Value-wise many times the score that the amp is...
Did I score?
- Thread starter Wires!!
- Start date
trainbuftony
Electron Herder
Whoever built this power amp initially did a spectacular job of wire dress. Study it closely and try and match the style if and when you perform any repsirs. Clearly the builder took great pride in their work and was very experienced in building electronics. I would be inclined to restore this out of respect for the original builder. Also it will sound fantastic!
There was a preamp in the cabinet, did you get that? This is some serious stuff you've found here, not run of the mill by any stretch. The amp appears to have been made by someone *very* serious about what they were doing and the speaker is one of the rarest and most valuable of all the Altec drivers. I know it's a drag when you've stumbled across something like this but this is a case where you *really* should get the amp (and preamp if it's there) checked out thoroughly before doing anything. That will cost some money but such a meticulously built amp deserves that. I wouldn't hook up anything to the speaker that you aren't 100% positive is working perfectly, and even then keep in mind it is rated for 30W maximum (but will produce 115dB or so with that). When you've had the amp checked out, check it with something expendable before hoping it up to the Altec.
By the way, do not plug the amp in again unless there is a speaker connected to the outputs (I strongly recommend against using the Altec at this point), you run the risk of frying your output transformer, which is excellent quality. Tube amps should not be powered up without a load on the outputs.
Wires!!
Active Member
Yeah I kinda figured. I'm waiting hoping to get the rest of the guts from that cabnet. And I did hook the altec up to a marantz receiver and there was little low end. Maybe the crossover? It's an n-1000b. Haven't opened the case but I might be able to re cap that myself. Tall order for my first solder job tho. Lol.just wish there was a technician shop around here. Shipping things is sketchy.
Wires!!
Active Member
Yeah this guy was good. He died this year well into his nintys. He built this stuff in WA, DC when it was new! I've got all his papers and articles and schematics. 200+ records mostly vinylite. Half of which aren't even on the Discogs database. Wish I could have known him. Could have learned a lot.
Was the driver in the cabinet? Without an enclosure bass will be non-existent, but in a proper cabinet they are capable of just under 30Hz. They like large cabinets but you'll still get excellent lows from 5-6cu ft. My cabinets are 20cu ft...
Some people put them in open baffles and report good results, but low bass will be considerably less than in decent sized reflex cabinets.
Wires!!
Active Member
Yeah it looks more than 6
That should definitely produce good bass at least into the low 40s, so something may be up with the crossover. Sometimes the components of Altec crossovers can be tough to get at, they are often filled with tar or wax. If that's the case you're better off building a new one, and someone has designed a really good one already:
http://home.earthlink.net/~jmarkwart/id5.html
The other possibility, less favorable, is that the woofer voice coil is open. You could check for a resistance between the LF terminals (the ones on the frame of the woofer), just be careful you don't poke a hole in the cone while you're at it! If you get something outside of the 12-16 ohm range you have a problem, but even then you can get it reconed at Great Plains Audio.
You might look up the Altec 612 cabinet and see if the dimensions match what you've got, it looks possible that's what it is. Looks beautiful. Congrats on an amazing find.
http://home.earthlink.net/~jmarkwart/id5.html
The other possibility, less favorable, is that the woofer voice coil is open. You could check for a resistance between the LF terminals (the ones on the frame of the woofer), just be careful you don't poke a hole in the cone while you're at it! If you get something outside of the 12-16 ohm range you have a problem, but even then you can get it reconed at Great Plains Audio.
You might look up the Altec 612 cabinet and see if the dimensions match what you've got, it looks possible that's what it is. Looks beautiful. Congrats on an amazing find.
Wires!!
Active Member
Ok. I've opened up the second home made console and this is what came out.
Is it a amp preamp combo? Repurposed from something else? It certainly doesn't have the fit and finish of the other one. The tuna is still in the box but it looks something like this.
Again, thanks for all the help AK.
Wires!!
Is it a amp preamp combo? Repurposed from something else? It certainly doesn't have the fit and finish of the other one. The tuna is still in the box but it looks something like this.
Again, thanks for all the help AK.
Wires!!
radioactive
tube gear fanatic
The tuner is a meissner.in your third picture the small silver chassis is more than likely a phono preamp.
Preamp, phono stage and tuner, the power amp is in your OP. Nice looking preamp...
radioactive
tube gear fanatic
Model 8c that was one of my guesses. Let's see a front shot
Wires!!
Active Member
It has a phono in and a on/off volume knob so I think it's a stand alone unit. Same with the "preamp". The amp in the op was from a different cabnet.
