congrats. I looked at used ones on hifishark, several listings have a 'works but 5v off' comment, that seems like it's expected from these.
My friend's is in better shape, this is the model I borrowed from him. He couldn't remember where he got it.
Went to buy Vandersteen 2C speakers and came home with a conrad-johnson Premier 11A.
I found a great deal on a pair of Vandersteen 2C speakers with Sound Anchor stands. I didn’t need them, but they are identical to a pair that I had back in the 90s. While I was there, the seller mentioned that he had an amp that he wanted to sell. It was on a shelf in a basement collecting dust. The price was right, so I bought it. He said there are about 40 hours on the tubes. Hopefully, the caps are ok. I’m thinking I’ll try a Wiim Ultra streamer with volume control just to see if everything works. I have old preamps by NAD and Rotel, but they aren't good ones.
Is there anything special that I should do before firing up the old girl? This is my first tube amplifier.
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"We both use the KT88, more of less a direct equivalent of the 6550." My Cayin A88T came with 6550's, manual said could use KT88's, I tried them, prefer them. I had it re-biased eventually, I don't think it made any difference, perhaps prior owner got it with KT88's, changed to 6550's and never changed the bias. I see some amps, that use EL34's, and a physical switch in the back if you use the alternate ____ tube. My question: can you switch KT88's and 6550's in any amp that is made for either tube type? |
@elliottbnewcombjr Thank you. I have it connected to the Vandersteen 2C speakers now. It sounds really good with the Wiim Ultra streamer. Not as good as my main rig, but it was a LOT less expensive. Now, to figure out where to put it permanently. My wife wants to put it upstairs in the living room. |
"The voltage was off on the variac (by about 5 volts)." I didn’t realize that you were savvy (with a meter). 5V is not bad (one review had a unit measured "up" by around 25V - which could inflict some serious damage if the dial were to be trusted on its own merit. PS: The unbranded tubes with "dots" are most likely GE - which I not a bad thing.
DeKay
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@dekay I'm glad that you mentioned the quality concern. It encouraged me to get the multimeter out. Good to know that the unmarked tubes are likely GE. I think the tubes in the amp are probably decent, but not the best I could get. My wife wants me to put the system in the living room. If it ends up there, I'm not going to be too worried about tubes. I say that now, but I'll probably try some different tubes. It's unfortunate that I have lots of spare tubes, but none that work in this amp. |
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