rstloup
pfm Member
I think you should be more worried about the damage that can be done to the amp with the ESLs !
I think you should be more worried about the damage that can be done to the amp with the ESLs !
tonerei
pfm Member
Ah yes they used a valve amp with KT88's
. The Jadis had KT88's and KT120's. For what its worth I found the Primaluna valve amp underwhelming on mine.
Your amp should be fine but personally I think to get the best out of them like in all things in life you need a beefy amp. But that can come later. See if they have an expensive valve amp in the shop and try it hooked up to that. Also make sure you get the speakers spread out to ensure they are both at the same level.
Definitely as I mentioned earlier 57 panels can sound really nice even when the panels are well down on output so difficult to discern unless you hear a perfect pair.
Good luck with your quest.
. The Jadis had KT88's and KT120's. For what its worth I found the Primaluna valve amp underwhelming on mine.Your amp should be fine but personally I think to get the best out of them like in all things in life you need a beefy amp. But that can come later. See if they have an expensive valve amp in the shop and try it hooked up to that. Also make sure you get the speakers spread out to ensure they are both at the same level.
Definitely as I mentioned earlier 57 panels can sound really nice even when the panels are well down on output so difficult to discern unless you hear a perfect pair.
Good luck with your quest.
LazyHammer
pfm Member
Ah yes they used a valve amp with KT88's
Your amp should be fine but personally I think to get the best out of them like in all things in life you need a beefy amp. But that can come later. See if they have an expensive valve amp in the shop and try it hooked up to that. Also make sure you get the speakers spread out to ensure they are both at the same level.
Definitely as I mentioned earlier 57 panels can sound really nice even when the panels are well down on output so difficult to discern unless you hear a perfect pair.
Good luck with your quest.
Well... if 18wpc is not enough, I can put my amp in class AB mode which gives a total of 80wpc... But I figured it would sound better in A. We'll see.
LazyHammer
pfm Member
Also - I found another pair that come with the 303 amp and 33 preamp for 1100€, which is 150€ cheaper than the other option which comes with only the speakers.
Problem is, those seem to be older, there's no info about them ever being serviced, and one of em has a dent in the grill. And I can't test them personally so they'd have to be shipped straight to my house.
However... there's a 15 day return period and a 6 month warranty since they're being sold by a store. Maybe I could get those, sell the 303 + 33 combo for 300€ or so, and have a cheapish pair of Quads...
It's a tough choice...
Problem is, those seem to be older, there's no info about them ever being serviced, and one of em has a dent in the grill. And I can't test them personally so they'd have to be shipped straight to my house.
However... there's a 15 day return period and a 6 month warranty since they're being sold by a store. Maybe I could get those, sell the 303 + 33 combo for 300€ or so, and have a cheapish pair of Quads...
It's a tough choice...
Tony L
Administrator
Remember the ESLs were designed in 1957 and were most often partnered with Quad’s own 15 Watt II mono amps. A 10 Watt Leak also drives them beautifully. Their load can upset some solid state amps, but they are not speakers you need to throw high power at. They play by rather different rules.
brecklandboy
pfm Member
I would concur with Tony.
Amplifier 'matching' / compatibility rather than power rating is the key with original 'stats. I have heard solid state amps clip horribly when driving these speakers, which can spell potential disaster for the well-being of the panels.
Amplifier 'matching' / compatibility rather than power rating is the key with original 'stats. I have heard solid state amps clip horribly when driving these speakers, which can spell potential disaster for the well-being of the panels.
mandryka
pfm Member
Tell me, do the One Thing renovated speakers sound different from the ones Quad did?
brecklandboy
pfm Member
IMHO they definitely sound different. As to answering the ' which is better question ? ', this is a can of worms which is best left unopened to avoid forum bloodshed !!!
mandryka
pfm Member
This is not really what I wanted to hear but I’d like to get to the bottom of it because one day, hopefully in the very distant future, I may have to make a choice about which company to send my ESLs to!
Aural
Once hornucopia.Now lying flat.
Sideline; circa 1980. I was selling (Bristol) my Quad 405 amp (replaced by Haflers I STILL own, albeit recapped). I had a phonecall from a girl (***more later), asking if I'd deliver for petrol money to Walton-on-Thames, a 110 mile journey -each way.
Jumped into my ancient Citroen Dyane and drove.
Arrived.....It wasn't a GIRL....it was a 12/13? year old boy, with several ELSs, amps etc!!
Stayed overnight at friends nearby.
In the morning, it had snowed heavily, so drove down a VERY snowy M4, passing abandoned Saabs, Porsches in my trusty 602cc car....home!
What folly, I think now, I could have been stuck freezing on the side of the road!
I wonder if that boy is still active, hifi wise? He'd be 50+ now.
Jumped into my ancient Citroen Dyane and drove.
Arrived.....It wasn't a GIRL....it was a 12/13? year old boy, with several ELSs, amps etc!!
Stayed overnight at friends nearby.
In the morning, it had snowed heavily, so drove down a VERY snowy M4, passing abandoned Saabs, Porsches in my trusty 602cc car....home!
What folly, I think now, I could have been stuck freezing on the side of the road!
I wonder if that boy is still active, hifi wise? He'd be 50+ now.
LazyHammer
pfm Member
This does worry me as I definitely don't want to damage my brand "new" Sony amp... we'll see...
Tony L
Administrator
That is my concern. I’m pretty sure what you have there is a very rare and likely very good amp. Sony weren’t messing around at that time, they made some seriously good high-end kit. Some of their amps do however use very rare/unobtainable output FETs etc. I know nothing about the class A model you have, in fact I never even realised they made a class A amp, but I’d do whatever I could to ensure it was safe before risking it. In many ways the other pair that come with a 303 may be the better deal despite the grille ding (which would trigger me no end!). The 303 is a great amp, it was designed from the ground up to drive the ESLs, and it does so very well indeed. It is also cheap, commonplace (they sold about 90,000 of them, and they don’t often break!) and easily serviced.
Barrymagrec
pfm Member
I don`t know how old your "new" amp is but in the sixties and seventies the HiFi News reviews used to give information on how stable an amplifier was into a simulated ESL load. You may be able to find a review that can throw some light on to the problem, if it is a problem.
LazyHammer
pfm Member
If you think my amp is rare, look at the DAC I'm using: http://www.thevintageknob.org/sony-DAS-703ES.html
Now that's rare! But the combo is wonderful... at least with Stax. I'm just hoping it does great with the Quads... hopefully I'll know soon.
LazyHammer
pfm Member
I tried back when I got it, but there's not much info on this amp unfortunately, at least not for extensive technical reviews. The amp itself is from '78. As far as I know noone has ever tried to pair them together, at least there's no info about on the internet.
tonerei
pfm Member
I can't say as I have never heard a Quad repaired 57. Do they repair 57's? I thought only 63 on. My understanding was the Germany company QUAD Musikwiedergabe bought the jigs but somebody I am sure can confirm that.
From what I have read the OTA ones go louder. I participated in some discussions about this and I wondered if the folks who felt that were so used to listening to their old undone Quads that the OTA ones just appeared too bright and forward to their ears. When in effect they just sounded as they would have done on day one from Quad.
tonerei
pfm Member
The PrimaLuna put on the tech specs put out 40W per channel the Jadis was 30W. But I feel given that amp will run in pure Class A it will be fine. Just suggesting if you end up going back to that shop get them to put whatever really good valve amp they have on it and see how it sounds.
BTW I wouldn't be too worried about the ding. Mine had a few dings on them but sounded perfect. 50-60 year old speakers really impossibly hard to fine a pair that are completely unmarked especially given how awkward they are to carry around.
mandryka
pfm Member
I’m sorry, I misunderstood you, I thought you said you had two pairs of ESL 63s, one restored by Quad and one by OTA. I am only interested in 63s because that’s what I have, that’s what will have to be restored one evil day. My bad.