Bought a Pilot 240…again. And it’s glorious.

[rotobadger]

I had a console pull Pilot 240 a couple of years ago and sold it because the grass is always greener.

I missed it. Over the last couple or months I debated whether I should get another one. Well, it just so happened that a fellow AK member had a BEAUTIFUL recapped 240 for sale. We worked out the deal and it arrived today. Packed absolutely bomb proof too.

It’s hooked up and singing and I can’t bring myself to turn it off. Quiet as a mouse, everything works as it should and…it sounds amazing. I’m going into 1990 Klipsch La Scala.

Compared to the one I owned previously, this one is aesthetically miles away from my old one.

One thing that baffled me was that I couldn’t figure out where the speaker ground wire was supposed to go. Short version: Bizarrely, the 4 Ohm connection is actually the ground.

Anyway, as I continue to make rash audio decisions that end up costing me (as well as pissing off my lovely wife) I am very happy and know I made a good decision buying this amp. The only thing I’m going to do asap is remove the JJ 12AX7 and replace them with a vintage quad of RCA long plates. I’ll just leave the phono tube alone for now.

Currently listening to Sonny Stitt and it sounds absolutely glorious. Sometimes this hobby can take your mind off of your troubles and let you just relax. Tonight is that night.

It’s also a fantastic complement to my Gillespie Eico HF-87!

Thanks for reading my ramble and here are a couple of pics. Even the case is in excellent condition!

 

[SONDEKNZ]

Anyway, as I continue to make rash audio decisions that end up costing me (as well as pissing off my lovely wife)...

The only thing I’m going to do asap is remove the JJ 12AX7 and replace them with a vintage quad of RCA long plates...

...Currently listening to Sonny Stitt and it sounds absolutely glorious.

Welcome home!

It's always good to find your way back to the sound-path of righteousness.

Just a thought, but... Isn't removing the JJ12AX7 - which sound absolutely gorgeous - and replacing them ASAP... a bit of a rash audio decision?

(Playing the voice of temperance and moderation here... )

 

[rotobadger]

Just a thought, but... Isn't removing the JJ12AX7 - which sound absolutely gorgeous - and replacing them ASAP... a bit of a rash audio decision?

See? That is an absolutely excellent and reasonable observation. It did occur to me to leave them in place but I’ve got that “I think I can make it JUST a little better by replacing the JJ with vintage NOS RCA”…

You’re not wrong. It’s rash. But I can’t help my compulsion to tinker.

I will report back after I install the RCA. We’ll see. I may end up with an amp that sounds just as good as it did prior to a tube roll. But, hopefully I can make the amp sound just a little more awesom-er.

 

[wdecho]

Why we roll tubes? Because we can.

 

[SONDEKNZ]

See? That is an absolutely excellent and reasonable observation. It did occur to me to leave them in place but I’ve got that “I think I can make it JUST a little better by replacing the JJ with vintage NOS RCA”…

You’re not wrong. It’s rash. But I can’t help my compulsion to tinker.

I will report back after I install the RCA. We’ll see. I may end up with an amp that sounds just as good as it did prior to a tube roll. But, hopefully I can make the amp sound just a little more awesom-er.

Fair enough!

The good news is you're not ready to bin the JJs. (Phew!)

IMHO the JJs are probably providing a perfect electronic match for the amps operating points - and those operating points may well have been voiced around making the most of the JJs.

It will be interesting to see if you end up with an amp that sounds almost as good as it did with the JJs.

(Not a JJ fanboy BTW, it's just that my own experimentation has taught me that most faultless tubes can sound sensational in the correct circuit - at their idyllic operating point... )

 

[spantou01]

@rotobadger ,
Beautiful specimen! I have one too, in slghtly lesser condition. Question: Is yours modified in any way, beyond a recap? Just wondering if it could be improved (in addition to tube-rolling.)

 

[gadget73]

4 ohm is grounded, but you still want to use the 0 ohm or common (whatever its marked) for speaker negative. If you go from 4 to 16, its suitable for a 4 ohm speaker. 4 to 0 is also 4 ohm. 4 to 8 is something like 2.8 ohms, which isn't particularly useful most of the time. With the negative on 0, the impedances are what they are marked as.

 

[rotobadger]

@rotobadger ,
Beautiful specimen! I have one too, in slghtly lesser condition. Question: Is yours modified in any way, beyond a recap? Just wondering if it could be improved (in addition to tube-rolling.)

Thank you! No mods that I’m aware of. I’m not even sure if anyone has done mods for this amp.

 

[rotobadger]

4 ohm is grounded, but you still want to use the 0 ohm or common (whatever its marked) for speaker negative. If you go from 4 to 16, its suitable for a 4 ohm speaker. 4 to 0 is also 4 ohm. 4 to 8 is something like 2.8 ohms, which isn't particularly useful most of the time. With the negative on 0, the impedances are what they are marked as.

This why i was confused. No 0 and nothing marked common. I found a thread here on AK and learned that the 4 ohm tap was grounded to the chassis.

Also, I was looking at videos and pics of the 240 and found one where the guy was showing the back. He had his speakers connected to the 8ohm and the 4ohm (ground).

Here’s a pic of the speaker connectors. I was really baffled.

 

[gadget73]

Hm

Negative probably goes to Main Rt, positive to the impedance tap, and its switched on and off by the speaker selector switch on the front

 

[spantou01]

That one is confusing, but can be figured by this schematic in post #2:

Post in thread 'Pilot 240 Integrated Amp - Schematic needed'

Nov 5, 2021

https://www.diyaudio.com/forums/tubes-valves/285928-pilot-240-bass-circuit-modification.html

• opnly bafld

On a 0, 4, 8, 16 ohm secondary the 4 ohm tap is the center tap and even if it is grounded, as Gadget said, an 8 Ohm speaker be still be connected between 0 and 8 terminals.

My Pilot 240 is simpler, like the Sam’s schematic posted in post #3 in the linked thread above.

 

[mr_macgee]

I had a console pull Pilot 240 a couple of years ago and sold it because the grass is always greener.
I missed it. Over the last couple or months I debated whether I should get another one.

Congrats Roto on getting another one, it looks great and all the knobs match!. I bought your previous Pilot 240 from you a couple years back, here's a pic of it.

Enjoy, let us know how you like the sound after tube rolling and listening to it for a while.


PS>I had GE's, then tried JJ's, and then settled with a quad set of Ei Yugoslavia EL84's, a mix of matched pairs of old RCA's, Sylvania green labeled (Baldwin's), and then 1 TungSol (USA), and a Fatboy 5AR4 Zenith (Sylvania) rectifier. I liked the cabinet you made for it. Pic of the one on the Pilot 240 I had.

 

[rotobadger]

Hey, nice! It’s like seeing an old friend. Glad you’re still loving it. It’s weird because the pilot I bought I felt was small for some reason. I just figured I didn’t remember how big it was. But actually, it’s because the one I had (the one you have) is a console pull and is bigger.

 

[Hajidub]

Great pickup Roto...for anyone not a Subscriber a ton of these vintage/recapped beauty's have been showing up for reasonable money lately.

 

[rotobadger]

Great pickup Roto...for anyone not a Subscriber a ton of these vintage/recapped beauty's have been showing up for reasonable money lately.

Yeah, I didn’t get a great deal, but I think it was a fair deal. It’s in really beautiful condition and I just had to have it. You know how that goes. Lol.