No worries mate, of course you need limits to keep the forum clean.
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i have zu druid IV <— dynaco st70 with triode driver board <— supratek preamp <— DS Sr <— oppo 103 <— chromecast <— ripped stuff on a PC or streamed. just installed snowmass in the DS, from huron.
im afraid to move, for fear i will unbalance whatever has happened. the druid’s phase-correct wide-range driver may have some synergy going with snowmass. druid iv treble extension / sense of air had been (for my ears, in my room) less than i would like, but was an acceptable trade to get the wide range driver. snowmass has improved it, it is not a small change, it is fundamentally improved.
There is some hiss, the preamp has high gain, but its not noticeable when there is something playing. i have used low power amps and solid state amps up to 500W but I much prefer the ST70, the triode driver mod tightens it up and controls the druids well.
My speaker journey led me to electrostatic and open-baffle kind of sound, i have stayed with the Druids now for a while. And as I have just rediscovered, the better the source, the better they sound for me.
I may be going against the grain but with Strata and SP3… I am moving to Zu Mission Cables… maybe Event… but the Mission sound better than Iconoclast in my system. Omen Mk2 speakers.
The TPCs are way too edgy and require a really high Gap height to boost the bass to compensate. The OFE require a really short Gap height to compensate for the overly thick sound. Ironically Zu Mission has more TONE to electric guitar, more natural vocals, more musicality in general.
One caveat… I do still plan on keeping the BAV power cords… they are amazing for TONE! The Zu power cables smooth everything out and I’m not a fan at least in my system.
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Gap? What is Gap?
The gap height for the speaker to the floor.
I edited above now for clarity.
got it. thanks
try tilting them back just a bit.
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I’ve done tons of experimentation, toe in, straight out, tilt, no tilt.
SQ is not solely judged on sweetspot; directly on axis, off to side, all around the large combo living/dining/kitchen.
Sound signatures are pretty consistent everywhere.
My system is as barebones as it can be. Strata/SP3 and Omen Mk2.
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They are amazingly easy to get right.
Sean Casey is one of the great thinkers in this business.
BTW, in my opinion, the Mission MK1 cables that can be bought on their Ebay store are the best value for money out there.
And all their Event cables are excellent. I love how flexible they are.
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I raised my ZO Omen Defs just a little (increased gap) to a smidge wider than a standard CD case. The bass improvement was major. I was able to lower my subwoofers crossover and volume a smidge.
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I installed their rubber feet for my hardwood floor. This raised the speakers up about an inch. I did notice a deeper bass, but now I have a Stereophile magazine under each and I prefer the less deep but more defined bass. Hooray for free tweaks!
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I have a pair of Zu Omen Defs I use to use with my BHK amps, now they are in storage.
So whatspeakers are you using now with the BHKs?
Is the FR103ND a Zu driver? I a m looking for 10" full range drivers similar to Zu for a DIY array. Want to try and use the the subwoofer cabinets in my towers. Save on space. Currently using a BHK 250 on low sensitive drivers and it sounds good at high volume levels. Want to try high sensitive speakers to and maybe an all tube amp. For low level listening. Thx Simon
Yes, the FR103ND is Zu’s driver. Manufactured by Eminence but to Zu’s unique spec. Zu will sell you these drivers. You should also look at Lii-Audio. They have some amazing drivers as well. Best,
I’m using a pair of Watkins Stereo WE-1s made in the early 1980s.
Thx much for the reply. I emailed Gerrit last week and tried to buy some 10" drivers. I wanted six. Said he couldn’t help me. Perhaps I need to join the club by buying a set of towers. I may one day. Cheers
Simon
Cool. I like that gear can still sound good after 30-40 years
I bought from the original owner, Mr Watkins who made the speakers told me he went through them about 3 years ago and said they were in better condition than when they built them, better components in the crossovers now.
Hey Vince
I sold my X250.8 long ago. I didn’t like it.
It was–with my Wilson Sabrina X speakers, very dynamic, great bass control, beautiful treble that was clear, detailed but not bright. But what it lacked was the wonderful, liquid mid range that Pass pure Class A amps have.
Right now, I’m using a Pass XA-25, which gives 50 watts into 4 ohms. It shouldn’t work very well with my Wilsons which are 4 ohm, dipping to 2.6 ohms. But all Pass’ amps are very conservatively spec’d.
For example, this amp will produce 75 watts still at 0.01% thd for transients and 200 watts at 0.1%!
The sound of his Class A amps makes the tube/solid state argument pointless imo.
I’m happy to discuss further, Vince
Ron
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