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Grommes Little Jewel(s)

208.123.32.107
Posted on June 26, 2015 at 09:07:57
geezerrocket
 I have been lurking and looking at these amps on ebay for a little while. There seems to be many, many, iterations of these amps - set, push pull, low power, medium power etc.

Which ones are the most sought after and why? What is their sonic signature or basic presentation?

I'm sure some of our most senior inmates must have had at least some first hand experience with these "little jewels".

Have a good weekend.



 

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RE: Grommes Little Jewel(s), posted on June 26, 2015 at 09:43:28
dlb945
Audiophile

Posts: 36
Location: Southeast
Joined: August 31, 2003
 A Grommes LJ-3 was my first amplifier bought from "The Golden Ear" on the Purdue campus in 1956. Built a 15" Karlson Enclosure and installed a 15" University 315 Triaxial. Turntable was a Garrard RC90. The sounds from the system were great and the little Grommes became a sister to a 2nd LJ-3 and 2nd Carlson Enclosure when Stereo vinyl was introduced in late1957. The Karlson/Ubiversity speakers lasted till 1980 and were replaced by a pair of 1978 Klipschorns. The Grommes units made the Khorns sing but didn't do much for a pair od Dynaco A25s. The Grommes amps were replaced by a pair of Eico HF60s.

Try one or two Grommes Amos on efficient speakers and you will enjoy the sound.

 

RE: Grommes Little Jewel(s), posted on June 26, 2015 at 09:47:03
Alpha Al
Industry Professional

Posts: 2958
Location: N. Carolina
Joined: February 16, 2004
Contributor
  Since: December 3, 2015
 All the Grommes power amps I have seen (there may be others) used a weird power tube, a 6GT5 compactron if I'm not mistaken.

 

RE: Grommes Little Jewel(s), posted on June 26, 2015 at 10:44:06
Bold Eagle
Audiophile

Posts: 6936
Location: America's Heartland
Joined: May 27, 2001
 I built my first amplifier from a Grommes LJ-? kit in 1953. 3 tubes, so it was single ended and low powered. The first speaker was a Heathkit 2 way with a Jensen 8" and horn mid-tweeter I bought used. Record changer was a Sound of Music with a Sonotone ceramic cartridge. That lasted until 1955 when I built an Eico HF20, added a Garrard RC-88 with GE RPX-050 cartridge, and a GE A-400 coax in a 6 cubic foot enclosure I built.

Jerry

 

RE: Grommes Little Jewel(s), posted on June 26, 2015 at 12:38:06
krankkall
Audiophile

Posts: 296
Location: New Mexico
Joined: April 5, 2014
 The very few that I've seen, were being used as harp or guitar amps.

Steve

 

RE: Grommes Little Jewel(s), posted on June 26, 2015 at 12:47:41
unclestu
Dealer

Posts: 5851
Joined: April 13, 2010
 Thought Grommes used numbers to designate their models. IIRC they are still in business and reissuing one f=of their models (260).

Gromees had many amps, IIRC and they were quite innovative. I worked on one with 6L6's and had two rectifiers: one foe the power tubes and a 6X$ for the input tubes.

The 260 had a a regulated (tube) bias B- as well as regulated B+. Very unusual for their time period.

 

RE: Grommes Little Jewel(s), posted on June 27, 2015 at 06:10:25
briggs
Audiophile

Posts: 1674
Location: Connecticut
Joined: April 16, 2002
 I recall doing the same kind of things at about the same time. I also recall it being lots of fun. Audiophiles today seem more obsessive and serious.

 

RE: Grommes Little Jewel(s), posted on June 27, 2015 at 10:10:52
Bold Eagle
Audiophile

Posts: 6936
Location: America's Heartland
Joined: May 27, 2001
 Too true. Our hobby started out as mostly a DIY exercise back in the 50's. Very few completed speaker systems that we could afford in those days. Several kit companies, and kits from major manufacturers. There was a huge personal reward from building something that worked well.

One of my first experiences was when we were living in a garden apartment. Our downstairs neighbor installed a University 15" coax in a coat closet door. He actually went to the trouble to replace the original door so he could replace it when he moved out. Bogen DB20 PA amp for power, and a Lenco TT. I was 13 or 14 at the time, and fascinated.

My dad was extremely un-handy; but I was born to be an engineer and tinkerer. And I guess I still am.

Jerry



 

RE: Grommes Little Jewel(s), posted on June 29, 2015 at 08:07:17
krankkall
Audiophile

Posts: 296
Location: New Mexico
Joined: April 5, 2014
 LOL....my late Father WAS an engineer (mechanical), and repaired everything from foreign sports cars (1963 Opel) to USN nuclear submarine reactors (USS Sea Wolf).
He LOVED to tinker with speakers and....especially....Pilot tube amps.

Steve

 

RE: Grommes Little Jewel(s), posted on June 30, 2015 at 08:16:40
Bold Eagle
Audiophile

Posts: 6936
Location: America's Heartland
Joined: May 27, 2001
 I am also a mechanical engineer; but somehow managed to pick up a lot of electronics lore along the way so I was able to repair and rebuild tube and SS amps. I even built a tube power amp and an SS amp, just to see if I could. Both worked.

For me, it's not really a hobby if I can't get into the guts of the thing. Sounds like your father had similar motivation.

Jerry

 

Fond memories , posted on July 1, 2015 at 10:54:21
Charlie S in Maryland
Audiophile

Posts: 34
Location: Maryland
Joined: July 29, 2014
 A Grommes LJ-2 was my very first hi-fi component purchase. I was in high school. Signal source was a GE RPX cartridge which I mounted in a little RCA 45-rpm changer. (This was in 1954 and the war-of-the-speeds hadn't yet been won.) Back end was a $4 12" radio speaker in a cardboard box. This was the beginning of a life-long infatuation with sound.

Along with other system improvements, that Little Jewel went through many mods over the next five years: I replaced its 6V6 output tubes with EL-84s, the output transformer with a hefty Acrosound ultra-linear one, added more PS filtering, and replaced the phono stage with a circuit using a low-noise 12AY7. Each change resulted in better sound (or so I imagined), but required more and more butchering of the once-lovely LJ-2 chassis. At least I learned a few things about electronics -- maybe.

Other component upgrades and experiments ensued. Various speaker drivers lived in a homemade R-J clone enclosure, and turntable upgrades eventually led to a Weather FM pickup. Alas, when a KLH-Six speaker came along that Little Jewel amplifier proved inadequate and was replaced by a Dynaco Mark-III. 60 watts -- OMG!!! Then came stereo . . .

I'm now a retired engineer and still an audiophile. Modern equipment provides far better sound quality, of course. But the hobby was a lot more fun in those early years. :-)

Charlie


 

Gidday there!, posted on July 4, 2015 at 15:23:44
Timbo in Oz
Audiophile

Posts: 23221
Location: Canberra - in the ACT - SE Australia
Joined: January 30, 2002
 Haven't seen posts from you for a while.


Warmest

Tim Bailey

Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger


 

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