[kstaken]

Yeah, it sounds like this SX 950 may have an issue with the headphone out then. It has supposedly been fully gone over, recapped and all that but there is also a lot of noise in the phono section and after it's been on for a few hours I've noticed noise overall so it's definitely not a perfect example. The size of this thing is an issue but maybe I'll keep an eye out for another unit as it does sound very good via the speaker outs. I also tried it with a pair of Maggie MMG speakers, very nice there as well so speaker outs are definitely good.

 

[scottiebabie]

i just noticed that u're from Phoenix & everyone knows that while Google is our friend, heat is the enemy. with the extreme desert heat its not entirely preposterous an assumption for caps & such to have an accelerated deterioration cycle. either that or theres a fishy whiff coming from the shop u visited.
 
if it were me i'd try to have a bit more auditions of the home environment variety before drawing any conclusions

 
ps:FWIW i hear no hiss from any of my vintage gear on any of my headgear xceptin when vol's max'd - totally understandable when gain's >30+ on home amps.

 

[kstaken]

The shop is good, I know the guys well and have been going there for several years. My understanding is that the Pioneer had been there for a while and hadn't been powered on in several months. I gave it back to them today.
 
When I was there the other day they also had a Kenwood KA-9100 that was in need of cleaning/service. When I went in today that was back and ready to be listened to, so I now have that one at home for a few days. The size of it is definitely more manageable. I'll post impressions after I've had a few hours with it.  
 

 

[rgs9200m]

scottiebabie -- here are your Advents:
http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrfull&1306800207&/Advent-Large-Speakers

 

[scottiebabie]

buuuyaaaaa! them be the advents fo sho! looks very minty in the pics with bullnose cabinet n all - mikey likey

. those are the "new" large advents which some say is even better than the originals. thxs bro
 
$300 isnt cheap for them & i'd def need some quality facetime with them so buying online would be outta question for me. a quad pair isnt outta the question if i can find deal on them as i hear these thangs turn the neigborhood into a rock stadium venue when quad stacked! nice!!!
 
back on topic here's some pics of my triple-deck "headamp" station for those that deem a single receiver too large. heh


for
 
for the curious, the bright flashy looking contraption at the bottom is a car booster power pack i adapted to power my mod'd MF V-DAC instead of using the standard walwart. heh! 
 
the top is a mid end technic receiver which i find perfect for the HD650. 2nd down is the pioneer integrated which i find sounds great with iems, pk1s & some other lesser cans. bottom is the 'Sui integrated that sounds best with the hifiman orthos.
 
why get 1 when one can have 3! LOL

 

[Skylab]

Nice stack, there, Scottie! I love the stack look - very vintage in and of itself.

 

[scottiebabie]

thxs Rob - wish the wife shares your view!  everyone who sees it 1st time always does a double or perhaps a triple take for a few secs before the usual What is that!!?? LMAO!
 
a small addon for those with HD650 & considers it dark warm slow veiled or whateva. get ya hands on a vintage technic receiver/integrated & hear it transform. if the hd650 can ever be considered quick(er) bright(er) & bass 'lite(r)', this combo is IT! not quite a Grado but more like a Ultrasone. to my ears atleast. plus the technics seems to bump the upper mids to make the senn sound more intimate. again while not quite onstage grado style, its a 2-3 row now instead of the 10+ row on stock senns. i cant wait til i diy a cryo copper cable for it! goodstuff indeed!
 
btw the tripledeck station set me back a whole 125 smackeroos (not counting gas for pickup & the bucket of contact cleaner) for those that think its an 'expensive' habit. as stated before, im basically done on headamps & will only be scouting for stonkin deals on collectables. unless by a stroke of luck, i become financially independent like skylab! hehe

 

[REB]

Well, the teac bx500 arrived and except for a faint crackle in the volume pot which appears now and then it is in the condition the seller promised me it would be in. That is to say, very good, all the pot meter (alps) are fine, no channel imbalance, the vu meters work and so do the lights. With the muting (20dB) on, the vu meters move up and down quite nicely.
 
This one is a surprise soundwise because it is significantly more transparent, spatious and open than my other vintage gear. If you fiddle a bit with the tone controls, you'll get that typical 70s sound out of it (warm, comforting, but detailed and powerful), but in 'neutral' it is not warm at all. I am getting used to it as we speak, but I have been pleasantly surprised, both by the quality and the signature of the sound. And being somewhat of a cheap skate, by its ridiculous price of 25 euros. It may be a bit too trebly for me in with all the controls on the zero, but that's easily remedied.  I'm inclined to think teac amps are a bit of a sleeper!
 
I am listening through a k500 and a fostex 20rpv2 btw. It drives both of them effortlessly. It is only too trebly with the k500, I just found out. The fostex is much darker by nature.

 

[REB]

And it's got this cool reverse stereo switch (I guess for if you wire the speakers the wrong way?)
 
Playing with it and listening to it, I don't think it's in the same class as the kenwood ka7002, but it's more involving in a way. Maybe because it's a bit 'lighter' than the kenwood. It is certainly less powerfull than the kenwood. Now listening to julie london, who sounds fabulous through the kenwood. The teac definitely has more synergy with the k500, while the kenwood does better with the fostex. Can't keep both amps at the office though...

 

[moodyrn]

It may not be the case with yours, but I thought it was odd when I saw one on my fisher. After trying the headphone out, I noticed the channesl were reversed. So after a investigation I learned the reverse switch was for the headphone out and it was wired reversely intentionally which makes no sense to me. Well, when I changed the resistors out, I corrected it myself and switched the channels on the headphone out. It would be annoying to have to flip a switch every time I plugged in headphones. So you might want to confirm this isn't the case with yours.
 

 

[REB]

Will do, but I haven't hooked up any speakers yet. And I don't think I'm going to fiddle with the insides... I don't trust myself with a soldering iron.
 
Quote:

It may not be the case with yours, but I thought it was odd when I saw one on my fisher. After trying the headphone out, I noticed the channesl were reversed. So after a investigation I learned the reverse switch was for the headphone out and it was wired reversely intentionally which makes no sense to me. Well, when I changed the resistors out, I corrected it myself and switched the channels on the headphone out. It would be annoying to have to flip a switch every time I plugged in headphones. So you might want to confirm this isn't the case with yours.
 

 

 

[InnerSpace]

Quote:

And it's got this cool reverse stereo switch (I guess for if you wire the speakers the wrong way?)
 

Those switches were usually survivors from the birth of stereo twenty years earlier.  Some people had a big mono speaker - perhaps built into a corner - and would buy a second and often non-matching speaker (believe it or not) for the other channel.  The reverse switch allowed them to move basses and tympani from right to left into the bigger speaker for better bass response, if necessary.
 

 

[REB]

Aha, now that makes sense.
 
Quote:

Those switches were usually survivors from the birth of stereo twenty years earlier.  Some people had a big mono speaker - perhaps built into a corner - and would buy a second and often non-matching speaker (believe it or not) for the other channel.  The reverse switch allowed them to move basses and tympani from right to left into the bigger speaker for better bass response, if necessary.
 

 

 

[Kees]

Quote:

I decided to take a gamble on a brand that is only seen as a major brand in australia afaik: TEAC. 

TEAC used to be a very big name in Europe, especially for tape decks. Later on they made a very good CD player too, the VRDS 10. Their top products now sell under the name Esoteric.
 

 

[REB]

I know about their tape decks (the vintage knob has a nice on-line collection), but in terms of amplifiers and other separates they never did as well (saleswise) as the really big names in Europe, did they? Or perhaps I just never paid much attention to the brand. Esoteric seems to be pretty esoteric, btw, if you'll forgive me the pun. It seems to be hard to find.
 
Quote:

TEAC used to be a very big name in Europe, especially for tape decks. Later on they made a very good CD player too, the VRDS 10. Their top products now sell under the name Esoteric.