Daddyjt

Welcome. We’re almost all old(ish) guys here, so you’ll fit right in!

Ah, Polk LS70s - my first “real” pair of speakers, bought new from Broadway Music in downtown SLC about 1995. They were in my first home theater (such as it was), and then when they were displaced by Klipsch RF7s, they served in my family room system until about 2018. I just recently sold them to a kid on the local classifieds for $100. They were a little rough cosmetically, but still sound great - he was thrilled, as he’s starting a family and tight on money. He’s actually texted me a few times, saying how much he loves them. welcome to the site!

I have worked on (and purchased) equipment that has been restored/refreshed by “other” techs, two pieces of which came with invoices. I will tell you flat out that not only were the prices WAY out of line, the actual work done did not align with the invoice. Greg at Nelion will do exactly what he claims, and at a fair price. Further, there is no tech currently that understands Bob’s designs better than Greg.

I have owned, upgraded and repaired a number of Carver M 500(t) amplifiers. It is, dollar for dollar the best value in Carver amplifiers, in my opinion. They sound wonderful, are quite reliable, easy to work on, and have a beautiful aesthetic. Perhaps their only (minor) Achilles Heel is low impedance loading. Even that though is very limited, as the only speaker I ever had thermal issues with while using a 500t were my Infinity Kappa 9 (notorious amp killers), and even then, the thermal protection did its job, and spared the amplifier any damage. i am currently running a pair of 500t MKII amplifiers in my home theater for L/R/C duty…

Sounds like the power supply caps have given out (not uncommon at this age). James ( @Retriever ) is very knowledgeable on these units.

The completed frame is quite light, allowing it to be positioned and mounted to the wall. Take care to make sure it is both level AND square when mounting! Once it is mounted, populate the shelves to the desired height. One of the only potential annoyances with this system is this: If a shelf is positioned such that the 1”x2” wall support is contacting the upper half of your media, it will allow for the bottom portion of your media to push in farther than the top, where it is contacting the 1”x2”. In this case, simply cut a spare 1x2 to the width of your shelf and lay it at the bottom/back of the shelf, so that the media contacts a 1x2 on the top and bottom. This shelf is for my growing 4k collection (and Atmos music). You can see below, my old 4k storage (far right of frame) was almost full. On the new shelving, I’m only about 1/2 full. Oh, and I already use one (1) of the two (2) extra shelves I built;-)

After the second coat of polyurethane has dried, a second steel wool treatment with fine (000 or 0000) and another tac cloth rub. Now that all the wood cutting and finishing is done, it’s time for construction. The key to the strength of this build lies here - the 1”x2” mounting boards are screwed into the notches in the vertical supports FROM THE BACK SIDE, before the unit is mounted to the wall, then the entire assembly (sans shelves) is mounted to the wall.

With sanding done, SWEEP UP YOUR WORK AREA! This will minimize kicking up dust and particles during the finishing process. I like to hit all surfaces with the air compressor to blow off as much dust as possible. This also gets dust out of the grain, which will really make the grain stand out when stained/finished. After the compressor treatment, a tac cloth is a good idea, right before finishing. For this project, I’m not using a stain, just a satin polyurethane finish. For a project like this, I just use a foam brush and toss it when done. Long strokes with the grain, and careful to avoid drips/sags… 24 hours (depending on temp/humidity - but if ANY tac remains, WAIT!) later, a good rubbing with semi-coarse steel wool is essential to smooth the wood down. DO NOT use steel wool if using a water-based finish!! After steel wool, tac cloth again and another coat of polyurethane.

Next is perhaps the most precise part of construction - the cutting of the 1”x2” notches in the vertical supports. It is critical that they be cut in the exact same place on all verticals supports being made for a continuous run, or it will be impossible to have level shelves. For these reasons, I stack the vertical supports and cut them at the same time. Next up is sanding. DO NOT skimp on sanding! It takes a bit of time, but few things can make or break a project quite like sanding (or lack thereof). I do a full pass with 120 on the random orbital, then a pass with the 1/3 sheet at 180, then a final pass with 220 on the 1/3 sheet. I like the random orbital on initial passes, but not for the final.

Next is cutting the individual shelves. In my case, I want 42” overall width, so subtracting the 3/4” (x2) for the side panels gives me 40.5”. Cut and build a couple more shelves than you think you’ll need! You already have everything out - just make a couple extras, as you never know what your future needs will be. You’ll thank me later. Also cut your 1”x2” to the overall width (42” for this one) and all the screen molding for the exposed edges. There are a couple different ways to mount the screen molding to the edges. Glue and clamp, clue and finish nail (with nail-set and wood putty), or glue and pin nail with an air nailer - this is the method I use.

Work these two strips together and symmetrically, so that your shelves will be level. I mark the top of each, and start my holes at the exact same height. The bit included with the jig has an adjustable stop collar - set it to the correct depth and drill the starter hole at the top. Then position the jig with the included pin and drip the remaining holes. Move the jig down, place the pin and repeat. It’s not near as monotonous as it sounds, and it goes pretty fast.

Step one is to source a sheet of 3/4” oak plywood (or whatever wood you prefer), screen molding and 1”x2”. I must say, I was shocked at the increase in oak plywood pricing - last time I bought it I remember paying around $40 a sheet. No so any more - try $96 a sheet! Anyway, accounting for the 1/4” thickness of the screen molding on the edge, rip the plywood into 5.75” strips to achieve the 6” overall depth. Next, cut 2 (or more) of the strips to the overall height you desire for your shelving unit - in my case, for this unit I’m going with 60” (Al the other shelving in my room is 96”, or the full 8’). These will be the vertical or side supports. In order to make the shelving fully adjustable, these need to have a series of holes drilled for the shelf support pegs. These hole need to be perfectly spaced, drilled perfectly perpendicular, and be a perfect consistent depth on BOTH boards. Luckily, Kreg makes a jig for this that is quite affordable and easy to use…

About 15 years ago I ran out of space in the five (5) bookcases I was using for CD/DVD storage. I figured there had to be a better way, and after a bit of thinking, I came up with it. On-wall, only 6” deep, adjustable shelf height, and inexpensive and easy to build. With the expansion of my library into 4k discs, I am adding a 60”x42” chunk of the shelving In my current media room (6’ X 8’ walk in closet). I thought I’d document the construction process here, for anyone that may wish for a similar storage solution. The system itself consists of 1”x2” mounting rails (x2), and 6” strips of 3/4” oak plywood with screen molding to cover the edge for the vertical supports and the individual shelves. I’ve included a few photos below from my original build, but I’ll do a thorough step-by-step with the current build.

Nothing but good things to say about @Nahash5150 (Nelion Audio) and the Bill D C1. Below is my 2ch system - Bill D C1 ( mod performed myself) and Silver 9t amps recently upgraded by Greg at Nelion. You’ll be in good hands…

Welcome! Let us know how it sounds when you get it running!

Alison Krauss has a new album out - Arcadia. I cannot think of ANY artist - any - that has produced consistently spectacular recordings (both musically AND sound quality) as her. Arcadia is no exception - it is beautifully produced and the content is superb. Track 1, Looks Like The End Of the Road, is incredible. Her vocals, the layered guitars, and the bass - at about :32, there is a bass hit that is lower than anything I’ve heard, short of a few Telarc discs. Track 4, Granite Mills, is a touching rendition of a true historical fire that claimed the lives of several child laborers. If you are a fan of hers, this album does not disappoint. I picked up a signed version at my local record store for $15.

It all depends on what you are looking to do. I will freely admit that I’m a complete outlier in my digital delivery. I have no desire of a streaming service - I have a 3tb FLAC library on SSD that I plug into an Oppo 105. The Oppo on screen interface is a bit clunky, but I organize my FLAC into about 24 files by alphabet letter, so navigation is pretty easy. I like the Oppo for the ESS Saber DACs, the fact that it plays all my SACDs & DVDAs (and virtually any other disc format known to man), and the fact that I can output the video OSD via HDMI to a screen. Most streamers have tiny screens, no video output, and only an App to control. This also works on the Oppo 103, which are usually between $300-$400 on the used market. I realize this seems antiquated by today’s standards, but it works for me…

This track (Everything Must Go, by Steely Dan) is flat-out THE BEST sounding kick-drum I have ever heard on my system. I hate the intro (cacughanous combination of sax, drums, guitar), but at the :50 mark starts perhaps my current favorite SD song…

After a bit of brainstorming, I’m thinking either one of the FIVE different wires snaking through the cabinet was making contact with the back of the cone, OR one (or more) of the driver or bezel screws were loose. The IR sensor or the driver +/- speaker wires are the most likely culprits to contact the back of the cone. Therefor I wrapped both in bubble wrap and zip ties (positioning the zip ties so that they could not contact the metal of the basket and create any noise). I also took extra care in re-stuffing the damping material, and carefully tightened and torqued all driver and bezel screws. I reassembled everything and fired it back up. Still a buzz - Damn… but wait - the noise I’m hearing is way off to my left. Way off. It’s actually my son’s cologne bottle on his vanity in his bathroom 15’ away! Whew. The sub sounds fantastic - and feels like an earthquake with a sweep tone from the Carver Reference disk. Mission accomplished - for the rest of the story, hit up the Chasing Bass thread.

Anyway, I got the plate amp back, and got it installed as quickly as I could. There’s a lot to these things - the speaker wires to the woofer, the bus wire to the accelerometer, the bus wire to the front panel mic input, bus wire to front panel IR sensor, and bus wire to front panel light. So, all hooked up and I ran an input from my 2ch rig to it just to test function. Full stop. There’s a rattle/scrape/buzz sound. Shit. My first (and worst) thought was a blown voice coil on the 18” driver. Shit, shit, shit. Uniform pushing on the cone felt “scratchy”. Damn. So I uninstall the plate amp, flip the box over and then begin the process of removing the driver. The whole time I’m thinking “at least I have a backup plate amp (all DD series subs - 10”, 12”, 15” and 18” use the exact same plate amp) for my other 18” or my 12” should either of them fail. pulling the driver is not easy - 16 Allen screws for the front bezel, then 6 more for the driver. THEN you have to get the driver out - and it’s MASSIVE - see pics. The voice coil is 5” in diameter, and a full 7” long. The magnet assembly is roughly 40lbs alone. Once out of the enclosure, the cone-push test revealed no scratch or rub. None. Now I’m starting to be a bit hopeful! I inspected the cabinet for anything loose or with potential to rattle - nothing. Hmm…

I titled this thread with the “light” because I took the easy way out and sent the plate amp to EBC for repair. For $400 shipped, they get it in tip top shape and do great work. I ran into a few other hurdles getting this unit back into service, and that’s what I’m going to expand on here. If you’re unfamiliar with the DD series by Velodyne, let me just say that they are the most versatile, have the most prodigious output, and are the best looking subs that have ever been anywhere near my price range. I’ve even heard DD subs head to head with JL Fathoms, and the Velodyne went deeper and was WAY more versatile. As the old saying goes, when it comes to subwoofers there’s three things - small size, high (and deep) output, and affordability - but you can only have two. An affordable sub that goes deep is going to be huge… A small sub that is affordable is going to have limited output… Well, the DD subs by Velodyne are about as small as they can be based on their driver size, and have MASSIVE output - but they are most assuredly NOT affordable. The versatility of the DD series comes from two things - one, they are “servo” subs, which means they have an accelerometer attached to the driver cone. This accelerometer tracks cone movement and compares it to the input signal roughly 6,000 times per second. Deviations are corrected in real time, which has an astounding impact on distortion. Typical high-end subs will see upwards of 30% distortion in the neighborhood of 20hz @ 100 db. A DD sub will be in the 2.5% distortion range. The second is an amazing onboard processor allowing adjustment of virtually every imaginable parameter, and also includes an 8 band parametric EQ, on-screen GUI, high quality microphone and a full function remote. Original list on the DD18 was about $6,000. I purchased my DD12 that does duty in the family room 5.1 system for $4,000 in 2006. It’s in a great room that consists of the family room, dining room, kitchen and formal living room - roughly 1,000 square feet WITH 16’ vaulted ceilings (huge volume), and the DD12 is set at 60 out of 100 on volume to fill this space. My theater room that is 220 square feet with 9’ ceilings - and now has TWO DD18’s that I bought for $1,500 and $600 on the local classifieds. The $600 one I bought with a bad plate amp, which I sent to EBC and had repaired/refreshed for $400 - so I’m into a $6,000 sub for $1,000. The $1,500 one is the one I will be discussing in this thread.

I couldn’t agree more - on all counts. The guest room is yours any time you want… I’ve also got that bottle of Blanton’s that needs to be opened…!

Dude - do you know how heavy those things are?? I’d have to build a TANK of a stand - x2…. In all seriousness, what benefit would I see (hear)?

Well. If a little (or a lot) is good, then a whole lot more is great. Right? In the case of bass in my HT, the answer is a resounding YES! I had my 2nd Velodyne DD18 just sitting around collecting dust. It got wet in the flood about a year and a half ago, and to be honest I was afraid to plug it in. With some of the proceeds from selling my 2nd pair of Silver 9ts, I sent the plate amp off to EBC in New Jersey. They are reasonable ($400) for plate amp repair/refresh, and do great work. Even if it wasn’t damaged, the amp is getting on past the 30 year old mark, and due for some attention. Well, I got the amp back a couple days ago, so today was the day. Had a bit of a panic and detour that I’ll detail in another thread, but after some ingenuity I got it up and running. I now have a 7.4.4 HT system, with two SVS SB4000 and TWO Velodyne DD18. Don’t get me wrong, the SVS are very nice and stout subs, but the Velodyne DD series…. They are on a whole different level. An 18” Kevlar cone (that’s just about 255sq inches) with a TWO INCH peak to peak excursion, and a 1,500 class D amp… they move some air. By comparison, the SVS uses a 13” driver (133sq inches) with a 1.25” excursion. playing Top Gun Maverick, Lord of the Rings (the underground battle) and Days Of Thunder (all on 4k), I’m in bass heaven. The two Velodyne subs are kind of hidden behind the seating, but they make their presence known when called upon….

Brand new (25 year old) tweeters now installed - pics below, old then new. I tested function just enough to know they work, critical listening later…:-)