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Right now I’m driving my 4 A7’s with a Denon AVR-2802 home theater receiver. I’m not using the surround-sound feature as I can’t separate the speakers enough for it to be effective. No matter, the Denon doesn’t sound very good anyway and I’m going to replace it. The problem with the Denon is that the higher frequencies sound like paper tearing and there’s very little bass.Before the Denon, I used a Dynaco 120 w/PAT-4. I’m not an aficionado, my ears are bad and it suited me quite well, but it quit on me. After acquiring the Denon, I subsequently sold the Dynaco equipment. Bad mistake.
I’ve now acquired a Dynaco Stereo 150 and now I’m in the market for a like-vintage pre-amp. Will a PAT-4 work with this thing? What would you recommend in the $100-$200 1960’s, 1970’s, or 1980’s vintage that would work well? Any suggestions?
Follow Ups:
These go ridiculously cheap. I recently sold mine for less than $200 -- I'll probably regret it. It will drive anything, is superbly functional except for no remote control, and has a great phono section.
Bill Bailey
_______________
Good enough is good enough
What about the Eico HF-85? I owned one and regret selling it. I still own several Pas 3 units. I have one working well that is stock and a fancy one that has a custom champagne colored faceplate. That one I paid 300 for about ten years ago with the mods done. It has an extra transformer and can do MC and MM cartridges. It also has no tone controls and looks like an older CJ type. I still would rather own a stock Eico over a stock Dynaco Pas. You might want to consider holding out and saving for a CJ PV-5 or newer for under $500. John
I think a PAS-3x (I used to own one in the 60s) would work very well with this. There are several on audiogon, some of which look like they've been cleaned up. Given the age of the units, you might need to replace or clean selector switches (corroded contacts) and the potentiometers as well as the electrolytic capacitors in the power supply. Probably the PAS-3x's weakest aspect -- performance wise -- is the phonostage; but if you don't play records, that's not an issue.I also owned a PAT-5, which is not bad sounding with the right IC chip (not the stock one). The PAS-3x sounds more "tubey" which might be more compatible with your speakers.
I also agree that, with the sensitivity of your speakers, some vintage tube equipment might work very well. There are lots of Stereo 70s around in various states of repair and upgrading. Again I owned one of those in the late 1960s. It's a little soft in the bass and treble, but a very listenable amp. I don't think it makes its full 35 watts rated power through the full spectrum; probably more like 25 watts. I'm not familiar with the Stereo 150; however, I am with the Stereo 120. I thought the 120 was a pretty nasty-sounding amp; the Stereo 80, which is the same amp with a less stiff power supply, actually sounds better. I also was very fond of the Stereo 400, which was the last Dynaco product I owned -- of course its overkill for your speakers. Bypassing the input capacitors upped the transparency of the amp considerably ... and, of course, leaving the "power guard" off. In the late 70s, I had a pair of Magenpan MG-IIs driven by a Stereo 400, and I thought the combination sounded very good indeed.
And avoid the PAT-4. That was not one of Dynaco's shining products. Frank Van Alstine at has all sorts of improvements available for most Dyna products. I had one of his tweaked PAT-5s back in the 70s.A-7s as in Altec VOTTs? Four of them? Stacked? OK.
Good luck!
rw
Yep, 4 Altec A7's in the basement den. Actually they're A5 1/2's. (4)288-16G, (2)1005B, (2)311-90, (4)416A's in 825 cabs. The upstairs, my wife manages, but downstairs I'm king. Just don't tell her I said that.
with your double VOTTs? Holy cow, you only need about a watt to get those things to blast.My house situation is similar. The dedicated listening room and the garage are mine, dammit! The rest of the house is hers. :)
rw
No, I haven't. The main reason is that tube amps are generally quite pricy.
like a Dyna, Eico, Heath, etc. There is a forum devoted entirely to Dyna amps with lots of enthusiasm for the ST-70, MKIIIs, MKIVs, etc.rw
Wow.. your weren't kidding about not being an Aficionando. The Pat4 truly was Crap, the St120 was a bit better but not much.
St 150 should be an improvement.. Suggest a Bottlehead Preamp, that will open yr ears to a whole new world of audio.
Failing doing that,(a shame imo) any of a large selection of Vintage receivers would do quite nicely.. Not Audiophile but certainly a LOT better sounding than yr old Dyna setup ever was, or could be.
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