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Horswispr

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  1. How did you find my ancient review? Heh. I haven't heard Dynaco A-25XLs since I wrote that (I still have a pair of A-25s here), but I did refinish a pair of A-40XLs that sounded pretty darned good to me. These days, I'm mostly switching between KLH 6s (recapped), Marantz Imperial 6s (not recapped), and DCM TIme Windows (not recapped). I'm surprised by how good the Marantz Imperial 6s are, given that they didn't get much press "back in the day."
  2. Keep us posted. I just sold a pair of AR-3as but am keeping my Time Windows. I find the Time Window's bass to be pretty good to about 40 hz, but generrally use a subwoofer with my Time Windows. Among my other favorite speakers here are KLH 6s and Marantz Imperial 6s.
  3. It's five years later now, and I'm still using my Marantz Imperial 6s as my "vintage references." I never did redo the caps (scared I'd screw things up), but I don't really hear a need to redo anything. They sound smooth and balanced, and I can listen to them for a long time without fatigue (my friends agree). I finally brought the NLAs home, and am listening right now. They sound incredibly clean and have the tightest (and possibly deepest) bass of any of my speakers (including older AR-3as), so I will keep them. But they still sound a tad bright to me, so I turn the treble control down to 9 o'clock on my NAD 1020 preamplifier when I listen to them.
  4. I finally hooked up my Dynaco Stereo 120 and it sounds fine to me, not THAT different from my conrad-johnson MF-80. No, it doesn't sound tubey, but it doesn't sound hard or bright as some writers led me to believe it would. Admittedly, this 120 has some upgrades, but I think they're just new capacitors. The previous owner told me that no "mods" were done that would make it sound different from an all-new 120. By the way, my tubed Fisher X-100B sounds best with my Marantz Imperial 6s.The Dynaco Stereo 120 sounds best with my DCM Time Windows. Other speakers I've been playing with lately include Dynaco A-25s (always), KLH 6s, and AR-2axs.
  5. I finally got my review of the Marantz Imperial 6 posted. I'm listening to them now and still like the sound. I haven't recapped them yet. I'll try to attach a picture or two. I made some frames and screens for them. I used AR-2ax style material from Jo-ann's, as that's my default. The wood for the frames came from Home Depot. http://www.epinions.com/review/imperial-6-speaker/content_607406034564
  6. Dean,There are lots of Dynacos floating around the Bay Area, and I've sometimes been given empty cabinets from parted out Dynacos. They're my favorite speakers to "project" because they're so simple, as you say. Have you tried putting out a "Wanted" on Craigslist? Never know what folks have in their garages. I'll keep your NLA thoughts in mind. The tweeters sounded clean in the ones I've had, just a little bright on some music. Kent, thanks for the words of caution about hot clue on capacitors. I go by "just a dab will do" and I've gotten away with it so far, but I'll be careful or look for alternatives. In KLHs I just float that last 8.2 mfd capacitor in the fiberglass nastiness. --Colin
  7. Dean, Like you, I'm pleasantly surprised by how good these older speakers can sound, even compared to some good speakers from later eras. I recently had some KLH 5 here (for a cosmetic restoration) and wrote a review of them on Epinions, to which I'll post a link below. Let me know if you think I captured them well. I really enjoyed them; I found them easy to listen to over long periods of time. I'm also doing the "mix and match" thing just to see what I come up with. Right now, my most successful project is just a pair of Dynaco A-25s with the Dayton soft dome tweeters. The sound is a little mellower than with the stock SEAS tweeters, and my friends really like them, though I prefer them on some music and the stock Dynacos on other music. One thing I'd like to do is to "tame" the slightly bright trebles I perceive in the New Large Advents. Other than that (the bright trebles on some music), I really like NLAs. They sound dynamic and spacious to me. I tried a lower capacitor value, trying to introduce a slight "BBC dip," but it just made the trebles stand out more. I suppose I could try 4 or 6 ohm resistors on the way to the tweeters, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. My NLAs are at a friend's house right now. Another simple project that worked well was with some empty KLH (I think they're called 26) cabinets I came up with. They're basically KLH 24s with RCA jacks, so I went with generic 8" woofers and SEAS Dynaco tweeters. Very nice! I'm using one as an extension speaker with my KLH Model 21 radio in the kitchen and it sounds great. I'll probably hang onto these Marantz Imperial 6s, as I really like the large sound they put out. Also, they're efficient or sensitive (whichever is the proper term), and so work well with my 17 wpc Fisher X-100B amplifier. Best, Colin http://www.epinions.com/review/model-5-speaker/content_605933506180
  8. Thanks for your thorough response, Dean! I have some Dayton 5% 6.8 mfd caps here, so that's probably what I'll use when I go ahead and replace the caps. Interesting that the NLA tweeter sounds better than the original, but I'll probably just stick with the original. I can put some electrical tape around the 6.8 to make it fit into the clasp--it'll be nice not to have to break out the hot glue gun to secure the caps in the enclosure. Any thoughts on what the KLH 6s would sound like with Parts Express's Dayton soft dome tweeters (or the phenolic tweeters)? I noticed that the Marantz Imperial 6s sounded smoother on massed vocals than my KLH 6s (already recapped with Dayton 8.2s), and it got me to wondering what tweeters would be smoother than the original KLH tweeter. Ultimately, I'll leave my KLH 6s "stock" as well, ecept for the capacitors, but it's fun to experiment. Thanks again, Colin .
  9. I'm refinishing a pair of Marantz Imperial 6s, the "lost child" of Marantz's line in the 1970s. I actually do like the sound. It's a tad thick, but very musical, and especially good on massed chorus and female vocals. I'm wondering whether I should replace the capacitors just as a matter of course. I don't hear anything particularly wrong, but it's something I always consider. I've read that the 6s used a single 7 mfd capacitor, and I assume that's the unmarked cardboard thing in a little clasp. Anyone been inside these guys and have any comments? I like the fact that they used a post between the front and the back. Any comments about the sound? They're efficient and so are a good match with my little 17 wpc Fisher X-100B. I'll post another picture once I have them oiled up. I think they're going to look nice.
  10. My Time Windows are the earlier (pre-1A) version. I heard the 1A is stereo stores back in the day, but I haven't A-Bed them with my earlier version. I'd imagine they're pretty similar. Mine have Philips tweeters. The later ones MAY have had Vifa tweeters. I'm not sure.
  11. My AR-3as will be back home soon. I'm listening to the Time Windows as I write. I'll do an A-B when I have both here. I think the Time Windows are more transparent and tonally neutral, while the AR-3as are a bit warmer and bassier, but I'll see if I can confirm this when the ARs come home. I do know that I really like both and could live with either for a long time.
  12. Overkill just means more money spent for no improvement. Nothing is hurt. A resistor in place of a capacitor could mean too much signal to the tweeter at the bottom end of its range (in the midrange) and subdued highs. If the tweeters aren't blown, the speakers should sound fine when you replace those resistors with Dayton 5% 5.1 mfd capacitors. I think both Madisound and Parts Express have them for about $4 each.
  13. I'm not an engineer, but my hunch is that changing wires and using super-high-end capacitors in Dynaco A-25s is overkill. It shouldn't hurt anything, but it's not worth the additional cost. I've read that with very short runs of wire, you don't need really thick or fancy wires to get decent signal through. And I've heard improvements in Dynaco A-25s when I replaced the capacitors with $4 Daytons or $6 Solens (5.1s, usually), but I'm only 100% sure I heard improvements when the original capacitors were getting tired (reduced output or obviously changed crossover frequency). I have one pair of stock A-25s that sounds just as good as another pair I re-capped with Daytons. The A-25XLs use different drivers. The tweeters look different while the woofers look the same, but are 3db more efficient (in the XL). One some blogs I've read that they're not as smooth as the originals (the woofers, I mean). I've never directly compared the two woofers, but I like the overall sound of A-25s over A-25XLs, though I think the XLs are more extended in the highs. Changing wiring and capacitors will NOT turn the A-25s into A-25XLs.
  14. I recently had a pair of A-25XLs pass through here. If the pair I had here was representative, I prefer the sound of regular A-25s. Here's my write-up on the XLs. http://www.epinions.com/review/Dynaco_A_25XL_epi/content_554942697092 I'll put a link to my review of the originals in the XL write-up if I can.
  15. Here's my review of the original DCM Time WIndows (comments, please!). http://www.epinions.com/review/DCM_Time_Windows_epi/content_511587618436 I just posted a review of the Time Frame TF-250s but don't think they're nearly as good. http://www.epinions.com/review/DCM_Time_Frame_TF_250_epi/content_575798742660 Hopefully I'll get to hear some of the larger Time Frames at some point.
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