[moodyrn]

LOL, you're right. I better tone it down a bit. I would hate to see the price reaching the stratosphere like the mc275 did. The 500c is rated by the many over at AK as the best valued amp in existence, so let's keep it that way.

 

[LugBug1]

Think we need a pic to remind us how good it looks too
 

 

[Silent One]

Quote:

 
I find it's performance to be equally impressive whether it's speakers or headphones. But it's not going to have the power out of the headphone jack the 1980 will....not even close. For example, my he6 are running out of the speaker taps. The heaphone out is fairly powerful, and would be great for anything other than something as hard to drive as the he-6. But my w3000 has a completely black background. Now that part isn't surprising since my x100c had a completely quiet background as well. What is surprising is the fact my jh13 also have a black background. 
 
A quick story(you know I like to tell those). I've always been a firm believer the he-6 has no ceiling. I've tried about 15-20 different amps for them and they scale unlike anything I've ever seen. A friend and I thinks the stax 009 performance could be reached with a really high end amp. He bought an audio research vsi60 to go with a new pair of harbeth hl5. He had no intentions of ever pairing it with the he6 long term and bought it exclusively for speaker use since he  was so enameled with his dark star powering his he6. But he did invite me over to give it a try since he didn't have a pigtail  for his he6. Well not only was the combo better, it was on a whole nother level from   the darkstar he-6 combo. The sound stage and imaging was just out  of  this world. The mids were the best I've heard whether we're talking about headphones or speakers. The sound was so pure, nuance and refined, I found myself in a trance. The overall performance was so close to the 009, that we would have had to have both side by side to pick a clear winner. And I'm talking 009s paired with the blue hawaii.
 
I said all of that to say this. The first time I listened to my he6 off the 500c, the first thought that came to mind was..."wow this sounds at least as good as the vsi60". But the only difference was the vsi60 still has the prototypical tube warmth. The 500c does everything it did, but don't sound like a tube amp tonality wise. it's one of the most neutral sounding amps I've listened to whether it's tube or solid state. But still maintain the organic richness, holographic imaging and sound stage some of the best tube amps are known for. I've listened to a lot of high end tube amps for both speakers and headphones, and the 500c takes a back seat to none of them. The only quibble I have is how unforgiving it is. If the recording have any harshness or grain, the 500c isn't going to smooth or gloss over it.(really not a quibble, that's what one should want an amp to do) But if the recording is good, then it will reward you in musically bliss. It is that good.

 
Stories & Pix? We 

 really like this thread! Though, the part about 

 "Bring your own warm cookies & cold milk" could use revising. The M-C275 has been on my list forever; finally sitting atop the queue. Now have to place the '500c' conditionally by its side - 1a, 1b.
 
Saturday, I just ordered the SR-009 & WEE. And in coming months will p/u a pre-owned HE-6 and see how they both do with my vintage SS & vintage tube amps.

 

[kstuart]

Anyone here good at electronics ?

I ask because I downloaded the Service Manual for the Sansui AU-415.
 
I found the schematic, and found the headphone jack.  It is connected directly to the speaker lines right before the speaker selector switch.   The headphone jack has a 220 ohm resistor in series with the Left hot line and another one in series with Right hot line.
 
Right there on the schematic it says hand-written in Draftsman writing:
 
 
SPEAKERS  65W + 65W / 8 ohms
 
PHONES  80mW + 80mW / 8 ohms
 
Both channel Driven at 1000Hz
 
 
80mW seems awfully low, yet the headphone jack can certainly get louder than I can ever use.
 
If I am going to use this with planar magnetic headphones, do I need to switch the 220 ohm resistors for something different ?

 

[MattTCG]

Thanks for the story Moody and thanks for putting another vintage receiver on my must have list. 

 
As I continue to use the sx-1280 with both hp's and speakers, it continues to impress me with the effortless and graceful power. The pairing with the he-4 is simply other worldly. While the he-6 is on a completely different level of existence from the he-4, the 4 is still it's distant cousin and share similar amping requirements and similar ability to scale with better amps. I have decided that I have never given the he-4 enough power and certainly while the lyr would give you some goodness with the he-4, the sx-1280 simply makes it become a new hp. The difference is startling. 
 
The  bass on the he-4 with the sx-1280 gives me an irrepressible smile each time the music goes low and deep. It's just so controlled while not shy at all. It reminds me of the way that thunder sounds after a storm has pushed through and is still strong but a few miles away...visceral, textured, palpable. 
 
I would own the sx-1280 to power the he-4 exclusively. But I almost forgot, it also powers speakers pretty well. 

 I like the fact that with speakers, the sx-1280 seems to be able to conjure all the dynamics from speakers even at soft to soft/medium levels. I don't like to listen loudly with either speakers or hp's but I still want good dynamics. The sx-1280 delivers it easily. 

 

[LugBug1]

and here's me listening to my lowly AU-505 with a pair of K701's plugged in... 

 
Not that I'm complaining I just love this little amp ha 
 
But I've really enjoyed reading, thanks Moody and Matt. I've got all that to look forward too  
 
But first. I need to stop buying bargains.... I'm addicted to them. I have too many low to mid pricers in my house now. There even in my wife's shoe cupboard. On the shelf. Must save.. This is the only way I'm gonna be able to afford something big. I know I can do it. I saved for the HD800's after all... 
 
Must go, I haven't checked the Bay for at least an hour.. Doh! 

 

[PhoenixG]

Quote:

Anyone here good at electronics ?

I ask because I downloaded the Service Manual for the Sansui AU-415.
 
I found the schematic, and found the headphone jack.  It is connected directly to the speaker lines right before the speaker selector switch.   The headphone jack has a 220 ohm resistor in series with the Left hot line and another one in series with Right hot line.
 
Right there on the schematic it says hand-written in Draftsman writing:
 
 
SPEAKERS  65W + 65W / 8 ohms
 
PHONES  80mW + 80mW / 8 ohms
 
Both channel Driven at 1000Hz
 
 
80mW seems awfully low, yet the headphone jack can certainly get louder than I can ever use.
 
If I am going to use this with planar magnetic headphones, do I need to switch the 220 ohm resistors for something different ?

I would see if you like how it is first, but if you do decide to switch them, you'd be safe all the way down to 8 ohm, 130W, resistors. Might need a heat sink at some point.

 

[moodyrn]

Originally Posted by MattTCG View Post

Thanks for the story Moody and thanks for putting another vintage receiver on my must have list.

As I continue to use the sx-1280 with both hp's and speakers, it continues to impress me with the effortless and graceful power. The pairing with the he-4 is simply other worldly. While the he-6 is on a completely different level of existence from the he-4, the 4 is still it's distant cousin and share similar amping requirements and similar ability to scale with better amps. I have decided that I have never given the he-4 enough power and certainly while the lyr would give you some goodness with the he-4, the sx-1280 simply makes it become a new hp. The difference is startling.

The bass on the he-4 with the sx-1280 gives me an irrepressible smile each time the music goes low and deep. It's just so controlled while not shy at all. It reminds me of the way that thunder sounds after a storm has pushed through and is still strong but a few miles away...visceral, textured, palpable.

I would own the sx-1280 to power the he-4 exclusively. But I almost forgot, it also powers speakers pretty well. I like the fact that with speakers, the sx-1280 seems to be able to conjure all the dynamics from speakers even at soft to soft/medium levels. I don't like to listen loudly with either speakers or hp's but I still want good dynamics. The sx-1280 delivers it easily.



Oh yes, I wholeheartedly agree. Not to sell the 1280 short. To me it sounds better than kr9600, sx1010, 2325, 2330b, au11000 just to name a few. The 500c is just special.

 

[kstuart]

These things are clearly are matter of  a) personal taste in sound, b) which speakers or headphones are being used, and c) the individual condition of particular vintage receivers.
 
Why do I say that ?
 
Because last night, I was searching through AudioKarma for more info on the various Pioneer models, and saw more than one person who had similar reactions to Matt.... except... they were going from TOTL Pioneer to Sansui 9090db.   One guy said " I've had some great [TOTL] Pioneer receivers, but I will never sell my 9090db ".
 
But hardly anyone on AudioKarma is using headphones...
 
BTW, there is an overwhelming consensus on AudioKarma that the Pioneer xx50 series sounds better and is better build quality than the xx80 series.

 

[MattTCG]

Quote:

These things are clearly are matter of  a) personal taste in sound, b) which speakers or headphones are being used, and c) the individual condition of particular vintage receivers.
 
Why do I say that ?
 
Because last night, I was searching through AudioKarma for more info on the various Pioneer models, and saw more than one person who had similar reactions to Matt.... except... they were going from TOTL Pioneer to Sansui 9090db.   One guy said " I've had some great [TOTL] Pioneer receivers, but I will never sell my 9090db ".
 
But hardly anyone on AudioKarma is using headphones...
 
BTW, there is an overwhelming consensus on AudioKarma that the Pioneer xx50 series sounds better and is better build quality than the xx80 series.

 
I think that guy you may be quoting is our very own Moody. 

 
So what year was the fisher 500c produced? 

 

[Oregonian]

Quote:

and here's me listening to my lowly AU-505 with a pair of K701's plugged in... 

 
Not that I'm complaining I just love this little amp ha 
 
But I've really enjoyed reading, thanks Moody and Matt. I've got all that to look forward too  
 
But first. I need to stop buying bargains.... I'm addicted to them. I have too many low to mid pricers in my house now. There even in my wife's shoe cupboard. On the shelf. Must save.. This is the only way I'm gonna be able to afford something big. I know I can do it. I saved for the HD800's after all... 
 
Must go, I haven't checked the Bay for at least an hour.. Doh! 

What I rarely see is a Spec 1 / Spec 2 combo getting talked about as far as TOTL. 
 
So I guess I'll bring it back up since that's what I have. 

  It's a 250 watt per channel beast of an amp that you need a forklift to move around the house and feeding into the Spec 1 (for clarity - it is fed by the Spec 1 signal-wise but then you feed the output back into the Spec 1 preamp for the speakers and headphone out) the sound is on such a different level than my lower end vintage stuff.  Not that they are bad - to the contrary, they are what I started with after my Magni got ignored, but the Spec stuff is amazing.
 
My point being - you may want to add a Spec system to your long term goal list to rival the SX-1280/1980 gang.  And if you want/require a receiver, add a TX-9500 and you'll have more shiny aluminum staring you in the face than you ever dreamed of....................
 
I cannot believe how good my D7000's sound out of this stack, and the bass is visceral...................

 

[MattTCG]

I'm getting a little noise when plugging in hp's to the hp jack. Is it safe to give a little squirt of deoxit right into the hp jack?

 

[moodyrn]

 
I think that guy you may be quoting is our very own Moody. 

 
So what year was the fisher 500c produced? 
 

 
 
 
LOL, not this time. He's right though. There are a lot of people who prefer the 9090db to the 1280 over there. And most who have owned or listened to both the 1250 and 1280 do prefer the 1250. That's one of the reasons I was so shocked when I first listened to the 1280. I wasn't expecting it to be that good. So given the impressions comparing the 1250 and 1280, I would really like to own the 1250 next to see if it's really better than the 1280. If it is, then it's really one incredible sounding receiver. But the fact is, the 1250 do have better build quality than the 1280. The 1250 is slightly heavier, bigger caps, have better shielding, but is rated at 25wpc less than the 1280(go figure  So it's definitely on my radar.
 
But I do like my 9090db more than my 1280. But my 9090db has been completely rebuilt internally, and although my 1280 is mint and really looks brand new, I'm sure it could benefit from at least a recap. But the original owner of my 9090db really shelled out the cash on this. I'm not talking premium panasonic caps, but nichicon fine gold caps; and I mean everywhere with audiophile resistors to boot. So it's really an unfair fight in favor of the sansui. 
 
And to add, when you get into the higher end vintage gear,  it really does come down to sound signature preference. So there's no right or wrong answers. Like the fact some prefer the sx1010 over both the 1250 and 1280. I haven't listened to the 1250 unfortunately, but in regards to the 1280, lets just say I disagree.

 

[PhoenixG]

I'm getting a little noise when plugging in hp's to the hp jack. Is it safe to give a little squirt of deoxit right into the hp jack?
 

Yeah, just make sure nothing is powered up or on. Try using a hp plug covered in deoxit or a q-tip to get the deoxit and oxidization off.

 

[LugBug1]

Quote:

What I rarely see is a Spec 1 / Spec 2 combo getting talked about as far as TOTL. 
 
So I guess I'll bring it back up since that's what I have. 

  It's a 250 watt per channel beast of an amp that you need a forklift to move around the house and feeding into the Spec 1 (for clarity - it is fed by the Spec 1 signal-wise but then you feed the output back into the Spec 1 preamp for the speakers and headphone out) the sound is on such a different level than my lower end vintage stuff.  Not that they are bad - to the contrary, they are what I started with after my Magni got ignored, but the Spec stuff is amazing.
 
My point being - you may want to add a Spec system to your long term goal list to rival the SX-1280/1980 gang.  And if you want/require a receiver, add a TX-9500 and you'll have more shiny aluminum staring you in the face than you ever dreamed of....................
 
I cannot believe how good my D7000's sound out of this stack, and the bass is visceral...................

I would love a spec 1/2 combo matey, but the odds of one of them popping up at my neck of the woods are about as good as.. Well, my wife allowing me to use her shoe cupboard as a surplus amp storage unit.