Thank you David, Ray. The Scout has come a long way from when I first got it. Makes some fine music, now.

Regards,
Dan

islandmandan July 14, 2011 20:17

I really like your Scout setup!!!!Very nice system!

raytheprinter July 14, 2011 10:42

Appreciate the comments on my system. You've got quite the sweet setup yourself. Lots of interesting tweaks, especially with the VPI. Love the Plinius too - their amps were high on my list until I came across a deal on an Accuphase that I just couldn't refuse..

Happy listening!

David

dhoff01 July 13, 2011 20:16

System edited: Installed Edensound Audio's largest version of their Bear Paws, for an additional 26lbs. on the Scout Signature table. Very cost effective, in that the improvement was akin to dropping several thousand dollars on a more expensive table. Very impressed and pleasantly surprised with the result.

islandmandan July 08, 2011 00:52

Good memory! Dad still has that Aesthetix amp and AR Ref3 pre infact he hasnt done anything cept for vintage tubes in past 3 years. No wait he added 2 Vandy subs to his Wood Quatros. My changes arent recent just no new pics in years. Modest tweaked Anthem tube pre, Classe amps and a new Def Tech Sub aswell as Sony LcOS 1080p projector. But look of room is a bit better. We do what we can but with dads mutual love of music and as close as he is I have sort of 2 systems to enjoy so perhaps thats why I have found no reason to upgrade. Cheers

chadnliz June 05, 2011 03:19

Shadorne,

It's nice to hear from you. The drivers are ca 1975, although I have reconed them using the newer "Hard Edge" surround from the current Prestige line, and of course, the outboard crossovers that were designed for me by Dr. Arthur Loesch, which I susequently built.

I have long had an attraction to the powered ATC seakers, and Genelex as well. I admire your knowledge of acoustics and how you are able to measure your own room, and then make necessary changes by interpreting those measurements.
I'll bet that ATC sub is a Deausie. Enjoy that beautiful system.

islandmandan June 04, 2011 20:11

Hi Chad ('n Liz),

As I recall, your Dad had purchased a new Aesthetic power amp. Does he still like and use it? The TTW Heavy Clamp, with the copper mat, has at least dressed the Scout up nicely, even though it seems to help the quality of sound from the Scout, I put the old Funk Firm Achromat back on, and it seems to sound just as good.

I haven't checked on your system in quite a long time, I'll have to check it out, and see what's new. I hope you're enjoying yourselves!

islandmandan June 04, 2011 19:56

Hello Tim,

Well, my system is a cobbled up sort of affair. Not having very deep pockets, I have had to make do with mid-fi components, then modifying them to bring them up to a higher level. Most of my front end equipment and amps were bought here on Audiogon, and the Tannoy drivers were purchased from Ebay UK. I couldn't have done it otherwise, I just don't have those type of resources.

You, Tim have put together a system I admire. You haven't spent a fortune, yet you have a system that really works for you, and that is no small achievement. Nicely done!

islandmandan June 04, 2011 19:18

There was a thread about Bob Dylan recently and I suggested he listened to Tannoy 215DMT which is probably true because that is what his sound engineer/producer would use.

I see you have the Tannoy HPD with the 315 drivers which is a classic from the 70's - I suspect Clint Eastwood had a pair based on old photos I have seen of him spinning some Vinyl.

shadorne June 04, 2011 17:39

Nice rig. My audio pal has the Glenaires and loves them. Last fathers day I bought my dad the copper ring and clamp for my dads Scoutmaster.

chadnliz June 03, 2011 23:58

Thanks for the comments on my simple system.

I have checked your system out a time or two but generally hang back on making comments on systems as elaborate as yours. It's a bit out of my league. In fact I have experience with none of your equipment. It looks like it sounds wonderful though.
Funny how my wife and family think I'm a bit of a nut just because I have a "stereo room." There would be hell to pay if I tried to overtake one of the main living areas. I actually prefer it this way as there are no limits on my experimentation.

timrhu June 03, 2011 22:40

Have added a Modwright SWP 9.0 SE phono stage, it nosed out my modded Simaudio Moon LP 5.3. Vinyl is becoming my favorite format, when it's good, it's very good.

Enjoy,
Dan

islandmandan March 14, 2011 19:58

I have made some minor changes, but they don't add up to minor improvements, they were major upgrades at bargain prices. First, I received my Fosgometer a couple of days ago, and after dialing in azimuth, the improvement in lp playback was not subtle. Then, yesterday, I received from Brent Jesse an order of a matched pair of Telefunen 12AU7 NOS tubes, and a matched quad of Mullard reissue EL 34's, branded Groove Tubes, and couldn't believe what I was hearing from my old VAC PA 35.35. I didn't know this amp was this good! I don't know which tubes made the biggest difference, as I swapped them all at once, but what a difference! The Electroharmonix's will be staying in the boxes for the duration. These new tubes are great!

Regards,
Dan

islandmandan February 27, 2011 20:44

Since my custom crossovers have now broken in, the high frequencies were sounding a bit relentless, so I changed the .82mh Alpha Core 12 gauge inductors in the HF section to .68mh, now everything is nicely balanced, top to bottom. My system is performing top-notch, so I'll sit back and enjoy it. I now have more time to do exactly that, as I retired back in December. I highly reccommend it!

Enjoy!
Dan

islandmandan February 03, 2011 22:28

System edited: Plinius SA 100 MKIII added to system, after being repaired by Roger Hug (Seattle). It arrived damaged, broken windings on one of the trannies, plus some internal structural damage. All was ably repaired by Roger, and the amp sounds phenominal. I believe it is now my favorite, but the VAC is so good, it's almost a toss-up. While I was at Roger's, I had him diagnose my DIY crossovers, seems I had made some connection errors, which he sorted out for me. (Tannoy has a confusing star grounding system). My God, what a difference they make, working correctly at last. This morning, I removed the Sylvania 12AU7's, and installed the 12AU7 Golden Dragons. I then replaced the Winged "C" EL 34's with the Golden Dragon '34's. After listening to the Plinius, the VAC was sounding a bit too smooth, changing these tubes helped out quite a bit. I enjoy having two fine amps, both acquired via Audiogon. Having the time of my life now musically, it doesn't get much better than this. Enjoy, Dan

islandmandan September 16, 2010 18:58

System edited: A few weeks ago, I added a TTW Brass Clamp (VPI version), which I had to modify to make the threads engage the spindle threads. After making the rubber washer thinner by squeezing and baking, the clamp now pushes the perimeter of lps to make near-perfect contact with the edge of the copper mat, as well as the Mapleshade Integrated Record Coupling System. Highly recommended for VPI user's. Enjoy, Dan

islandmandan July 14, 2010 17:12

System edited: Added outboard power supply for modded Simaudio LP 5.3 phono stage. The difference is unbelievable, had goose bumps after the first few bars of Keith Jarret's '73 Bremen solo concert. Best dollar/results improvement investment I have ever made in audio. Happy I am. Dan

islandmandan July 14, 2010 16:32

System edited: Just added a HiFi Tuning Silverstar fuse in the VAC PA 35.35 amp. The improvement has been more than expected, from using them in other amps. Sound is now much smoother, cleaner, more linear and even more dynamic. Very good small tweak, that makes a large difference. Dan

islandmandan June 21, 2010 03:51

System edited: Just added this weekend, VAC PA 35.35, an El 34 based Push-pull amp. Beautifully drives the custom HPD 315's, with increased depth, clarity and dynamic response. Thanks to Matt, who drove it 100 miles to my home, and let me audition it for a week in-house. How can you beat that for an Audiogon sale? Thanks, Matt! Dan

islandmandan May 01, 2010 18:28

System edited: This week-end, I reconed the woofers with the new hard edge conversion, which I ordered from Lockwood Audio in the UK. The results were instantly recognizable, with tighter bass, and smoother mids. They are supposed to take several hundred hours for the surround to break in and loosen up, but they have already made for a major improvement. These sweet-sounding old drivers have gotten substantially better, I am now well satisfied with the sound of this system, I'm set for many years of enjoyment, as long as my front end(s) hold up. Thanks for looking, Dan

islandmandan March 22, 2010 20:48

System edited: Recently added Audio Prism Ground Control. It adds greater clarity and cleaner highs.

islandmandan March 22, 2010 20:38

System edited: I have made several minor changes/additions lately. I put a pair of old stock Western Electric 396a's in the Sophia Baby, they gave it added clarity and depth, making this outstanding little amp even better. Put Mapleshade Audio Integrated Record Coupling System on top of the TTW copper mat, for a nice upgrade to analog sound. I also removed the 47ohm external resistance, putting the resistance at 75ohms, which gave added air, sparkle, and life in lp listening. This is now possible oweing to the beautifully clean signal generated by the Dyna XX2MKII cart. Finally, last but by no means least, I was finally able to track down and fix a channel imbalance problem between drivers, which turned out to be a wiring problem caused by myself, and changed the layout in the crossover geograhpy. I moved the 2.2mH inductor to the outer end of the board by changing locations with the 22uF Mundorf capacitor, thereby spreading the large 12 gauge Alpha Core inductors to the maximum amount possible. All these changes add up to a very large improvement, making my custom Tannoys sound gorgeous. The only other improvement will be to recone the woofers with the hard-edge conversion offered by Lockwood Audio in the UK. This is said to greatly increase the quality and quantity of bass, and improved detail and transparency in the mid range. Then I should really be done for now. Regards, Dan

islandmandan March 03, 2010 00:35

I finished the cap replacements in the Sophia Baby amp, new Cardas RCA inputs, and built a 10' power cord of Belden 83803 12-3AWG wire. This wire is double-insulated with foil wrap inside, heavy weave tinned copper outside, then the outer insulation. Used Furutech IEC, and good quality hardware store male termination. The Baby loves it, instant improvement in clarity. Stiff but thin, excellent power cord for the money. In addition, I just ordered a matched pair of Western Electric 396a output tubes, this little amp is amazing me with its sound, and power delivery in spite of its 10wpc output.

Also, I happened to win a set of Mit AVt-1 speaker cables, and two pair of AVt-1 interconnects. Having fun seeing how they sound in various applications. They won't touch my constants,the Synergistics, but it's nice to have extra cables with two power amps to run. Thanks, Mit.

Enjoy,
Dan

islandmandan January 31, 2010 02:35

System edited: Just completed installing upgrade parts. Time to hook it up and see if it blows up, or has been improved! Wish me luck. Regards, Dan

islandmandan December 20, 2009 22:02

Greetings, Nick.

The lens I bought had already been upgraded, so I don't know what it sounded like stock. Dave Schulte of The Upgrade Company had done all the modification work on my system, and with out these upgrades my system would sound mediocre at best. Due to his fine work, my system is way beyond satisfactory, it performs superlatively. David wants me to send my Time Lens back for an update, he has found a way to make them much better than the way he was previously doing them. Now would be a good time to send one in and get it done, or buy one from him that has the latest upgrades.

Thanks for the kind words, it means a lot to me.
Best regards,
Dan

islandmandan December 16, 2009 23:01