View Full Version : Wolfie's kit (well, some of it anyway...)
LP12 that I've owned (and upgraded) since new, bought in 1980:-
http://i451.photobucket.com/albums/qq233/mickc_01/1.jpg
http://i451.photobucket.com/albums/qq233/mickc_01/2.jpg
http://i451.photobucket.com/albums/qq233/mickc_01/Akiva.jpg
Klimax Kontrol pre, Renew DS streamer and Radikal LP12 PSU:-
http://i451.photobucket.com/albums/qq233/mickc_01/P1050176.jpg
I'll add 'speakers and such soon.
Mick
morris_minor
15-12-2011, 19:07
Great kit, great pics, Mick :thumbsup:
Bob
Reid Malenfant
15-12-2011, 19:19
That's a whole lotta Linn you have there Mick :eyebrows: A mix of older & newer kit if I'm not mistaken, though I'm just going by the design as I think they tended to match the range styles over the years? :scratch:
Bring on the speakers :cool:
That's a whole lotta Linn you have there Mick :eyebrows: A mix of older & newer kit if I'm not mistaken, though I'm just going by the design as I think they tended to match the range styles over the years? :scratch:
Bring on the speakers :cool:
They're nigh-on contemporary, actually. The KK pre (the silver thing) is from their top-of-the-range erm, range, the Radikal PSU (the bottom box) is styled as part of their 'Akurate' range, although the styling has recently changed somewhat. and the streamer is the main board from an older Klimax DS streamer inside a cheapo case that Linn supplied to those upgrading their streamers for a short period back in the summer.
Mick
Reid Malenfant
15-12-2011, 19:46
Ah, cheers for clearing that up Mick, in all honesty I could only recognise an amp & the record deck obviously :eyebrows: The rest was a mystery which has now been revealed thanks to you!
E2A:- Too busy looking at pics & missed the essential item descriptions! :doh:
The Vinyl Adventure
15-12-2011, 19:48
What's the deal with the renew?
I think that's all of about 4 people here using linn ds now :)
What's the deal with the renew?
I think that's all of about 4 people here using linn ds now :)
The Renew's an excellent-sounding piece of kit, bringing the cost of top performance down to a level where I can afford it!
For those that don't know, Linn's Klimax DS is their top streamer - recently they brought out a redesigned main board for it, and Klimax owners could purchase the upgrade, and at the same time, if they wished, buy a case and power supply to house the old main board, so they could have a 'cheap' second streamer.
However, a large percentage of those who upgraded sold their 'Renew' boxes to help cover the cost of their upgrade. Mine came from a friend who upgraded but didn't have a need for a second box.
Mick
Slippershod
15-12-2011, 20:36
'the chances of anything coming from Mars were a million to one, they said...'
they don't write 'em like that anymore...
'the chances of anything coming from Mars were a million to one, they said...'
they don't write 'em like that anymore...
I should have slipped "Kind of Blue" on before I took the picture! :)
Mick
The Grand Wazoo
15-12-2011, 23:12
Hi Mick,
Very nice photo's thanks.
Now then here's a question for you - I've always wondered, but never been suitably motivated to ask anyone, why has your Linn Akiva got a conservatory on it?
Hi Mick,
Very nice photo's thanks.
Now then here's a question for you - I've always wondered, but never been suitably motivated to ask anyone, why has your Linn Akiva got a conservatory on it?
That's a very good question - can't see the point myself, but I guess it's so purchasers see there's something inside it and so can feel reassured they've not just bought an empty bit of tin!
Mick
The top picture also shows the side of my old STAX energiser next to the LP12 - I had a 006t and a pair of 404 Signature 'Earspeakers' - I sold these some months back but I must say they are a wonderfully revealing set of 'cans', if anyone's considering such a purchase.
Mick
Rare Bird
16-12-2011, 14:17
I'll add 'speakers and such soon.
Will they also be Linn? :lolsign:
Will they also be Linn? :lolsign:
Well you'd think so, but Binatone had a nice line when I was looking, so...
Mind you, you could cheat and look at my post in the "Welcome" area and thus save yourself a lot of fretting!
I'll add 'speakers and such soon.
Mick
Nice set up, hope you get speakers soon. Must sound a bit quiet without them.
Nice set up, hope you get speakers soon. Must sound a bit quiet without them.
:) It's there to be looked at!
Very nice Mick and excellent pics too..
Jason
Slippershod
18-12-2011, 22:02
I should have slipped "Kind of Blue" on before I took the picture! :)
Mick
I wasn't being sarcy actually - I'm the sort that loves 'kind of blue' and 'jeff wayne's war of the worlds' (possibly a fairly exclusive club) :eyebrows:
noticing the label got me sidling off to youtube and reliving some youthful memories (my still best chum had the original vinyl release) - I've threatened my other half with an evening listening to the whole thing in one sitting, red wine on tap :) (have to hunt down a vinyl copy, 'natch...)
Reid Malenfant
18-12-2011, 22:05
< snip> and 'jeff wayne's war of the worlds' (possibly a fairly exclusive club) :eyebrows:
Not that exclusive ;)
Love it myself :D
Don't be daft EVERYONE here loves both, I guarantee it... :sofa: ;)
(Well I do!)
Exactly! I'm only sad that I missed the stage show the other year...
Mick
...aaaaaaand the 'speakers - a pair of ex-dem Linn Espeks:-
http://i451.photobucket.com/albums/qq233/mickc_01/Espeks.jpg
Mick
Reid Malenfant
19-12-2011, 16:52
I guess that was only to be Espek ted :eyebrows:
Decent sized reflex port on them, no change of port compression on those speakers :)
I guess that was only to be Espek ted :eyebrows:
Decent sized reflex port on them, no change of port compression on those speakers :)
There's a smaller port at the top on the rear too (and a bass driver)...
Reid Malenfant
19-12-2011, 17:06
Is this bass driver the same size as the one on the front? If so how far up the back panel is it?
Is this bass driver the same size as the one on the front? If so how far up the back panel is it?
The bass driver is a bit over two thirds up the rear - it's bigger than the mid driver on the front as the cabinet is narrower at the front than at the rear, which isn't clear from the photograph, although if you look at the base of the right hand one you can just see that it tapers to the front.
Mick
Reid Malenfant
19-12-2011, 18:42
Ah yes, I see it now :) Still going to be a big port even for an 8" or 10" driver, I should imagine it's probably an 8".
Decent design, never can get over why manufacturers use small ports :scratch: Bigger is generally better to reduce port air speed & thus turbulence, though no point in going OTT :eyebrows:
The sloped enclosure will help in the midrange to as it'd be much harder to set up standing waves in an enclosure with uneven distance side to side.
Someone used their head for once :)
Ah, just found this front-and-rear view on the 'net:-
http://i451.photobucket.com/albums/qq233/mickc_01/avholic_2698.jpg
Mick
PS And yes, it's an eight inch driver.
Reid Malenfant
19-12-2011, 18:53
Nice design, I like it. Looks like the 8" is doing what you might call subwoofer duties seeing as the smaller driver has a port at the back which must augment the bass to :scratch:
Can these be driven actively? Only reason I ask is simply because the 8" driver must be operating below about 100Hz & that may well pose problems with passive crossover design. Like it'd need a rather large inductor which wouldn't be cheap if it's going to have low losses :eyebrows:
Nice design, I like it. Looks like the 8" is doing what you might call subwoofer duties seeing as the smaller driver has a port at the back which must augment the bass to :scratch:
Can these be driven actively? Only reason I ask is simply because the 8" driver must be operating below about 100Hz & that may well pose problems with passive crossover design. Like it'd need a rather large inductor which wouldn't be cheap if it's going to have low losses :eyebrows:
They can be driven actively, and they are! :) The rear of the 'speaker has a mass of connections, giving a choice of one, two or three amps to passively drive them, or three to actively do so.
The power amps have active cards in them so I have to be very careful, if any disconnecting goes on, that treble goes to treble etc., otherwise much smoke and damage could go on!
Reid Malenfant
19-12-2011, 19:05
Ah, I thought so! Very nice indeed, I bet they sound great :D
Ah, I thought so! Very nice indeed, I bet they sound great :D
I think they do, Mark, but generally they're a bit of a Marmite 'speaker; loved by some, hated by others.
Me; I love 'em! :D
Reid Malenfant
19-12-2011, 20:15
Not everyone likes active stuff, me, I love it & prefer it to passive speakers.
I prefer the accuracy that an active setup gives you, no storage of energy in inductors that can smear the sound.
Until a speaker goes active you just don't realise the damage that the passive crossover can do & at that point unless the speaker was initially designed to be actively driven from the word go a lot of nasties might show up.
You might get peaks in the response where the bass/mid crosses over to the tweeter though a lot of this depends on the material & other factors concerning the cone. It's pretty easy to get round it with an active setup, but it's best to design one with drivers that don't go into breakup in the bands you'll drive them in :)
One massive & totally underated advantage of active systems is it's a doddle to time align the drivers & if using Linkwitz Riley constant phase crossovers (also dead easy to design) then you'll end up with a speaker that sounds as if everything is coming from the one driver time wise..
No idea why the Tannoy fraternity haven't cottoned onto this as they'd get 100% integration in every plane due to the drivers being concentric to :doh:
Well, in the scenario you propose, what happens to the valve amps we like to use, dude?
Some us feel that no matter how much more technically 'accurate' an active set-up is, what you gain on one hand is lost (BIG TIME) on another, with the generally shite (in comparison to what we use) SS amps that usually have to be factored into the active equation!
And no, I'm not going to buy another £6k Copper amp, in order to activate my Tannoys (in conjunction with suitable crossovers) ;)
To my ears, passive modded Lockwoods + Copper valve amp = the trouncing of any active speaker system I've heard, so far!
Marco.
Reid Malenfant
20-12-2011, 17:18
It's the "so far" bit I like ;)
Why yes I'd suggest if you like the copper amp so much then borrow something of equivalent quality & see how it goes. Just remember always to keep an open mind Marco, no point in limiting anything in reality as long as it doesn't cost an arm & a leg.
While I myself generally wouldn't be happy with what I would agree to be fairly average amplification used in the majority of factory built active speakers, you may have noticed that in my setup I'm using a Parasound amp which while still being solid state is an entirely different entity.
That will be ousted in favour of 6 class A monoblocks in the future.
I honestly think that if you were to listen to a pair tannoy DCs with properly time aligned drivers you'd be in for a bit of a shock.
Anyway Marco, you don't see me jumping in on a Tannoy thread giving it large about active systems & how they trounce any passive setup I have ever heard, so I'm not quite sure what brought this on :ner:
Anyway Marco, you don't see me jumping in on a Tannoy thread giving it large about active systems & how they trounce any passive setup I have ever heard, so I'm not quite sure what brought this on...
I should've thought that was obvious... This comment of yours, daftee, was the culprit:
No idea why the Tannoy fraternity haven't cottoned onto this as they'd get 100% integration in every plane due to the drivers being concentric to :doh:
Therefore, I was merely answering on behalf of the "Tannoy fraternity" to whom you were addressing! ;)
Actively driven speakers are no more of a 'magic bullet' than anything else is in hi-fi. I'm afraid that, as they say, there is no 'free lunch'. Anyway, we'll leave it there, muchacho, as this is a discussion for another time and place :cool:
Marco.
Reid Malenfant
20-12-2011, 17:58
Ah yes, I see I did indeed mention Tannoy now I look back :doh:
:D :lol: Silly mistake...
Lol - you see how easily these things start? ;)
Anyway, back to Wolfie's kit.......
Marco.
Mark, you're starting to sound like Ashley James - and one of him is MORE than enough thank you :D
The "thing" about big Tannoys is that they are incredibly efficient and losses may well be inevitably less around them because of this. Don't take any notice of Marco here (ducks :)) as his undoubtedly wonderful system is a very different animal to the average and all things within it have been fettled and tweaked to within an inch of their lives... if his system didn't sound bloody good it would be a huge amount of egg on his face, wouldn't it? :cool:
I know there have been active Tannoys (the later twin-driver ones especially I think) and I bet in a studio situation they're gobsmackingly loud, detailed to a fault and will take no prisoners at all. Whether you could enjoy music at home on such as system is another matter and it's something along these lines I'm trying to argue on the HDD forum with little success (I suspect it's as much my inabilities in persuasive explanation as much as selective deafness over there). Not the same (only 90db sensitivity I understand), but the ATC 200A's I once heard were devastatingly good in terms of reproduction of dynamics, and I don't mean drum kits either. A commercial CD with tenor and piano was incredible and nothing like the force and power of ATC's humbler 100A's, let alone more reasonable domesticated products passively driven. All a long time ago now.
Don't worry Mark, I do hear you and fully understand. maybe someone with working Cheviots, berkeleys or Ardens willing to have a go with humbler amps than Marco's may get a surprising improvement, at least until Anthony TD designs AND BUILDS a kosher active crossover up to "standard..." The rest of us will have to muddle along with op-amps and associated nasties :D
Oh, apologies Marco, I've done it again - thread drift be damned on here..............
No, no - excellent post, Dave! :)
Marco.
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