[pjchappy]

How'd it go? How'd it go????  

p

[Blackmore]

Complete audio bliss!  We had the budget friendly Odyssey system upstairs that Sturgus spent an hour listening to. The 1500 dollar system was just fine,fine,fine.  Next was Scott's Lowthers driven by Brad's DRD 300B amps. Wow!  Listening to that combination is going to make Scott's wallet lighter soon.  The Daedalus speakers were set up in a separate room driven by G's 'Frankenplay' preamp and the Butler amp. Very smooth, warm and inviting. Very different sound than the SET setup, but really engaging. We also spun a couple of 78s on the mono Altec speaker and nobody could believe the fidelity.  We were shocked at the great playing on a Lionel Hampton 78.  Just great sound and performance. Since Willie and G were there, I had them look under the lid of my Sophia Electric Baby and before we knew it (and before alcohol) the soldering iron was on and G was swapping coupling caps for some Theta caps Scott had.  The little Baby really sang on the Daedalus speakers after the mod.  And all of this happened before 6:00 pm when I had to leave.  Great music, great equipment, great host and great food.  All in all, a perfect night of audio and fun.

[Scott F.]

Hiya Guys,

Hope you didn't mind but I moved your posts over to this one

I'm sure glad everybody made it out this evening. I had a great time. When I get a few minutes in the morning, I'll post some pics that I took. Right now my brain (and body) is running on overtime.

I think I hear my pillow calling......

[Scott F.]

Mornin' Everybody,

Well, we had another great get together. Thanks to all that showed and to those who couldn't make it, well lets just say you missed some great tunes on some even cooler gear

Here's the link to pics I took.

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?action=gallery;area=browse;album=471

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get any pics of the Gasser's. Oh, and a special hello to the new guys Alex and Alan that made it out for a while and Thom P. who came by after his gig.

Just a couple of quick comments on the gear we had on hand.

Brad's Wellborne 300b's DRD's did me in. Hearing those are going to cost me a lot of money.

G's Frankenplay was great sounding. Just shows how good Doc Bottleheads (modified) designs can sound when you drop premium parts in them. The redesigned power supply on steroids didn't hurt either

Willies PP 45 (the Train) sounded sweet as ever. Wish we could have rolled it into the Lowther system. Guess we'll have to do that (again) next time

I don't want to say too much about the Butler/Daedelus room and the Odyessy room because I'll be doing a formal review on all three of them but I will say the Bulter Daedelus combo is a really nice match. Very nice sounds came out of this room when they were paired. Klaus' $1500 system is an absolute no brainer. Unbelievable sound, incredably cheap even considering the CD player I was using.
(guys, feel free to comment in detail on the Butler/Daedelus and Odyessey systems. i just want to save my comments for the reviews)

You know your in a group with hard core audio guys when at the get togethers we start heating up the soldering iron    Blackmore left with his Baby Sophia sounding way better than it did when it showed up. Thanks to G and some spare Theta .22 coupling caps I had in my parts bins, the Baby is now singing rather than squalking.

Same goes for Mike D's Jolida. Unfortunately I snapped off one of Mikes binding posts when I was tightening them up  Lucky for Mike I had some cool all copper 5 ways to replace them with. The Jolida now has new Theta coupling caps and some bypass caps on the power supplies. The Jolida should sound great in front of his Maggies.

Leftovers
Mike - I think I've got your (or somebodies) jacket.
Brad - I've got your 6N1P's
Sturgus - I think I've got your Diane Reeves CD

No doubt I forgot to comment on something.

Oh, next up (after the 1st of the year) VINTAGE DAY where zip cord and cheap interconnects rule.
Think Sansui, Fisher, Advents, Dynaco's, HH Scott, Dual turntables, NAD Cassette decks, Akai Reel to Reels and (gulp) tone controls  
This one should be an absolute blast! We're going to need someplace with a fair amount of room though. Start digging through your closets!

[steve k]

WOW!!! Looks like you guys had a blast!!! And I had to go to my company Christmas party.  

I know you guys had a blast if there were articles of clothing left over. Scott, you didn't find any panties laying around, did you?

It looked like quite a tubular affair. Is Thom P's amp an integrated? Interesting case--power supply in the bottom? Sorry I missed the tweaking session. I could have gotten my VTL's fixed!!

Willie's locomotive and G's Frankenplay would've been cool to hear on those Daedulus. And Brad and Thom's gear on the Lowthers--I can't imagine. Great pics and glad to hear Alex and Alan made it too. What a way to get introduced to the Gas gang! I'm anxious to hear their impressions.

steve k

[DeadFish]

Greetings!

Scott, first off, THANKS!
I had a grand time nursing off of your hospitality.
Super vibes for the day!
Totally displacing your family for a time with audio gear and audio nuts was such an imposition that you and your family offered up, please extend my appreciation for that.
As I said to several  yesterday
"I wonder what the 'audio-poor people were doing..."
Too much stuff was just enough!

Starting at the top, I was tickled that the other GASers could hear Klaus'
'Econo-system'.  It was with a chuckle I watched Willie and Sturgis shaking their heads at the value there, and smiling.  (and I know the kind of gear these guys are used to listning to!)  I know I caught Sturgis in there a few times... Unfortunately, its hard for people that don't get to go to shows to hear this system, and like Scott sez, its a no-brainner.  
So now we have more members in the Odyssey Chorus.  

The Daedelus/Butler combo went up and down in my listening pleasure.
Adding G's 'FrankenPlay kicked it up a notch in listenability over the Lazarus pre.  (Definitely a class-act, Gavin!)  It is unfortunate that our brains need time to adjust and reset how to listen to different gear.  I've gotten so used to my horns that 'other' sounds take a while to appreciate.  Doesn't make for quick-decisions.  From my initial sensations of over-the-top 'shouty', it seasoned into my head as QUITE a revealing, pleasant setup.  Definitely needs a bigger room though.  All them watts can sear your brain in a small room!   Still was great stuff!
I got a chance to sit in there alone a couple of times and play what I wanted at pleasing volumes, and we got to be friends.  
I was even impressed with Mark's upgraded Sophia Baby on the Daedelus!
Having had one of those amps for a while, I was very impressed with THAT sound.   Good work, fellas!

My other big pleasures, gearwise were on the Flea-powered system.
Like Scott, I've got a real hankering for Brad's 300DRD amps.  Not only beautiful to look at, but a joy to behold with the ears.  Quite revelatory and smooth.  These could be a nice addition for my Altecs.  *(gonna have to suck up to Brad for some more listnin'!)*  Yes, already trying to plan a road trip to Springfield for a listen in their native clime.  January will be busy!  Definite feather in the cap of Ron Welbourne where they came from.
Tom's late-coming amp was similarly a joy on that same system.  What a piece of work!  Art to see and art to listen to.  Hearing most of my Heritage cd on it, quite pleasing, showing off a bit more I don't remember hearing on it.  (there seems no end to the depths I find in that disk)
Damn!  Too many amps, not enough ears/rooms/time.
That Mono system was a trip!  Wish I could have snapped a pic as everyone had their ears and interest  piques at what came out of that lone speaker.  What great hifi from a 78 rpm record!
The imaging in the center was to-die-for!  

This meeting was a definite pre-holiday treat.  Fine eats, great company and music.  Even new faces of friends-I-just-hadn't-met, yet.  
I don't know how any Christmas parties can come close, after this.

Once again, thanks Scott and family, and all the GASsers for making my day.  'Twas a splendid time!

Best Regards,
DeadFish

[Scott F.]

Darn! I knew I forgot to mention something.

A HUGE thanks to Deadfish for bringing his Epiphony's so we could round out the Odyssey room. Unfortunately, my pair of Epiphony's were stuck in the Big Fun system. You're a lifesaver Bill!

I don't know if Blackmore shared this with you guys (considering all that was going on) but ...... guess who got to play and hang out with Doc Severinson (til the wee hours of the morning I might add)
Our very own Blackmore  
You Da Man!!!
Hey Mark, can you post the pics?

Scott, you didn't find any panties laying around, did you?

Shhhhhhh! My wife is listening  

Thoms amp was integrated (sort of). It uses a 6SL7 as the input driver stage. That gives it enough gain where you don't need a preamp section (thus eliminating more parts in the signal path). He's got a quality input signal pot to act as the volume control. Oh, it drives 45's too. Very clean sounding.

Totally displacing your family for a time with audio gear and audio nuts was such an imposition that you and your family offered up, please extend my appreciation for that.

No imposition at all. My lovely wife got revenge with our credit cards

That Mono system was a trip! Wish I could have snapped a pic as everyone had their ears and interest piques at what came out of that lone speaker. What great hifi from a 78 rpm record!
The imaging in the center was to-die-for!

 

That system is way too cool. One of these days you'll have to come by just to spin 78's. Most people think of the sound of 78's and Victrolas together. When you mate 78's and a vintage tube amp designed specifically for schellac, it's warm, inviting and provides way more detail than you would ever expect to hear from a technology (and gear) thats older than all of us. It was really cool suprising everybody with that one.

[alexstl]

Thank you Scott.  Alan and I had a great time.  Your audio toys are wonderfful.  I had the gift of hearing the Lowthers and the low wattage SET's for the first time.  

I enjoyed meeting all of the members I met yesterday and look forward to the next meeting.  Sturgis, If the Paul Simon CD is not clean I will make another copy?  

I forgot to ask if anyone has an active crossover they are looking to sell?   Thanks again Scott,  Alex

[bmed]

Great time Scott.  My highlight was NIN and Rob Zombie blasting away at 105dB on the Big Fun---man that'll pin your ears back!!!!!

Scott:  I'll have to get the 6N1P's at the next get together.  

Brad

[Mike D]

I was up until 4:30 this morning playing with the JoLida in my front room with a pair of Klipsch Refence 3 bookshelf speakers.  Next I'll plug in a pair of B&W 600 bookshelves from the mid 80's.  Then I'll really have fun hooking it up to my Maggies.  
Scotty, G, and Sturg:
I love you, mans!!!!!  

Wow, that amps sounds sweet in my living room.  I may really get out of my basement a little more often.  

Of course, last night when I marvelled at the beautiful sounds filling my living room, I would go downstairs occassionally and hear my Rogue, BAT, Hales system and bask in its new found soundstaging.  

ALL HALE SCOTT F. FOR HIS KNOWLEDGE, WISDOM, AND HOSPITALITY!!!

[Scott F.]

Dude!

Those were just coupling caps and power supply bypasses. Wait until you pull a Sturgus and sink serious bucks into a piece of gear. Black Gates for the power supply caps, tantelum resitors everywhere in the signal path, upgraded internal wiring, new inputs and outputs, then some serious coupling caps (like the V Caps).    Lord knows I missed a few of the other upgrades Sturg made to his Aronovs, AR pre and CAL DAC.

Don't get me wrong, the Thetas are a really nice sounding upgrade but we could take your Jolida into a whole new dimension (or as far as your wallet will let us)

Alex, give me a buzz on the crossover. I could probably hook you up with one depending on the configuration you want.

[Mike D]

Okay!  I'm in.  Except I really want to see what can be done to my preamp.  Can I bring it along for you all to inspect?  If you tell me the best stuff to buy, I'll do it!  I've been begging the company who made my amp for years and years and years to upgrade the caps and power supply for me.  They refuse because they have their new, upgraded version on the market.  PM me if you want the names.  I can even send you a picture of the insides of the pre.  

BTW, my favorite experience from Saturday was the Odyssey amp, pre, and Epiphony speakers.  Absolutely wide and deep soundstaging with authority in all frequency extremes.  I am trying to talk myself out of purchasing a pair of the Epiphonys for my front room.  They defy logic.  The amp and pre defy logic as well!  How can solid state (inexpensive) have such depths of layering, harmonic overtones, and room abience?  Klaus?  Who is Klaus?  I'd really like to send him my congratulations on his break through system.

[Scott F.]

Okay!  I'm in.  Except I really want to see what can be done to my preamp.  Can I bring it along for you all to inspect? ...

You got it big guy! Just bring it along to the next gathering. Between Willie, Sturgus, G and myself, no doubt we'll find something seriously twisted we can do to it    
Just make sure I don't break out a ratchet wrench to work on you pre    I'd hate to have to buy your BAT.
Hey G, can I use my Turbo Torch in this thing for soldering? That or maybe I could break out my 75 watt iron. Yep, that one might work better.

Klaus? Who is Klaus? I'd really like to send him my congratulations on his break through system.

Klaus Bunge of Odyssey amplifier fame. Klaus is a rather large German fellow (he sorta makes Willie look like a dwarf). Don't let his size fool you though, he's a prince of a guy that lives life with a passion.

[Bill Baker]

Okay, maybe I missd something here. What Jolida amp are we speaking of here? I would love to be involved with the upgrade path of this unit. I have experimented with soooooo many combinations of components within all the Jolida tube amps, from the little 102B all the way up to the 3000A mono blocs, I am willing to provide my opinions on what does what (and also provide you with a few of my own insider secrets).

  Sounds like everybody had a good time. Glad to hear this but then again, I would expect nothing less from Scott. If I was a traveling man, I would love to attend one of these sessions. If nothing else, just to meet everybody and put a face with the monikers.

  No pictures?? What's up with that?

[Scott F.]

Okay, maybe I missd something here. What Jolida amp are we speaking of here? I would love to be involved with the upgrade path of this unit. I have experimented with soooooo many combinations of components within all the Jolida tube amps, from the little 102B all the way up to the 3000A mono blocs, I am willing to provide my opinions on what does what (and also provide you with a few of my own insider secrets).

 Sounds like everybody had a good time. Glad to hear this but then again, I would expect nothing less from Scott. If I was a traveling man, I would love to attend one of these sessions. If nothing else, just to meet everybody and put a face with the monikers.

No pictures?? What's up with that?

Hiya Bill!

I thought if we mentioned Jolida gear we'd get your attention

Mikes got the 301-2? It's the PP EL34 (Mike, little help here). We swapped out the coupling caps for the Thetas I pulled out of the Radii when I installed the V Caps. We also found some Nichicon films in my parts bins and installed them as power supply bypasses. The Nichicons aren't the greatest by any stretch but hey, they were free! (gotta love free)

I managed to snap off one of the binding posts when I was tightening one down with a ratchet wrench and had to replace a pair of them with some solid copper ones.

We'd love some of your input on the mods. Jeez, you've only modded 2 or 3 HUNDRED of them so far.

Pics, we don't need no stinking pics  
We like our audio dark and mysterious just like our food, beer and women!




You just missed the link on page one of the post    Here it is again.
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?action=gallery;area=browse;album=471

[lonewolfny42]

Looks like another excellent gathering....thanks for the pictures and info.....and.....Thank you Blackmore/Mark and DeadFish/Bill for the info about the Sophia Baby upgrade. Sounds like it made a real difference. So....who do I ship my "Baby" to........

Chris [/list:u]

[Bill Baker]

I thought if we mentioned Jolida gear we'd get your attention  

 You know me all too well.

Mikes got the 301-2?

It a 302.

 It's the PP EL34 (Mike, little help here). We swapped out the coupling caps for the Thetas I pulled out of the Radii when I installed the V Caps. We also found some Nichicon films in my parts bins and installed them as power supply bypasses. The Nichicons aren't the greatest by any stretch but hey, they were free! (gotta love free)

Sounds like an older one if the binding post broke off. They were a little cheezy (the binding post) with little tiny nuts holding them on.
 As far as the power supply goes, I'll tell ya what I'm gonna do. I will send you some replacement filter caps for the amp. Takes about 6 1/2 minutes to change them out. I won't tell you what to expect from these as I want to here your impressions without any influence. The Theta caps should be just fine. These are good caps and if/when Mike decides to spring for some V-Caps, these will sound nice in the Jolida. There are a few other small yet crucial parts to change out on these amps that would cost less than $50 for everything that will make some nice sonic improvements.

We'd love some of your input on the mods. Jeez, you've only modded 2 or 3 HUNDRED of them so far.

 Sounds bout right.

Pics, we don't need no stinking pics  
We like our audio dark and mysterious just like our food, beer and women!

Gotchya!!!!

[G]

Hey G, can I use my Turbo Torch in this thing for soldering? That or maybe I could break out my 75 watt iron. Yep, that one might work better.

Maybe a benzene torch!  

[Mike D]

Its a JoLida 302a.  I didn't know that it had tiny nuts!  

That explains why its post fell of when played with.

It really sounds fantastic.  I'd love to try all of the ideas you have.  Should I send you some money or something?  

I'm really glad to here that mods are a possibility with my preamp.  Last night, I could feel the infection growing inside me as I looked at each piece of equipment and thought of modifications that could be made.  

Trouble, baby!  Trouble!  

I'm about as excited as a puppy with fifteen peckers right now!!!