all the smiley faces were like here.... Jeff, I'll go one further and say the amp doesnt even sound good for solid state, in my view. Granted, I havent heard one since 1991 but I disliked it with such a passion, I went out of my way to jump through the hoops to get a State university department to SELL them, which is akin to beating your head with a styrofoam baseball bat. I got a great deal on the B&K ST-202, and although this amp was a pain to move around compared to the slim-line D-75, it sounded an order of magnitude more musical and life-like, far less mechanical, with less grit. I have no idea if they have changed the circuit since then or not. No idea if construction or the sourcing of parts has changed either. I also dont know if less power transistors in the D-45 might help (ie like some other amplifiers I know). I will just say that it was a major sonic disappointment. At home, I tried it straight up and with a Superphon SP-100 Buffered Passive line stage. I listened to it many times at the station and brought it home for a trial to compare. I never got to use the Crown with a tube preamp as mine was at Cary during this time. Ironically, I also got go side by side with a Cary SLA-70 Signature with triode switching. AGain, no contest (no horns at the time, though). Obviously, people are liking the little beast. I had this same discussion in a thread a few years ago when I frequented the place with the same ratio of like to dislike. I was suprised as hell when you pointed me toward the thread from Leo. Also surprised you didnt just try the D-45 just to be sure. In comparison, I found a host of other SS amps better for non horn speakers. Recently, the only SS amps that have impressed me on horns have been Leo's Waltham Integration Tripath and, to a lessor extent, the Monarchy Audio SM-70. Even the ultra cheap Sonic Impact Tripath seemed smoother and more pleasing than the Monarchy Audio if lacking a bit of the slam; then again, I only heard that beast via the battery power supply (as an aside, in my view, the digital tripath amps are HELPED with the addition of a good tube pre in the chain). I'll be interested to hear Leo's comparison to his own Tripath version. When you told me you were buying the D-75, I had to admit, I was shaking my head on that one just wondering what you would say. For your sake, I was hoping for some serious synergy or some sort of change in the circuit since 91. It appears neither came to light.... kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSharp Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 I'm curious. What you don't like about the D-75? The crispy "edge" envelopping all sounds. Hard to describe but anytime I listen to a SS amp, it's obvious to me that I'm listening to a machine. There seems to be a flurry of details. I feel these superseed the music and it bugs me somewhat. I mean it's crystal clear and all but to a fault where I feel like I'm listening to music through headphones plugged directly in an OTL amp made of KR tubes... It's not a bad amp per se. I just feel that it's not free of the "SS nasties". Can't help it, I'm a tube guy... That makes sense I guess. I didn't think my D-75A sounded like much of anything, so if you like an amp that does it's probably a bad choice... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codhead Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 I'm a little curious. If this is a D-75 vs. a D-75A, it could be a fairly old amp. I purchased a recent model D-45, and found it to sound very nice on Corns. None of the midrange "grain" I experienced with the little Teac. Is it possible that components in these amps "age"? You often hear about folks "freshening up" their tube gear, but rarely do you hear of this practice applied to SS amps. I know my D-45 sounded a lot smoother on Corns than my mid 80's Yamaha gear. A look inside one of my Yamahas revealed many carbon resistors with the colored bands burnt beyond recognition, and the phenolic circuit boards not faring much better.Add to this improvements in components and manufacturing technology, and I would not be surprised if there is an audible difference between recent and early versions of these amps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 I thought that someone mentioned to Jeff that the D-45 is way different than the D-75. The forum software is new, doesn't work very well and the smileys are awful! Mobile, you been sailing much? Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSharp Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 I'm a little curious. If this is a D-75 vs. a D-75A, it could be a fairly old amp. I purchased a recent model D-45, and found it to sound very nice on Corns. None of the midrange "grain" I experienced with the little Teac. Is it possible that components in these amps "age"? You often hear about folks "freshening up" their tube gear, but rarely do you hear of this practice applied to SS amps. I know my D-45 sounded a lot smoother on Corns than my mid 80's Yamaha gear. A look inside one of my Yamahas revealed many carbon resistors with the colored bands burnt beyond recognition, and the phenolic circuit boards not faring much better. Add to this improvements in components and manufacturing technology, and I would not be surprised if there is an audible difference between recent and early versions of these amps. I wouldn't worry about the solid state parts or the printed circuit boards, but anywhere there's a resistor, capacitor or a variable resistor you can expect differences over time. Either from aging, or in the case of pots, from corrosion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duke Spinner Posted October 6, 2005 Share Posted October 6, 2005 now don't get pissedoff, M.H............. but if you like Cary gear, there's noooo way yer gonna want to hear Crown ..... what's with this "flurry of detail" thing ..?? you don't like resolution in your audio equipment ..??? Seriously ...... that's exactly why thier used for Playback amps in the Studio ... Detail ..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Painful Reality Posted October 6, 2005 Author Share Posted October 6, 2005 I know my D-45 sounded a lot smoother on Corns than my mid 80's Yamaha gear. A look inside one of my Yamahas revealed many carbon resistors with the colored bands burnt beyond recognition, and the phenolic circuit boards not faring much better. I would guess that the D75 and the D75A are exactly the same thing exept some external details like a strip barrier instead of binding post. This being said, I don't find the Crown to be harsh. I just find all my actual amps much more natural sounding, whatever it might means. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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