Carver Crimson 275 Measurements

[Thermionics]

________________
* On the other hand... I guess I could glue mulicolored LED strips to my 604E Duplexes -- then we could have some real fun!

Don't make me come over there and smack you...

 

[Blumlein 88]

So @amirm can make an unboxing video.

Is that unboxing or unmasking?

 

[Angsty]

Well, that case is even sadder, since all "Altec Lansing" is today... is a name*.
McIntosh is still -- at least sort of -- McIntosh.

sort of.


________________
* On the other hand... I guess I could glue mulicolored LED strips to my 604E Duplexes -- then we could have some real fun!

I have to admit, that was one of the saddest displays by a one proud audio *engineering* company that I have seen of late. SMH.

 

[Travis]

Anyone with working hands/fingers, and who is able to follow step by step instructions, can build a tube amp. Using minimal tools. And once they build it, not only will they be able to repair it, but it will last them, and whoever buys it from them (or inherits it), a lifetime of use. I'm of course talking about the average Joe..., not the guy who goes to sleep and dreams about his breadboard.

Where's the "High Voltage" disclaimer .

The average Joe who knows who to work with and takes the proper precautions with working around b+ voltages won't have problems, but people who don't know enough to not be putting their hands/fingers inside a hot amp are going to learn a lot real quick.

Good with hands, and also good with probes.

 

[mhardy6647]

Interesting chatter about some of the circuit features over @ AK, for any of you not peeking over there now & again.
See, e.g.,

Bob Carver 275 Stereo Vacuum Tube Amplifier

How does this not look like a Mullard 5/20 patched up in bandaids? Expanding on the Stu Hegeman anecdote concerning attempts to put ten pounds in an eight pound sack always squirting out somewhere else when leaks are patched, irony on irony.

audiokarma.org

 

[anmpr1]

Where's the "High Voltage" disclaimer .

The average Joe who knows who to work with and takes the proper precautions with working around b+ voltages won't have problems, but people who don't know enough to not be putting their hands/fingers inside a hot amp are going to learn a lot real quick.

Good with hands, and also good with probes.

It's not just the electrocution thing. I wasn't really thinking about that. It's trying to figure out the problem, in the first place. Without special test equipment. For example, if your Dyna stops working, you can check the tubes, and possibly replace the capacitor can if you see it is leaking. You can turn the amp upside down, and visually inspect the wiring for faults, etc. It's all very simple.

If, on the other hand, the FET controlling the triac that modulates the voltage to your 'magnetic field' amplifier's transformer starts to intermittently fail, that's going to be tough for the musical loving dentist to figure out, on his own, with just a Fluke.

But you are correct about building the amplifier. Raw assembly can be done just as easily (or almost) as with tubes. When SS was in its hi-fi adolescence, long before everything was stamped out in a factory in Malaysia, one could buy fairly high-powered SS kits. Dyna made them for several years. Jim Bongiorno's Ampzilla kit was famous. Marshall Leach designed them. I'm sure there were many others.

I know you can still get plans and parts. A few full kits are out there, too. If I needed another amp (LOL) the little Akitika would be something I might try.

GT-102 Stereo Power Amplifier

Akitika's GT-102 power amplifier kit delivers 50 Watts per channel into an 8 ohm load with low noise and low distortion. The kit supplies everything you need to build great sound.

www.akitika.com

 

[TriodeLuvr]

Solid state amps sell for the same reason the 15W/ch Carver does. Most people can't hear.

Jack

 

[Ken1951]

Solid state amps sell for the same reason the 15W/ch Carver does. Most people can't hear.

Jack

So, your position is no solid state amp that sounds good? Really??

 

[SIY]

So, your position is no solid state amp that sounds good? Really??

You're dealing with religion here.

 

[TriodeLuvr]

I stopped listening to solid state amps permanently about 15 years ago. The turning point was a dirty, unrestored $20 tube amp from the '60s that blew my Luxman M120 into the weeds. And I can tell you, the Luxman was no slouch. I might not be able to hear the difference now (I'm almost 70), but I know it exists, I've heard it repeatedly, and I'll never go back.

Jack

 

[BDWoody]

The turning point was a dirty, unrestored $20 tube amp from the '60s that blew my Luxman M120 into the weeds.

So, it's a blower?

 

[Chazz6]

From pages about the Crimson amplifier on the website of Frank Malitz's company:

Our amplifiers simply do not run as hot as any other tube-type amplifiers. In fact, they are the coolest running tube type amplifiers in history, allowing you to actually touch the tops of the mighty KT120's and never be burned! While we caution against grabbing the sides of the output tubes (they must be hot to function), the internal temperature of our amplifiers is a bit warmer than the inside of your mouth, resulting in an indeterminate lifespan. Due to the unique design, all the components in the amplifier undergo much less stress than in conventional designs. Due to the efficiency of the concept, our transformers can be lighter and despite Bob Carver specifying esoteric steel for their cores, it helps us sell a $4000 amplifier for under $3000.

Crimson 275 Stereo | bobcarvercorp.com

www.bobcarvercorp.com

and

Output Transformer: Proprietary design with hand-wound, interleaved windings of copper and silver on a steel core; low leakage inductance, super wide band

275 Features / Specs | bobcarvercorp.com

www.bobcarvercorp.com

(Didn't find these sentences quoted in the thread. If they were, deletion of this post is in order.)

 

[SIY]

So, it's a blower?

And a dessert topping!

 

[TriodeLuvr]

From pages about the Crimson amplifier on the website of Frank Malitz's company:

Our amplifiers simply do not run as hot as any other tube-type amplifiers. In fact, they are the coolest running tube type amplifiers in history, allowing you to actually touch the tops of the mighty KT120's and never be burned! While we caution against grabbing the sides of the output tubes (they must be hot to function), the internal temperature of our amplifiers is a bit warmer than the inside of your mouth, resulting in an indeterminate lifespan. Due to the unique design, all the components in the amplifier undergo much less stress than in conventional designs. Due to the efficiency of the concept, our transformers can be lighter and despite Bob Carver specifying esoteric steel for their cores, it helps us sell a $4000 amplifier for under $3000.

and

Output Transformer: Proprietary design with hand-wound, interleaved windings of copper and silver on a steel core; low leakage inductance, super wide band

It's all just one big lie.

 

[Ken1951]

And a dessert topping!

And a floor wax!

 

[mhardy6647]

So, it's a blower?

Maybe it's got a fan.

Dunno about you, but if I saw one amp blow another into the weeds...
my jaw would drop.
Literally.

 

[Walter]

And a floor wax!

It Shimmers!

 

[paulbottlehead]

I stopped listening to solid state amps permanently about 15 years ago. The turning point was a dirty, unrestored $20 tube amp from the '60s that blew my Luxman M120 into the weeds. And I can tell you, the Luxman was no slouch. I might not be able to hear the difference now (I'm almost 70), but I know it exists, I've heard it repeatedly, and I'll never go back.

I have to admit I had a similar experience. Although I find measurements extremely important, they don't always correlate with my preferences for whatever reason.

 

[MaxBuck]

I have to admit I had a similar experience. Although I find measurements extremely important, they don't always correlate with my preferences for whatever reason.

Nor should they.

One ought never to accept anyone else's preferences as one's own. True whether one is talking about women, automobiles, audio equipment or careers.

 

[Larry B. Larabee]

I have to admit I had a similar experience. Although I find measurements extremely important, they don't always correlate with my preferences for whatever reason.

Are you here for idle chit-chat or an update on 'the status'?