JBL Aquarius IV S109

My friend Alan Wong has once told me that the best pair of speakers he had listened to was the 8 inch JBL LE8T fullrange speakers. I have been heavily addicted to the fullrange speakers after having acquired the Western Electric 8 inch 755a, and the WE 10 inch as well as the 6 inch RCA. The 8 inch JBL was on my serach list. I have tried bidding it from ebay but has failed to get them. The recent ebay transaction for the pair of LE8T driver was about US$660 excluding shipping.

During my business trip to Taiwan last Monday, I went back to the vintage Hifi shop after work and the shop owner has told me that he has a customer wanting to sell his JBL LE8t with original cabinet using the 8 inch LE8T drivers as well as the 2 inch LE 20 high frequencies. Without hesistation, I immediately requested to audition them. I went back the next evening to listen to it and I immediately paid for the speakers and packed them. There are not very big (relatively speaking) about the size of two golf bags.

Since I am travelling with my colleague, we have managed to check them in (even though the weigh 22kg each) . How's the sound? When comparing with the 755a, it has the advantage of having the high frequencies tweeter, it has more high plus mid. However, when come to vocal, the 755a still reigh supreme. However, at half the price of the Altec 755a, one cannot complain much! I will have to burn in the speakers further in order to have a more detail comparison.

Cheers

JBL Control 1

I have been rather quiet lately owing to the flu. I have always wanted to set up a simple AV for watching DVD.

As such, last weekend I went hunting for a pair of vintage speakers and found a pair of "vintage" 1990 JBL Control 1 spekers in very good condition. The price for these pair of speakers are quite reasonable at HK$650. The seller told me that these 90s speakers are definitley better then the recent made in China JBL series.

Since I have not bought any of the amplifiers for my AV set up, I have decided to plug in my current Hifi set up. To my horror, the sound from the speakers were so flat that my fullrange speakers sounded so much dynamic and so much nicer then these. I was so dissapointed, I must say. After which, I have just left them aside.

A few days has passed, and I remembered someone told me that any set of speakers left un-played for a while will need some serious "burn in" in order to get the sound back. As such, I have decided to plug in a Mini Co amplifiers and let the speakes "burn in" for a couple of hours.

During the evening, when I played the speakers, I must say that the sound is getting much better, with more dynamism and control! For a pair of HK$650 speakers, I must say that these are values for money speakers!

Good CD - Huang De Jiang's Contentment

This CD has a special meaning. It is from a good friend in Singapore De Jiang. De Jiang is a DJ from Mediacorp.

I remember when I first came to Hong Kong, he was bringing me around and he was here to gain inspiration for his Cds.

All the songs from the CD were written and composed by him. I was futunate to be the first few to audition them. One of my favourite was the song title: Contentment, both the Mandarin & Malay version. Yes, Malay version of the song as well.

All the lyrics were full of real emotion and are able to express our various emotions and feelings..If you happen to be at a CD shop, please keep a look out for Huang De Jiang, Kevin's CD produced by Dashing Music..

Contentment...what a strong emotional stage..

Western Electric audition

Last Saturday, Gingers and Limage came over to my place to audition my pair of WE 124 + WE120a + WE speakers.

Limage has a pair of golden ears. He was able to detect that one of my speakers was loose resulting in some light "sizzing" sound when the drivers were played loud.

Following the audition, I went down to Sam Swee Po and managed to buy a proper screw driver to tighten the screw. After the minor DIY, the "sizzing" noise dissappeared!

Ginger prefers the sound without the high frequency tweeter. For me, the high frequency help give a better bigger and soundstage.

Keeping it simple - Hifi

I was down with serious flu for the past few days which has affected my mood and my ability to be active. Luckily, there was music to accompany me during these passive period.

With the acquistion of the Western Electric 124b, I have been testing them with the Fisher 400CX, Fisher 50C and the WE 120a. The Fisher 400CX sounded very modern and "hifi". The Fisher 50c sounded more mallow and warm. The WE 120a sounded more balance.

In the end, owing to circumstances beyond my control, I am left with only the WE 120a to accompany my WE 124.

After much running in, the sound from the combination began to sound much more open. I have added a simple Isophone tweeter to give the whole soundstage more body. Pereviously my Electro Voice 35 tweeter sounded too loud thereby not being able to harmonise well with my WE speakers.

I have decided to use the We120a preampliers as it is newly assembled (using NOS stocks parts), and the background is very quiet. One of my hifi audiophiles friend who used to collect lots of vintage amplifiers and pre-amplifiers are beganiing to sell off his collection. He has commented that vintage pre-amplifier, owing to ageing, will tend to be noisy in background. As such, his personal view is to use a modern pre amplifier + vintage power amplifier in oder to bring the best of both world. As such, I have have decided to keep the WE120a for my WE124 ( I have called them the WE combo)

I have packed my Leak TL12.1 to be ready to hand carry back to Singapore to use with my Marantz 7 in Mid May 2007. The Leak TL12.1 has a strong gain. When used with the Fisher 400CX, I will have to tone down the volume to the minimum in order to listen. Othewise, the sound will be too loud. As such, the Leak TL12.1 is a perfect match for the more neutral Marantz 7 pre amplifier.

In summary, I will only have the following gears:

• HKG: WE124 + WE120a + WE/RCA full range speakers
• SIN : Pye Mozart HF 10 + Tannoy Cantebury (Living room)
• SIN : Leak TL12.1 + Marantz 7 + WE 755a (Study room)

I am currently going against the thrend in HKG as many audiophiles were busy buying and collecting. With the objective of keeping it simple, I have strived to improve on the "quality" of my gears and keeping the munber down to a manageable level, since one can pnly listen to one set of hifi at any given time.

Western Electric 10 inch speakers finally paired!

The other unit of the Western Electric 10 inch speaker has finally arrived. I was fortunate to be able to pair them up as one unit was found in Hong Kong and the other from the USA.

The 10 inch speakers have a bigger sound stage then the 8 inch 755a. For vocal music, the 8 inch 755a reign supreme while the 10 inch has a wider sound stage as well as atmosphere. However, given the limitation of the original cabinet, the bass is somewhat limited but its vocal is still quite solid though..

Over the weekend, I have managed to streamline my Western Electric 100f to an audiophiles who can make use of them more. I have decided to let go many of my items as I am finding it difficult to rotate the amplifiers owing to time constraints as a result of the need for frequent travelling.

Currently, I have three set of power amplifiers here in Hong Kong, namely the WE 124b, Leak TL12.1, as well as the Pye Mozart HF10. I intend to bring the Pye as well as the Leak TL12.1 back to Singapore and keep only the WE 124b + WE120a + WE 10 inch speakers here. One set of system will be sufficient for my use here. This will help me to clear away space needed to keep the apartment spacious.

After several days of running in, the 10 inch speakers have began to warm up!

The joy of Hifi

I guess every audiophiles will go through different stages of equipment changes in order to find the so called "ultimate" dream set. For me, the joy in travelling in these long & winding road lies in the experiences of playing with them rather then trying to posses all of them.

Throughout the two years, I ahve had the opportunities to find, owned and sold many interesting vintage hifi gears. From the listening and mixing and matching of the various gears, I have finally come very close to finding those amplifiers that I can listen and keep for life.

• Set 1: Marantz 7 + Leak TL12.1 + 755a
• Set 2: Pye Mozart HF10 + Tannoy Cantebury.
• Set 3: Western Electric 124 + WE 120a + WE 10 inch speakers

It all started with the search for powerful amplifier (such as the Mcintosh MC240) to very low power (5Watts) single ended, from LS3/5a to big tannoy Speakers and then to fullrange speakers. In the end, I like Western Electric sound basing on its natural & smooth music where you can listen to WE for hours without feeling tired. The Leak TL12.1, on the other hand, will gives one the dynamism and power with full control as well as smooth music.The Pye Mozart + Tannoy combo will give one the refined and balance strength for the highly sensitive speakers. I used to own the Fishers pre-amplifiers. However, owing to circumstances beyond my control, the seller last minute has decided not to sell me his Fisher 50c. I was dissapointed and upset initially. However, after a while, I have managed to convince myself to let it go..as what is yours will be yours!

Good CD - Priscilla Chan CD

If you intend to keep only one Prisicilla Chan CD, this will be it! The Japanese pressed edition is one of the few expensive CDs that I own. The current price is HK$1300 and it was $1800 at one time.

The singing & recording was great. Prisilla was the queen of pop in the 1990s and many of her songs became true classic!

Her singing skill will make todays "singers" a shame of their voices..But now, its about packaging & marketing..

Great CD - Faye & 審死官

These two are one of the few bast CDS from Faye Wong. In fact, many singers have tried to sing songs by Theresa Teng and sounded like Theresa. Faye is the only singer being able to have her own unique style (out of the shawdow of Theresa)

The recording of the 審死官 CD is superb in terms of its various placement!

Western Electric 10 inch speakers

I must be out of my mind in being poisoned by the Western Electric fullrange speakers. This is the Western electric 10 inch alnico fullrange speakers. I was told that the speakers were produced Jensen for Western Electric (see the red wording INSP W.E.CO). The speakers were very well built & solid and the size of the magnet is really huge!

Alnico speakers produce a sweet, warm, vintage tone. They sound best at low levels and are great for blues, jazz and mellow rock. Alnico speakers respond quickly, giving the musician a “one with the amp” feel.

Alnico speakers are made with magnets containing aluminum, nickel and cobalt. They are often featured in print as “AlNiCo”, symbolizing the three respective elements. Cobalt is difficult to procure these days .

I have tested it briefly and the speaker is fully functional. I am currently waiting for the second unit to arrive from US so that I could matched them up as a pair for stereo use, as these were made for mono use previously.

Once the speakers have arrived, I will then look for carpenter to stay a project in building a pair of cabinet for these 10 inch speakers. With the acqusition of these 10 inch speakers, I have now managed to have a 6 inch RCA fullrange, 2 pair of 8 inch 755a, one 10 inch WE and a 12 inch Tannoy Cantebury..what a world of speakers..

Please visit: http://www.jensenvintage.com/vin-home.htm

Hifi community

The Hifi community can be very complex. Even though listening to music is supposed to be a very relaxed experience, it can get very complex and even stressful at times. This is especially so since music is fill of emotions and music representation also involves complex human preference and taste.

Very often, audiophiles will have huge dispute over what they consider "good sound" and what they consider "good hifi equiptments". I used to be very active in "audiophiole home visit" to listen to their set up and system. However, recently, I have reduced such visits owing to complex human relation issues involving equipement, method of listening as well as personal pride.

For me, hifi is jut a tool to bring out the best music. My own prefernce is that it should be able to bring out the best in the most efficient manner. In addition, very often, when requested by friends, I would simply cut love the equipmets to them very easily. this has also led to some audiophiles mis-conception that I do not treasure what I find. Perhaps, I treasure friendship more then the equipments!

Fulll range speakers addict

Ever since I have started playing with 755a fullrange speakers, I have been converted to become a fullrange speakers addict.

The sound from my WE124 + We120a +755a is so real that one can easily feel the presence of the instruments in front of you.

I love full range speakers because of its coherency. As a result of this coherency, the imaging is good and accurate most of the time. The reproduction of vocal & the musical instruments are also wonderful.

Currently, I have 2 set of the 8 inch 755a namely the Western Electric 755a (now in Singapore) and the Altec 755a (HKG) and one 6 inch RCA fullrange speakers. The fullrange speaker has no crossover and the size of the cabinet will have impact on the reproduction of sound. There are some who used the "open baffle" approach to play with it while others has built all kind of cabinet to get the best out of the speakers.

In short, fullrangers are good because of their simplicity. Frequency extremes will be compromised as it's only a single driver. For this kind of speaker, normally, either you like it or hate it. The bass is a little lacking to most people. Thus, when listening to pure vocal & light instruments, the 755a full range can be considered the king of all kinds..ha ha

Mixed & Matched Hifi

I have always wanted to do some DIY with my Hifi. However, gievn the limited time at night, I ahev not been able to do any DIY at all. I have bought the TopGun integrated amplifier but I just could not find the time to "upgrade" it. Moreover, originally, I have wanted to convert my Western Electric 100f into mono bloc integrated amplifiers for use with my fullrange speakers by doing a simple "by pass" of the 5 inch Jensen speakers. However, with the "buying back" of my Pye Mozart mono bloc single ended amplifiers, it has made me change my mind on the DIY project.

Instead, I ahve been very busy "playing" with the various mixed and matched combination. Examples:

WE 124 + WE 120a + 755a;

WE 124 + Fisher 50C + 755a;

Leak TL12.1 + Fisher 50C;

Leak TL12.1 + WE 120a.

In addition, I have also been busy with my Pye Mozart + RCA fullrange & Pye Mozart + 755a; plus pye mozart using EL34 tubes versus 6L6G tubes...

The various combinations will have various effects on the music production. Which is the best? I am still trying out the various combinations! Enjoy!

RCA fullrange speakers again

I have been eyeing to buy teh new Pionneer Pure Malt VP speakers for a while. The original selling price is HK$5800. Looking at the thrend, it seems that more and more people arer selling them at the R33 second hand forum and the latest price is now $5000, meaning that the price might drop to $5000 or less in the coming months...This is the problem with buying new hifi items where prices tended to depreciates with time, while vintage items prices tend to increase owing to short supply. Examples are Leak TL12.1, Western Electric gears, etc..

I must be getting old and nostagic..Yesterday afternoon, I was going through some of the old hifi photos in my PC and I saw these pictures of the RCA 6 inch fullrange speakers which reminded me of the good times I had with them many moths ago.

Without any hesitation, I called the buyer and and tried my best to ask him to sell back the speakers to me as he has not been using them while waiting to set up his system. These set of RCA speakers with original cabinet looks like my 755a cabinet with a curve up shape. The challange right now is to try to bring out the full potential of the speakers like what I did with the 755a.

With the coming back of the single ended Pye Mozart HF 10, it will be a good opportunity to match them up before I bring back the Pye Mozart for my Tannoy cantebury in Singapore. Buying back the Pye Mozart and the RCA fullrange speakers have taught me some hard lessons. It is very easy to take things for granted and sell them quickly. Once it is gone, you will know how much you have liked them by measuring how much you have missed them.

For me,the WE 755a, Tannoy Cantebury, RCA speakers, Leak TL12.1 + Fisher 50C, WE 124 + 120a, are definitely items I intend to keep for a long time as it has taken me such a long time to serach for them, especially in such prestine conditions..

Enjoy your hifi toys!

Pye again

Previously, I have owned a pair of Pye PF91, Pye Mozart HF20 and a pair of Pye Mozart HF10.

During my last shifting of apartment,I have brought back my Pye HF10 to Singapore with my Tannoy. It fitted perfectly with my decoration as well as the furnature when used in Singapore. For some unknown reason, I have brought them back to HKG and sold it to a friend.

Following which, I have been searching for small unit of integrated amplifier to be use with my Tannoy, in the living room in Singapore. I have tried buying cheap integrated Top Gun amplifier and Pilot 500 amplifier but it just could not fit into the decoration and my cabinet. Without much choice, I have approched my friend and I was quite happy to be able to buy back and re-owned my Pye Mozart single ended amplfier.

This time, I will bring it back to Singapore and ensure it stays there for a long long time! ha ha ha!

Western Electric families

After much consideration, I have finally bought the Western Electric 120a pre-amplifier to match my Western Electric 124B power amplifier & WE 755a speakers. This is like a family reunion. The real WE 120a are so rare and expensive that I have decided to look for alternative WE made by Chi Luen using genuine Western Electric transformers and parts.

The sound from the Western Electric families are so natural and smooth that can really bring out the "the emotional characteristic - the feeling of presence."

The Fisher 50C will, therefore, match the Leak TL12.1 from now onwards... Enjoy your music!

: ) Be happy!

Collection

Recently, there is a strong thrend in "collecting" and accumulating vintage amplifiers by many audiophiles.

Some has concentrated in collecting Leak while some willl buy just about everthing. I have gone through the stage where I have tried to collect the various power amplifiers consisting of Mcintosh MC240, Pye PH91, Leak 12.1, Leak 10.1, Quad II, KS 16608, Radio Craftsmen C500a, Siemens, Pye Mozart, WE 124 etc. For pre amplifiers, I ahev collected Marantz 7, Fisher 400CX, Fisher 50C etc.

After a period of time, I have came to realise that if one has the luxury of listening to music for 3 hours a night, one can at most change two set of amplifiers per night. As such, rather then going for quantities, I have decided to try to streamline and keep the very best...of course according to my taste..

IMHO, the WE 124b & The Leak TL12.1 are the best 6L6/KT66 amplifiers when comparing with the other 6L6/KT66 amplifiers such as the Mcintosh MC240, Quad II, etc.

End March 07 stock take

With the moving of apartment in HKG as well the consolidating my funds to acquire the Western Electric 124 amplifiers, I have managed to streamlined my gears. My current set up consists of the following:

Singapore:

• Western Electric KS16608 + Marantz 7 pre amp + Western Electric 755a/Tannoy Cantebury

Hong Kong:

• Leak TL12.1 + Fisher 50C pre amplifiers + LS3/5a
• Western Electric 124b + WE 120a + Altec 755a

Spares for sale:

• Western Electric 100f amplifiers (HKG$5000)
• Pilot 500 power amplifier ($3600)

I am in the process of acquring a replica Western Electric 120a pre amplifiers (made by WE Wu sifu using vintage WE parts such as the 197a transformers..) to match by WE 124. Can't wait for the arrival of the WE 120a pre amplifier!

Western electric 755a home at last

I have finally brought home my Western Electric 755a speakers following my acquisition of a pair of spare Altec 755a speakers.

My wife was very happy as the cabinet really matches with my 1950s colonial style writing desk in my study room.

I have been quite careful in my purchase as I need to make sure that besides the sound quality, the visual appeal must also match with my apartment's decoration.

Currently, I am using the Western electric KS16608 + Marantz 7 for my Western Electric 755a speakers! The vocal and violin sound is execptional!

Western Electric 120a - replica

Last week end, I have travelled all the way to Kwai Fong to listen to "Western Electric Wu" 's graet work.

Sifu Wu is a very experienced SIfu in making replica Western Electric gears using genuine Western Electric spare parts. Many of his customers are Japanese, Americans as well as local.

Having found the WesternElectric 124b, I have always desire to bring the best out of my WE124. I have used both Fisher 400CX and Fisher 50C and I find both very nice. The Former has greater speed, better control with full Orchestra music while the latter has very strong emotional sweetness.

However, I have always desire for a complete Western Electric package namely Western Electric 755a speakers, WE 124 + WE pre-amplifiers. However, the high costs and rarity make the search for a pre-amplifier a very diifcult one.

Moreover, many of the pre-amplifiers have such gain that modification is neccessary in order to to convert it for home use. When I was at Sifu Wu's workshop, I have the opportunity to listen to the following:

WE 106 pre amplifier + WE 91;

WE 120 pre amplifier + WE 91

WE 120 preamplifier + WE 86.

Between the WE 91 and 86, I must say that I love the WE 86 very much. For the pre-amplifiers, I like both WE 106 & 120. The WE 106 has a wider soundstage while the WE120 has very strong vocal...

I have tried many vintage pre-amplifiers (Marantz 7, Fisher 400Cx, Fisher 50c, Fisher 80c) but I have yet to experience newly made "modern" pre-amplifier. Initially, I ws waiting for the 27M using ballon tubes but the long waiting time has made me lose interest. The BBA was another that I have thought of trying but I get no response from the seller. Now, my 3rd attempt goes to Sifu's Wu "new" pre amplifier using vintage genunie parts...

Learning the art of Fisher 50C

I have owned 2 pairs of Mono Bloc pre-amplifiers namely The Fisher 80C, Fisher 50C (now with my good friend Sing) before.

I must admit, I have no been able to use it well owing to a lack of confidence which resulted in me letting them go.

This afternoon, after lunching with Sing, Alan and his student John, we had a listening session at my apartment with my 3rd pair of mono bloc Fisher 50c pre amplifiers.

We have spent quite sometime moving and finding an ideal "Emperor throne". Following which, Alan & John have demonstrated the art of using Fisher 50C to me.

It was a pleasure and fruitful afternoon as I have managed to experience the art of pushing the Fisher 50C to its limit and exploit its potential.

Thanks Alan and John for a fun afternoon!

Bringing home the WE 755a speakers

Initially, I was trying to let go one set of the spare Altec 755a to fellow audiophile iin Hong Kong. However, since the offers were not serious, I decided to bring home my spare Western Electric 755a back to Singapore and keep the Altec 755a here in Hong Kong.

With the packing, the whole living room more spacious and less crowded now. In addition, I have also created a more ideal speakers placement areas for my Altec 755a in Piano wood.

For those who loves vocal music, you must try to get a pair of 755a...which has acquired the cult status owing to its rarity. Better be quick!

Good CD - Ayako Hosokawa

Ayako Hosokawa's to Mr. Wonderful is an excelent CD! It was produced in the 1977 in LP and re-mastered into CD in 97 by the three blind mice company using the XRCD technology (now the technology has improved to XRCD2 and XRCD24..

Her vocal is sweet and smooth. This is her first album which is able to show her great vocal capabilities. Acompanied with great jazz musicians from Japan of that time (1977) such as Tsuyoshi Yamamoto on piano and Shoji Yokouchi on guitar makes this CD even better.

For the record track listing is : 1. Wrap Your Troubles In Dream 2.Misty 3. Our Love Is Here To Stay 4. My Foolish Heart 5. Bridge Over Trouble Water 6. When You Smile 7. Mr. Wonderfull 8. Feel Like Makin' Love 9. The Lady Is A Tramp. I like Misty, Bridge over trouble water..

Playing it with WE124 + 755a ...nice!

Western Electric KS 16617 amplifiers : )

Prevously, I have the intention of buying the KS 16617 in order to start a mini collection of Western Electric amplifier. Over the weekend, I have not pursue it further as I was worried about storing and moving.

Long before I came to Hong Kong,I have always planned to stay for a couple of years before moving to work in Shanghai. With all these vintage gears, I am worried about the moving. Currently, I still have 2 set of amplifiers namely the WE 124b & Leak TL12.1 plus Fisher 400CX and 3 pair of speakers (i.e. Western Electric 755a, Altec 755a, Rogers LS3/5a 15 ohms) as well as a spare Top Gun integrated amplifiers.

During my next trip back to Singapore, I should bring back the Western Electric 755a to SIngapore in order to minimize the items here.. : )

Great CD - The Absolute Sound

Very often, we will buy one CD for a particular song or songs. TAS - The Absolute sound has produced their yearly CD collections consisting of music of all kinds: Jazz, Classic, Musical, latin etc, bringing the best of the best music as well as the best recording.

So far, I have manged to buy the complete set of The Absolute Sound 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2003,2004, 2005, 2006. (Not sure why it has stopped for 1999 and 2000?)

For those who wants to listen to different CD in one single CD, can try The Absolute Sound CD! Sound great!

March 07 - One year of blogging

Looking back at my first post, it has been a year since I first started writing this blog. Times passes very fast! My vintage gears have gradually evolved from where I first started.

It all began with the well known household brands such as the Quad II, Mcintosh MC240, Marantz 7, and Altec 604 speakers. Later, as I began to learn more of the hifi and explore the sound that I like, I began to search for commercial professional use amplifiers such as the Leak TL12.1 and then to the Western Electric amplifiers.

My Hifi journey has been an interesting one where I have met many interesting fellow audiophiles as well as some weird one too! Along the way, I have bought, trial and sold many interesting vintage amplifiers. There are many audiophile who "collect" many amplifiers by brands, by series or everything. For me, as I always mentioned, since space and resources are limited, I would tend to focus on Quality rather then having sure quantities and numbers. I like my current system consisting of amplifiers and speakers which I have slowly collected over the past 20 months. : )

In my opinion, the best vintage power amplifiers are Western Electric 124 (most natural sound) and Leak TL12.1 (most dynamic). In term of pre amplifiers, it will be Marantz 7 (most neutral sound); Fisher 400CX (most musical) and Fisher 50C (most emotional). For speakers, Tannoy has the most relax sound with huge soundstage; the Western Electric 755a (most live like vocal) & Chartwell Ls3/5a 15 ohms (smooth silky sound). The best tubes are the 6L6/KT66 as they have the most balance sound, sufficient strength yet not rough..

Enjoy your music!

Western Electric KS 16617 amplifiers

The Western Electric KS16617 amplifiers is the "little brother" version of the KS series with 8 watts of power using 6V6 tubes. The KS 16608 is 12 watts using 6L6 tubes.

I am in the midst of consideration whether to build up a small collection of the Western Electric amplifiers. Even though these are the KS series, I must say that these amplifiers are quite rare as well. The recent ebay transaction price for the KS16617 is about US$1469 (plus shipping should be about HK$12,500).

To start the collection or not is the question?

CD - Throne (teaching the art of speakers placement)

Placement of speakers has always been a mystery. One of the "hidden" art of hifi is the art of placing speakers.

Now, there is a CD THRONE which will help one learn the art of speakers placement with much ease!

Altec 755a speakers

I have always wanted to find a "vintage looking" cabinet for my Western Electric 755a speakers for my bedroom use in Singapore (as the Piano wood cabinet were too big for my bedroom). Last night, I have managed to find a pair of nice Altec 755a speakers in a vintage looking cabinet made of old wood. The cabinet was from Japan.

It was a very busy night as I have to spend time swapping the Western Electric speakers drivers across the vintage looking cabinet and placed the Aletc 755a into the Piano wood cabinets. It took me almost an hour to do the swap but I was happy as my wife love the new vintage looking cabinet as it fits into the overall decoration of my apartment in Singapore. I will bring back the pair of WE 755a speakers to Singapore in April 07.

Anyone keen to own a pair of classic Altec 755a in Piano wood cabinet?

Graphite heat shield for vaccum tubes

I have bought two units of Graphite heat shields made by Hobby Lab for use with my Western Electric 124b amplifiers. I have placed the two shields at the U 52 rectifiers tubes.

The purpose of the shilds are to enable quicker heat dispersement so as to protect the life span of the tubes as well as reducing the various noise interference.

The graphite shields have to be "cut" and polish from a single block of graphite.

Upon playing my WE 124 amplifiers, I can feel that the surounding temperatures were reduced. I will further test and review the graphite shiels for a little longer.. Science and technology!

Why buy vintage hifi items?

Many people has asked me why I buy only vintage hifi items?

Firstly, the various vintage items were reviewed by millions of people around the world in order to reach today cult status. These have very nice circiut, superb workmanship plus superior use of materials. We can just ask ourselves, how many of these so called modern days hifi equipment being able to reach these kind of popularity and review. How many of the DIY projects can be widely accepted as before?

Secondly, during the early days where music is one of the main entertainment, milions of $$ were poured into research and development in order to create a better sound (examples Marantz 1, 2, 7,8b,9, 10B), Western Electric 124, 142, 86, 91 etc) Leak 12.1, Fishers 400CX, 50C, 400CX II etc.

Thirdly, vintage amplfiers items are limited in quantities while deman has ben growing. One year ago, I have bought the Marantz 7 at HK$20,000 and the last trasacted price is around $30,000. The LEak TL12.1 at one time was $35,000 and now it is over $45,000. I bought my Western Electric 755a at $38,000 (inclusive of the Piano wood cabinet ) and I was offered $50,000 just for the 755a drivers. As such, prices of vintage amplifiers will appreciate in values on conditions that they have to be rare and in good prestine conditions.

Thus, for anyone interested in hifi and still hope to recover your $$ when you are tired of the hobby, one can consider vintage amplifiers. However, remember to get only those reputatble ones and at its best consitions (both internal and cosmetic conditions)!

Be happy!

Fishers Family

For vintage pre amplifiers, my favourite include the Marantz 7 and the Fishers 400CX as well as the Fisher 50c.


Having cut love my set of Fisher 50C to my good friend Sing, I have somewhat felt a strange lost feeling.....The lost feeling has prompted me to continue my search for these fishes!

This evening, I have managed to find another set of Fisher 50C from another good friend, and now with matching original cabinet (but at more then 33% cost more then my previous set)

Previously, since I have 2 set of power amplifiers (Leak 12.1 & WE 124), I would have to constantly switched the pre amplifeir cables from one set to another, whch is abit troublesome. Now, with 2 pre-amplifiers, I could now just turn on and play without needing to switch cable.

My set in HKG now consists of the following combination:

Fisher 50C pre-amplifier + Western Electric 124b amplifier + Western Electric 755a
Fisher 400CX pre-amlifier + Leak TK12.1 + Rogers 15 ohms LS3/5a or Tannoy Mini.

Some personal observations:
For me, the Marantz 7 pre-ampliefier is a classic with strong Mid and a "neutral" charateristic. The Fisher 400Cx has a more "musical" sound, having more high & low thereby giving a more dynamic overall sound. For the Fisher 50C, the sound is more emotional and it allows one to be fully drwan into the music. Whch is the best? I guess, it will be a difficult question to answer as it all depends on taste and hifi matching.

When I want a more dynamic sound, Leak TL12.1 + Fisher 400CX is the answer. If I prefer a more smoothing music with strong natural vocal, I would use Fisher 50C + WE 124. But if one prefers to have a much more enegized vocal and lively mood, I think Fisher 400CX + We 124 gives me the atmosphere.

Thus, it would seem that my Power amplifier Leak TL12.1 + Western Electric 124 will be here to stay for a long time as well as my vintage Tannoy Canterbury, Western Electric 755a and Chartswell LS3/5a 15 ohms speakers. For the pre-amplifiers, my Marantz 7 and now Fisher 400CX were the proven "survival" ( as I often will eliminate the item not able to live up to its name and performance). Now, the Fisher 50C are on its testing stage on the "survial" lists!.

Thus, anyone keen on my spare Rogers 15ohms white belly can write to be for sales discussion.

Cheers!

Lo Fi - DIY project

I have been very passive in the past few months after my acqusistion of my dream amplifier WE124. I have been listening to the WE 124 and Leak 12.1 and the experiences have made me appreciate music and their different interpretation.

I have not been very good at DIY. I have only did some DIY on my Leak 12.1 (with the help from my friend John) and some DIY cabinets. For the WE 124, as it has been fully retored by an experience Sifu, I am hesistant to really touch the internal.

However, to satisfy my growing desire to learn some some DIY (after seeing Sing's very active restoration). Last night, I have managed to find a relatively "cheap" China made amplifier for the start of my DIY project...or should i just say upgrading of capcitors project.

Dream amplifier - Western Electric 91

Ever since I have fallen in love in the world of Western Electric, it seems to be a joyful journey of no return. It started with the Western Electric KS16608 series; followed by the Western Electric 755a speakers. At the end of 2006, I have finally found a pair of Western Electric 124b power amplifiers. Following which, I have also acquired a set of very resaonable price Western Electric 100f amplifiers, WE 350 tubes etc. ( Please note that the WE 91 picture don't belong to me..)

At the hifi scene in Hong Kong, there were many active audiophiles collecting many different kind of amplifiers.

Now, I am playing both the Leak TL12.1 using KT66 tubes and alternate them with the Western Electric 124b using the 350B or 6L6 tubes. I can still vividly remember many audiophiles has thought that it will be near impossible to find a pair of Western Electric amplifiers since they have been all bought up by the audiophile in Japan, Korea and Taiwan.

Moreover, the Hong Kong audiophiles who played with WesternElectric gears were so low profile that one seldom hear much in the WE forum.

Man lives by dreaming. Thus, with my hifi path being focussed at "Quality" rather then "Quantities", my next dream gear is the much famed Western ELectric 91 amplifiers, not the replica but the real WE 91.. Previously, I have hoped to find the Brooks but the set that I have found has a non oroginal out put transformer. For the Dynatron amplifies, the diffuculty in findng NOS ballon tubes have further stopped me from looking for them. Since one is going to dream, one might as well dream Big.ha ha ha.

Is it possible? Yes, I hope : )

I have alwayes been single minded in my goal. However, the good thing is that I am not in a hurry as I can take my time to enjoy with what I have at the moment and listen to the sound of music and wait for the opportunities for the dream gear to appear in front of me..one day..

ENJOY!

Western Electric 124 - with Sylvania 274 tubes

My NOS Sylvania 274B tubes have finally arrived. Since it is a NOS sticks, I would have to cut open the bottom of the box in order to take out the tubes from the boxes.



These tubes were made during Dec 1942 and Jan 1943, during World War Two for the US Navy. Imagine, after all these years of storage, these tubes finally got their chance to be part of the "action"..

The sound stage for the 274B tubes are deeper then the U52. Both charatristics are different as you can imagine the U52 having a smoother and warmer sound while the 274B has a deeper sound as well as analytical sound. I like both the sound, I must say.. : ) Maybe we call call them the GEC U52 British sound while the 274B as US sound?

Great CD - Instrumental CD

Recently, there are quite alot of "competitions" in terms of collecting the great number of hifi gears in Hong Kong as well as arguments over the issues with "tone control" in the R33 forum.

Fortunately, I have been able to get out of these "rat race" and focus my energy in listening to music rather then competing or arguing.

This evening, I have managed to find 3 sentimental instrumental musics CD namely while walking around Mongkok.

The audiophiles crowd at Mongkok has drastically reduced compared to 2005. Perhaps it is due to the ebay where everyone just buy the items fom ebay rather then from the vintage shops.

The 3 CDs are:

1. Silver Screen Classics featuring violin with Piano, harp,guitar and strings.
2. Latin sound of Shangai - Latin Guitar. Very relaxing sound. Its amazing how a Western artsist is able to interpret & play the various Chinese classics songs .
3. An All Night - Guitar. Even though this is a Made in China CDs, the recording is quite good and the playing skills are excellent too!

Enjoy the music!

Fisher 400CX + Western Electric 124B + LS3/5a

Following Chinese new year celebration, I managed to "renew" my hifi combinbation in Hong Kong. One of my close hifi friend has strong desire for a pair of Fishers 50C mono bloc pre amplifiers and we did a simple swap yesterday evening.

Now, the Fisher 400CX is back with me.It seems that this fish really swims in circle. I am glad to have the opportunity to try this new Fisher 400CX + WE124 combination.

With the Fisher 50C, I can feel a very strong emtional feeling especially for vocal. With the Fisher 400CX, it compliments very well the strong Mid coming from the WE 124 as well as add a further elements of "energy" into the overall musical presentation. The whole music reproduction has more up and down "variations" and the system seems to get "younger"!

Having AB compared between the Fisher 50C & Fisher 400CX, I would say that both combination has its own strength. As for my taste, since the WE 124 has already a strong Mid, I would think that the 400CX's musical and its ability to project high and low will further enhance the potential of the Western Electric 124!

I like it! I would rate Fisher 400CX, Fisher 50c & Marantz 7 as the top 3 vintage pre-amplifiers!

Sylvania 274B tubes

The Western Electric 274B tubes are so expensive that I have decided to search for them slowly ( as I am hoping to find them in a more reasonable price). In the meantime, I am using the GEC U52 rectifier tube which sounded good to my ear.

During the Chinese New Year holidat period, I have managed to find a pair of NOS US Navy 274B made by Sylvania from the 1942/3 at a very reasonable price.

Hoping to listen to these tubes when they arrive!
Cheers, Wishing everyone a Happy Chinese New Year!

Great CD from Cuba - Ibrahim, Omara, Rubernstein

When mentioning great CDs, we cannot forget about the musician from the Buona Vista Social Club!

Many of these great singers have great vocal and own singing personalities!

Even though, life may be tough in their country, ther music reflect such energy and passion!

Please visit the Buenavista site: http://www.pbs.org/buenavista/musicians/

Great Jazz CDs Tonny Bennett & KD Lang

Ever since I stopped buying hifi equipmemts, I have more time to serach for great CDs.

The Frank Sinatra Duets CD was produced in 1993 and my favousrite songs include the duet with Julio Iglesias Summer Wind, New York New York with Tonny bennett, I've goy you under my skin witj bono..and many others!

Another great recording is Tony bennett & kD Lang - wonderful world where you listen to two great vocals singing in harmony!

These are the CDs that make me truly appreciate my current hifi system set up.. where all the efforts are really worth it!

Classical CDs

I am not a great fan of classical Cds. however, I was told that in order to evaluate the hifi system, it is better to use a claasical CDs to test.

Mr.Cheng has recommended me two CDs. The First is La Fille Mal Gardee, a Royal ballet music while the second one is Weekend Sound Spectacular consisting of a compliation of music from the movie Exodus, Doctor Zhivago plus a host of others such as music from the American Revolutionalr war..etc.

What a change!

Relax CD - Los Indios Tabajaras

I remembered seeing this LP by Los Indios Tabajaras when I was very young. The "traditional" photo has never motivated me to seriously consider listening to it.

One day, as I was visiting Mr. Cheng from Scitech Audio, who specialise in limited edition CD and firste edition CD, this CD was highly recommended by Mr Cheng.

This CD is the early 1986 version CD. The music from the CD is truly relaxed sound..a trademark of Tannoy Speakers...in this case the Tannoy Mini!

I would strongly recommend this CD for those who want a very relax music while doing your work at home. The 1964 recording is very natural and you can listen to the whole CD with much ease..Afterall, the objective of the hifi system is to provide one with joy and relaxation! Enjoy!