SEVENTIES STEREO

Just arrived. B&W DM2s!

2012-01-26T15:36:00.008-05:00

Updated: These speakers are awesome.

This is going to be fun!
Here's an excellent description and review from Gramophone Magazine in 1972 when the DM2s were released.

This is perfect.

2012-01-25T19:13:00.001-05:00

From the White Rock Blues Society website:

Craigslist Ad:

We are a small & casual restaurant in downtown Vancouver and we are looking for solo musicians to play in our restaurant to promote their work and sell their CD. This is not a daily job, but only for special events which will eventually turn into a nightly event if we get positive response. More Jazz, Rock, & smooth type music, around the world and mixed cultural music. Are you interested to promote your work? Please reply back ASAP.

A Musician's Reply:

Happy New Year! I am a musician with a big house looking for a restaurateur to come to my house to promote his/her restaurant by making dinner for me and my friends. This is not a daily job, but only for special events which will eventually turn into a nightly event if we get a positive response. More fine dining & exotic meals and mixed Ethnic Fusion cuisine.
Are you interested to promote your restaurant? Please reply back ASAP.

Friday Update.

2012-01-20T17:54:00.000-05:00

Happy Friday. I'm sorry that I haven't updated the blog since Tuesday. One of you, between when I went to sleep and when I woke up, was the 450,000th viewer of Seventies Stereo. The blog has been averaging over a thousand hits a day for a couple of months now, with a peak of 1,461 earlier this month. Thank you for visiting.

2012-01-17T21:27:00.002-05:00

2012-01-15T10:28:00.001-05:00

Just arrived. Another cool amplifier.

2012-01-14T18:44:00.009-05:00

I know, I said I had my go to amp. I planned to just concentrate on speakers, which for me is the really fun part. The Rega P1 with Grado Black phono cartridge is working nicely me right now, and I've been enjoying more vinyl lately.

I've aquired a brand new, never used, high output moving coil cartridge, manufactured in Japan in 1975, and highly, highly recommended by someone I trust & respect. He could've settled on any cartridge at almost any price (and has owned some amazing ones), but bought 2 of them. I'll tell you about it when it's installed.

Anyways, when I read about this beautiful amp on this Vintage Knob page, I was really anxious. It seems positioned as competitor to the wonderful dual mono Sansui AU-717.

As for the Technics, I'll tell you more when I get it sorted out...it was really dirty when I got it (layer of pet hair all over the interior), but has cleaned up beautifully. I had it sounding strong and transparent through both channels, with digital and vinyl, but the direct/tone control switch is messed up. It played at half volume direct, but sounded amazing with tone controls in, now not playing either way. I'm pretty confident that one switch is my whole problem, and will investigate further soon. This is am amazingly well built amp, with huge potential.

My Marantz 1152DC is back.

2012-01-12T15:17:00.004-05:00

And it sounds fantastic again.

Sansui SF-2 photos.

2012-01-11T17:30:00.007-05:00

Updated: They sound pretty nice. They are clearly vintage speakers, a little soft in the high end, tonally warm and musical. Their sins (and ALL speakers have them) are of omission. They don't image like conventional speakers, but produce a diffuse soundfield that fills the room with music, but won't tell you who's where on 'stage'.

If their style appeals to you (and it's been growing on me...I think they're funky), you should consider them. If you're thinking about KLH, AR, Rectilinear, Advent or speakers of similar vintage, you may find them ideal.

Cerwin Vega 24 pictures.

2012-01-10T21:25:00.002-05:00

I refoamed these last night. They really are a californian Sound Dynamics 100s (port in rear).

Realistic Minimus 11s

2012-01-10T20:57:00.001-05:00

These arrived yesterday. They are about three times the volume of the Minimus 7, and much better, to my ears.

Numbers.

2012-01-10T17:52:00.001-05:00

Last month was the second in a row in which Seventies Stereo averaged over a thousand hits a day. So far this month, the average is over twelve hundred (the high so far has been has been 1,461)! Thank you. I've been swamped by my day job these past two weeks, and hope the updates can/will become more frequent again soon.

Just arrived. Cerwin Vega 24. Realistic Minimus 11.

2012-01-10T08:41:00.001-05:00

Pictures soon.
Updated. First picture.

Nineties Mission 760i speakers with seventies look wood.

2012-01-10T08:39:00.000-05:00

Sunday Update.

2012-01-08T19:56:00.004-05:00

A few bunch of speakers have left to excellent new homes in the past couple of weeks.

The Yamaha NS690s left for the north of the city on New Years Eve. They are fantastic speakers, among the best I've had here.

The latest JBL L26s left with the Avid 100s for a good home on Friday, to be driven by the Marantz 1060.

Update: I never told you about the Avids. Avid was a Rhode Island based speaker manufacturer in the 70s. It made products in the vein of, and competetive with Advent, AR, Rectilinear, EPI etc. The 100 is a well built 2 way, 8 inch, sealed system, with rubber woofer surrounds and phenolic ring tweeters. They sounded very nice, not as sweet and extended in the highs as EPI 100s, but nice.

I've been really enjoying the Sansui AU-888 (the Marantz 1152DC will be back in a day), driving the Mission 770 Freedom Vs or JBL L16s.

2012-01-02T17:36:00.001-05:00

2012-01-02T09:04:00.001-05:00

2011-12-27T08:11:00.003-05:00

Mission 770 Freedom V photos.

2011-12-26T14:23:00.004-05:00

Update: I love these speakers!

They were stained an ugly greenish gray (an original 80s offering) when I got them. I don't like taking before pictures, so the top picture is a Photoshopped 'before'. I spent a few hours stripping them down to their natural colour and sanding. They're not perfect, but much better.

2011-12-25T16:19:00.007-05:00

Wacky vintage audio furniture. The speakers just keep coming at Seventies Stereo!

Where I'll be tonight.

2011-12-23T17:24:00.000-05:00

Friday Update.

2011-12-23T14:29:00.000-05:00

I'm going out to get stripper for the ugly, amazing sounding Mission 770 Freedom Vs. I hope to have them ready to show you tomorrow.

Marantz 1060.

2011-12-23T13:24:00.001-05:00

Sansui AU-888 integrated amp photos.

2011-12-23T11:59:00.002-05:00

This is a spectacular sounding amp, rated at a crazy conservative 45 watts/channel, with extraordinary Sansui construction quality (the solid aluminum knobs are attached with double set screws!), and attention to detail (like engraved typography).

Thursday Update.

2011-12-22T19:19:00.003-05:00

I hope no one is too frantic or freaked out about the impending holidays. Remember that vintage audio equipment is always an appropriate gift.

I freaked a little myself at the prospect of not having my Marantz 1152DC over the holidays, and so picked up two other amplifiers today to tide me over. I have a Marantz 1060 (with wood case), and a Sansui AU-888 (also in wood). I'm listening to the Marantz now, (which sounds great), and will be cleaning the Sansui and refinishing its wood case, and I hope, photographing both tomorrow.

Just arrived. Mission 770 Freedom V.

2011-12-21T18:03:00.002-05:00

I had a pair of these in August, 2008, when I was starting this blog. They hada completely smashed corner, and I made them my first veneer project. That pair sounded great, but the tweeter diaphragms showed some deformation. The drivers in the pair I brought home today are in perfect shape. The wood veneer cabinets are finished in a grey/greenish stain, very mid 80s, and quite awful. I'll be stripping them over the holidays.

I've spent a couple of hours listening, and am pretty happy (I didn't have as much time as I would've liked with the last pair). I've been using a Kenwood KA-3500 40 watt/channel integrated amp (my wonderful sounding, powerful Marantz 1152DC started to distort and go weak in one channel after 3 blissful days...I hope to have it back where it belongs this week), which I find a little bright, and I know these speakers can sound much better than I've heard so far.

I bought a pair of little Mission 760i speakers last week that I didn't mention, because they're from the early 90s. They have 5 inch woofers and Mission branded Vifa tweeters (like in the last pair of 737Rs that I liked so much), and I like them so much that I ignored the Yamaha NS-690s and other awesome speakers for a couple of days, and just basked in their lively musicality.

If I was in Austin, Texas...

2011-12-17T13:23:00.001-05:00

I'd live at Whetstone Audio.

Just arrived. Staying for a while. Marantz 1152DC.

2011-12-17T07:31:00.012-05:00

The top photo is the new one, taken this morning. The other 2 photos are from 2009.

I've had a run of bad luck with electronics lately. The Technics SA-5350 has a low level hum. The Technics SU-C04 DC integrated blew a channel while I was listening. My fantastic Sansui AU-9900 is in the closet. It needs output transistors, and probably recapping (it's always had lower than average gain for it's size and power). I've been thinking for a while that it makes sense for me to have one powerful 'go to'amp that can drive anything, stop worrying about electronics, and enjoy speakers and music even more.

The Sansui AU-9900 may become that amp for me, but yesterday I had the opportunity to pick up a beautiful Marantz 1152DC integrated amp, rated at a conservative 76 watts/channel into 8 ohms and 95/channel into 4 ohms. It looks like this one I had in 2009, but is in even better shape, with only a small nick on one corner keeping it from perfection. It left quickly last time, but it won't happen this time. It's driving the Yamaha NS-690s beautifully, with more authority than the smaller amps I've been using lately, and is just what I was looking for (for now).

Sony APM-22ES Photos.

2011-12-11T12:40:00.002-05:00

Just arrived. Sony APM-22ES speakers. Square drivers!

2011-12-10T17:00:00.010-05:00

They look just like these on The Vintage Knob, and appear almost new.I will listen for a while (currently with an NAD 3140 integrated amp that arrived today too), and weigh in with my opinion of the Accurate Piston Motion concept. Here is a site dedicated to the APM technology. The japanese translation is funny, but I think I understand the designers intentions. Pictures tomorrow.

Update 2 hours later: The speakers sound great. I have to share the Google translation of the explanation of the APM technology, from the Sony APM home page:

To clear all the conditions of APM speakers speaker audio in the digital age

1 [sound] Komoranai planar: the conventional cone-type speaker, leading to effects of air = cavity resonance structure in the shape of megaphone rolled paper. APM speakers, expelled the disturbance of the frequency characteristic cavity effectively cut off the source of a flat diaphragm. Eliminated the sound booming.

2 [square] there is no distinctive sound: The speaker diaphragm of the APM, light and durable honeycomb sandwich structures are used in the body of an aircraft or bullet train. Yelling diaphragm material sandwiched between two skins of hexagonal honeycomb cores, 500 to 1,000 times the flexural rigidity of the conventional cone-type (comparison), the degree of variation in actual operating conditions is 1 / 20 to 1 / 30 (comparison) contained within a. Thus, the very slight vibration-toxic split. Moreover, adopting a simple rectangular patterns of vibration compared to the split round, effectively canceling vibration split. There is no distinctive sound.

3 sounds fuzzy four-point driving: A rectangular diaphragm, the turning point of oscillation in position dictated split. You preach to drive the point where you can eliminate the vibration of a specific mode split. In fact, the APM Ufua speakers, a point driven four-point milestone is concentrated in low-order mode of vibration division. Greatly expanded the range piston Nick Castle, motion, sound and produce clear and Boyakezu.

4 [sound]濁Ranai DDSD: Ufua of APM speakers, DDSD to directly drive the front and rear skins of the diaphragm and (direct drive dual surface) technology. This Tainamikku濁Rasezu digital sound source and play to clear.

Over 400,000 served since June 2010!

2011-12-06T21:57:00.000-05:00

Thank you again for checking out Seventies Stereo.

2011-12-04T00:08:00.001-05:00

Last year I said I wouldn't post so many covers.

2011-12-03T23:54:00.002-05:00

And I kept my word for a long, long time. I'll explain myself soon.
Update:
Sue me. I want you to know what I've been enjoying.

2011-12-03T23:43:00.001-05:00

2011-12-01T22:56:00.002-05:00

2011-12-01T22:14:00.003-05:00

A cd I picked up at a second hand store for $2 that just kicks.

Taj Mahal

2011-11-28T18:47:00.003-05:00

This is awesome. If you have never checked out Taj Mahal, this is an amazing place to start.

JBL L16s with newer JBL woofers.

2011-11-24T16:14:00.003-05:00

UPDATED:
Listening some more ten days later (with a Kenwood KA-3500 integrated at 40 watts/channel), I'm loving them.

I bought a pair of JBL 2800s with rough cabinets so I could put the woofers into these L16s.

Though I would've prefered a pair of original 116A woofers, I wasn't able to find any, and knowing that JBL was still making quality drivers in the USA in 1988 makes me feel fine about this transplant. The proof is in the listening, and these sound as good as my last L16s.

Midweek Update

2011-11-23T22:35:00.005-05:00

A few new things have arrived. I have a pair of Infinity RS4000s that look just like these, which I had in 2009. I refoamed the mids and woofers, and just fired them up. I'll listen tonight and see if I like them more than I remember. So far, I just want to switch to the stunning Yamaha NS-690s.

Update: The infinity RS4000s were sounding very thin in the bass when I wrote the above. As I listened the bass improved substantially over a couple of hours, as the new speaker foams broke in, and now they're quite nicely balanced.

I've have a pair of JBL L16s minus woofers for a long time, and haven't been able to find the correct woofers. Yesterday, I bought a pair of newer, but still vintage JBLs with cabinets in rough shape just to grab the woofers to install in the L16s. I'm glad I did, and I'll take pictures and tell you about them tomorrow.

I also have a pair of JBL 8216ATs, which are the pro version of the J216As that I had last week. They look the same, but weigh at least 7 pounds more. There seems to be a problem with one tweeter, but I have to check inside first.

Stephane Grapelli & Pink Floyd

2011-11-19T19:56:00.005-05:00

Wish You were Here 2011 Experience Edition. Wow.

Yamaha NS-690 photos.

2011-11-19T14:49:00.004-05:00

These are fantastic speakers, comparable to JBL L100s for full range, low distortion pleasure. I could (and will) listen to these for hours on end.

Yamaha NS-690 first photo.

2011-11-18T07:57:00.000-05:00

Just arrived. Yamaha NS-690 speakers.

2011-11-17T21:06:00.002-05:00

I refoamed a pair of NS-690 mkIIs for someone last February. It was cold and icy outside, and they weren't my speakers. I listened after I refoamed the massive, cast frame woofers (the equal of JBL drivers), and loved them. If I could've taken pictures, I would have, and they would have been the first in the 'Speakers I Wish I Owned' series. The NS-690s that arrived tonight are the originals, and have cloth surrounds that will last forever. These are wonderful speakers, and I'll have lots to say about them soon.

2011-11-16T19:30:00.002-05:00

One More Technics Mini Integrated Amplifier.

2011-11-13T17:06:00.003-05:00

This one is a DC coupled design, rated at 40 watts/channel, built like a heavy brick. It's even beefier than the SU-C04, allows connection of 2 sets of speakers, and has gold plated input jacks. It sounds fantastic driving the JBL L26s and a pair of early nineties vintage Revox Piccolo mini speakers, with and without a dedicated matching subwoofer.

2011-11-11T18:52:00.002-05:00

JBL L26. The 6th pair I've had in 4 years.

2011-11-09T16:29:00.003-05:00

and one of the coolest, prettiest pairs. The tweeters are original red surround LE-25s from a set of studio monitors. The cabinets are beautiful, I sanded them months ago as part of another abortive L26 project. I just did the binding posts yesterday, the grills this morning. The grills had the original orange cloth, but it was cat shredded, so I went black. The woofers are newly refoamed, not by me. That's a shame for 2 reasons. Firstly, the refoam was done with the foam in front of the cone, not behind as original. This makes no difference acoustically. The job itself is functionally excellent. Secondly, the refoam was done with contact cement. I suspect that the person doing the refoam did one woofer first...it worked beautifully and was (is) a nice, clean job. To celebrate, he/she drank a bottle of champagne/6 pack/whatever, then refoamed the second woofer...an equally excellent job functionally,but aesthetically sloppier. I replaced a bunch of contact cement stained gasket pieces, but now this is one of the coolest sets of of one of the coolest speakers I've ever had.

Just arrived. 2 pairs of JBL J216As.

2011-11-05T11:28:00.001-04:00

I've had these before, but didn't put them on this blog because I had a strict 70s only policy, and these were made in 1985. I really liked them, and am happy to have them. They're made in California, and are JBLs good stuff (in terms of sound and build quality). You won't easily find such a modest, reasonably priced pair of small speakers that sound like these.

2011-11-04T00:32:00.000-04:00

2011-10-31T23:23:00.003-04:00

Wierd Mirror/Archive/Stolen Content Blog

2011-10-30T19:18:00.001-04:00

I saw this when I was checking referring sites in my blog stats. Someone has made a blog of my random (or perhaps edited) posts. I've reported the unauthorized use of copyrighted content to the highest authority, Google.

Rega Planar 2.

2011-10-30T11:55:00.001-04:00

This is a true budget classic. It exudes elegance and precision. It's a simple design, well made, and still sounds great.

The new Pioneer SX-828 is in the champagne finish.

2011-10-30T10:34:00.001-04:00

Just arrived.

2011-10-29T17:19:00.000-04:00

I have another Pioneer SX-828 receiver, one of the most beautiful receivers ever made. I also just got an original Rega Planar 2 turntable with original RB200 tonearm. The Pioneer is making beautiful music with the Energy Pro 22s as I write.

2011-10-29T09:18:00.001-04:00

Cowboy Junkies.

2011-10-25T19:08:00.003-04:00

Just arrived. Energy Pro 22s

2011-10-24T16:38:00.001-04:00

I bought a pair of these brand new from Bay Bloor Radio for about $400 in 1979. They replaced my Polk Monitor 7s, and were driven by a Marantz 1070 amp, then an NAD 3020. They're as good as I remember, and are much better than the 22.2s I had a couple of months ago. The hyperdome tweeter is known to fail, the leads from the voice coil becoming corroded by the adhesive used in their manufacture. There is a shop in Halifax which owns the original manufacturing equipment, and 'remanufactures' the tweeters for about $300/pair. The tweeters on the pair that just arrived are working and sound fabulous.

A stunning Sony integrated amp.

2011-10-22T12:08:00.003-04:00

I had a wonderful Sony TA-F5 in 2009. It was a 70 watt/channel DC coupled amp, with beautiful industrial design and some useful features (moving coil and moving magnet phono inputs with gold plated jacks, for example), and advanced technologies (like the excellent pulse power supply powering the amp). I've really missed it, and haven't seen one since. Now I've got a TA-F4A. It looks almost identical, but uses a conventional power supply, and doesn't have a moving coil input. Depending on where you get your information, it's rated at either 40 or 55 watts/channel. My guess is 55. A friend described it as an amp that would look at home on a submarine. I think that's a high compliment. It sounds fantastic.

Just arrived. Another fantastic mini component from Technics.

2011-10-19T00:49:00.003-04:00

It's half the width of the Nakamichi below.

Just arrived.

2011-10-18T16:35:00.002-04:00

It plays tapes, and all functions seem to work, but the recordings sound terrible so far. I think it needs a good cleaning (heads, pots etc), and maybe more. It's massive, very heavy, and I can't believe it's in my place.

Technics by Panasonic SA-5350 Receiver.

2011-10-13T17:20:00.000-04:00

I really like this vintage 1975 line from Technics. The styling is very clean, and just about perfect in a modernist sense: clean, functional and elegant. It would be great to have it in a real wood veneer case, but even the woodgrain vinyl used is inoffensive. This is rated at 28 conservative watts/channel, and sounds great.

2011-10-09T21:39:00.003-04:00

Rega 2 speakers, Sansui AU-777 amplifier, Axis Bold As Love.

Rest In Peace.

2011-10-06T00:18:00.003-04:00

He changed my world.

Al Jarreau.

2011-10-02T21:47:00.002-04:00

Look To The Rainbow. Listen to Take Five...an hommage and a brilliant reinterpretation at the same time.

Mission 770s, cabinets restored.

2011-10-01T17:41:00.003-04:00

The grain matched rosewood veneer is beautiful. There's a spot on one back where the original finish was completely gone, and try as I might, I haven't been able to make it disappear.

The speaker connectors in the original 770s are in a recess on the bottom of the speakers. They originally came with matching, x shaped stands designed to accomodate this. The stunning backs of these speakers is the aesthetic reward. The owner of this pair put 1 inch rubber feet on the bottoms to give clearance for speaker wire, and used them as floorstanders. I've got them on stands, driven by the Sansui AU-777 and they're fantastic.

Just arrived. Mission 770s...the originals.

2011-09-30T18:29:00.003-04:00

Update: These are awesome speakers. I'm listening to delicate jazz and pounding reggae and they're just smiling.
I haven't seen a pair available for a while. These are beautiful, with rosewood cabinets. They sound like Mission 770s, one of my all time favorites. Pictures tomorrow.

Gary Burton. Highly Recommended.

2011-09-23T23:05:00.001-04:00

I just got back from NYC.

2011-09-23T13:32:00.010-04:00

I had a fantastic time.

Wow. There's nothing like some fantastic live jazz in an intimate setting to put the audio journey into perspective. I was fortunate to get to the Blue Note (where I heard The New Gary Burton Quartet) and the Village Vanguard (where I heard The Ravi Coltrane Quintet) in the same evening.

Beautiful Radio Shack integrated amp.

2011-09-18T18:09:00.001-04:00

Update: Nothing to update...it needs cleaning, and I haven't had the time.

Sound Dynamics 100S photo.

2011-09-17T14:51:00.001-04:00

These are really, really nice speakers.

Just arrived. Just refoamed. Sound Dynamics 100S.

2011-09-15T22:37:00.003-04:00

This looks like a cheap cel phone picture, but is actually a photo taken with my regular camera on a tripod in really, really low light. The speakers (baby brother to the 12S, that I enjoyed) are very nice, better integrated than the 1200 SMTs . I'll tell you more tomorrow.

2011-09-11T18:55:00.003-04:00

Update: Technical Difficulties. Email. Over!

2011-09-11T10:05:00.002-04:00

Thanks to Bell (support in India) for fixing my problem in 45 minutes, not the 48 hour worst case scenario.

On Friday, my sent box in the clouds, that I wasn't aware even existed, was briefly full, and e-mails were bouncing back. This was rectified by Saturday morning thanks to Bell (support in El Salvador), but now there are problems with Sympatico's mail servers. I haven't received e-mail in 11 hours. If I gave you my number, please call. I'll let you know as soon as I'm up and running.

Gotta love the vintage Sony.

2011-09-08T14:11:00.001-04:00

And it sounds beautiful:
rich, clean and musical (not necessarily in that order).

Black Dub.

2011-09-06T23:49:00.005-04:00

Daniel Lanois...need I say more?

2011-09-05T20:08:00.000-04:00

Just arrived. Mission 737R.

2011-09-05T19:34:00.005-04:00

Update: These are way better than the 737s with Audax tweeters I had last summer. I stand corrected. The tweeters in the current 737Rs aren't merely Mission badged Vifas, they're Mission designed and manufactured.

These are more recent, I think, than the 737s I had in June of 2010, and have what appear to be Mission badged Vifa tweeters, not Audax. I am loving them right now, perhaps more than those. I'll have more to say soon, as I've the Audax and Vifa tweeters in completely different systems lately (the Audax/Polydax in the Enigmas, the Vifas in a set of newer Angstrom monitors I haven't told you about, because they're from the 90s).

2011-09-04T11:28:00.001-04:00

2011-09-01T17:45:00.001-04:00

Just arrived. Just refoamed. Sound Dynamics 1200 SMTs

2011-08-31T19:42:00.003-04:00

Canadian monster rock icons. I had the Sound Dynamics 12S a couple of years ago and really enjoyed them. These are the big brothers, with much bigger cabinets and passive radiators. They are very cool.

Rega 2 speakers, stock finish.

2011-08-28T19:02:00.000-04:00

2011-08-28T11:23:00.000-04:00

Kenwood KR-5010 DC Receiver

2011-08-27T16:58:00.000-04:00

A very powerful and refined 45 watts/channel. I think this sounds much better than the KR-4600 and KR-5600 I've had in the past.

2011-08-22T23:44:00.001-04:00

2011-08-22T18:04:00.001-04:00

Catching up.

2011-08-22T12:23:00.004-04:00

I'm sorry that it's been a week between posts. I was in Algonquin Park most of last week, and caught up on my day job over the weekend. It was fantastic to be completely unreachable for a few days, and I feel like a new person.

I finished refinishing a pair of vintage 1960s Wharfedales yesterday. I usually strip or sand and reoil the cabinets, but the person I did these for has a young child, and wanted the wood more protected, so I used urethane for my first time, and the result was excellent. The speakers are huge, heavy and vey rich sounding. I'm sorry I can't show you pictures, but the rain kept threatening yesterday, and the speakers were too big to shoot well inside. Trust me, they're beautiful.

I'm continuing to enjoy the Sansui AU-777 with a variety of speakers, and have been less motivated than usual to seek out new stuff, but I know this won't last long.

2011-08-15T07:46:00.001-04:00

2011-08-13T19:58:00.000-04:00

Quality party speakers since 1976.

2011-08-13T13:52:00.008-04:00

I've been driving them with the Nakamichi PA-5, and they sound great.

This is the second pair I've had, and both times I've felt that I'm not hearing the deeeeep bass I expect from a fifteen inch woofer. The design trades off deep bass response for efficiency, and that's one of the reasons it's compared to the Klipsch Heresy. The main one is the horns.

They go deep enough and play loud and clean.

Sunday Update.

2011-08-07T17:19:00.003-04:00

I hope you're having a great weekend. I've been listening to the Sansui AU-4400 with all kinds of different speakers, primarily the Altec 5s and JBL L56s. I could happily live with either for a long time. I'm as spoiled with great speaker options as I've ever been.

I enjoyed the Naim Audio combination while it was here, but have to tell you that I don't think it sounded any better than many of the excellent vintage amps I've been lucky to have and enjoy at much more reasonable prices. In the seventies, Naim was one of the british audio manufacturers who's marketing was a calculated combination of mystique and buzz. The british audio press was complicit in putting and keeping Naim at the top of the pyramid. The combination I had was no more powerful in real world use, or more musical, than any of the black (or silver) Sansui amplifiers I've heard this year.

AR1ms speakers. Just refoamed.

2011-08-01T16:28:00.001-04:00

2011-07-31T15:55:00.003-04:00

Saturday Update.

2011-07-30T20:24:00.006-04:00

Updated. This is as nice a pair of KLH 17s as I've ever heard. The previous owner recapped and resealed them properly. They're very good speakers, and in the current vintage audio market, an amazing value for the music lover on a small budget.

I found a nice pair of KLH 17s this afternoon. I haven't heard a pair in over a year, and these appear to be very clean.

This is the new Sherwood S-7200 that I told you about a couple of weeks ago ago. The selector knob shaft was broken, and I just had it fixed (also the stunning Sansui AU-4400 came back from being checked and serviced).

Rogers Monitor 2s refinished.

2011-07-30T12:49:00.002-04:00

Thank you Mike for the amazing Howard Finish Restorer, which made these speakers look close to new in minutes. I'm usually a sand and oil kind of guy, but this came highly recommended, and didn't disappoint. I'll wax (with Howard wax) them soon (also Mike recommended).

I love the grain matching.

2011-07-29T22:43:00.001-04:00

Just arrived. JBL L56.

2011-07-29T17:57:00.000-04:00

Classic seventies JBL look and sound. Have a great weekend...a long one if you're in Canada!

Just arrived. Just refoamed. Just Refinished. Altec Lansing Model Fives.

2011-07-24T19:05:00.001-04:00

Look at that beautiful wood! I picked these up early this afternoon. Today is the first 'normal' summer day in a week. I mean with normal humidity. It was a pleasure to be out on the porch working on these. They look and sound as good as the pair I had in December.

Just arrived.

2011-07-22T15:47:00.003-04:00

This is some stuff I've wanted to get my hands on for a long time. I'll have a lot to say after some listening. Driving the Rogers Monitor 2s, so far so good.

Update:
After a couple of hours, I'm really liking this stuff. I just hooked up a pair of Energy 22.2s, and am very impressed with the clarity, detail, and naturalness. Nothing flashy, just beautiful music.

Rogers Monitor 2 photos.

2011-07-21T12:09:00.000-04:00

Midweek Update

2011-07-20T21:33:00.002-04:00

I brought two new sets of speakers home today that I've wanted to check out for a long time.
I have a pair of Rogers Monitor 2s, amd a pair of Energy 22.2s. The Rogers are playing right now, driven by the Sansui AU-777 and are awesome. I hope to take pictures tomorrow, but the forecast calls for a high temperature record to be broken in Toronto, so the weather may not allow it. I'll do my best.

Just arrived. Sherwood S-7200

2011-07-17T12:21:00.005-04:00

This is the 35 watt/channel (I was mistaken when I first got one) big brother to the S-7100, and is a beautiful and great sounding receiver. The picture above is of the one I had 2 years ago. I'll take new pictures soon.