Lookie what I got...

Mystery

Hopefully, it'll get better comments than the crown.

I had CR-800 and really liked it with Polk 4's, 5's and 7's.
Now this is much bigger and heavier so hopefully, bigger sound wise as well.
My back doesn't like it but my eyes and ears do.

[Deleted User]

I have a CR-640. Yes, I want that.

[Deleted User]

Hi M,

Can you let me know what you think? Two things I like about my little 40 WPC amp is
it has a very clean sound and you can you can use about all the power if you want.
Oh and the so called loudness button is adjustable, not on off.

Mikey081057

Sweet

Faustin

Still have my 1020 that I bought in 1979. Ain't going no where. It is a great receiver. Enjoy!

pglbook

Congrats, Mystery. The Yamaha CR series is awesome. I own two CR 2020 receivers and I think that series (especially the CR 1020 and 2020, not to mention the legendary and rare CR 3020) rank among the best of the vintage 1970s receivers. And they look great as well. I use mine to power my Polk Monitor 10As and 7Bs and they do an excellent job. There is great synergy between the Yamaha CR series and vintage Polks, especially the older Monitor series. Your CR 1020 will drive your Polk Monitors with ease and will make them sing! Enjoy.

boston1450

Beautiful receiver Mystery. That is a well liked model there. They sound awesome with the Monitor speakers. Ive had quite a few of the CR models & would love to have the 3020 but prices seem to be above where i feel comfortable. I have the CR2040 which sounds wonderful on the 7's.. I had it hooked to the 10's for a year or more & one day decided to try them on the 7's & never disconnected them . Those are built like tanks & if serviced will go another 25 years of enjoyment. Congrats

Mr. Bubbles

It has been several years but if I am remembering the model#'s correctly I owned the 1020 and a smaller model from the smae line, I am thinking the 620. They are beautiful recievers. i was so excited just to look at them. However when i hooked them up I was sorely dissapointed. They sounded so lifeless. Thats probably the best description i can come up with. They were very clean sounding, and as mentioned already the loudness control was nice and unique. it was like I coudnnt put my finger on any particular thing wrong but was sort of bored with the sound as soon as they were turned on. I sold them cheaply and quickly.

They are beautiful rigs though. Very nice to look at.

boston1450

^^^^ what did you hook them to ? Thats exactly what i thought till i got suggestions of using the monitor speakers. My first Yamaha cr620 was hooked to some beautiful KEF speakers & they sounded ok. Just ok. But i wanted more. I tried 4-5 different kind of speakers. All to feel the same as you say LIFELESS. Which is how they sounded too. It seems to be a better match with the monitors-at least to my ears.. Vintage Yamaha receivers are quite different sound than the Marantz-Sansui-Pioneer of the era. With a clean sound which is perfect for vinyl

mhardy6647

well -- I use my CR-1020 once in a while ;-)

It is a nice sounding receiver (even) by modern standards, I'd opine. We had a pair of original (Peerless tweeter-equipped) Monitor 4 speakers hooked to it last November and the combination was astonishingly good sounding.

CR1020 by mhardy6647, on Flickr

gmjungbluth

Congratulations on the acquisition!!

I have a Yamaha CA-1010 that I picked up a few months ago. I haven't had a lot of time to use it as my main amp but I have had it in comparisons with a NAD-3080 I had at my house for a while.

I wrote about that here:

http://silverfacestereo.wordpress.com/2014/04/21/extended-comparo-yamaha-ca-1010-and-nad-3080/

Also I performed an interesting experiment the other day - I hooked the Yamaha preamp up to the amplifier section of a NAD 7240PE receiver - the preamp is non-functioning on the NAD and I wanted to demo the functioning amp to a potential buyer. The whole setup was hooked to my Celestion SL6si monitors.

I was really impressed with the result. The Celestions sounded lifelike and deep. The Yamaha's preamp was crystal-clear. Interestingly enough when I re-coupled the preamp and amp in the Yamaha and plugged the Celestions in directly I was less impressed with the sound - it was still clear and clean but 'something' wasn't there anymore.

I have a pair of Klipschorns upstairs in my too-small for them living room right now, hooked up to a Lepai 2020. I love the liveliness of the sound but it's a bit grating in the upper midrange. I've heard this is a symptom of the klipschorns, which is likely amplified by my small-room acoustics and limited bass (I can't back them into a corner there). I have half a mind to haul the Yamaha upstairs to see how it pairs with the Klipsches. And if I do that I'll probably have to take my Pioneer SX-1250 up there too....

Mystery

Haven't hooked it up with my speakers.
It worked when I tested it but has some static on some controls so needs deOxit first.

Mystery

Btw, I also got a pair of NS-10M in bad shape with that receiver.

mhardy6647

gmjungbluth wrote: »

Congratulations on the acquisition!!

I have a Yamaha CA-1010 that I picked up a few months ago. I haven't had a lot of time to use it as my main amp but I have had it in comparisons with a NAD-3080 I had at my house for a while.

I wrote about that here:

http://silverfacestereo.wordpress.com/2014/04/21/extended-comparo-yamaha-ca-1010-and-nad-3080/

Also I performed an interesting experiment the other day - I hooked the Yamaha preamp up to the amplifier section of a NAD 7240PE receiver - the preamp is non-functioning on the NAD and I wanted to demo the functioning amp to a potential buyer. The whole setup was hooked to my Celestion SL6si monitors.

I was really impressed with the result. The Celestions sounded lifelike and deep. The Yamaha's preamp was crystal-clear. Interestingly enough when I re-coupled the preamp and amp in the Yamaha and plugged the Celestions in directly I was less impressed with the sound - it was still clear and clean but 'something' wasn't there anymore.

I have a pair of Klipschorns upstairs in my too-small for them living room right now, hooked up to a Lepai 2020. I love the liveliness of the sound but it's a bit grating in the upper midrange. I've heard this is a symptom of the klipschorns, which is likely amplified by my small-room acoustics and limited bass (I can't back them into a corner there). I have half a mind to haul the Yamaha upstairs to see how it pairs with the Klipsches. And if I do that I'll probably have to take my Pioneer SX-1250 up there too....

Of course you know you're dealing with pretty serious tonal imbalance with them not in corners or with "false corners" provided to expand the bass horn flare... that's part of your problem, but...

That grating midrange, IME and IMO, is a feature of the "heritage" Klipsch sound... vacuum tube amplification helps, but won't cure it. I lived with a pair of Cornwalls for a decade (mostly using 2A3 amplification) but ditched 'em pretty quickly after acquiring a pair of Altec Valencias. Some amplifiers complement the Klipsch aggressiveness nicely -- the classic 1960s Fisher receivers using push-pull 7868 or 7591 outputs (400/500B,C/800B,C) are, IME, a good example.

There's a cottage industry of parts and pieces to make the Heritage Klipsch sound better (don't get me started...). Believe it or not, the little Lepai should be pretty comparable tonally overall to a good single ended vacuum tube amp running a direct heated triode! This is based on my own experience (with Altec Duplexes) and comparing the little $20 Lepai from Partsexpress to my normal single-ended 2A3 amp (a slightly modified version of the Joseph Esmilla's JE Labs/Angela "simple 2A3" amp design). The 2A3 amp does sound better... but the difference is more subtle than you'd expect a priori.

The CA-1010 isn't likely to be great on the K-horns, either... I would advise you to try it in Class A if you decide to try it (i.e., I suspect that'll give it the best shot at success). The CA-1010 is a good, neutral and musical sounding amp in Class AB and pretty darned respectable by any reasonable standard of expectation in Class A (IMO, of course)!

The REALLY EDITORIAL PART of this post:
The best solution to "grating Klipsch midrange", IMO, is to sell the Klipsch and invest the proceeds in a nice pair of Altecs ;-) (and, yeah, I do realize you weren't looking for advice...).

Mystery

Pictures of Yamaha NS-10M's.
Grills have holes and one corner is damaged but stickers on the back are still good.

Looks like these are better deal than the CR-1020 looking at the bay if they work.
Will test tonight.

mhardy6647

Mystery wrote: »

Btw, I also got a pair of NS-10M in bad shape with that receiver.

When it comes to acoustics, the NS-10 and (even) the NS-10M are in bad shape even if they are in good shape! ;-)
So... yeah... flip 'em.

Mystery

mhardy6647 wrote: »

When it comes to acoustics, the NS-10 and (even) the NS-10M are in bad shape even if they are in good shape! ;-)
So... yeah... flip 'em.

Yeah, looks like they are meant for mixing in the studio, not for listening music at home.

mhardy6647

They were indeed; and for that application they (heh, like my Altec Duplexes, in a slightly earlier era) were pretty much ubiquitous.
The fact is, the pros knew exactly what they got with the Yamahas (and the Altecs, for that matter) so they knew what to do with the auditory data they got from 'em. :-)

cnh

mhardy6647 wrote: »

When it comes to acoustics, the NS-10 and (even) the NS-10M are in bad shape even if they are in good shape! ;-)
So... yeah... flip 'em.

Good advice! Definitely a "standard" for mixes found in studios all over the world. But you don't want to listen to them in your system! You'll leave the room quickly!

I love my little Lepai amp with more efficient speakers, at lower volumes as long as you don't PUSH it too much. Surprisingly musical for $20+. Not a lot of audio that can compete on that budget. I love Russman's youtube video on the Lepai. Check it out!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Macr8u9kTwU

cnh

mhardy6647

With Altec Duplexes (at ca. 104 dB SPL @ 1 meter with 1 watt input), even the "20 watt" Lepai amp doesn't need to be pushed very hard ;-)

Mystery

My pair is not in good condition otherwise they tend to bring more than what they retailed for. :eek:

cnh

mhardy6647 wrote: »

With Altec Duplexes (at ca. 104 dB SPL @ 1 meter with 1 watt input), even the "20 watt" Lepai amp doesn't need to be pushed very hard ;-)

I suspect when I finally hear those I will be converted! Or Assimilated! lol

cnh

boston1450

cnh wrote: »

Good advice! Definitely a "standard" for mixes found in studios all over the world. But you don't want to listen to them in your system! You'll leave the room quickly!

I love my little Lepai amp with more efficient speakers, at lower volumes as long as you don't PUSH it too much. Surprisingly musical for $20+. Not a lot of audio that can compete on that budget. I love Russman's youtube video on the Lepai. Check it out!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Macr8u9kTwU

cnh

ahh interesting. Ive never seen one of those.

cnh

Like Russman says, for $20 you should just buy one to mess with it. I noticed someone was teasing us about this in another thread.

But remember Russ was a Big Polk guy with an incredible amount of experience. He is NOT joking in his video. It is what it is. Will it replace a 4 figure tube amp? No. It's a 10 or less watt x 2 T amp after all. But it should NOT sound as good as it does with efficient speakers.

If for no other reason, use it as a test amp. Or a super cheap solution for computer audio for a son or daughter with some old bookies.

Check them out at partsexpress.com

cnh

[Deleted User]

Hi,

This will be my next amp. I have a use for it. If I don't like it I'll gift it to my niece who will love it I bet.
Thanks for reminding me to get this!

cnh wrote: »

Like Russman says, for $20 you should just buy one to mess with it. I noticed someone was teasing us about this in another thread.

But remember Russ was a Big Polk guy with an incredible amount of experience. He is NOT joking in his video. It is what it is. Will it replace a 4 figure tube amp? No. It's a 10 or less watt x 2 T amp after all. But it should NOT sound as good as it does with efficient speakers.

If for no other reason, use it as a test amp. Or a super cheap solution for computer audio for a son or daughter with some old bookies.

Check them out at partsexpress.com

cnh

mhardy6647

They (the Lepais) are surprisingly capable -- if one's speakers are sensitive enough, they're borderline amazing. There have been (not surprsingly) some QC issues with this particular amp model -- not too surprising at the price, is it? ;-)

Lepai and friend by mhardy6647, on Flickr

-- perhaps my subtle little joke in the photo above is evident to you all... :-)

Here's a little less smarmily facetious pairing of amp and source component...

NakBX100running by mhardy6647, on Flickr
If nothing else, it's the best little (portable) test amplifier currently going ;-)

Mystery

mhardy6647 wrote: »

When it comes to acoustics, the NS-10 and (even) the NS-10M are in bad shape even if they are in good shape! ;-)
So... yeah... flip 'em.

I was expecting worse but these sound pretty good.

Anyways, Good news is that all drivers work great.
The white woofers have a crease/fold that I haven't seen in any other woofer yet.

The damage is only on the grill corner, cabinet looks okay.
Cabinets have paint fading off.

These sound really good at normal volumes.
Little bright and bouncy at high volume but not much.
After listening to these, L20T sound bland/veiled and recessed.

NS-10M's have so much details that L20T simply doesn't have and have to crank L20T to higher levels to sound decent while the yammies are great a low volume as well.
L20T's sound mellow though so may be good for long term listening.
These are exact height of the L20T's but little narrower and shallower.

I listened to NS-10M's over an hour at normal listening levels and these are open and smooth and not harsh at all.
Very clear vocals and amazing details and punch on the highs.
And bass is pretty good for that size. Can listen without a sub.
Me likey...

gmjungbluth

Thanks for the advice!

I know I'm not getting the most out of the Klipschorns by not having them in the corners - there really aren't any suitable spaces in my house for them to live long-term without, for example, turning my dining room into a dedicated listening area - but who needs to eat, right? I may move them into my basement and play around with some placement options but long term I don't think they're suitable to my space. And I'm not ready to spend the big money to rectify the honk in the midrange - from what I've found online the cottage industry catering to these speakers can get pricey.

RE the Lepai - I like it. I am a little concerned with the 'thump' on switch on and what it may be doing to the sensitive klipschorn tweeters. I'll try the Yamaha and see if there's any real difference. I was just reading about all the mods that are available for the little Lepai too, and wondering if it's worth getting out my soldering iron and putting in some new caps. Could be interesting and a lot cheaper than chasing down a miniwatt amp or something like it.

I would think about some nice Altecs but I think I'd have the same size and placement issue that I have with the Klipschorns - those things are huge!!

mhardy6647 wrote: »

Of course you know you're dealing with pretty serious tonal imbalance with them not in corners or with "false corners" provided to expand the bass horn flare... that's part of your problem, but...

That grating midrange, IME and IMO, is a feature of the "heritage" Klipsch sound... vacuum tube amplification helps, but won't cure it. I lived with a pair of Cornwalls for a decade (mostly using 2A3 amplification) but ditched 'em pretty quickly after acquiring a pair of Altec Valencias. Some amplifiers complement the Klipsch aggressiveness nicely -- the classic 1960s Fisher receivers using push-pull 7868 or 7591 outputs (400/500B,C/800B,C) are, IME, a good example.

There's a cottage industry of parts and pieces to make the Heritage Klipsch sound better (don't get me started...). Believe it or not, the little Lepai should be pretty comparable tonally overall to a good single ended vacuum tube amp running a direct heated triode! This is based on my own experience (with Altec Duplexes) and comparing the little $20 Lepai from Partsexpress to my normal single-ended 2A3 amp (a slightly modified version of the Joseph Esmilla's JE Labs/Angela "simple 2A3" amp design). The 2A3 amp does sound better... but the difference is more subtle than you'd expect a priori.

The CA-1010 isn't likely to be great on the K-horns, either... I would advise you to try it in Class A if you decide to try it (i.e., I suspect that'll give it the best shot at success). The CA-1010 is a good, neutral and musical sounding amp in Class AB and pretty darned respectable by any reasonable standard of expectation in Class A (IMO, of course)!

The REALLY EDITORIAL PART of this post:
The best solution to "grating Klipsch midrange", IMO, is to sell the Klipsch and invest the proceeds in a nice pair of Altecs ;-) (and, yeah, I do realize you weren't looking for advice...).

cnh

I've seen those upgrades but haven't messed with them. I suspect putting a larger storage cap of better quality in there and just using a more powerful power supply would be enough to bump it up a little.

To Mystery,

Those Yammies look pretty good. I'm sure you could flip those easily. It's also obvious that you and I hear things differently. The NS-10s are way TOO BRIGHT for me to listen for more than 10 or 15 minutes whereas I could listen to the L20ts for hours and hours--and I think the JBLs sound better all around--no veil there, none. Subjectivity, I suppose. Some like it "bright". I remember when we were at Polkfest '10 and the LSiM towers were still in the prototype phase with the crossovers on external sheets of plywood (literally being tweaked while demoed) and how an old pair of AR-9s stole the show for a while. The ARs were more full bodied, more musical and perhaps not as sharp up top? Of course it is not fair because the LSiMs were not in their final form.

I've heard a reasonable number of speakers. And there are many, many, many that some here think are marvelous that hurt my ears! Music is "rarely" sharp, brittle and saturated with detail when you hear it live. After all, the acoustics of the room are bouncing the sound off chairs, carpet, walls, drapes, people, etc. Almost never can you hear the "resolution" that some of the most expensive speakers can give you at home. Even when I pick up my guitar and play it badly as close to me as music can be, it NEVER sounds like the perfect decay that some of the best systems produce. There is no perfect decay and recovery, the strings linger, the sound returns from the paneling, my ears are on different sides of me head and don't hear the exact same thing.

I guess what I'm saying is that some of the very best systems don't sound like music at ALL! Too clinical, and unrealistic detail that one could only hear with high end microphones in an anechoic chamber. lol

So much for my tirade. Because not everyone hears that or feels the same.

cnh

mhardy6647

gmjungbluth wrote: »

Thanks for the advice!

I know I'm not getting the most out of the Klipschorns by not having them in the corners - there really aren't any suitable spaces in my house for them to live long-term without, for example, turning my dining room into a dedicated listening area - but who needs to eat, right? I may move them into my basement and play around with some placement options but long term I don't think they're suitable to my space. And I'm not ready to spend the big money to rectify the honk in the midrange - from what I've found online the cottage industry catering to these speakers can get pricey.

RE the Lepai - I like it. I am a little concerned with the 'thump' on switch on and what it may be doing to the sensitive klipschorn tweeters. I'll try the Yamaha and see if there's any real difference. I was just reading about all the mods that are available for the little Lepai too, and wondering if it's worth getting out my soldering iron and putting in some new caps. Could be interesting and a lot cheaper than chasing down a miniwatt amp or something like it.

I would think about some nice Altecs but I think I'd have the same size and placement issue that I have with the Klipschorns - those things are huge!!

The fellow to whom I sold my Cornwalls installed them in his dining room -- and his wife subsequently bought him a Mike Urban (Urban Audio, CT) restored Fisher 800C to run them in honor of the fellow's first Father's Day! :-)
Just sayin'...

Actually the Valencias are considerably smaller than K-Horns... and even smaller (in terms of height) than the Cornies... they do NOT go very deep, though (the deck was stacked against them by Altec given the woofers used and the cabinet design and size!) .. but that's an opportunity to employ a subwoofer! ;-)

EDIT: FWIW, I don't have much insight into modifying the Lepai... sorry!

EndersShadow

DSkip wrote: »

Russ is still one of my top 3 go-to audio guys. He knows good sound and has schooled me more than once. He consistently provides one of the best sounding rooms at LSAF every year, regardless of the gear he brings.

Another budget product he has recommended to me was the AudioSource One amp. Not exactly a Lepai in price or stature, but not a big-hitter either.

Yup, you texas guys are lucky he's so close... specially cause I hear good things about his bookies.......