Steve's hi-fi adventures.

[Steever]

Well, the Yamaha turntable has left the building.
 

 

A lovely gent drove down from Hervey Bay for a bit of a buying spree in Brisbane. The Yammy and Ania Pro sounded very nice playing some Dixie Chicks and John Martyn. 
 

A deal was struck and I fitted his Audio Technica AT-OC9XSH cartridge. Another quick demo and he was amping to be off home to listen more. I love a happy customer. 
 

New toys arrive this week. 

Edited September 25, 2023 by Steever

[Steever]

Last night I spent some time figuring out what bits I’d need to get the tonearm fitted to the table. 
 

 

Using the eccentrically drilled Clearaudio arm base as the foundation will get the mounting point within the region acceptable and recommended by Trans-Fi, just. 
 

I’ve ordered a machined billet disc (a thick spacer really) to set the arm 10mm higher for correct VTA. The arm has on-the-fly VTA adjustment anyway so the 10mm mounting disc is perfect for now.  
 

Id love to have a thicker arm mount machined up and redrilled and I may end up doing that soon as well as it’ll look much neater and probably perform better. 
 

Today I shopped for all the other hardware, airline hose and muffler as well. 

Edited September 27, 2023 by Steever

[Steever]

Sanded. 
 

 

 

What did I learn doing this part of my project?

Old lacquer can be very hard and the wood underneath, very soft (by comparison). And it also smells different once the lacquer is gone and you start finishing the wood. 
 

Crossovers tomorrow. Depending on how long that takes, I may also get to oiling the enclosures. We’ll see. 

Edited September 30, 2023 by Steever

[Steever]

Crossover day. 
After and before

 

 

After is before soldering and semi-potting. 
 

Also, new grill cloth on the frames. 
 

 

Just waiting on a couple of little repairs to the veneer on the enclosures to dry before sanding them and oiling.  
 

 

[Steever]

Who doesn’t love a good oiling down?

 

[Steever]

All done now apart from installing the footers (still in the mail). 
 

 

They were plugged into the monoblocks tonight and because it was late, John Martyn’s Solid Air got first play. My father’s favourite album, DSOTM needs too much volume and I live in an apartment. 

I definitely need not have worried about how they’d go. I’m very impressed indeed. They’re not as good as the Performance 6s next to them in many regards but, they’re excelling in rendering things with tremendous detail and naturalness. Their stage is deep and wide and they’re very enjoyable to listen to. 
 

I’ve owned, modded and sold (at retail level) many Mission speakers over the years but the 770 Freedom is the pinnacle of Mission’s accomplishments and where the magic really happens. 
 

I’m going to get some hours through them so the new crossovers run in a bit more before shipping them down to their home in Bendigo. 
 

They’ll be fed well down there with a lovely sounding tube preamp with ECC88 valves. A pair of big power, custom made Redgum monoblocks designed for front of house duties while pleasing the audiophile proclivities of my Dad will then ultimately drive these. 

 

Edited October 3, 2023 by Steever

[s7e6e]

Some 15 years ago, I had a pair of Mission M35i on the end of a NAD 375 / CD 525. I still remember their dark deep timbre and how good Sinatra or Amy sounded at the time.

 

Eating sandwiches for a year or skipping meals altogether helped funding the upgrade towards Monitor Audio Gold 20, NAD M3 & M5. Although better in all respects, I missed those Missions for a good while.

Edited October 3, 2023 by s7e6e

[Steever]

Last piece of the puzzle: bearing footers. 
 

 

 

Newly laid board flooring in my father’s living space means no spikes. And IsoAcoustics Gaia III footers are out of budget despite only needing 4 more. 
 

Still, these look the part and I’m sure, will act the part too. 

[Steever]

2 hours ago, s7e6e said:

Some 15 years ago, I had a pair of Mission M35i on the end of a NAD 375 / CD 525. I still remember their dark deep timbre and how good Sinatra or Amy sounded at the time.

 

Eating sandwiches for a year or skipping meals altogether helped funding the upgrade towards Monitor Audio Gold 20, NAD M3 & M5. Although better in all respects, I missed those Missions for a good while.

I’m sure your MAs would be a big step in the right direction. Certainly the amplification was
 

I still prefer my MS Performance 6s above but the Freedoms are certainly not too far behind them. Some aspects are not as good and some aspects are just different. 

[Steever]

Well, the Freedoms are at PacknSend getting packed and sent down to Bendigo. 
They gave much more in return for the money and time spent than any of my other Mission speaker projects and will be missed. I know they’re going to be loved in their new home and will bring a lot of joy to my Dad and his wife. 
 

His big Redgum monoblocks might be overkill on them so there’s a chance they may be cashed up for something smaller in keeping with the downsizing. 
 

I’m now focusing back on getting my new turntable and arm working together once my spacer arrives. Once the original Kardan arm from the table sells, a new cartridge will be ordered. 

[cafe67]

On 2/10/2023 at 2:44 PM, Steever said:

Who doesn’t love a good oiling down?

 

Many moons ago a hifi shop here in Perth had  the full marantz 94 system plugged into Mission Argonauts , that sounded good 

[Steever]

On 14/10/2023 at 7:57 PM, cafe67 said:

Many moons ago a hifi shop here in Perth had  the full marantz 94 system plugged into Mission Argonauts , that sounded good 

I bet. 
One place I worked at had Marantz but, by then Mission had their 75 series out. It still worked well.

But yes, the Freedoms and Argonauts were special. 

[cafe67]

4 minutes ago, Steever said:

I bet. 
One place I worked at had Marantz but, by then Mission had their 75 series out. It still worked well.

But yes, the Freedoms and Argonauts were special. 

the argonauts were an early lust after piece 

[Steever]

15 hours ago, cafe67 said:

the argonauts were an early lust after piece 

I actually started looking for a set last night.

I used to have a set of 765 speakers which were the model between the 780 Argonaut and the 753. They were floor standing and had the stepped baffles. They were great fun in a big room.

The 780s were large standmounters though. Not sure which I prefer.

[Steever]

A little story:

Back in 1984, I was 14 years old and becoming quite interested in music and audio equipment. Dad had his Victorian Mission dealer network going with the 70, 700LE, 737 Renaissance, 770 Freedom and 780 Argonaut speakers selling very well. The little Cyrus I and Cyrus II were also making waves. 
 

Mission also released the DAD 7000 cd player which is a tweaked Philips CD 104 with a pair of TDA1540 DAC chips fed from a CDM 1 laser assembly. It sold in small numbers. 
 

My first ever taste of CD was Vangelis’ Soil Festivities through a DAD 7000 when my father brought one home. He had a 775SM with Zeta arm and Ortofon SPU Gold, a Zero pre pre, a Cyrus II with PSX, Mission 770 Freedom speakers, and this player. 
 

In its day, it was a knock out system and nothing better could have got me into Hifi. It’s a shame CDs were still pricey and the catalogue not as large as those on vinyl. 
 

Today I took possession of one of these CD players. I even played Vangelis’ Soil Festivities to warm it up and “nostalgify”.

 

 

 

 

This one may well have been sold to David White (owner of GHE) by my father. GHE was one of Dad’s bigger dealers at the time. 

 

 

Vangelis was nice and a bit of a trip. But then I put on some Tuck and Patti which was a favourite of mine in the 90’s. 
 

The sound is big, dynamic and sweet. There is no glare and the bass is almost prodigious and very punchy. It’s just a sheer joy to listen to. This one had its over sampling removed and people describe the results as the vinyl of CD or as having a sound akin to tubes. I certainly see what they mean. 
 

Gone also is the captive RCA lead and I’m running Nordost Red Dawn cables from the sockets there now. 
 

I don’t play CD often so find it hard to justify the cost of something like a more modern Cyrus transport. I’m finding vinyl is taking up more of my interest. This player, for as long as it continues working will keep me happy for sure. 

 

Edited October 28, 2023 by Steever

[gat474]

59 minutes ago, Steever said:

A little story:

Back in 1984, I was 14 years old and becoming quite interested in music and audio equipment. Dad had his Victorian Mission dealer network going with the 70, 700LE, 737 Renaissance, 770 Freedom and 780 Argonaut speakers selling very well. The little Cyrus I and Cyrus II were also making waves. 
 

Mission also released the DAD 7000 cd player which is a tweaked Philips CD 104 with a pair of TDA1540 DAC chips fed from a CDM 1 laser assembly. It sold in small numbers. 
 

My first ever taste of CD was Vangelis’ Soil Festivities through a DAD 7000 when my father brought one home. He had a 775SM with Zeta arm and Ortofon SPU Gold, a Zero pre pre, a Cyrus II with PSX, Mission 770 Freedom speakers, and this player. 
 

In its day, it was a knock out system and bother better could have got me into Hifi. It’s a shame CDs were still pricey and the catalogue not as large as those on vinyl. 
 

Today I took possession of one of these CD players. I even played Vangelis’ Soil Festivities to warm it up and “nostalgify”.

 

 

 

 

This one may well have been sold to David White (owner of GHE) by my father. GHE was one of Dad’s bigger dealers at the time. 

 

 

Vangelis was nice and a bit of a trip. But then I put on some Tuck and Patti which was a favourite of mine in the 90’s. 
 

The sound is big, dynamic and sweet. There is no glare and the bass is almost prodigious and very punchy. It’s just a sheer joy to listen to. This one had its over sampling removed and people describe the results as the vinyl of CD or as having a sound akin to tubes. I certainly see what they mean. 
 

Gone also is the captive RCA lead and I’m running Nordost Red Dawn cables from the sockets there now. 
 

I don’t play CD often so find it hard to justify the cost of something like a more modern Cyrus transport. I’m finding vinyl is taking up more of my interest. This player, for as long as it continues working will keep me happy for sure. 

 

My first cd player was a Marantz cd44 which I bought in 1986 for $450. Although prices had dropped in the preceding two years $450 was a lot of coin for a young bloke. The salesman told me it was the same as the much more expensive Mission they also had on display. Must have been the same model you have here as it looks the same and has the same internals.

I went straight to JB hifi and bought my first two cd’s being Queen - Best of and a Howard Jones CD. 
I replaced the Marantz with a new pioneer about five years later, the pioneer was a bit of a let down, even more forward and harsh than the Marantz. 

[Steever]

6 minutes ago, gat474 said:

My first cd player was a Marantz cd44 which I bought in 1986 for $450. Although prices had dropped in the preceding two years $450 was a lot of coin for a young bloke. The salesman told me it was the same as the much more expensive Mission they also had on display. Must have been the same model you have here as it looks the same and has the same internals.

I went straight to JB hifi and bought my first two cd’s being Queen - Best of and a Howard Jones CD. 
I replaced the Marantz with a new pioneer about five years later, the pioneer was a bit of a let down, even more forward and harsh than the Marantz. 

I think your Marantz and several others were all based on the CD104. Mission copped a little flack for being, essentially, the same as the others but charging quite a bit more. 
 

Mission’s point of difference in selling was the little low pass filter box on the outputs nobody else had. I actually know the guy who designed it for Farad as part of his Uni studies. 
 

You mention of Howard Jones takes me back too. Those were the days. 
 

[TheBlackDisc]

25 minutes ago, gat474 said:

My first cd player was a Marantz cd44 which I bought in 1986 for $450. Although prices had dropped in the preceding two years $450 was a lot of coin for a young bloke. The salesman told me it was the same as the much more expensive Mission they also had on display. Must have been the same model you have here as it looks the same and has the same internals.

I went straight to JB hifi and bought my first two cd’s being Queen - Best of and a Howard Jones CD. 
I replaced the Marantz with a new pioneer about five years later, the pioneer was a bit of a let down, even more forward and harsh than the Marantz. 

You got a bargain too - 10% off:

 

https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-AUSTRALIA/IDX/Archive-ETI-AU-IDX/IDX/ETI 1985-05 May-OCR-Page-0032.pdf

 

[gat474]

30 minutes ago, Steever said:

I think your Marantz and several others were all based on the CD104. Mission copped a little flack for being, essentially, the same as the others but charging quite a bit more. 
 

Mission’s point of difference in selling was the little low pass filter box on the outputs nobody else had. I actually know the guy who designed it for Farad as part of his Uni studies. 
 

You mention of Howard Jones takes me back too. Those were the days. 
 

Yeah, the heady mid 80’s, lots of spikey hair, shoulder pads and synth music. 

[Steever]

Back to the analogue side of things today. 
 

My new tonearm is boutique and doesn’t use what could be regarded as an industry standard mounting arrangement. 
 

Adding the arm to my Clearaudio Concept means I need to think outside the square. 
 

A 10mm thick round billet alloy disc offset from the original CA arm base was the answer to my arm reach and VTA challenge. 
 

 

 

A little more work and the whole arrangement was bolted down tight. 
 

 

 

I’m also working on the air feed and trying to find an attractive, sealed enclosure to use as a muffler for smoothing air flow between the pump and the arm. 
 

Maybe tomorrow. 

[Steever]

I had Mr Plastics in Brisbane make a cover for my table. 
It turned out beautifully and fits perfectly. 
 

 

 

 

I also picked up my new Audio Technica cartridge today from The Audio Tailor. 
 

 

 

It won’t be fitted for a while yet as we’ve started clearing out the unit before we move house. Hopefully it’ll happen this side of Christmas though. 

 

Edited November 11, 2023 by Steever

[Steever]

Tinkering today with a light weight rigid platform for the turntable. It’ll sit on Gaia III footers but they haven’t arrived yet. 
 

 

Im not entirely convinced I like its aesthetics. It’s giving me an old school school desk vibe. 
 

Maybe I’ll go skeletal and black.

Edited November 16, 2023 by Steever

[Steever]

Skeletal it is. 
Marked out tonight ready for cutting and shaping tomorrow. 

[muzzagruzz]

16 hours ago, Steever said:

Tinkering today with a light weight rigid platform for the turntable. It’ll sit on Gaia III footers but they haven’t arrived yet. 
 

 

Im not entirely convinced I like its aesthetics. It’s giving me an old school school desk vibe. 
 

Maybe I’ll go skeletal and black.

I think it looks brilliant. Keep as is, I say. 

[Steever]

10 hours ago, muzzagruzz said:

I think it looks brilliant. Keep as is, I say. 

Thanks mate. 
I love the ply edge of the Concept but think the same on the stand kinda detracts from the turntable itself. It’s like there’s too much ply action happening when I’d prefer the turntable to shine as the feature. 
 

So, enter take 2:

 

It’s only cut and sanded marine ply so far and will be finished in satin black before the weekend is over. 
 

I do prefer this I think.