New Finds

[thekid]

Great finds there guys!

Daks I have a Dynaco ST-80 amp on the way that I think matched up with that pre-amp. I would be curious to see what you match it up with and what you think of the sound.

Pops- I sent you a PM about the Kenwood. I have been doing alot of tossing and turning lately.....

[thekid]

Most of you know I am a gadget fiend. Through the years that I have enjoyed this hobby (passion, sickness), I have looked for ways to get more out of the music than I already enjoy. My budget allows me to go only so far, so at present I don't own very expensive gear. What I do have, is quite nice and has given me many hours of pleasant listening. Still, the urge to tweak comes up now and then, and I will plunk down a few bucks every now and then to indulge thee beast....

Last month, the Minotaur was placated with the purchase of a Carver C-9 Hologram Generator. I won't try to explain what the thing does exactly--there are plenty of folks who can tell you about crosstalk cancellation--but the result has been a noticeable expansion of the sound stage. Time must be taken to set the speakers up, of course, but having done so, I have been rewarded with a presence in the music that had made my listening more involving than before. The stage is a little wider, the presence is a bit more palpable and the room has just a little more...bloom.*

No doubt there will be detractors, who will point out that such machines introduce artifacts and distortions in the music that are not representative of the material. This is a valid assertion. On the other hand, my ears are not what they used to be, and frankly speaking living where I live, the way I live, I must make the most of what I have. So, dear critics, say what you will; I like what I hear and you don't live here....

*I don't know what that is; I just said it, okay?

Nice pick up Auric!
I had picked up a BSR spatial enhancer awhile back never did anything with it. Yours seems more than a step up from that. Enjoy!

[poppachubby]

Great finds there guys!

Daks I have a Dynaco ST-80 amp on the way that I think matched up with that pre-amp. I would be curious to see what you match it up with and what you think of the sound.

Pops- I sent you a PM about the Kenwood. I have been doing alot of tossing and turning lately.....

Kid I have done esoteric tube pre into esoteric tube amp. I am much more impressed with the SS pre into the SE40.

I would recommend your C2 into the Dynaco, however, this is from a vinyl point of view.

[dakatabg]

Thekid, the amplifier is good and it has a lot of bass. There is no bzzz sound so that is good. I cleaned it good. The only thing that I am not that happy is that it is not powerful at all. It is rated 17W so that is not much but I like how it sounds.

[JoeE SP9]

Most of you know I am a gadget fiend. Through the years that I have enjoyed this hobby (passion, sickness), I have looked for ways to get more out of the music than I already enjoy. My budget allows me to go only so far, so at present I don't own very expensive gear. What I do have, is quite nice and has given me many hours of pleasant listening. Still, the urge to tweak comes up now and then, and I will plunk down a few bucks every now and then to indulge thee beast....

Last month, the Minotaur was placated with the purchase of a Carver C-9 Hologram Generator. I won't try to explain what the thing does exactly--there are plenty of folks who can tell you about crosstalk cancellation--but the result has been a noticeable expansion of the sound stage. Time must be taken to set the speakers up, of course, but having done so, I have been rewarded with a presence in the music that had made my listening more involving than before. The stage is a little wider, the presence is a bit more palpable and the room has just a little more...bloom.*

No doubt there will be detractors, who will point out that such machines introduce artifacts and distortions in the music that are not representative of the material. This is a valid assertion. On the other hand, my ears are not what they used to be, and frankly speaking living where I live, the way I live, I must make the most of what I have. So, dear critics, say what you will; I like what I hear and you don't live here....

*I don't know what that is; I just said it, okay?

Hey AA, It's a bad day at Black Rock when you feel the need to justify using and liking anything. I heard Carver Sonic Holography when it was first introduced. I have the sound sheet that came in an issue of Audio Magazine and the Carver "Test Record". Both of these have musical selections already encoded to give the Sonic Holography effect. I still have (not in use) an Omnisonix 801 Imager (clone holography device) that I had in my system at one time.
If using a Sonic Holography device increases your listening pleasure I'm happy for you. Whatever increases someone's listening pleasure is a good thing. What others think doesn't matter.
I believe the Headroom headphone amplifiers use a variation of the same principal to make headphone listening more pleasurable. The Polk SDA (Stereo Dimensional Array) speaker series does the same thing using extra tweeters, mids and a cable that connects the left and right speakers to each other.

Is the line below something you're trying to hide? If not you really should change the font color.

*I don't know what that is; I just said it, okay?

Gentleman:
A Dynaco SCA-35 is not a preamp. It's an intrgrated.

[dakatabg]

Gentleman:
A Dynaco SCA-35 is not a preamp. It's an intrgrated.

I know it is an amplifier JoeE SP9, I never said it is a preamp.

[Auricauricle]

Congrats on your new addition, Daka....Can't wait to hear more about this piece. Should be a lot of fun....

Joe: Just kidding around and having fun. The comment was aimed at the poo-pooers who like to lob smart-asparagus bombs for the sake of a lilly-livered argument. As far as the line below, well I just like the subtelty....

Hope all is well with the rest of you tumbleweeds and mongoose-wranglers. Good to be back home where the talk is good and the air smells of fresh, crisp bacon!

[02audionoob]

If you guys don't want me to post big pictures just let me know, I use it because it is easier for me so I don't have to use any picture convertors and I think better for you so you can see it better when it is big.

Your pictures are nice. Big is good. I was just thinking the name of the site was funny.

[Mr Peabody]

Dak, the Dynaco was a steal. You need to pair it with a set of Klipsch to achieve some volume from it.

[poppachubby]

Gorgeous amp Dak, I somehow missed that post. How does it sound? Klipsch are good but you may not care for the horns. You will want a speaker with high sesitivity, 90+. The tubes appear to be NOS, also nice.

Let us know! Hook up your Cerwins to start.

[dakatabg]

Well it is a very nice amplifier and I like the sound a lot. It sounds a lot different than all the electronics I have. It doesn't have much power like I said but what can I expect from 17W amp. With the Vegas I have, it has so much bass.

For the price, that is one on a lifetime deal especially everything original and perfectly working. I see one on ebay for around 300 bucks.

[poppachubby]

The power of a tube amp is subtle. The strength will be in the midrange. It will take some getting used to. I would suggest listening to nothing but the Dynaco for 2 or 3 days.

[dakatabg]

I guess I will have to adjust to the new toy. I had before Precision Electronics tube amp and it was a lot more powerful than the Dynaco and the tubes were a lot bigger but I sold it and I knew I didn't have to do that.

I cleaned the amp very well, is there anything else I have to do with the tube amplifier?

[poppachubby]

I cleaned the amp very well, is there anything else I have to do with the tube amplifier?

Not really. Check the pins on the tubes for corrosion, you'll want to clean that. Let it warm up for about 10 minutes before playing anything. And finally, don't leave it turned on and unattended for long periods of time.

If you want to check the bias on the tubes, turn all the lights off so the room is pitch black. Look at the plates on the tubes, they should only glow a little bit of red to no red. If the plates are really bright red, the bias is out and that can be dangerous for the tubes. You may also notice a blue gas in the tubes, that's normal.

[thekid]

Gentleman:
A Dynaco SCA-35 is not a preamp. It's an intrgrated.

My bad I was just reading about Dynaco pre's before responding....

[dakatabg]

Not really. Check the pins on the tubes for corrosion, you'll want to clean that. Let it warm up for about 10 minutes before playing anything. And finally, don't leave it turned on and unattended for long periods of time.

If you want to check the bias on the tubes, turn all the lights off so the room is pitch black. Look at the plates on the tubes, they should only glow a little bit of red to no red. If the plates are really bright red, the bias is out and that can be dangerous for the tubes. You may also notice a blue gas in the tubes, that's normal.

I will do that for sure. What is this bias? I see they get light inside when I turn them on but I really don't understand the bias in the tubes, what is that about? Sorry but I don't know, it is the first close touch to tube amps. Can you explain me?

I will let it stay for 10 mins to see if the power will come, when I tried it I had it on just for 2 mins to test it.

[Mr Peabody]

Dak, here's a short explanation of bias in plain language. You'll have to check the amp's manual for bias instructions. An amp of that age will probably require you to get a voltmeter if you don't already have one. http://www.roccaforteamps.com/tube_bias.htm

[dakatabg]

Thank you Mr. Peabody, I have the manual so I will see check it.

I have 12AX7 tubes and it says this:

Your small-signal types (12AX7, 12AT7, 12AU7, 6EU7, 5879, etc.) are self-biased for optimum performance, and no adjustments are needed.

So they are supposed to be set already?

[Mr Peabody]

Thank you Mr. Peabody, I have the manual so I will see check it.

I have 12AX7 tubes and it says this:

Your small-signal types (12AX7, 12AT7, 12AU7, 6EU7, 5879, etc.) are self-biased for optimum performance, and no adjustments are needed.

So they are supposed to be set already?

Here's a link with some info on your tube compliment. The tubes you listed are Preamp tubes and do not need biased. Your power output tubes are EL84's and will need biasing and it's highly recommended you do so. The article also mentions the sca-35 not having strong bass and the power low. Be sure you are using the 8 ohm speaker terminals. Hooking to the 16 ohm may make the sound even smaller.
http://www.tnt-audio.com/ampli/dynaco-sca35_e.html

You have a winner there and at a give away price. A lot of good info on your amp over the Net.

[dakatabg]

Thank you again, now it is getting more clear. I read a lot online. That is a hard process.
Thank you again guys and Mr. Peabody!

[Mr Peabody]

Thank you again, now it is getting more clear. I read a lot online. That is a hard process.
Thank you again guys and Mr. Peabody!

You are welcome and thankfully biasing isn't something you have to do a lot. I find my tubes don't warm up enough to really open up for about 30 minutes or so. Once you bias, you really should set up the 35 and sit back for a long listening session to see what you think. Be sure to play some music with vocals. Once you begin to listen and get lost in the music and suddenly get startled by the feeling of presence from the singer you may not go back to solid state

[dakatabg]

I even find a very good video on youtube. Here is in case someone else is curious. It looks easy you just need a voltmeter...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRg-eT6JKrk

[poppachubby]

I even find a very good video on youtube. Here is in case someone else is curious. It looks easy you just need a voltmeter...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRg-eT6JKrk

Yes easy, but please be 100% of what you're doing. Thanks Peabody for chiming in. I got distracted around the house last night.

Dak I would actually recommend you find a tube tech in your area and pay him a one time fee to show you around the amp. The old mom and pop radio shops usually have a tube pro from the old days still hangin around.

Every amp is a bit different, but they all contain voltage that can literally KILL you. You will need a voltmeter that can read DC and also a small PLASTIC screwdriver. Check the pots, most require a slotted head.

Peabody is correct, biasing is only needed once to MAYBE twice a year.

I watched that video. It's not bad but I want to point out a couple of things. First of all he's using a Biasmaster, which is a special device for tubes. On my Golden Tube for example, I have to remove the shield, flip it upside down and inside are the pots to connect my voltmeter to. I couldn't use a Biasmaster if I wanted to, it would be even more of a PITA.

Also, check your manual for bias numbers. They all vary depending on which tube you're using.

Aside from that he's right, ALWAYS keep a load on the amp while biasing.

[JoeE SP9]

I know it is an amplifier JoeE SP9, I never said it is a preamp.

That was for thekid. He mentioned matching it with a Stereo 80.

[dakatabg]

Also, check your manual for bias numbers. They all vary depending on which tube you're using.

It has 12AX7 tubes and I just read the manual book and they don't mention anything for biasing. That is strange. I will check to find around a place where they do that and I will get the amplifier checked there! Thank you guys for the big big help! Soon I will be helping people like you are helping me know for the tube amps!