Forty-Plus-Year Adventures with Vintage Dynaco Stereo Equipment and More! PART FOUR

July 20, 2018

#262

Gentle reader,

I continue on with my ever expanding saga covering my forty-plus years pursuit of Audio Nirvana. I do so on a budget. Mostly previously enjoyed components. I buy locally and sell on eBay. My eBay funds get put back into my hobby. Now that I'm retired, even less is changing.  The last chapter can be found here:

Forty-Plus-Year Adventures with Vintage Dynaco Stereo Equipment and More! PART THREE.  

When we left off, I had completely disassembled both the stereo and six-channel systems with the eye towards simplifying. Here was the last photo from part three:

As you may recall, I had my nice glass and steel component shelve on my left with originally nothing on the front wall except the speakers. As time went by, more and more things started filling the room, even between the speakers. Then the six-channel system was added and more and more. Oh, and mostly unseen is all the artworks, many Asian that were filling the walls and shelves. And, of course LP shelves and numerous CD racks, even a cassette tape collection. When will it all end? By the way we are up to October, 2015, now.

First off, the Kenwood THX Certified power amp has gone to a new home because, I FINALLY scored a Panro-era Dynaco component: ST-200 power amplifier. There it is on the bottom, left. The two speakers on the outside up on the wall stands are AR 215 PS units. The modified Minimus 11s are on the inside. On the floor stands are iconic Radio Shack Optimus LX-5II with the legendary Linaeum ribbon tweeters. One can also clearly see my "bass traps" in the corners.

Here is the "dirty side" AKA: the back. I have been replacing the Liberty Cable interconnects with top-of-the-line Monster Cable ones. Some Liberty models remain. It take great pains to keep the AC cables and cords separate from the music carrying cables. Even though they are SO well made, it is unlikely any 60 Hertz hum could enter them.

The C-V LS-12s are back and the first appearance of my soon-to-be-restomodded Radio Shack Minimus 7W speakers. They are the tiny ones atop the C-Vs.

Stereo-200 has moved to the top left for ease of attaching/removing the speaker cable's banana plugs.  Also new is a TDK two-drawer CD-recorder. I sold the Pioneer single disc one when this TDK came along.   

Pushing the limits of these shelves. I had some 1/4 thick Lexan sheets, AKA: bullet-proof glass. Seriously,  this stuff it TOUGH! On the left, the Acoustic Research PS 215s, then the modded Minumus 11s, the LX-5II ribbon speakers and the Minumus 7 now sporting woven Kevlar (speaking of bullet-proof) from another form of the Optimus speakers which have a cult following. I'd have to go back and read my many-chapter coverage of the modding of these 7W speakers to see which ones they came from. Anyway, they are the first step in the long process.

What follows are three photos over a few weeks where I abandoned all other speakers (save the needed 12" sub) in order to fully test my completed Minimus 7W speakers. Look closely and you will see they now sport the same FMT ribbon tweeters their big brothers 11s have.

I could not decide where to put the massive  C-V LS12 speakers.

 OR the subwoofer! Also, the components had been rearranged. Again.

Note, also I have changed speaker cables. I have tried numerous models from several companies. In this photo, you can see some snaking up the left corner to the terminal plate in the ceiling.

Ah! The significance of this photo was lost on me for a minute. BTW, were up to the end of 2016 now. 
I bought a Yamaha C45 preamplifier and passed on the Adcom. The last surviving Adcom component is the ACE-515 power conditioner. 

Now, this photo shows the C-Vs back AND speaker cable changes, again. Note the "umbilical cord" cables now going up the corner? The black ones are Monster Cable Z-Series. The thick gray ones are M-C M-Series. The lighter color gray ones were crap. I read the reviews after installing them and sure enough, the bass was MIA.

A lovely pair of Philips speakers, also sporting ribbon tweeters have joined the fray. Model number is MCD-908. They were part of a Philips kit that included a hybrid tube/digital integrated amp and these speakers. I've read the amp was crap, but these speakers are not. They have curved sides and a nice glossy piano-like finish. Should have kept them.

Again, I had to study the photo closely to see the difference. Yamaha C45 preamp was moved out of service and my FIRST PROTON component took it's place. The legendary D540 integrated amp with DPD circuity. In essence it is Class A up to 40 watts. At that point a second transformer and power transistors cut in and provide more than enough power to handle ANY crescendo. I bought it to use as a preamp since the two sections can be separated electrically by pulling the two "U" pins.

Near the end of February, 2017, I have removed the Dynaco ST-200 and moved the PROTON to the top to try out the DPD circuitry. The blue stuff under the speaker switch is Blu-Tak reusable adhesive. The speaker cables are heavy and make the switch do a "wheelie". So it keeps the switch in place. I wrote several articles praising the PROTON DPD circuitry and could I afford a PROTON power amplifier, I would have one! It's THAT good.

Another close look was required. First, I saw the Yamaha and Dynaco stacked on the lower left. Looking around, I spied the BLE Design multi-strand speaker cables. A seller on eBay hand braids top-quality OFC thin cables in order to create budget versions of Kimber Kables. I tried a pair of his least expensive, liked them, reviewed them and he gave me a discount on his thicker ones. So, I used them too. The subwoofer is still for the wee Minimus 7W but I wasn't using them much at this time.

This photo shows the Dynaco is back and both sets of BLE Design cables in place. At some point, I'd upgraded from the silver OPPO to an all-black one, as well.

This is a good place to stop. Another major change is about to happen on or about July 20th, 2017. One that pleased me too. Nope, I am not going to give you a hint. Come to think of it, that was ONE YEAR ago. PART FIVE will be the LAST.

Thank you again for your generous time spent reading my humble blog. 

Scott 

July 20, 2018
#262