First Impressions: Heresy III's with EICO ST-70 Amp

[picky]

Holy Cow! []

"I know there's a live drummer in here somewhere because I can hear him!" - How's THAT for a first impression?

A little background:

As many of you know, I have the honor of being the recipient of a brand new pair of Klipsch Heresy III's that were awarded by Klipsch during a surprise drawing they held near the end of the Klipsch Pilgrimage to Indy last year. The pair arrived at our house in November. Now, those of you who have been here to visit, and many of you who are familiar with our website, know that we live in a very tiny house (approx. 750 sq ft). We have already optomised just about about every square inch of the place. So, when I won the speakers, I was faced with the dillema of where to place them where they would get used and still have sufficent space. I would never sell them out of respect for Klipsch and the honor they bestowed upon me. So, against the wishes of some members out there, I choose to place the pair in our huge, 24' x 28' garage. Many of you familar with our place have been very supportive of my decision, as was the crew at Klipsch. Thank you all for your support.

Our garage is a really nice, custom-designed building that is unattached to our house. It has a cathedral gable that I designed on the front of the building. The main door is over-sized and 8' x 18' . The walls are 8 foot and there is a 36" entrance door to the right of the large garage door. There are no windows. The walls and doors are insulated. I only heat the bulding when I must do a car repair in the winter months. I used to restore vintage muscle cars years ago, so back then the thing was heated nearly every day after I got home from my regular job. Our deck, on the back of our house, is in close proximity to the front of the garage. We spend lots of time out on our deck, and we will be able to clearly hear the Hereseys from there when the big door is up. I also spend an enormous amount of time in the garage during the warmer months. I especially enjoy taking care of my wife's '96 Mustang SVT Cobra (only 21,000 miles) with polishing it, keeping it clean and changing the oil. I also maintain my vehicle as well as my mom's. I am also an avid gardener and I spend many hours in the garage working on projects for the house. I have a very nice collection of hand and power tools and they are used often. So, during the warmer months of the year, my Heresies will be kept company and enjoyed nearly every day. For those who still have a problem with this: You'll just have to get over it.

Champing at the bit:

Because the speakers arrived during the cold part of the year (November), they were unboxed when they arrived to check for damage (there was none) and they were immediately placed back into their boxes for protection and stored off the floor in a safe place ever since. It was very difficult for me to refrain from plugging them into an amp and firing them up. But, I wanted to wait for warmer weather and I could not really afford to buy a proper tube amp in Novemeber due to the close proximity with Christmas and all. So, I waited.

Spring - The perfect time to look for a proper amp:

The end of March arrived and as the mercury began to rise, so did my anticipation of firing-up my new Heresies. So, I began to review the tube amps on Ebay and with the help of Craig (NOS Valves) I found a couple of viable candidates to bid on. I wanted a stereo, integrated tube amp with at least 30 watts of power per channel. I lost my first bid to score a Scott 299-D. My $300 was outbid by $1.10. Rats! But then, I discovered this butt-ugly EICO ST-70 amp that was in decent condition and Craig said despite it's looks that it should sound beautiful (which is what is really important). So, I bid on it and won it for about $185 bucks.

While I was waiting for the amp to arrive from Minnesota, I went to the local Guitar Center and bought a pair of wall speaker brackets made by On-Stage Stands. These are quite sturdy, commecial-grade units that will support speakers weighing up to 100 pounds. The Heresies weigh 44 pounds each. In order to mount the Heresies, I did not want to compromise by making any new holes or modification in them. So, I removed the original floor cradles that come on the speakers and used the 4 original holes in the bottom of each speaker to mount a 3/4" plywood plate that I fashioned to fit each one. To this plate, which I painted black to match the speakers, I attached a female collar bracket made by On-Stage Stands that I also bought at Guitar Center. Each wall bracket was then mounted to a wall stud over my work bench area. Each bracket has a large, 1-1/2" post sticking up that the collar bracket on the speakers slip over. A set screw is then tightened and there is no chance the speaker will ever fall off its perch. Loosening the set screw allows each speaker to be pivoted 360 degrees. I made the plates and mounted the brackets and speakers onto the rear wall of our gararge this past Thursday. The EICO amplifier had arrived last Monday, so I carefully read the owner's manual that came with it and determined the proper way to connect the speakers (8 Ohms) and which RCA jacks to plug my garden-variety Sony CD player into. I chose "Tape 1" and "Tape 2" (high inputs).

Contact!

I double-checked all of my wiring and plugged Eico into the wall outlet. I player first and inserted the cd: 'One foot in the blues' - ZZ Top. I made sure the level on the amp was set to zero and switched on the power. The amp's pliot lamp failed to light, but the tube began to glow (ah, memories!). I press "Play" on the CD player and slowly inched the level control up from "Zero". After a slight crackle, I could hear Bill Gibbons' Gretch "Billy-Bo" guitar snarling at me in unbelievable clarity! I ran the level up to #3 (it goes up to 10) and man, did it ever sound loud and clear. There was some hum, but that disappeared after cycling the volume control pot back-and-forth a couple of times (probably dirty). I had used only 16 gauge wire on the speaker leads for this initial test. I have some 12-gauge, but I am waiting until I have time to run the wires in a proper fashion and then cut them to length. I just use the garden-variety stuff (speaker wire) that I buy at Lowe's or Home Depot for $.49 cents a foot. I played with the Bass control a bit, as I had the Bass and Treble both initially set to "Zero". I found that I liked the sound best withthe Bass on +4 db and the Treble set to "Zero". That could change when I place the 12-gauge wire on. The "Loudness" control was set to "Off". Standing 15 feet away, with the big door closed and one of the two cars backed out of the garage, I heard extremely clean, loud sound from the Heresies. I could have sat there on that stool and listened to them for hours Friday afternoon when I first fired them up. I am so impressed. But, we had a dinner engagement to attend and I had to put my "toys" away for the time being. Just like I noticed on LaScala's, these Heresies tend to make drums sound just like they are in the same room with you. Also, there is a lot mor "air" in guitars whiel they are playing solos. It gave the music a much warmer, "live" sound that I've notice from Klisch Refernce equipment run by SS gear. So far, so good! I can't for it to warm up even more outside so I can spend some hours out there with my new "freinds". I am completely thrilled with the speaker/amplifier combination I have chosen. Thanks to Craig for his expert advice! He'll be getting a call from me sometime soon to schedule the Eico for a "makeover". Thanks to Klipsch for their wonderful gift! Your generousity is overwhelming and greatly apprciated.

Note: I will post a picture of the wall-mounting technique as soon as possible. -Glenn

[lwhaples]

Congrats on your system! Great write up! Don't feel bad about where it is,my system is also

in my shop. Where I spend most of my time when home.Enjoy!

Larry

[picky]

Larry: Thanks a lot for your thoughts. I'll bet you'd agree that it's so easy to "get lost" in what you are doing when you work in your shop, and having high-quality music along for the trip makes the journey even more enjoyable. Heck, maybe we should start a thread for folks to post their WORKSHOP SYSTEMS? Wouldn't that be something? We'd probably see a lot of old tube radios and maybe even some big surprises? []

[3dzapper]

Sounds great Picky!!

I have been thinking that my Heresys will wind up in my garage work shop powered by a Dynaco SCA-35 or Scott 340B when I am able to lift again. Now you have me thinking with your liking for the EICO. I have an ST-40 in the back room Hmmm...........

[colterphoto1]

"my Heresies will be kept company and enjoyed nearly every day. For

those who still have a problem with this: You'll just have to get over

it."

Excellent review Picky. Guys- trust me when he says his place is small. But the compactness of it all insures that he, his wife (and the neighbors) will be able to enjoy the jams not only in the garage, but the beautiful gardens around their home and the Picky Bar-n-Grill immediately outside the garage doors.

Those swivel brackets sound nice, will you leave them loose or perhaps put an arrangement for quick release so that you can swing them from workbench to outdoors orientation? How's the bass response with them off the floor?

I'd suggest maybe having some matching vinyl dust covers made up for them for times when you're doing some sanding or car washing in the garage- wouldn't want to spot them up!

Oh, and again- no apology necessary for their placement- I have two double stacks of LSI's and 7 CW's in my garage and only the LSI's are hooked up. Sounds very nice when I wash the car. In fact, I believe Keith Emerson will be hosting a piano concerto in my driveway just this afternoon!

Michael

[NOSValves]

Picky,

Well great I'm glad it works as is and you can enjoy it. Something special about Heresy's and a vintage integrated amp for sure.

Craig

[chops]

Sounds pretty cool Picky!

I bet your work flow will slow down a little with those Heresies playing in the background. []

[jt1stcav]

Larry: Thanks a lot for your thoughts. I'll bet you'd agree that it's so easy to "get lost" in what you are doing when you work in your shop, and having high-quality music along for the trip makes the journey even more enjoyable. Heck, maybe we should start a thread for folks to post their WORKSHOP SYSTEMS? Wouldn't that be something? We'd probably see a lot of old tube radios and maybe even some big surprises? []

My dad's workshop in CT:

http://www.oldradiomagic.com/

No Klipsch (his '79 Cornwalls are being used in chops' audio system now), but plenty of restored antique radios like a '29 Philco 90 beside his workbench that plays golden oldies from a local AM station he frequents alot!

[J.4knee]

Great post Picky enjoyed it very much. Yeah I too have a vintage integrated amp, Scott 299B I bought from Dylanl and love it. It drives my two-channel version of my set up. Heresy's get some flack here and I never understood that. I have 4 HII's and love them. Heresy's were the first Klipsch I ever heard and have been addicted ever since that first audition. I remember and enjoyed very much the sound of the HIIIs from the pilgrimage last year and you were a very deserving recipient. Glad you are getting to enjoy them.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

R/Jim

[Daddy Dee]

Picky,

Congrats! I'm a fan of the HF-81. I know they make those Heresies sing sweetly!

[SilverSport]

Dee, I have not yet tried the Eico HF-81 on the Heresys ...I gotta do this...they sound great on the K'Horns...Thanks again! Bill

[Daddy Dee]

Bill,

You bet. My pleasure.

[gonzp]

Pickey,

I'm glad that you are finally able to enjoy the H III's. Many happy listening hours to your wife and you.

[edwinr]

Sometimes our garage or workshop is the only place where we can get some quality time to work on our projects, or just veg out. It's a great place to have a quality hi-fi system.

[johnyholiday]

[Cal Blacksmith]

Great post! I'm glad you got to hear them at last! There is nothing wrong with a nice system in the garage, some day I may even have one out in my shop. At the moment I only have a pair of JBL 4311s and an old receiver out there but that building sure could use a pair of Khorns[] as there is about 45,000 cubic feet of room to fill with sweet music[]

I have lived in a small house before, my first house was 600sq feet and not an inch more. Everything must be planned to fit in a space that size.

Enjoy those fantastic speakers!

[ScorpsFan]

Glad to hear your set-up sounds so sweet! Thanks for the great review, sounds like a perfect match of speakers and hardware.

[billyjoe72]

Great review. I wish I had 4 of them.

I am in my garage 90% of the time. It's a detached 2 1/2 car. I have an HK receiver with 4 cerwin vegas ( soon to change that ) and a ksw 200. Love it. My 4 klf20's are in the house and I watch movies in my garage most of the time. Long live the man cave dwellers!

[Petrol]

awesome!!

great review, you really drew me in...

I swear I could hear the music as I read along

[picky]

Thanks all of you for all of the wonderful wishes and thoughts. It's great to hear so many of you enjoy having systems in your garages/workshops, too! I never thought of watching movies out there, too! Hmmm........

Thanks for the nice radio site. Very impressive stuff. I have 2 vintage radios of my own that play perfectly: a 1936 Silvertone (Sears) wooden floor console model with AM/Police band that I bought from the original owner. I also have a 1945 RCA Victor Model 56X3 AM band wooden table radio.

Michael Colter asked how the Bass was from the Heresy IIIs with them being suspended up off the floor. The bottom of each speaker is about 67" from the concrete floor. I found that turning the Bass control to about "+4" seems to add plenty of Bass to the music without making it sound muddy. The Treble has been left at "0" and "Loudness" is set to "Off".

In order to protect both the grill cloth and the speaker finish from dust and anything that might get sprayed around them, I will be making slipcovers for the speakers out of old cotton sheets. I'll have an elastic gathered opening in the back that just slips over and surrounds the whole cabinet. The thin cloth should still allow plenty of sound to penetrate into the room. If I want to do any critical listening, or show them off, I can easily remove the covers. The LAST thing I want to do is get paint or something on these babies!

As for the mounting brackets, the way they are made makes it very easy to pivot the speakers where they sit or lift them up, and off the stands to place them elsewhere on their sides (on a soft cloth) for use. If I must, I can also remove the collars from the bottom in a jiffy so they will stand upright. I've tried to cover all of the bases before I did anything, guys. The best part is: I made no new holes in them, yet they are securely mounted to the wall. A look at the brakcets I bought at Guitar Center is below.....