Looking at getting a real amp, version 2

DarkLink2135

Try to keep the flames outta this one =/.

Anyway I started this back up because I want opinions.

My dad found a working Mitsubishi DA-F12 in a dumpster today. Thoughts?

Obviously not what I want, but you really can't beat free. I hope it will do until I can manage to scrap up enough cash to buy something nicer.

DarkLink2135

DISREGARD THIS!

It turns out that thing is an AM/FM receiver, and nothing else :P.

Auzner

I've been trying to research that model and could find nothing but that it was along those lines. Was going to ask for photos or a description of the connectors.

department76

thisis what i found:

"45 wpc, from the very early 80s, MSRP $390"

who knows if that's for the same model or not, from what i can tell each model number related makes up a different component of the system, i.e. amp, tuner, etc. so who knows.

no inputs, it's just an AM/FM tuner?

obobskivich

so it sounds like this JVC shelf system I've got, its got like speakers, amp, tuner, casette deck, but all of them carry the same model number (each had a single letter, like the reciever part is 11R, the speakers are 11S, etc)

might be worth keeping, for free, if you get an amp later, and want FM (but if you're getting a reciever, why bother)

in the interim, I've found a sweet deal for ~$170:
http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PU...35R.Kuro?tab=A

heard it does great with 4 ohm loads too, so you can drive those obscure high end speakers if you need to (lol)

its on the head-fi list of available head-amps for ~inexpensive, out of like 30, its like 18 or 19 iirc (so it isn't the bestest, but thats also judging its headamp stage, which means the amplifier stage, run into something like a 600ohm resistor, and then terminated with a female TRS jack, so that isn't a huge indicator of what the speaker terminal output is gonna do, quality wise)

another great deal I found on amazon was this:
http://www.amazon.com/Harman-Kardon-...8073423&sr=8-1

its like $450 right now, no idea if that price is gonna hold, but given everything that box can do, $450 seems to be a steal and a half (although its totally dripping with features that I don't think anyone could use all of)

furball zen

How about this? BTW where is the tv?

obobskivich

thats an audiophile system zen, no time/need for a TV, its all about listening to music

and just to shock your virgin mind, those speakers are over $350,00/pair (just for the speakers), the wires connecting them to the rack is probably another $15,000-$25,000, the monoblock amps are probably in the $8000-$28000/ea range (I haven't seen monoblocks get much higher than this, at least not SS, if those are tubes, I've seen as high as $350,000/pair)

and then all of the other equipment that goes into that system
overall, thats probably close to 7 figures as it sits

furball zen

I wasnt being serious....

obobskivich

I know, I just felt like sharing, god (read that like Napoleon Dynamite, or the guy with the car-bed from Grandma's Boy, or it isn't as funny)

i'd dig up the link for those speakers, but I don't like them enough to remember it, I know they're german, very rare, very proprietary (all horns, the circle thing is part of them, its the LF driver), very hard to drive, you know, typical audiophile obscure stuff

this boy's level of "how obscure of a brand will you accept their claims" stops at Wilson Audio, for speakers, and Wavac for amplifiers, beyond that, I stick to more commerical groups like Kef and Bowers & Wilkins because they tend to cost a lot less relative to their quality (the B&W 800D's at $20,000/pair vs those big German hornloaded speakers, you'd notice maybe a 5% quality increase in those $380k/pair speakers, and they're a lot bigger and less practical (iirc they're either like crazy high sensitivty or, I remember reading about them and being like "god, pairing an amp to this and not dying would be horrible to do"))

so yeah, those are in the category of "obscure audiophilia that obob does not subscribe to" while something like the Kef Muon or Wilson Audio Sophia are in the "obscure audiophilia that obob DOES subscribe to" group

DarkLink2135

I've potentially got my hands on a Marantz 2270.

Thoughts? And what should I offer the guy as an asking price? It's an old tube amp, he says it weights like 90 lbs, but the right channel gets fuzzy at random intervals. He can fix it by turning it off and then back on really quick. He says it might just need cleaning, but he isn't 100% sure about it. It's a guy I can trust so I take his word on that.

I've also already acquired a pair of AAL 2230's. They are an absolutely unbelievable improvement over my white van speakers. The 2 12" drivers on each set makes me smile every time I turn on my system ^_^.

obobskivich

yeah, its probably dust and crap in the faders, get deoxit (most amazing chemical ever, but don't be stupid like me, do it outside, not in your parents' home theater room because you wanted to watch futurama and ignored the safety labels)

as far as the approximate street value, i have no idea, ask him what he thinks is fair, and negotiate from there, unless someone has a good reference point for you to go from

DarkLink2135

What about quality wise overall? You have any opinion on that type/make/model of amp?

EDIT: I think you may have already mentioned something about those speakers before, but refresh my memory please ^_^.

department76

looks like a great find on that marantz, it should sound great. probably just as good or better than anything modern you'd buy, especially in your price range. it's probably worth a bit more more than the average garage/pawn shop find, i guess it depends on how good of friends you are with him offer him $40 and hope he agrees (they're on ebay for $150+).

those speakers seem to be just what you're looking for if you want high output on a tight budget. circa 1980 and an ~98dB sensitivity is what i came across via google, someone else also said 300w rms.

BlackKoala

PA amps put out more distortion.

IM NOT LINKING TO FACTS!

DarkLink2135

I have no idea how to wrap my head around those numbers, but it sounds good to me ^_^.

I don't really want to rip him off or anything, but $150 is probably out of the range of what I can drop on anything, barring an emergency. I asked him what he wanted for it so I'm waiting on a reply. He'd bring it to school with him this coming August so I'd have it then to pair with those speakers.-

The speakers were free ^_^ so they fit into my very tight budget indeed, lol.

The sound amazing even on my ****ty amp. Can't wait to get them paired with something real.

And what does "PA" stand for?

department76

PA is can be public-announcement but is more commonly thought of as pro-audio.

that marantz supposedly does 70w rms (which is plenty for you to get loud) at 0.3% THD and a bandwidth of 7-50KHz, which would be good by todays standards, let alone in the 70s when it was produced. it's a real high quality receiver, it might just be old and finicky but should treat you well if you're friend parts with it for cheap.

wafflesomd

I challenge your link with this!



I can't fathom how loud that was.

obobskivich

probably not ear killing, because the big stack on the bottom just looks like a horn woofer, and horn mids, meaning it could get some rumble in the jungle going on, but it wouldn't make your skull explode

looks like folded horn woofers stacked up tbh, this is on your imageshack, so what concert did you go to? lol

UNLIKELY1

Thats is a great find on the amp Dark. I agree with obob on the De-oxit. In fact I am cetting ready to clean the Pots on an old pioneer Sx-1250 using it. You can get the deoxit at Parts express but radio shack sells a similar product. Its not as good but will work.
If you do decide to get the Marantz and want to clean it yourself, I would suggest joining AudioKarma forums http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/index.php
They have a dedicated thread for vintage Marrantz and alot of techs are members. They will walk you threw the whole process Or may already have a couple of threads about the issues your rig is having. You may want to get on there now and post. Ask them if it may be more than just needing a cleaning.
They helped me rebuild the power supply board on an old Pioneer SX-1010. Saved me about $200 maybe more.
Great score on the speakers to. Should be a vast improvement over your old settup.

obobskivich

yeah, the cleaning saves a ton of cash on stuff, but please, do it outside, or at least in a huge room (my parents' HT room was too small, its like 18 ft x 14 ft x 11 ft, to give you an idea of what I mean by huge), because that stuff really does make you light headed (think though, when the words "remove" and "victim" preceede the warning label...)

that marantz should be fine with a PC setup, just make sure you acknowledge a good soundcard/transport as part of the system (eventually)