Voltron

According to the other place, this is Barry's 62nd birthday. Congrats on your tenacity and continuing interest in good music! Have a great day and many donuts. Cheers!

Me too, but I am assuming he is being fitted for his bubble.

Very glad to hear that Mikhail is following through and bringing your amps to the meet this weekend Michael. I hope he shows up for his own meet earlier than on typical travel days for him. I'll cross my fingers and hope it works out for you now and in the long run.

My amp was originally built for Sleestack as an "Accent T" with a tube rectified power supply. There weren't any photo shoots or similar uses to my knowledge, and I never saw it opened or saw Mikhail or Sleestack post any internals pics. After I bought the amp from Sleestack and heard the tube rectified/regulated Concerto ES, Mikhail then agreed to build me a new power supply and do the necessary to the amp section. As I have said before, Mikhail took months to complete the build and many deadlines slipped and promises were not kept. Regardless of your cynicism or suspicions, the only reason the amp was opened in San Jose was that I was already gone when he arrived and he had finish some work or had something to fix or adjust before finally turning it over. I was pissed at the time because it was very late, and he didn't show up until after I left the meet, etc. However, he then drove the amp to my house the next day, set it up and it has worked flawlessly for the last year or more (even though I have moved it several times, taken it to meets, etc.). That's the story. Bad with the good, indeed, but more good than bad from my perspective.

I don't know how much it cost originally but what does the price of my amp have to do with anything? Do you think Mikhail charges more to make a nice clean build? I cannot answer why all of his amps don't look this neat, but I have stated a number of potential reasons previously. He gets overstretched and overcommitted. He loses key employees or has inconsistent employees. He tinkers on certain projects too much. He develops too many new designs when he should be focusing on existing projects. He does mods on top of mods when customers ask for them. He also is human. While I am typing, the SDS-XLR is serving as pre-amp and sounds gorgeous. If my amp was a mish-mosh on the inside but still sounded like this, then I really would not give a damn about the looks of the innards. I know people want value for their money, but why begrudge Mikhail or Ray or Rudi for the amount they are able to charge for their products in a free market? If you are paying top dollar and getting a crap amp, then that is another thing and the market will dictate how long such a maker will last or what kind of market share they will have.

They just got here this afternoon. They look beautiful and I like this cardboard packaging a lot.

I forgot that Asr posted pics of my amp from a San Jose meet. You'd have to agree it's pretty purty inside, wouldn't you?

Who said anything about average work? OK, so let's say it is almost as nice.

Then you agree he is a bitch, though.

I've never heard Sigmas. What do people think about $800 obo as a price point?

I agree that Pete's work is exemplary, and his amps are great, but there are some differences that should be acknowledged. 1. Your picture of Pete's work looks just as nice as stock p2p work I have seen inside SP amps. 2. Pete is not a manufacturer of volume products. 3. Pete's amp pictured above is not a stock amp that has had one, two, or more upgrade sessions where new and larger caps, for example, are substituted after the initial build, and at the purchaser's choice. 4. It doesn't have to look that neat and tidy to be professional, stable, or sound great. When I was waiting for months I was pissed too, but I really feel like we are in the beating a dead horse mode. That is just my opinion. I also agree with Billy -- to an extent -- on the notion that this is nothing really new for Mikhail because it has been a known quantity for a long time. Lastly, is Aaron going to post a new Sticky indicating that all FOUR of the backlog/broken promise orders he was able to identify were resolved and now buyers don't need to beware [as much] any more?

The basics are most useful. The more esoteric codes and all that is beyond me.

Yes, this IS the one (even though I hate the white color): I backed out on a potential deal for a used f/2.8 as I mentioned because it is so big and heavy I thought it would deter me from choosing it. Hopefully I will like the F/4. Sorry about the bag not fitting the monster lens! Maybe you can sell the 6MDH and pick up a 7MDH? Would that make a difference?

Nate- I am not very good at tube ID, but here is some info I found helpful to classify them at least. My "Bad Boy" 6SN7s have green Sylvania labels, but I cannot tell if the greenies in the second shot could be Bad Boys. The short bottles would not be Bad Boys as far as I am aware. If you feel comfortable PM'ing Earl, he could probably give you the most accurate/complete answer of anybody. Source: 6SN7 Info & Links 6SN7 General Info and Types Three envelope sizes are common in the full octal base version: SHORT, glass is 1.5 inches high; MEDIUM, glass is 1 3/4 inches high; TALL or "TALL BOY", glass is 2 inches high. VT-231: These are basically the military lableling for the commercial versions of the 6SN7 types described below. There are many different prefixes as well, depending upon the manufacturer-- Raytheon is CRP, Sylvania CHS, RCA CRC, CBS-Hytron JHY, Tungsol CTL, KenRad CKR. See my section section on this by clicking here. 6SN7GT / G: This is the original version of this tube. It may be found in all three sizes of glass envelope. The Sylvania Tall Boy types have two triangular shaped plates facing each other mounted high in the tube, with either a top or bottom getter. The early Sylvania types had a top getter and silver flashed the entire top of the tube, sometimes called "chrome tops". Many brands used this design, but the high mounted triangular plates means it most likely was made by Sylvania. The early RCA "GT" types were usually in either a medium or short envelope and have a grey RF shield sprayed on inside the glass. The GE and KenRad types were similar, but the inner glass coating is deep black. These tubes usually have flat black plates, like large 12AX7 blackplates. The military versions of these are the VT-231 and are in very high demand today. 6SN7GTA / GTB: This is the later improved version, and the improvements were primarily geared toward the TV chassis designers who demanded more max. plate wattage and voltage, where vertical circuits can put up to 1500 volt pulses at 7 watts on the plates. For hi-fi audio use, these improvements are meaningless. These are fine tubes, nonetheless. Most are found in the short glass envelope, but some brands like Raytheon used the Tall Boy style. Sylvania made tubes have the triangular plates mounted lower, and set at angles to each other, although some of the very earliest examples of the GTA types still used the dull blackplates facing each other. RCA used the flat black plates "sideways" to each other, and GE used the grey plates parallel to each other. The Sylvania types in demand have a large top getter patch. The earliest Sylvania GTA types have a green label and heavy top getter flashing extending down the sides of the tube. The early GTB types are similar, but have a yellow or red label. The versions from the 1960s have the getter just covering the top of the tube. All of these have the same black triangular plates and are excellent tubes. The GE types have a side getter and large parallel grey plates, and the RCA used both bottom or side getter. Most other vintage USA brands you find will have been made by these three vendors, and will be one of the above variations, regardless of brand on the label. A few were made with brown micanol bases, the RCA types being very dark brown, the GE types being a lighter, marbled brown. Many audiophiles prefer either the Sylvania chrome tops, the RCA, or the GE side getter over any others, even over the military or redbase types. These are all a great bargain now, and are sure to be rare and expensive tomorrow. 6SN7W / WGT / WGTA: This type indicates a military spec tube that was not made for consumer use. These usually have extra support posts on the plate structure, heavy mica spacers, and brown micanol bases. These also have the famous triangular shaped black plates. They have been ruggedized to withstand shock, the brown low loss micanol base resists mold, mildew, and fungus growth, and they can withstand heat even if used upside down. The early Sylvania 6SN7W types from the 1940s had a metal collar around the base, then later a black base. These look internally alot like the early Sylvania GTA types listed above. Sylvania made these for other brands as well, including RCA. Easy to spot as they have the triangular blackplates facing each other in a short bottle, with a very heavy chrome top flashing extending down the sides of the tube. These are RARE and worth seeking out! The WGT and WGTA types all had brown bases. Only the WGTA types made in the late 70s and 80s reverted back to black bases then coin or wafer bases. These are all wonderful tubes, are long lived, and sound fantastic. No wonder they are fast disappearing from the vintage market. 5692: This is the premimum commercial / "industrial" grade of 6SN7. The most famous of these are the RCA "redbase" series, with their distinctive red marbled full octal bases. These are always in the short glass envelope style, and most have four support rods joining the four corners of the top and bottom mica spacers and supporting the plate structure. These have 10,000 hour life filaments and are very resistant to shock and vibration, making them low in microphonics. The RCA versions have the "stop sign" label on the top of the tube with the number 5692 inside, and on the older tubes this was often smeared off, being printed with a chalky white paint. ALL of the redbase versions of this tube were made by RCA, regardless of the brand on the label. TungSol, GE, and Raytheon can often be found branded on the label, but RCA made them all. Other brands like CBS/Hytron and Sylvania made brownbase versions of this tube, but I suspect all were actually made by RCA, as they are identical inside. The above info courtesy of Brent Jessee Recording & Supply, Inc. located at http://www.audiotubes.com<< a> Interpreting Date Codes This info was reproduced from Triode Electronics' website located at Commonly Seen EIA Codes These are codes often seen stamped on components found in US made vintage tube equipment. This list is circa 1955, and some codes have been reassigned or added since that time. Code formats were not completely standardized, but a little deciphering will generally yield the info of interest. Note that many makers also stamped OEM (Original Eqipment Manufacturer) part numbers above or below the EIA code, in some cases parts makers or the customer elected not to include the EIA codes, so not all parts have them. They generally follow the following format: (example) 322 5904 where 322 is the manufacturer code (in this case Tungsol), 59 is the year (1959), and 04 is the week. One alternate scheme is: 274 940 274 is the EIA code (RCA) 9 is the last digit of the year (in this case 1949). Usually single digit date codes are from the 1940's, but have on occasion shown up in later decades, even up to the 1970's. If one has a general idea of the age of the piece in question, usually the decade can be divined from that. Another alternate is in the format following: 188-5 69 32 188 is General Electric. 5 is the plant code (in this case, Owensboro, Kentucky). 69 32 is 1969, 32nd week. And another is like this: 322 6104-1 322 is Tungsol, 6104 is 1961, 4th week, 1 is the shift code (1 would probably be the day shift) After about 1960, many tube manufacturers went to encrypted alphabetical date codes., such as: KE 188-5 The reason was purportedly to allow factories to track the dates of manufacture of defective tubes (especially important in the case of OEM customers that might send back entire batches of tubes), but avoid possible consumer complaints about "stale" tubes. This sounds perhaps a little silly since the shelf life of tubes is decades, at least (indefinite in practical terms), but some OEM's might have beenn a bit irritated by occasional consumer complaints such as "my 1961 model TV has 1959 model tubes in it!" Tubes made for the US military, or certain OEMs (such as some test equipment manufacturers) that requested it, continued to carry numerical date codes. In years past, EIA (Electronic Industries Association) also went by the name of RETMA, and the original acronym of RMA (Radio Manufacturer's Association). EIA Code Lists for: Tubes and CRT's EIA code Amperex (USA) 111 Bendix 125 DuMont 158 Eimac (Eitel-McCullough, Inc) 162 Electronic Tube Corp 169 General Electric Co (USA) 188 Hytron (CBS-Hytron) 210 Machlett 231 RCA (Radio Corp of America) 274 Raytheon 280 Superior Tube Co 310 Sylvania (Hygrade Sylvania Corp) 312 Tung-Sol 322 United Electronics 323 Western Electric 336 Westinghouse 337 Zenith Radio Corp (CRT's) 343 Nortn American Philips Corp 423 Taylor (aka Cetron-Taylor) 713 Lewis & Kaufman 738 National Electronics (also Cetron) 749 Penta Laboratories 771 Vacuum Tube Products 781 Varian Associates 809 Litton Industries 879 Electrons, Inc 935

Haven't received mine yet. Looking forward to it.

It was from Amazon. I paid $1069 for the F/4L IS USM. Is yours the L and an IS? $425 would be a bargain.

Oops, then maybe this next shot explains why no response.

He is such a lazy bitch!

Yeah, I went ahead and bought the 70-200 F/4 last night, along with a couple filters and a Crumpler $7 Million Home bag. Gotta be ready to take some shots in Montana in a couple weeks. Glacier, Yellowstone, Tetons, TTVJ, HeadRoom, you know, the big attractions.

Thanks for posting such clear information about your situation. Because several people posted that I was somehow a "third party" who got hold of Mikhail when others could not, I should say that Mikhail asked me to call him for two reasons. First, I borrowed a couple tubes at the recent NorCal meet and he has a very limited supply of them (as in 3 left). He wanted to know if I intend to buy them and how I like them in general. Second, I think he wanted to talk through this mess with me because we have had these conversations for the last couple of years both as his customer -- experiencing many of the same issues/delays/broken promises/etc. -- and as a friend. Your situation only came up because he was talking through the remaining outstanding issues in a general way and I asked why he had not sent you your upgraded amps. I posted yesterday what he said, and I have seen resolutions for Tom Hankins, Blubliss, Kang, Wayne McManus (although not sure if completely completed) and have heard of others. That is one reason why I believe Mikhail is taking this seriously and trying to get current so he can move forward on an even keel. I don't have an answer for you on why he did not send the ES-1. Sadly, it could be that it was not ready when he said it was. Or, it could be that he was tinkering with it or wanted to tinker with it while your Supra issue was still pending. I simply don't know, but he certainly spends way too much time re-thinking and tinkering on custom/upgrade projects. I hope he brings it to the meet this weekend or merely ships it direct to you right away, and that one way or the other you get what you paid for and get this behind you. Best of luck!

Dan's still got 3 hours of birthday left out here on the left coast! Hope you are having a good one Dan, and not chained to a terminal slaughtering things for you guild. Cheers

Thanks Knuckledragger, that post on the f/4 vs. f/2.8 was very useful to me. I was concerned about the weight on the 2.8 and thought that would be a deterrent. I assume that I would use it way more outside than in, so that should be less of an issue. That and greater sharpness has me re-thinking my decision.

I can't remember if you and I talked about it, but Neil and I saw your DV50 sitting in his listening room and he said something like that. It was months ago, and I thought he had it for a long time already at that point.

Nate- I didn't think that you were implying anything, and I just wanted to be clear. I have had this same kind of conversation with Mikhail several times over the last couple of years, including during my own struggle to get my SDS-XLR completed. I just think he has gotten the message in a more direct way this time. Dusty- From reading somewhere, I thought Elephas had told Mikhail he doesn't want the amps anymore or doesn't want them shipped to him because he might sell them, or some such. That was what I assumed Mikhail meant when he said others were advising him to just send the completed amps anyway. I'd rather wait for Elephas to respond instead of speculating, but I thought I read that in one of his posts.

I cannot make it before August 16 so I will just head over to John's sometime in the next couple weeks.