Dynaco St-70

Doug J Keaton
Doug J Keaton Posts: 3
edited December 2005 in Electronics
Hi All. I'm new to the forum.

I've had a pair of rt1000's for a couple of years and now I want to buy a Dynaco St-70. For some reason I decided to get obsessed with tube equipment and that's the one I want/can afford.

Will this amp be a good match for the speakers? I'm at work now, but from what I recall they are 200 watt speakers with a sub-woofer. Is 35 watts per channel too little to power?

Also, as far as wiring goes I obviously can't use a sub-woofer connection from the amp so do I just go with a normal hook up for the speakers?
Post edited by Doug J Keaton on
· Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Comments

  • steveinaz
    steveinaz Posts: 19,538
    edited December 2005
    Depends on how loud you like your music. 35 watts is no push-over, just be careful about pushing the amp too hard.

    Let some of the experts with this particular speaker/knowledge of this amp chime in though.
    Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Tour2ma
    Tour2ma Posts: 10,177
    edited December 2005
    With the 1000's powered sub handling the load below 80Hz, I think a ST-70 is a good place to start, if you're set on going tube amp.

    Alternative to consider would be a tube pre-amp with a SS amp behind it.

    Welcome to the Club...
    More later,
    Tour...
    Vox Copuli
    Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Old English Proverb

    "Death doesn't come with a Uhaul." - Dennis Gardner
    "It's easy to get lost in price vs performance vs ego vs illusion." - doro
    "There is a certain entertainment value in ripping the occaisonal (sic) buttmunch..." - TroyD
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • TroyD
    TroyD Posts: 13,093
    edited December 2005
    I'd opt for the tube pre/SS amp option as well

    BDT
    I plan for the future. - F1Nut
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • organ
    organ Posts: 4,969
    edited December 2005
    Hi Doug,
    Welcome to the forum.

    You will be amazed by the RT/Dyna combo. I used to have a pair of RT800i that I ran with my ST70 and the sound was just amazing. I would take that system over my LSi/NAD combo any day.

    If you're not planning to annoy your neighbors, the Dyna should provide enough power.

    Make sure the amp have been tested by a technician and is working right. Dynacos are old and a lot of ST70 need plenty of TLC. If you decide to get the Dynaco, forget the EL34 output tubes. Get KT66 instead.

    Maurice
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • BlueMDPicker
    BlueMDPicker Posts: 7,569
    edited December 2005
    organ wrote:
    If you decide to get the Dynaco, forget the EL34 output tubes. Get KT66 instead.

    Won't he have to do the triode operation mods to run KT66?
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • organ
    organ Posts: 4,969
    edited December 2005
    Hi Mike,
    No need to do the triode mod for KT66. My 66 are running in ultralinear.

    Actually, I did the triode mod last week to see how they perform. Went back to ultralinear in two days.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Doug J Keaton
    Doug J Keaton Posts: 3
    edited December 2005
    I went ahead and bought the Dynaco. I will also be buying a Scott 130 preamp to match. I hope it all works out.

    As far as the sub-woofer goes do I just run a normal old set up? Before I had a sub-woofer out channel - that is obviously not the case with the Dynaco.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • organ
    organ Posts: 4,969
    edited December 2005
    Kick ****! Congrats on your purchase. The ST-70 is really something special. I love mine very much and will probably be my last amp.

    A few questions... What tubes did you get with it? If it's the original "Dynaco" labeled tubes or anything that says Mullard, take them out and put them in a safe place and replace with current production. Those old Mullard tubes are worth a lot of $$$.

    Do you have a multimeter? You're going to need one to bias the amp.

    Is the amp stock or modded?

    Here's a great site with a ton of info that will come in handy to all ST-70 owners www.dynaco-doctor.com

    I've done a lot of work on my amp. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

    Maurice
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Tour2ma
    Tour2ma Posts: 10,177
    edited December 2005
    I think Maurice is more excited than Doug...

    Congrats, Doug. Assuming your Sub has a built in cross-over, just feed it via the speaker level inputs, then carry on from it to your mains.
    More later,
    Tour...
    Vox Copuli
    Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Old English Proverb

    "Death doesn't come with a Uhaul." - Dennis Gardner
    "It's easy to get lost in price vs performance vs ego vs illusion." - doro
    "There is a certain entertainment value in ripping the occaisonal (sic) buttmunch..." - TroyD
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Doug J Keaton
    Doug J Keaton Posts: 3
    edited December 2005
    It's the audio research modification and in absolutely in great shape. It's the older model with the brown shell - so I think it has the cloth lead transformers I read so much about. I'm having the inputs replaced with some gold plated stuff (It was recommended), but everything else should be about good to go.

    The amp is at a repair shop now being looked over. Is there anything I should ask them to fix or update in particular?

    I don't know about the tubes, but I'll check that out for sure.

    Any opinions on the Scott 130 preamp?
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter