I all but abandoned the project when the difference between new and old 009's came to light but I did just order PCB's for it. Who knows when I'll build them though...
No way the amp is responsible for that, that was a diaphragm issue.
Basically, the diaphragm has to go back in, exactly the way it came out of the driver. That includes the spacers which Stax put there to perfectly align it.
She's a classy lady so she said no but her baby sister was ok with it...
These two cousins are simply waiting on screws to secure the XLR sockets...
Bigger sinks so MOAR CURRENTZ
That driver is a bit of an odd duck, a cross between the first version and the look we have to this day. If you took out the diaphragm then you have to make sure that no spacers were moved out of place or that the diaphragm went back in the same way. If not then you will have problems.
As for plastics and electrostatics, some are just fine but others aren't really suitable.
Thanks. The black panels are an extra headache to work on but I like a challenge. It's a bit nuts to think about but I've built 20 mini KGSSHV's at this point in three different sizes... That's in about 6 months or so.
If I ever send an amp to a show of any kind then it will have a lexan top panel. Heavily ventilated naturally but it would be a nice fuck you to those who hide the internals.
I'd never, ever touch the diaphragm with my bare fingers. Nothing good can come of that.
The tape can leave residue which can arc the drivers. You need something that is sticky but takes next to no force to remove.
By using a shielded transformer and placing it as far away from the "signal path" as is possible this becomes far less of an issue. It's also not like you don't have roughly 6A of AC riding through that umbilical cord with the DC voltages just to keep the tubes lit. Much better to place the power supply close to the amp boards and keep the heater stuff away from everything else.