My PPX3 6sn7 has arrived!

[Squeek]

But not without drama...

I purchased it from a fellow headfier who rarely posts. When it arrived, the box was in terrible condition. It looked like it was kicked down the street from the post office to my front door. I took photos for insurance purposes, crossed my fingers, and opened the box. Or rather, just enlarged the hole that was already there and pulled the amp through.

When I took it out, the chassis was in pristine condition. It looked showroom good. I think this thing would survive a gunshot without much damage. However, the guts I'm sure are much more delicate.

I plugged in and found no sound coming from the right channel.

I was heartbroken. I waited so long with such high expectations.

I rechecked the connections, reinserted the tubes, nothing. I contacted the seller -VT- and told him my tale of woe. He was totally understanding. Pissed, but understanding. He started the postal insurance claim process.

I called Mikhail for advice. He gave me a quick education on his amps and on tubes themselves and advised me that it was probably a blown tube. He advised me to switch the tubes around to see what happens. Low and behold, there was life in the old girl yet!

I had called my cousin in a panic an hour earlier and asked him to grab his Dad's Tung Sol 6sn7's and rush over. Much to my delight he was here in 20 minutes with the tubes in tow and they work PERFECTLY!

Ahhh...what was initially such dissapointment has become elation. It sounds wonderful! I plan to spend the rest of the day enjoying what I thought was lost.

I just want to point out that the seller -VT- was a total pro. Stand up guy through and through.

If anyone is particularly interested I will review the unit with my current gear...a NAD 541 (soon to be replaced with an ES CD5), Joe Grado UHB IC's and Alessandro MS-Pro.

 

[nanahachi]

sorry to hear your new baby had a rocky start, but i'm glad it all ended well and that the seller was amicable despite the shipping problems.

enjoy the PPX3 and please do post your impressions!

 

[Covenant]

I know how the whole problematic shipping thing goes. My SA5K's are *still* in-transit, and not likely to turn up anytime soon, since my seller accidentally sent them out ground economy mail (from the US) instead of airmail. He was very apologetic, and really went beyond the call of obligation in reimbursing me for the problem, but man i hope these get here safely, especially in light of gsferrari's USPS-destroyed SA5K's not too long ago.

Make sure to post impressions of that amp of yours. The Tung-Sols are supposed to be one of the best driver tubes you can get for the PPX3-6SN7 (i wouldn't use them in all 3 positions, though). Enjoy

 

[Squeek]

Initial impressions are good!

I demoed a few of my favorites such as

Kruder and Dorfmeister - The K & D Sessions
DMB - Crash
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue
Morcheeba - Big Calm
Jack Johnson - On and On

This amp sounds amazing with all above selections, but especially so with acoustic guitar and horns. Fabulous.

This is my first exposure to tube amplification, and I must say so far I am impressed. I think I may have been a tube guy all along. Even with my limited experience, the tube sounds more like orange juice to SS's cold glass of water. It's thick and sweet, as opposed to cold and clean.

Up next is Orff - Carmina Burana, Tool - Lateralis and DJ Shadow - Endtroducing.

More later.

 

[mulveling]

Hey, glad it ended up working out for you. I know what it's like to purchase an expensive amp and have one or both channels dead after initial hookup! Actually, it's happended to me a couple times. Luckily so far it's always turned out to be my interconnects. I have a set of cables with a short, tapered RCA pin that doesn't reach in far enough to make contact in some amps - in other amps it works fine, in others only 1 channel will work! Change the cables and all is well. Always, first check all the things in the amp that can be plugged/unplugged (including tubes and fuses) before assuming the problem is inside the amp. Literally, think outside the box, lol

I also have my first Singlepower amp arriving tomorrow; very excited to hear it!
Edit: Actually, I've already heard it since I've been borrowing the exact same amp from a friend (see sig). Still, it will be nice to hear my own amp. Luckily it looks like I won't have to part with the borrowed amp before mine arrives; 'cause it would be awful painful to go without one (we're talking pain on the level of chewing one's own arm off) now that I've tasted the sound.

 

[Squeek]

Mulveling,

That amp looks awesome! I just checked it out on Mikhails website.

I bought the used PPX3 because I was interested in giving tubes a shot but did not want expensive repercussions if I was not a fan. So far so good!

I will be giving a Raptor a listen soon at the Ottawa mini meet, but I see no reason why I shouldn't contact Mikhail when I want to upgrade.

 

[KenW]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Covenant I know how the whole problematic shipping thing goes. My SA5K's are *still* in-transit, and not likely to turn up anytime soon, since my seller accidentally sent them out ground economy mail (from the US) instead of airmail. He was very apologetic, and really went beyond the call of obligation in reimbursing me for the problem, but man i hope these get here safely, especially in light of gsferrari's USPS-destroyed SA5K's not too long ago. Make sure to post impressions of that amp of yours. The Tung-Sols are supposed to be one of the best driver tubes you can get for the PPX3-6SN7 (i wouldn't use them in all 3 positions, though). Enjoy

Ground economy= Australian for when they drag the box behind the truck and the toss it against your door as the delivery truck speeds by on his way home?

Hope the cans make it safely. Of course, maybe the long trip will help the...er...."break-in". LOL....I kill myself sometimes!

 

[ken36]

Horror story, I react badly to situations like that. Glad it all worked out.

 

[Rob N]

Of course if you get a meastro or SDS-XLR they come in wooden crates