[scottiebabie]

hey guys, ive been away for abit...new city new job & now new house to be moved into in end of Sept. in anticipation of added space, ive been on the watch on the local buysell (kijiji is big here) for a pair of klipsch heritages esp LaBelles -lov da look- til i came across whats shown below. price was right so i couldnt help myself but dip into the cookie jar for some honey.........
 

 

 

 
freakin thangs are insanely heavy & i seriously huffed & puffed bringing them from the sellers apt to my car & then to the house! dont have them placed anywhere close to optimum as yet as i dont move to the new house til end of Sept but where i have them now, they are seriously rock! very extended & can be even aggressive up top, forward but smooth mids & tight bass though ive heard deeper from others. big full soundstage & super detailed (as good as anything ive heard & even approaches T1/HD800 territory). 
 
due to the old school spring loaded binders, im only using cheap radio shack 18g cords & ive only got sitting on a coupla bricks for the moment. despite all that, im amazed how they sound despite the age. top of cabinet has some fairly bad scratches so i will have to look into restaining or even refinishing. otherwise im pretty stoked!!!

 

[bce22]

My brand new Crites cornwall crossovers and new tweeter horns arrived today.  No time to install until Sunday.  pics and first impressions to follow before the weekend is out.

 

[Skylab]

Very nice, Scottie!!!! The fabled NS-1000. Never heard a pair but would sure like to someday! Congrats. And it's nice to "see" you here!

 

[bce22]

Scottie,
 
Those are MEAN looking.  i want more impressions STAT!

 

[scottiebabie]

now for part deux......got these as a package deal for song & a dance + sellers delivering them to my city on labor day weekend (2weeks from now). photos are from seller & he says they belonged to his grandpa who recently passed. cant wait for a showdown with the Yamis
 

 

[scottiebabie]

Quote:

Very nice, Scottie!!!! The fabled NS-1000. Never heard a pair but would sure like to someday! Congrats. And it's nice to "see" you here!

 
hey Rob, thxs for the welcome...home! hahaha. i figure if im gonna come, best come big!! yaa been hearing about these yamis for the longest but never thought i'd have the opportunity to own a pair. i'd never pay what ppl are asking on ebay but hey, when opportunity arises, how can i but not strike! 

Quote:

Scottie,
 
Those are MEAN looking.  i want more impressions STAT!

 
thxs bud. there are pretty intimidating in the studio monitor kinda way!

 

[Steve Eddy]

now for part deux......got these as a package deal for song & a dance + sellers delivering them to my city on labor day weekend (2weeks from now). photos are from seller & he says they belonged to his grandpa who recently passed. cant wait for a showdown with the Yamis

Puttin' my bet on the Pioneers (I own a pair of those).

se

 

[scottiebabie]

u got it Steve...they are Pioneer CS-99a with a SA-8100 thrown in for good measure. seller says they are mint with the top of the cabinet slightly faded so i hope some wood oil will make it shine! since u have it, how does it sound to u? boys at AK pans them quite a bit but they seem to fetch big bucks on ebay. at the price i got them, i thought its worth it to try em out. tell me wotcha think of them sonically as i love the esthetics.
 
on the subject of sound, i wasnt bowled over at the initial 5mins but after 3hrs of continuous listening (on crappy speaker cables i mite add), im really likin the Yami NS1k. horns sounds amazing on them & they bring a new level of excitement to the table, its almost like a live performance. clarity, speed & micro details are off the charts & while bass seems a tad short at 1st, one realizes after getting into the music that its all there but its just that the NS-1k are so overwhelming in mids & esp highs that the bass is less noticed.
 
listening to them in the dark is a thrilling experience indeed!

 

[Steve Eddy]

Quote:

u got it Steve...they are Pioneer CS-99a with a SA-8100 thrown in for good measure. seller says they are mint with the top of the cabinet slightly faded so i hope some wood oil will make it shine! since u have it, how does it sound to u? boys at AK pans them quite a bit but they seem to fetch big bucks on ebay. at the price i got them, i thought its worth it to try em out. tell me wotcha think of them sonically as i love the esthetics.
 
on the subject of sound, i wasnt bowled over at the initial 5mins but after 3hrs of continuous listening (on crappy speaker cables i mite add), im really likin the Yami NS1k. horns sounds amazing on them & they bring a new level of excitement to the table, its almost like a live performance. clarity, speed & micro details are off the charts & while bass seems a tad short at 1st, one realizes after getting into the music that its all there but its just that the NS-1k are so overwhelming in mids & esp highs that the bass is less noticed.
 
listening to them in the dark is a thrilling experience indeed!

 
I quite like them. They're a good "fun" loudspeaker. Great for crankin' up some rock, funk, or other lively music while you're up out of your seat air guitaring or just moving to the music. But then I'm a bit biased toward them as they were the speakers I got with my first "real" stereo system (paired with an SA-7700 and a turntable whose model number escapes me now) back in '76 shortly after I got my first "real" job. I traded that system for a guitar and amp several years later and soon regretted it. I bought the pair I have now about 5 or 6 years ago and they're now being powered by a not-quite-so-vintage TEAC A-H500 integrated.
 
se

 

[Trav]

Wow NS 1k in the house! One of my all time favs! They look very nice. Good score.

 

[Meewoo]

Quote:

Puttin' my bet on the Pioneers (I own a pair of those).

se

 
Quote:

 
I quite like them. They're a good "fun" loudspeaker.

 
Yeah, I was shocked by your bet. Now "fun" makes sense. I heard CS-88a ans CS-99, I never understand why they fetch such high price. I think they are just like Justin Bieber, I just can't understand. I also tried Hpm-60 and HPm-900, they were considered a little better than CS series. But I still can't like them. Those HF and MF off axle designs just destroy sound image when playing complex music. Although they can reproduce sound almost similar to  the sound of garage band. In one sentence, they are not hi-fi speakers.
 
@scottie,
Wow, you sir can really describe the sound, just amazing!!

 

[scottiebabie]

hahaha thxs guys. the pair of NS-1k arent in the best of condition esthetics wise - top of cabinet has some nasty scratches & paint chips while a coupla edges are chipped. hopefully i fill up some with wood putty & repair it. worse case, i can get it re-veneered. i think the NS-1k would look hot with some burled wood finish 

 
sonically, they seem to be spot on, very revealing of upstream gear. with the wrong amp (& lousy source), i can see how some mite find the NS-1k harsh & screechy. on mine, some recordings can be a bit too "aggressive" but overall, they are damn good even compared to modern audiophile speakers. 40yrs ago, these things are wayyy beyond its time. IMO bad press is cos folks drive em with un-synergistic ancillaries.
 
im guessing this is Yamaha's interpretation of the GIGO principal. but when they get it right, they GET IT RIGHT! to my ears this is Grado PS1000 + Beyer T1 in sonics. the music is so alive & sounds incredible with unplugged albums.

 

[PhoenixG]

I am laughing terribly here. I've gotten familiar with all of those pioneer models you just mentioned (HPM, CS) and I completely agree with your impressions. Apart from the HPM 150's (top 3 of all time), I have to say that the HPM series was fun, but not what I was looking for ( a bit too warm), while the CS series were just not as good (almost like listening to good speakers that have been wrapped in single ply saran wrap), but decent for good energetic loud music. I had someone offer me a free set of the CS-16G's (or a number similar to that) and I didn't want them. I gave them to a friend who is just getting his first vintage rig together.
 
I have high hope for those yamahas!

 

[moodyrn]

I hate to pour water on a drowning horse, but I owned the cs99a for maybe a week. I really wanted a pair based on the looks and apparent build quality. But after reading how much people over at ak hated them, I decided to wait until I could score a pair cheap. I ened up scoring a decent pair for 180.00, a steal compared to ebay prices where I've seen some go for a grand. Wow was I disappointed. The 180.00 I paid was too much. I priced them really cheap just to get rid of them fast. They didn't sound nearly as good as they looked. Though the build was excellent, and they looked really cool. The sound wasn't horrible. I can see somebody putting them in a garage just to play them really loud to rock out. But other than that......
 
 
Wow welcome back Scottie!!  Glad to see back around these parts.

 

[scottiebabie]

Quote:

I hate to pour water on a drowning horse, but I owned the cs99a for maybe a week. I really wanted a pair based on the looks and apparent build quality. But after reading how much people over at ak hated them, I decided to wait until I could score a pair cheap. I ened up scoring a decent pair for 180.00, a steal compared to ebay prices where I've seen some go for a grand. Wow was I disappointed. The 180.00 I paid was too much. I priced them really cheap just to get rid of them fast. They didn't sound nearly as good as they looked. Though the build was excellent, and they looked really cool. The sound wasn't horrible. I can see somebody putting them in a garage just to play them really loud to rock out. But other than that......
 
 
Wow welcome back Scottie!!  Glad to see back around these parts.

thxs for the welcome Moodryn, am glad to be back in these parts too. been away too long but Scotties BACK & hopefully in a big way! lols.
 
yaa theres so much controversy on these CS99a that i dont know which way to turn except to take a gander at them myself. i hope they turn out good as im really diggin the kabuki stylin! if not, then i'll blow em out as i snagged them at a stonkin deal with a SA-8100 included. im sure i can easily get back what i paid.
 
its sunday & i finally found some time to place them NS1ks a bit better -bout 18" from the back wall away from any side walls. ive been listening to "Salsa, Samba & Santana" & the NS1ks are seriously ROCKIN' IT!!! most systems ive listen with this album either makes me crinch or fall into a coma. Santana can be so dynamic, so quick with so much going but the NS1k isnt losing a beat. everything is so... ......ALIVE (for lack of a better word).  
 
but ofcos, im (slightly 

) augmenting the 50hz roll off with one of these....
 

 

 
 
not quite vintage but its all i can some up with in a pinch