OR:
How to shop an amp with a pillow on your face...
Had an interesting interlude the other day, locally.
As most of you 'locals' know, I've been looking for a tube amp.
In my relentless internet search, there are a lot of references, or at least 'reverences' for Dynaco gear. Amoungst the better offerenings, the ST35 amp comes up a lot, especially for modding/updating, and sometimes with it, the SCA35 which is the integrated based on this amp.
Poking around on Audiogon and Ebay set me up for price expectations, and I started chasing the idea (along with several others) on what it would take to hear their EL84s on my Altecs.
Amoungst the 'middle of the pack' pricewise, I found one with a St. Louis zipcode on Audiogon.
Well, an email let me know that the fella had a shop where the amp was, but we could arrange to let me hear it over the weekend.
Well, what an offer! I didn't take advantage of such a kind offer, but certainly I owed it to myself to listen to it if I could.
SO, being the 'idjit' that I am, I ventured forth across St. Louis at 3:30pm on a friday...I must have wanted the experience, as I generally would rather have my teeth pulled out than drive in 'the City.'
So I wound up at Alpha-Tech Electronics on Big Bend, Zaw Win proprietor.
I hadn't been in that place since looking for someone to fix my Atari 8 bit computer, back 'in the day.'
They've moved since then, and you walk right into a counter and see a working electronic repair shop with all the appropriate 'stuff' hanging around. Oboy, I get to listen on a testbench, thinks I.
Well, Zaw stopped what he was doing and we became acquainted and he offered me a listen. At that point, he took me upstairs to his listening room. Ah.........
Actually, more than one, I found out, as he told me the place used to be a studio for Ken Hensley, I believe, of Uriah Heep fame. Good acoustics!
Lacking anything like mine easilly available for speakers, he suggested we try the Magnepan 3.6 demos he had sitting there.
'Sure!' sez I, though if it worked, who knows how revealing they would be on the shortness of the SCA35. The unit had been cleaned up by ZAW, but was stock (except for an added headphone jack) and regularly working. Not some mystery piece found in grandpaws garage packed away, like so many on the internet.
Looking further at the 'used' gear Zaw had there, I felt right at home alongside his Theta ld/cd player (of which I have a broken one in the closet) and a Rega P3 turntable, which I have on top of my gear. Old home week! woohoo!
First up was some acoustic music which sounded really nice.
Not familiar with it, but the other end of the room was coming alive.
Zaw had folks coming in and out and had to leave me to myself a few times, and that was okay, for listening's sake.
By the end of that cd, I'd found it making me believe that the SCA had real potential.
I mentioned noticing the phono stage and asked Zaw about it and he set about making the P3 sing. I didn't want him to go thru much for it, but he wanted to hear it. With apologies again, he put on a yardsale copy of Neil Young's Harvest. I listened, and by the second cut, was sure that this album is why vinyl went away and cd's reign now.
I like Neal, sometimes a lot, and sometimes not so much, but there were a lot of imperfections burbling out at me. Oh well, so, I don't need the phono stage anyways...
So I found another album.
Andreas Vollenweider's 'Caverna Magica.
Completely different gear. It musta been, snuck in there real quick while I blinked. This stuff took residence and whirled.
Damned pleasing listen!
Well, you gotta realize I was looking at spending money on a $225 old integrated running thru almost $4k speakers!
But it still had to make the sound to begin with, no matter what kind of 'gloriousity' the Maggies bestowed.
Well, still not having an amp at home to listen to, I had to 'dicker' and I had to take home...
Okay, it don't sound as glorious thru the Altecs I'll tell you, and a tip o' the hat to the Maggies. But its got potential, and that is what I am looking at now.
My amp drama is still to play out, with other players expected in the post, but I like this little thing and it looks like an interesting platform to start with for poking around on and slicing up, if only to learn along the way.
And besides, the wife needed other tubes to listen to for understanding what they all have to offer.....(sure!)
My thanks to Zaw at Alpha-Tech, and it was a pleasure making his acquaintance. He was never less than personable with me, and did a lot just to secure the sale of that little old cheap integrated. Heck, I wish I was in the market for those Maggies! Absolutely stupendous sound to my ears, but you might remember, this is week 6 of 'water-on-the-ear' treatment. YMMV
Now I gotta go back and listen to OTHER stuff he has setting around. wink: Well, maybe when my ears clear up...
At least I have someone that might be able to fix the old Theta deck..
Thanks for tuning in. Thought you would like to hear an interlude, 'along the way'. Recommend a look at what Zaw has available, when shopping used/demo, based on the experience. It was good for me.
Regards,
DeadFish
