Group newbie on board

[madswitcher]

Hi All,
Jeez I wish I had found this site years ago. I found it accidentally through a chain of links and it looks like really good stuff. DIY audio is a hobby gone berserk since I ws a kid and I am currently rebuilding a MCI mixer in a custom-designed room at home. I record a lot and monitor using a pair of tube Quad II driving a pair of B&W Matrix 801 S3.

I look forward to reading and contributing to the group.

best regards and happy listening

Mike

 

[planet10]

tube Quad II driving a pair of B&W Matrix 801 S3.

Welcome Mike,

It is an interesting place...

Do you find the Quad IIs have enuff grunt to drive the B&Ws? Are they stock or tweaked up.

dave

 

[madswitcher]

QUAD III driving B&W 801s

Hi Dave,

I had the same reservation when I thought about this combination, but I though I would try it anyway. The Quad II are standard edition, but just serviced by Quad and I found that they drive the 801 just fine. The obvious high power grunt is not there, but I don't get off on Ricter scale bass. I am looking for accurate reproduction and this combo is stunningly that and unforgiving about it.

I have tried some tweaks, like biwiring, but always come back to the standard config. Having said that I read the article about CAT 5 cables and might try that out.

Thanks for the welcome

Best regards, Mike

 

[planet10]

Re: QUAD III driving B&W 801s

I have tried some tweaks, like biwiring, but always come back to the standard config.

The Quad IIs are a nice amp with a novel circuit -- they don't tweak well, but they do respond to having their parts all updated. My friend Demis has 4 units in his system that he has done up -- new Cs, new Rs, binding posts, RCAs etc. He had to restore the one set he had tweaked back to the stock circuit, because that always worked best.

There is an interesting story behind one of the sets. These were originally mine and had 220V trafos which while i was using them failed. I made an inquiry the Quad distributor (i was working at the HIFi store then and we were a Quad dealer). One day Ross Walker walks in -- in his trademark sports coat & jeans -- and plops down a set of brand new 110V trafos and a set of matched KT66s. I had to pay for the trafos, but the tubes were a gift :^) That was really a kick getting a surprise delivery half-way around the world by one of the big cheeses.

dave