OK people... Listen up! LOL...
I have a very good friend who is one of those electrical geniuses. He is the type that can pull a plasma TV out of a muddy ditch and have it working in 30 minutes. Gotta hate him don’t ya??
Anyway, I handed the SSP to him and after some troubleshooting he determined that some of the capacitors in the power source(s) were shot. He replaced them and like magic, the unit started working again. GREAT news right? But wait... It gets better!
Just having it work again was not good enough for John (my friend). He decided that all of those old caps in the unit should be replaced. Yes, I said ALL of them. About 80 or so as I recall. He tore down the unit and replaced every one of them with Nichicon MUSE "audio grade" capacitors.
I only have about 3 hours on the unit so far... So I’d have to say burn-in has only just begun. It seems to improve a bit each time I crank it up. I am just amazed at the overall improvement. It sounds better than I could have ever imagined. Minute musical details are clean and crisp now. Full, rich and dynamic sound that runs chills down your spine. It is a whole new world in my living room now!
He now has possession of my other SSP which was exhibiting the same symptoms. He has decided to use Elna Simlic audio grade caps in this one just to see if there is any sonic difference. I cannot wait to do the comparison.
And the best news? The CAL 2500 MCA is next!! He wants to break into it and do the same. Yes, please!
Just a little info for those who may be interested in the rest of my equipment. All oldies but goodies. I cannot afford to replace any of it and I really see no reason to do so at this point in time... I assembled the equipment in an attempt to obtain the best results for home entertainment.
CAL 2500 SSP, CAL 2500 MCA, B&W 801 Series 3 on Sound Anchor stands, tweeters recently replaced, North Creek Crossovers, SOTA Star Sapphire Table, SME Series V tonearm, Ortofon A90 M/C Cartridge, Tom Evans The Groove +, Oppo BDP-83 Special Edition (Modwright tube conversion)
Wish I could post some pics to show the caps installed....
