avanti1960

Responses from avanti1960

5AR4 rectifier tube question
@immatthewj  4 notches on the outside of one plate.    
5AR4 rectifier tube question
4 notch mullards are the ones that sound best.  no notch sound worst metal base are very pricey.    
Upgrade path question with $2k to spend
you need a bonafide 2 channel amplifier as the foundation for your system before you do anything else, or you will not get the most out of any other upgrades.   A musical fidelity m5si will do quite nicely  
"Too much gain"? (Cary SLP05 question)
@shredder  do you know how much gain your power amplifier has?      
5AR4 rectifier tube question
I have an amperex and it sounds good.  just a bit of a bass peak that can be annoying and slightly ill refined treble.   the stock sovtek sounded better imho.   keep an eye out for an f32 mullard or made by mullard.    
"Too much gain"? (Cary SLP05 question)
LISTEN TO THE DAM PREAMP! The balanced connections sound noticeably better (pre outs). The balanced circuitry passes through another set of tubes. Just do a quick AB comparison. That is all it took for me. The balanced soundstage is huge and more... 
"Too much gain"? (Cary SLP05 question)
@immatthewj  with the left / right gain controls each at 50 % (sounds best)  the volume control is at 9:00 to 10:00 or so most often, moderate loud, for my higher output digital sources and 10:00 to 11:00 for my turntable.    
"Too much gain"? (Cary SLP05 question)
The discussion on this topic is very puzzling.  The idea that people would buy attenuators or a gain reduction mod for their SLP 05 is something I see and hear no reason for.   Buy a NOS rectifier and some 6SN7 tubes.  Use the balanced connection... 
"Too much gain"? (Cary SLP05 question)
@immatthewj  sorry if I misunderstood.   the goal is the best sound possible for the preamp and amp system and let the volume control fall where it may.   in my case I started with the gain controls at max level and listened.  the sound was to ... 
"Too much gain"? (Cary SLP05 question)
The Cary SLP-05 has a Schiit load of gain but so do a lot of other top tier preamps and it is not a bad thing.   Easily adjustable by the two continuously variable gain controls on the front panel, one for each channel.  Also acts as a balance tr... 
Is the Cary SLP-05 still relavant?
@stevehuff Steve I just read your review, so thorough and inciteful. I hope you do a video on the SLP-05. Loving mine for over a year with a Pass XA-25 and Harbeth SHL5+ speakers. One thing, the ’05 does have gain control. The two knobs on the... 
recommendation for phono pre amp and mc cartridge, around 1000$ each
stretch your budget a touch and you will get into the $4000 level by buying value leaders in the $1000 range. An Audio Technica AT ART9 cartridge competes well with $2K cartridges. A Lehmann Black Cube SEii phono is a perfect match for the ART9 ... 
New Funk Firm Achromat Warped
throw it in the dumpster.  ruined the bass on my turntable.   mats are best used to damp the audible tonearm resonance that can color the midrange.   the way to test this is to play bass beat music with vocals at higher volume to make the differ... 
McIntosh MC275VI vs Rogue Audio Stereo 100
does the 275 benefit from NOS tubes?  
What Class A is better? SUGDEN FPA-4 or PASS LABS XA-25
FYI a stereophile review of the Sugden a21 shows that it reaches 1% distortion at 24 watts, below its 25 wpc rating.  The pass reached 1% thd at 80 watts, far exceeding its rating.   the sugden was noted to run quite hot during operation.   the...