Post by raveydave on Apr 22, 2020 20:02:16 GMT 12
Good Evening Ant
Firstly, thank you for your reply... I figured it was a long shot, but worth a punt.
I was really glad to hear that the '219 has stayed the distance in your system... Is that over 2 years now?
We've had our '218 for just over a year, and agree it is a great "little" (35kg) amplifier.
To be honest, it's still probably the best sound in the house on line level sources (Marantz 10B tuner / Bluesound Node2 streamer).
It's certainly the most listened to!
I have also changed out the stock input & driver tubes (for nos mullard ecc83 & fat boy ge 6ca7), but hadn't yet started looking at the 845s.
Oddly, I found changing out the driver tubes made a more noticeable difference than the 12ax7's.
Those PSVane WE845 seem like they would be the bees knees... Good tip!
Like many, I am completely enamoured with the 219 classic Western Electric styling, and its big-hitter tube complement.
It's like, ruull purrrdy...
I had thought the orange 518 might provide a good stepping stone - with the valve rectification providing an added level of sophistication.
But... to paraphrase Hunter S Thompson, once you start on a path "the tendency is to push it as far as you can.”
Our main stereo rig hasn't really seen a significant change for 10+ years. I may post here about it one day, but fear it isn't as worthy as most.
It might just be Lockdown ennui, but I seem to be spending a lot more of my time in virtual meetings daydreaming about the enduring contentment that a vintage Garrard idler may provide in that system.
So, as far as I've got is realising that the '301 is the unanimously better ("cooler"?) looking unit.. but probably not twice as good as a '401... despite what the relative price would suggest.
So yeah, we're probably just thinking it through at the moment.... 12" tonearms, massive bespoke plinths, exotic cartridges and step up transformers!!! Eeeek.
But then again, it would be nice to listen to some of our music presented in a different way, once in a while.
I've yet to hear a properly set up idler T/T, so maybe that's the next step...
Again, thanks for your time and interest.
Firstly, thank you for your reply... I figured it was a long shot, but worth a punt.
I was really glad to hear that the '219 has stayed the distance in your system... Is that over 2 years now?
We've had our '218 for just over a year, and agree it is a great "little" (35kg) amplifier.
To be honest, it's still probably the best sound in the house on line level sources (Marantz 10B tuner / Bluesound Node2 streamer).
It's certainly the most listened to!
I have also changed out the stock input & driver tubes (for nos mullard ecc83 & fat boy ge 6ca7), but hadn't yet started looking at the 845s.
Oddly, I found changing out the driver tubes made a more noticeable difference than the 12ax7's.
Those PSVane WE845 seem like they would be the bees knees... Good tip!
Like many, I am completely enamoured with the 219 classic Western Electric styling, and its big-hitter tube complement.
It's like, ruull purrrdy...
I had thought the orange 518 might provide a good stepping stone - with the valve rectification providing an added level of sophistication.
But... to paraphrase Hunter S Thompson, once you start on a path "the tendency is to push it as far as you can.”
Our main stereo rig hasn't really seen a significant change for 10+ years. I may post here about it one day, but fear it isn't as worthy as most.
It might just be Lockdown ennui, but I seem to be spending a lot more of my time in virtual meetings daydreaming about the enduring contentment that a vintage Garrard idler may provide in that system.
So, as far as I've got is realising that the '301 is the unanimously better ("cooler"?) looking unit.. but probably not twice as good as a '401... despite what the relative price would suggest.
So yeah, we're probably just thinking it through at the moment.... 12" tonearms, massive bespoke plinths, exotic cartridges and step up transformers!!! Eeeek.
But then again, it would be nice to listen to some of our music presented in a different way, once in a while.
I've yet to hear a properly set up idler T/T, so maybe that's the next step...
Again, thanks for your time and interest.
