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3 speakers, 2 amps, 1 dac - Omega Super 3U, Overnight Sensations MT, and Fostex P1000-BH shootout

Discussion in 'Speakers' started by thegunner100, Nov 16, 2016.

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  1. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Point was that I've heard the BH SEX and it sucks - to the extent that I would rather take good SS / tube pre over it. I was trying not to be blunt about it. When talking about SET, I mean good implementations meant for speakers, that is with real output transformers, not OTL (unless crazy paralleled OTL designs), not compromised parafeed (which is like throw in a cap AND a transformer in the path). A good SET amp will not be cheap, but it also doesn't need to be super expensive either. Something like the old EC 2A3 with the newer power supplies with the 6D22 would have been great for less than $3k. Too bad they never sold.
     
    Last edited: Nov 18, 2016
    purr1n, Nov 18, 2016
    #41
  2. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    There is no such thing as fullranger. The purist school of fullranger dictates no extra shit like supertweeters or subs. But that kind of thinking is like Lars Von Trier's Dogme 95 school of minimalist filmmaking. I don't subscribe to the purist school BS. I would be more than happy to run a widerbander off a tube amp, augmented by a superweeter, and use speaker-to-line level adapters into a SS power amp for a sub. The idea is the run the widerbander as low and high as possible, and if possible, avoid any crossovers or networks on the widebander. I find crossovers around 2-3k most annoying. No crossover in the mids / upper mids (800Hz to 5000Hz) is what I'm really after. There is no hard rule. Sometimes I prefer to use a cap on the widebander to limit low frequency reproduction instead of allowing it to play with its natural rolloff because distorted bass / excess useless cone movement screws up the midrange.
     
    purr1n, Nov 18, 2016
    #42
  3. murray

    murray Friend

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    Thanks for your opinion on the S.E.X. Would you say this would apply to Bottleheads next model up, the Stereomour? It uses 2A3 tubes (pro) but still has the same parafeed topology and transformers (con). From what I can tell, less distortion. I considered the S.E.X. the cheapest way to try tube SE sound from a kit.
     
    murray, Nov 18, 2016
    #43
  4. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    Going back to the OSMT's, would something like a Nelson Pass designed Adcom amp be a good amp to try? Plenty of power, but not sure how it will sound since most of the Aleph and F series did have very different sounds. I'd build a clone, but I don't have the time or possibly skill to do so.
     
    fraggler, Nov 18, 2016
    #44
  5. murphythecat

    murphythecat GRU-powered uniformed trumpkin

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    I can confirm SEX wasnt powerful enough for fe127 in fonken box
     
    murphythecat, Nov 18, 2016
    #45
  6. sphinxvc

    sphinxvc Gear Master (retired)

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    Do you have a reasonably priced recommendation for us? We'll try to pit it against what we've got here. When you're uninitiated into the cult of prohibitively priced and bourgeoisie valve amplifiers, it's hard to tell lame ducks from err, cool ducks.

    My own excursions into First Watt territory are more out of "necessity" than any kind of reverence for Nelson Pass, as cool as that white maned man looks in pictures. By "necessity", I mean the search for something better than your run of the mill A/B high octane integrated or power, but also not several thousands of dollars (sadly, that excludes tube caviar and those big, high bias, SS leviathans). It seems like we have strength in numbers now though, so we might be able to try something and report back.

    Maybe we should try to build a Neurochrome out here. The problem with the valve designs I've researched so far, is that by the time I'm audacious enough to ask for a paltry 5 watts, and to be spared the fate of cutting down favorable speaker pairings down to just wide banders and horns, the bill is already up to a few thousand dollars. Sure, finances are always relative, and I could try being a Craigslist gigolo, but I'd rather not.

    True, why get dogmatic, these things are just tools, a means to an end.

    Heard good things, same as the Threshold Fortes he designed, but when you're looking at gear that old, there's a lot of good options. Marvey has mentioned on more than one occassion that NP is a brand, and I would agree. But also a brand that is synonymous with a lot of giving to the DIY community and accessible high/fixed bias Class A gear, relative to what else is currently out there. But when you look for fossils in the classifieds, that relative advantage diminishes, so keep an open mind.

    I don't know much about the LH Labs S100, besides that it looks like an Alienware desktop. But in general, I would pay attention to implementation also. Marketers are smart people, and they have picked up on people reading Class A as Class Awesome.
     
    Last edited: Nov 19, 2016
    sphinxvc, Nov 19, 2016
    #46
  7. sphinxvc

    sphinxvc Gear Master (retired)

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    :p

    [​IMG]
     
    sphinxvc, Nov 19, 2016
    #47
  8. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    This part sealed it for me.

    I just got this from UPS:
    [​IMG]
     
    fraggler, Nov 22, 2016
    #48
  9. thegunner100

    thegunner100 Hentai Master Chief

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    I've been shilling the OSMTs so hard that I've gotten you, @Hooncake, @sphinxvc, and @Josh to build a pair. Welcome to the club! \/

    How are you going to finish them? Colorwise.
     
    thegunner100, Nov 22, 2016
    #49
  10. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    Going to go semi gloss white. Have some bondo and paint on the way from Amazon. The big plan for now is to do a whole home theater setup once my girlfriend and I finish our apartment remodel in the spring (tearing everything out to the studs and rebuilding). Out of all the possible schemes with either paint or veneer, the copper on white was most appealing to both.
     
    fraggler, Nov 22, 2016
    #50
  11. murphythecat

    murphythecat GRU-powered uniformed trumpkin

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    when Ive decided to build jeff bagby continuum, the OSM was a contender but ended up building the continuum. anyone compared both OSM vs Continuum?
     
    murphythecat, Nov 22, 2016
    #51
  12. fierce_freak

    fierce_freak Friend

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    Would really love to hear what you thought of continuum and also anyone's thoughts on that vs osmt. Also also if anyone had impressions on the mtm version.

    I was on the cusp of buying those to build, but i ended up snagging used ls50's (frosted black with blue cones!) for a great price. Should be easy to resell when I'm ready to move on. I've got an Anthem PVA 2 for now, but I'm interested in vidar or maybe he diy f5 turbo...suggestions?
     
    fierce_freak, Nov 22, 2016
    #52
  13. murphythecat

    murphythecat GRU-powered uniformed trumpkin

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    I have never compared ls50 vs continuum in the same room. I really liked ls50 imaging abilities, but imo, the ls50 bass is not to my taste, and I found the upper and mid bass thin. Id say the continuum is comparable. that said, the kef ls50 is also a great choice and im sure youll like them. im actually considering a pair for my living room and will likely grab a used pair to try them.

    they need power though, at least 50 WPC imo

    edit: Continuum as a sealed enclosure gives excellent bass. If you use thick birch ply in your diy cabinets.
     
    Last edited: Nov 22, 2016
    murphythecat, Nov 22, 2016
    #53
  14. SteelCannon

    SteelCannon Friend

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    Coherent and resolved mid range as well as quality stereo bass, sign me up. I'm guessing you wouldn't cross the full range driver at all. Would you need to make different compartments inside the cabinet for each driver? Are there any serious downsides to a design like this?
     
    SteelCannon, Nov 24, 2016
    #54
  15. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    I would still cross over the full range driver. You do not want a 4" trying to reproduce 80Hz if you don't have to.
     
    purr1n, Nov 24, 2016
    #55
  16. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    Oh god. I did not know this was a thing. Please save us, Jesus.
     
    zerodeefex, Nov 24, 2016
    #56
  17. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    @Marvey

    I need to put together a chart that shows required excursion for a particular driver size to reproduce different frequencies at a certain SPL.
     
    zerodeefex, Nov 24, 2016
    #57
  18. msommers

    msommers High on Epipens

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    With the strength of the USD right now, a Line Magnetic 518 is, imo, a great option for SET.
     
    msommers, Nov 24, 2016
    #58
  19. SteelCannon

    SteelCannon Friend

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    Now with my bmrs gone I'm super interested in this project. Hopefully you can find some time to work on it XD
     
    SteelCannon, Dec 21, 2016
    #59
  20. JoelT

    JoelT Friend

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    I have an Adcom GFA-555 II, as well as a Pass Aleph 30. If I recall correctly, Pass designed the V1 Adcom GFA-555, and the "II" was tweaked by a different engineer. I've used both to drive a pair of Jeff Bagby designed Kairos two-ways that utilize SB Acoustics Satori drivers (85.5 db). As you say, the Adcom obviously has plenty of power on tap, but other than ultimate volume, the class A Aleph 30 sonically performs better on pretty much every metric to my ear (fed via an Yggdrasil/Lynx E22). The Adcom is quite a bit less resolving. If you're in a small room (I'm in an apartment), and can accept the higher price point, the lower wattage class A amps would be worth looking in to IMO over the Adcom. However, if you need power, you need power.

    That said, if you have an interest in testing the Adcom in your setup, drop me a PM. I'd be happy to get it over to you. I currently have it stored away and run the Aleph in my setup.
     
    JoelT, Dec 21, 2016
    #60
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