ReVox Piccolo sub woofer & Beovox MCX-35 satellites

I spotted a ReVox Piccolo sub recently and figured it would be worth the purchase even to hook up to a pair of Realistic Minimus 7's that I have on hand. ReVox subs were made in Germany and they have the distinctive Braun, A/D/S, Canton, etc look.

Later I came across this entry level B&O Beovox offering, the Beovox MCX-35 for a price I could not refuse. These Beovox speakers are very entry level but use a Vifa D19td tweeter and a 5.25" German made woofer that you would find in most Braun A/D/S/ compact speaker systems, I figured I got a winning combination on my hands.

As a stand alone system the Beovox MCX-35's small woofer strives to hit the low notes only to break up the bass and become muddy. The ReVox sub crossover the Beovox at 150Hz which is perfect for the diminutive woofer to focus on the music above that cut off, which it does very well. Once the Beovox does not have to focus on the lower registries, these speakers can shine in the mid range and highs.

One of the speakers needed an extensive tweeter and crossover fix, my trusty solder iron did the trick along with a hot glue gun. Since I had the crossovers out I replaced the tweeter cap with a Solen metalized polyester cap (3.3uf).

This pairing of satellites and sub along with the Creek 4040s2 sounds pretty amazing. The ReVox sub needed to be off the floor by about 18" to clean up the bass. I found the bass a little boomy and muddled when on the floor. This system really works well and I am enjoying how open and clear the music is.

Creek 4040s2 with NAD Model 30 speakers.

So I have had some time to run through the speaker line up with the recently purchased Creek 4040s2 amp.

These two were meant to play together, the Creek 4040s2 has incredible detail and sound stage and the clarity of the NAD Model 30 pinpoints the music perfectly.

Due to the fact that the NAD Model 30 runs at 4 ohms it pulls 40WPC out of the Creek and fills the bottom end better than an 8 ohm speaker.

The Creek 4040s2 has been compared in many ways to the A&R A60 amp that I almost bought in the 80's but I opted for the Rotel RA840BX instead.

I spent hours running the Creek with Mission 770 Freedom IV's, the Tannoy Oxford Gold's, B&W D5's and by far the best pairing is the NAD Model 30's.

Wow!!!

Sherwood S-7200 Receiver

Along with the JBL L16 Decades that I got last night, this Sherwood S-7200 receiver was also available.
This one is in absolute mint condition with not a scratch in the wood veneer and all bulbs working. the second Sherwood that I have picked up in the past week, I recently came home with an 18WPC Sherwood S-7100A.

The Sherwood S-7200 is the middle of the line 32 watt per channel unit and from the limited time I have spent with the S-7100A I expect great things from this receiver.

From my research online, these early model Sherwood's rival the Marantz and Pioneer's of their day but flew way under the radar and still do.

 

JBL L16 Decade Speakers

Just arrived home late last night was this pair of JBL L16 Decade Speakers. The 8" version of the JBL L26 Decade Speakers that have been featured on this blog a few times, here and here.

These speakers have to be re foamed and the caps replaced. I will sand and re finish the Oak wood veneer.

I look forward to finishing this project and listening to these speakers.

Sherwood S-7100A Receiver

Another amazing low wattage amp arrived this week, the Sherwood S-7100A receiver. This unit has a beautiful walnut veneer case. The unit is rated at 18 watts per channel and is quite highly regarded.

Under rated to the Pioneer's and Marantz of the same era but an absolute great sound receiver. The bass is full and the sound stage is spot on. I had this unit powering the Visonik Euro 7's and I am impressed.

I cleaned the pots and need to replace the bulbs.

The Classic Receivers site has a good write up on this unit as does Seventies Stereo.

Along with the Yamaha CR-400 I am really enjoying the low wattage receivers.

Creek 4040s2 Integrated Amp

I came across this mid 80's Creek 404s2 amp yesterday on my way to work. I did not know anything about Creek but realized that this little amp was designed and built in England. I knew it would be worth while.

The 4040s2 is rated at 30 watts per channel into 8 ohms and 40 watts per channel into 4 ohms, there is a large toroidal transformer with two 6800uf caps, this unit states that it has 11 amps of back up power for peak music.

I have only had about 30 minutes of time with this unit playing through the Visonik Euro 7's, Tannoy Oxford Gold's and the B&W D5's and wow! does this little unit sound open and transparent.

I will run this unit soon with the Mission 770 Freedom IV's and the Celestion Ditton 110's soon.

There will be more to come in the future on this amazing little amp.

Sears Professional Series AM-4657 Amp

Just for fun I picked up this well built by today's standards and probably by the mid 80's standards this Sears Professional Series amp.

Sears always had a audio and TV department and they produced only a few decent products some of it on par with Radio Shack stuff.

This amp, although it is built to look like a Sansui was actually built in Korea by AGS, who also made Audio Reflex products. This amp is also known as the Audio Reflex A-120.

The build quality is pretty decent and uses silicon transistors on the output stage, it has a fairly heavy transformer, two 4700uf  caps and really nice machined controls.

My bet is this unit is around 45 watts per channel, I have had this unit running the Celestion Ditton 110's and the sound is very neutral, bass is nice and tight and the mid range is pleasant with nothing missing in the high end. It is a pretty clean amp all around.

Sure this is no Sansui or Pioneer from the same era but like Radio Shack units probably do not get any respect, which is too bad.