spritzer

Indeed and I for one always remove the metal clip on these. Not a problem on the BHSE but the other amps have the trimpots on the inside and that useless clip can cause a lot of damage...

Holy fuck on a stick, the age of the tube and some BS story about where they have been sitting for 70+ years is crucial to the sound. Ohh yeah, pumping 30VDC into the shield of a triaxial cable makes it "ghost" like... I want to kill somebody right now...

Never seen one and SZ1 was almost always used on the export models and the BL was just that, an export unit. I've seen their amplifier repairs, Mikhail did a better job.

What is that supposed to be? A really short extension cord?

Fuck... what happened to just making bread?

1.5VDC? That's a lot and I think the servo can't eliminate that much offset.

Just because somebody is winding their own transformers doesn't mean they have any clue how to make something so niche as an electrostatic output transformer. Indeed the LLmk2T, a tube unit but also not. Hello tube Exstata with a totally unnecessary SS output stage.

That "T2" amp has either a choke or a transformer on the output. Think WES in quality... I have better things to waste money on. It probably a fit issue that's the core reason behind the change in sound signature. The first units have a solid resin ring below the earpads so the cable entry is obscured.

My earpads have already been modified, stuffed some foam under them at the back for a better angle.

One way to fix those headpads is to submerge them in water. It is a good idea to clean the top of the headpad too as what ever Stax used them dries out and leaves this nice black residue everywhere.

We have no way of knowing when Stax did the change but no way the amp is responsible for that change. Unit to unit variation could be a part of this but no way it's the sold reason. Two ways to do this, first unclip the two sections and they fall apart. Almost impossible to and shows that Stax never thought this stuff would be taken apart. The way that actually works is to unscrew the fork and remove it, then slowly pull the pieces off the arc while making sure the brake inside doesn't get caught. Hard to get it back together though...

This Blue Hawaii lives again. It will need a new transformer but for that I'm just waiting on Toroidy. Gone are the dual DACT's in favor of one quad pot and a front mounted, rotary power switch. I increased the current of the main CCS, changed out a bunch of parts and rebuilt the PSU. All good now and no hum at all which was the issue before the PSU imploded

I'd love to come and meed the So-Cal branch of the mafia. Not sure Jude and those other fucktards would like having me there though as I'm not known to sit quietly in the corner...

Something is very wrong here. How on earth are the phones affecting the source?

I have in the past but the key thing is to make them comfortable, then the fit is correct. For the cone people you need to make the arc into an inverse U shape and then adjust the angle above the ears. One good way to test is to place your hands behind your head and change the angle of the cups relative to the head without breaking the seal. Ohh and don't obstruct the backwave either as that messes up everything.

I have a melon of a head so it can be done. Seriously, when I was graduating from the Icelandic equivalent of collage we get these ceremonial caps to wear. Everybody was lined up to be fitted and when it was my turn the lady looked at me in horror and said "you're a special order..."

Now this does sound intriguing...

Yes, they are crucial. The biggest reason for this is the unique construction of the 007, they don't swivel on an axis to fit the angle of attack of the drivers to the shape of the head. This also controls the pressure placed on the earpads when they are worn. I for one have never met anybody that can use a stock 007, the fit is always wrong. Too much of an angle at the bend in the arcs on each side and the arc is far too shallow. That means the earpieces are placed at the wrong spot relative to the ears and the comfort suffers as well since the arc isn't supporting them properly. Yes and no is really the answer. There is nothing on the arc to adjust, hell just don't mess with that fragile POS too much or it will break. The earpads are the weak link here though and I like the effect you get by stuffing some scrap foam at the back. Helps the imaging.

Funny enough I just listened to a near NOS 007Mk1 just now and holy hell they sounded bad. Pads completely shot and the arcs have never been adjusted.... yeah not good but easy enough to fix.

Yup and as a testament to that I've been using mine non stop since I got them. I gave up on the first set I got in a couple of days....

More the undo...

They are bright but Stax have changed them. It's been all but confirmed that this was a deliberate act to fix them.

There were some slight teething problems but the current layout has been fixed.

Seriously, people just contact me and ask if I want to buy this stuff. It helps to be the Don.... The plan was to fix and sell it but I always missed my old silver one. There is a long road ahead before this one works properly though...

Here is what a stereo KGSSHV board looks fully populated.