February 27, 200917 yr Most are still available, if you look hard enough. Even the 2sk389 can be found on occasion, and you can ping dgardner DIY RESOURCES - Kevin Gilmore DYNAMIC HEADPHONE AMPLIFIERS and POWER SUPPLIES about anything you can't find. One issue is the toroid, which VicMagnetics won't do anymore, but rSum will. Just not a project for the feint-hearted.
February 27, 200917 yr Sourcing most of the parts shouldn't be too hard and there are also some replacements in current production. It is a scary amp to work on though.
February 27, 200917 yr Thanks. I would rather pay for this one I think, its not worth risking my life over.
February 27, 200917 yr We are in the process of prototyping a 'Poor Man's" electrostatic amp, which may have some pimping capacity, without as much risk, and no external heatsinking - still about a month away, if we get boards ordered over the weekend, so stay tuned there. It won't be a KGSS, but will be better than a Stax offering (we hope), and, will be (cheap) tube based.
February 28, 200917 yr The design goal is $300, using 6s4a tubes. No external heatsinking. We'll see how good we can do.
February 28, 200917 yr That would be awesome. For us cheapasses, all it needs to do is beat the transformer boxes which are going for similar sums.
February 28, 200917 yr Which is sad, because you can build your own badass transformer box for the prices the Stax transformers boxes are going for (well, the ones with pro bias). It's definitely been on my mind, but I think I'd choose either this new amp for the same price or the KGSS for more first since I don't have a good speaker amp to use anyway.
February 28, 200917 yr We are in the process of prototyping a 'Poor Man's" electrostatic amp, which may have some pimping capacity, without as much risk, and no external heatsinking - still about a month away, if we get boards ordered over the weekend, so stay tuned there. It won't be a KGSS, but will be better than a Stax offering (we hope), and, will be (cheap) tube based. Great news! I'll be on the look out, I've been kicking myself for not getting any Stax equipment sooner when the getting was good.
February 28, 200917 yr That would be awesome. For us cheapasses, all it needs to do is beat the transformer boxes which are going for similar sums. That's really not as easy as it sounds since the transformers can give you a lot of cheap voltage swing at a low cost. We are still debating the PSU voltage so how much power the amp will have is up in the air. That said there are other cheap amp options and if the end result of my Egmont sounds ok then I'll post an updated schematic and BOM.
February 28, 200917 yr Er, I better post something Stax-related before a new member jumps in and accuses Head-Casers of being off-topic. I've been listening exclusively to the O2Mk1 for the past week. I put in TF ECC83 smooth plates, Sylvania VT-231 and a quad of RFT dimple top EL34 in the ES-1 yesterday. Sound is good, but not quite at the level of some of my favorite tubes, which are often some of the rarer and more expensive types. So I'm very happy and excited when a relatively inexpensive tube performs well. The TF ECC83 and Sylvania VT-231 are not exactly inexpensive, though. I think the 2C51 types are a better deal. I especially like the Tung-Sol 2C51, which seems to give the O2Mk1 a bit extra clarity and air, similar to the difference between some 5751 and 12AX7. The tubes that I liked less made the O2Mk1 more muddy, stuffy and congested. If I do end up with a BHSE, I'm hopeful of finding that it reduces the O2Mk1 and O2Mk2's darkness and maybe add some air. I have most old stock EL34 types ready, except for TF metal base and the old KT77 types. I really liked the Sylvania VT-231 in my Dark Voice 336i amp, enough that I kept a couple along with a Sylvania "Bad Boy" in case I ever needed 6SN7 type tubes again. They are nice and crisp and airy and punchy at the same time. I doubt they were cause of your sound issues. In my GES the 4 early 60's GE "Wurlitzer" 12AX7 tubes I bought really work well the O2 Mk2, as do my Telefunken smooth plates, being very detailed while at the same time staying warm and rich. The GE tubes are what made me like the tonality of my GES just a little more than the KGBH at our meet 3 weeks ago. But, I did say the KGBH had more bass and impact and power, and I thought the KGBH could be tuned with the tubes to sound like whatever you want. I would feel a lot more secure with a KGBHSE than the ES-1, knowing that it could be repaired should anything go wrong. So if you can afford it I would not cancel the order if I were you.
March 1, 200917 yr We are in the process of prototyping a 'Poor Man's" electrostatic amp, which may have some pimping capacity, without as much risk, and no external heatsinking - still about a month away, if we get boards ordered over the weekend, so stay tuned there. It won't be a KGSS, but will be better than a Stax offering (we hope), and, will be (cheap) tube based. Yes please! I gather this will be a DIY kit?
March 1, 200917 yr Yes please! I gather this will be a DIY kit? It will be a project like the B22 and others where a BOM and PCB's are available but no real kit to speak of. That could change in the future though.
March 9, 200917 yr I have obtained a couple of binaural STAX CDs, and as I promised I will share it, question is: where should I upload it?
March 9, 200917 yr if you have a dropbox (getdropbox.com) account, thats probably the best way imo. Theres always sendspace (for files up to 300mb) and mediafire (for files under 100mb)
March 9, 200917 yr I would like to have something new to listen to with me new Stax rig when it comes. </shameless>
March 10, 200917 yr Besides color and the finish on the plastic, they are all identical. There could be some small changes to the baffle though but I'm just not sure.
March 12, 200917 yr ok, moving this to the Stax thread. Here are the measurements I get for the male Stax plug: pin1-2,pin1-5,pin5-4: 0.212"+-0.005" pin2-4: 0.425"+-0.005" (twice the above distance) pin3-1,pin3-5: 0.411"+-0.005" ... interesting asymmetry, not what I would have guessed. Perhaps that's why the WPI sockets don't fit so well (I've never used one myself). edit: Spritzer, perhaps you could check this on a 6-pin plug as well? Perhaps it is more symmetric? Edited March 12, 200917 yr by luvdunhill
March 12, 200917 yr My love for stax started many a year ago, well before I could even think of affording a pair! (I was 16 at the time and already headphones were my top consideration). My first foray into stax was with the SR-84 Pro Electret headphones which I found second hand in a great shop in italy were I now live. I was really enthusiastic about the sound but compared to the Sennheisers I used before (HD-580s of 600s, I can't rememeber the exact model () I found them a little bass shy. by scrimping and saving I managed to get my hands on an ex-demo Marantz SA-1 SACD player (in mint condition for less than half the price of a new one) and the original Stax sr-303 classic system (SR-303 and SRM 313). These were connected using Nordost Blue heaven unbalanced (RCA, 1 metre). I really was in (blue?!) Heaven!!!! Yes they are still a little bass shy but the mid-range and the treble! oh so sweet, beguiling, liquid sounding almost!!! What really gets me isnt so much the reproduction of acoustic (which is phenomenal) but rather the way they handle "electronic" music. Listening to something like Ray of Light by Madonna with all the William Orbit trickery in the background is just sublime, I mean the real, 3D wall of sound that is created is mind blowing to me! I am thinking of upping the ante and going for the O2s, I have heard that they have all the mid/high beauty of the 303s (actually, better!) but with real bass "slam" (albeit controlled). My real problem is what do i partner them to? I am not a great lover of valves and I have heard that the SRM-727mk2 is not the best available for the O2s. Is the KGSS really that different/Special? (No disrespect to Kevin or Justin but I havet heard either of them and I doubt I will be able to do a comparison here where I live!). any Ideas? )
March 12, 200917 yr Since there is no established numerical system for the Stax jack, what is pin 1? 1 2 5 3 4 Edit. Can't get the code to function correctly so this will have to do. Like this or something different? Anyway, using the above system then each pin is 2.35mm wide and the distance (measured outer edge to outer edge) of pin 1 to pins 2 and 5 is between 10 and 10.05mm. Pin 2 to pin 5 is roughly 13.23-13.25mm. Pin 2 to 3 and pin 5 to pin 4 is roughly 7.77-7.80mm. Pin 3-4 gives me 7.81-7.84mm. The only 6 pin connector I have is on the SR-1 and while it fits alright, the odds are it has been bent a bit in the last 40+ years. Edited March 12, 200917 yr by spritzer
March 12, 200917 yr Since there is no established numerical system for the Stax jack, what is pin 1? 1 2 5 3 4 Edit. Can't get the code to function correctly so this will have to do. Like this or something different? Anyway, using the above system then each pin is 2.35mm wide and the distance (measured outer edge to outer edge) of pin 1 to pins 2 and 5 is between 10 and 10.05mm. Pin 2 to pin 5 is roughly 13.23-13.25mm. Pin 2 to 3 and pin 5 to pin 4 is roughly 7.77-7.80mm. Pin 3-4 gives me 7.81-7.84mm. The only 6 pin connector I have is on the SR-1 and while it fits alright, the odds are it has been bent a bit in the last 40+ years. How about instead of establishing a numerical system, because the pins aren't asymmetric like on a 4 pin XLR, naming them by what they are? B, R-, R+. L-, L+?
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