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I've been lurking around here for about a year, and built a SEX amp and Seduction phono stage last winter/spring. I just wanted to say how much FUN this has been, turning what used to be a side hobby as a child (i.e., electronics) into something useful and educational as an adult! The kits have inspired me to start tweaking and building all sorts of things, audio or otherwise.There is no other experience, especially as a musician, quite like hearing music flow from something you've built by hand. (Especially one that glows - tubes are way cool). Bottlehead's offerings also happen to be top-notch, and every dealing I've had with Queen (and Doc B. on the phone) have been great. A true class act in what can otherwise be a very esoteric and greedy industry. Keep up the great work!
Here's a photo of my rig. The close-up w/ towers was of my last apartment. The SEX is stock, other than a shorting headphone jack (C4S boards are being worked on this week, and MQ irons may join them). The Seduction is also stock, with C4S boards being installed soon. Finish is high-gloss black Krylon, with a alternations of tung and dark teak oil on top of the cherry-stained alderwood bases (to match the turntable). A purchase of a condo made the Klipsch RF-5's impractical, so they're already gone (and were strange sounding anyway in the new living room with wood floors and 10ft+ vaulted ceilings). In the new place, the Bottlehead gear looks classy AND sounds great!
Edits: 09/08/09
Thanks!
I've been using a pair of Klipsch bookshelf speakers (Icon W-series) but am not quite happy with them. Their efficiency is actually OK for my tastes (92dB/W/1m), even with just a watt or two, but they don't put out much bass. They also can be a bit strident sounding, especially with the oak floors and high ceilings. I suspect their impedance curves have some freaky-looking dips in the woofer region, as they don't sound quite balanced. The 4-ohm taps never sounded as good to me, so I've stuck with the standard 8 ohm taps on the output irons. Maybe the MQ irons/plate chokes will help with this?
I would love to build a pair of matching Voight pipes for my amp, or maybe a back-loaded horn enclosure, but don't have the tools or place to do it (the SUV takes up the WHOLE garage, which is quite pitiful). So it looks like I'm mostly stuck with cans for now.
The MQ & C4S will improve your bass for sure in my experience. I had a hard time with Klipsch Forte II's - never great bass and strident does come to mind too. I built a pair of Fostex based bookshelf speakers. I really liked them but built a couple other pairs of speakers but nothing has beat the fostex in a passive radiator box yet for me at my house:) Good luck with your system! Very lovely bases!
Looks beautiful! Thanks for the kind words. Are you just going to stick with headphones for now?
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