newbee

Responses from newbee

Improving on the Sonata IIIs, which speakers?
Bolero's! They only look alike. :-) 
McIntosh C33 image question
Weak tubes on the right side of the pre-amp. Try sitching those tubes with tubes on the left side and see if anything happens, or if you've got'em, plug in some spares on the right side and see if anything changes. If you haven't changed your set ... 
unused inputs/outputs - safe to short?
I don't think shorting plugs (or caps) will have any effect on the effects of cross talk in your pre-amp. Now if your tuner, for example, is off and you are hearing music from a radio station, you might get some help from shorting plugs. Might. I ... 
Looking for Wagner recommendations
Levine and the MET, recommended by Learsfool, would be my recommendation, but if you are looking for the really extroverted chunks in big 'audiophile approved' sound there are probably better ones. But Levine is fundamentally an opera conductor wh... 
High Current SS amps with input impedance = 200K
Hi Bob, Please consider my posts in this context - I was not trying to do anything more than provide a 'simple' answer to the OP's question without getting technical nor doing his research for him. That is a methodology I have used professionally ... 
Tube amp suggestions under $3k used
Why don't you take a few moments to tell us how your set up with the Cayin sounds now and what improvements you would like to see by introducing a different amp. Perhaps all you really need is not so much a different amp but different tubes to acc... 
Cartridge Loading
This may not be perfectly on point, but FWIW, I have a Glider medium output and had the ability to adjust impedence on the fly. I went thru values from 47K, way too bright, to 25ohms, way to dark, slow and muddy.So if you like your system on the l... 
KT 88s - Gold Lion re-issue vs others
I've used the SED's off and on for a few years. They are not a linear tube in my experience. The upper bass is a bit prominent (maybe not a bad thing in some systems) and mids/upper mids can be a bit uneven (in some systems this might be seen as h... 
High Current SS amps with input impedance = 200K
Almarg sez "Amen from me too, of course"To the profusion of Amens I would add that Almarg should get a few hozzanah's and more than one Amen for fleshing out the actual detail and providing a concise answer to the OP's concerns regarding the use o... 
Best way to A/B speakers......
Thomas, Re your question about set up - If you are talking about setting up the Maggies you would want to set them up so the back wave would hit a wall behind it, something you could control the acoustic nature of, and you would want them, ideally... 
Best way to A/B speakers......
Thomas, What ever you do don't underestimate the impact of properly setting up speakers in your room. A long and often tedious task. You mention Dali's and Maggies. I can't imagine two speaker types with more obvious differences in set up and ampl... 
How do you judge your system's neutrality?
Cbw (& Byron), I have never taken any exception to the point that as you remove distortion artifacts from your system the more easily you will hear all of the information in the pits and grooves. Byron has discovered this as he has improved th... 
Best way to A/B speakers......
With all due respect, you have just come upon the leading edge of a very steep learning curve. The reason you can't tell the differences is because you have not established a frame of reference. To use the automobile analogy, On Monday you drive a... 
How do you judge your system's neutrality?
Byron, Isn't that sort of an oxymoron, an 'objective' audiophile. What would you like him to be objective about? The is almost an artform exercise and is almost totally, from cradle to grave, based on someones opinions about the best manner to rec... 
High Current SS amps with input impedance = 200K
Mapman, Note that I deleted the post you are responding to. Sorry about that. I was really responding to Tvads observations and was not at all pleased about what I was saying especially as it applied to you. I had already communicated all I could ...