Was The Marantz B versions a sales gimmick with a facelift?

[jstang]

Brian,

So..... Are there any 9s hanging around still?

Speak about lusting.... only the problem is that the Ohm F are not really a match for 9s, they need lots of watts and DF. The 500 is a great amp for the Ohm Fs. My favorite speakers line up as a perfect match for my favorite SS amp.

However, the later Ohm Walsh speakers would work nicely with a set of 9s. I have a set of Walsh 4s that would be just right for the 9s..... big shy.... some day.

Got any spare 9s? I got a spare mint 500.....maybe we can work a deal.... the 9s would be in caring hands....:yes:

johnk

BTW, you 500 is the 1 Marantz amp other than the 9 I lusted after just on looks. Happily, I can say I happily suffered with upwards of a dozen or more 9s until my mid-20s.

 

[Blast]

I'm really going off memory here. I bought two 5025B cassette decks in about '78. The B's had just come out. Someone told me, or I read it somewhere that (one of) the change(s) was making the exterior case dimensions narrower so that it could fit in a standard rack, if one wanted.

I never bought rack handles for mine, though.

 

[onemug]

Just trying to pick up where Vinny55 left off....

I see that he is now "Vinny55B" and in this case the B stands for banned and/or buh bye.

Oh, the irony.

 

[Brian]

Have not had the 9s for several decades. As I sold off my KLH Nines, the 9s went with them. In triode mode the 9s and Nines were perfect matches (not sure if that constitutes some sort of pun). The last pair were sold to help finance the purchase of my 4 stereo stores. As for suffered it was in the way you suffer with the most perfect women in the world (I found mine and hence have the experience there), having that car that is a perfect ride, handler and needs no repair for the first 1,000,000 miles (still looking), having a fountain pen with perfect balance, ink flow, stands abuse and somehow finds its way home every time it is lost, I think you get the message. Just the opposite of my experience with all ARC tube amps.

The 9s were the most reliable of ANY tube amp I ever owned including several of the vintage Mc amps that would generally run 2nd but just never sounded as good. Only thing I ever did was when I subbed in new tubes or bought another amp was to set the bias and then about every 6-months recheck. I can not remember having to reset the bias unless a tube was getting near end of life. In triode mode with all the amps that I would run sometimes as much a 8 hours per day 7 days a week I might have replaced a dozen sets of output tubes in all the amps including when I bought them with smashed glass. At the time I could by Tung-Sol branded MPs for like $6 per pair as we were a Tung-Sol dealer.

For those interested, many say the 8/8b was the better sounding amp. In having 5s, and the 8 and 8b as well as 9s, when they were only a few years old though the KLH Nines and some other speakers that crossed the threshhold such as JansZens and Klipsch original Cornwalls the 5s were 1st, the 8 2nd, 8b, 3rd and 9s 4th when the 9s are in pentode. In triode the 9s moved to 2nd. You could mod the 8/8b to triode and while I never modded any, 1 gent whom I sold a pair of 9s to had put his either 8 or 8b into triode mode and through his Servo-Statics heard no difference what so ever per him.

Just thinking about all thinks brings back the good old days. In hindsight, I should have stayed pat with a set of 9s, the 7 and 10b along with the SLT-12u (yes I have an absolute love for this table) or, my vey first system, a pair of mint Quad IIs, the 22 and matching FM tuner and just upgraded the table to a Thorens TD150 (I wish I had kept it rather than updating to a TD160 so I could change arms; I had a Rabco SL8-E mounted on my 150) and either kept the Magnecord or the KLH 41.

At the time I was buying tube gear cheap as everyone was dumping it in favor of transistors and for the time selling high as I sold it in systems that I'd audition in a living room with a potential customer and then move the system to his home. At the time in my area you either bought something like a console or bought something of a returning service person on chance.

Sorry for going ot.

 

[jstang]

Ok I'll up the ante.... A 500, 10b, 7t and slt12 All except the slt are mint... For the 9s in your basement that you no longer own...

 

[Brian]

Sounds like a deal to me. Hopefully the moderator realizes we are joking. I'll bet the Fs sound great with the 500. As for them with the 9s, never tried the combo but never would imagine they'd do well together. Those Fs needed power and a high dampening factor. We did try them with a Mc MC2100 to no avail but with the MC2600 the sound was magic but the low end seemed a tad flabby. We had a DYNA 416 with the cap bank and it did a really good job, the Crown DC300 was too hot on the top end.

Do you use the SLT? Until a couple of years ago I had a couple of the oem Marantz jewel repair kits for mine though I no longer had my tables. I finally figured with 2 Thorens and an Empire at that stage of my life getting an SLT was no longer in the plans. Most of the problems persons find with the SLT are the worn jewels at the pivot points and the usual poor setup. Sadly, the instruction manual's methodology is not the best way while in the SM, the better procedure is outline as it was apparently used for QC testing. While most think the 10b was the killer of Saul's ownership, which it was, the development of the table killed it and when it came out it was like gettng revenge on Superscope as their setup QC was not up to the task with the table.

 

[jstang]

Have not touched the slt12 since I picked it up with a 10b, 15 and 7t a few years ago. Just been too many priorities. I have decent tt setup, but my cdpro/dac are my main source.

500's DF is what brings the Fs into their own. I don't think there is a Mac that can really control them. The 500 is capable of providing the bass diffinition to pick out things like double peddling on a bass drum or bending notes on a bass guitar... Other power amps just can't do that on the Fs, I tried....

I met Bob Ajye who worked at Ohm on the As & Fs in the early 70's...what great audio stories he had. He and others loved the big Crown amp back then for the F. But funny, he did not know of the 500 till I pointed out to him. He was adimit on the need for power and damping for F. His system is a 10b, 7c, vinitage crown amp and a set of custom Fs.....and he has a set of As too.

We can chat more when we close the deal on the 9Bs....they are the "B" versions... Yes?

Jk

 

[jstang]

I warned him in one of his "whats best thread" and he got mad at me.....

Then in his "Hey 19" thread I just went "Jersey" on him.... Not full "Jersey" ...more like a polite version....the "B" version Jersey. "A" version Jersey would have gotten me banned....

Jk

I see that he is now "Vinny55B" and in this case the B stands for banned and/or buh bye.

Oh, the irony.

 

[Brian]

Never met Bob but well knew John when he and Sandy were partners of Tech Hi-Fi. I also met a few time Walsh but he had no connect with Ohm, having licensed the technology and not being happy with the deal after.

The F was either a love or hate it speaker. Very difficult to place. Seemed like you got lucky or had to build a room around it. But when setup was right, it was a great speaker; one of the better out there. I wish Ohm had put more into the production and QC but it was price point company mainly producing for Tech at the time. I always wondered if AR or a similar higher end company had picked up the rights and made the F whether in today's market they be most revered.

 

[jstang]

My listening room is a sound dead messy basement...that needs a serious cleaning. :scratch2: