WileysDad

I'll see what I can do about pics this weekend... the puppy keeps me SOOOOO busy right now... have some cleaning to do first.

FYI: The M-1.5(t) is NOT bridgeable but you can take advantage of power steering by using them in single channel mode.

To do this feed the left channel preamp output to one amp and feed the left speaker woofers from the left OR right binding posts.

Feed the right channel preamp output to the other amp and feed the right speaker woofers from the left OR right binding posts

Duly noted... and thank you! I picked up the 1.5t's mainly because they were a good deal. I haven't quite decided what I'm going to do with them yet. I WOULD like a quartet of M-500t for the Platinums, and may use the 1.5t sales proceeds to finance that pursuit. Or, I may use them... or I may just keep them for spares. I picked up one of the 1.5t for $150... not bad for a working amp, tho the cosmetics are a bit rough. The other one was a package deal... $400 for the C-4000t & M-1.5t... both in working order. A few cosmetic blemishes, but are not overly noticeable under ambient lighting.

My story...

after delving into the theater realm back around 2k, my 2-channel system had been collecting dust in the den. Recently decided to get back into 2-channel audio. Well... it's a little more involved than that. The impetus was an old theater receiver (Technics SA-AX7/SH-AC500D) that I had sitting in a closet. Decided to put together a 2 channel system for my office. Picked up a pair of Polk Audio RTi12s at Fry's when they were on sale ($600/pr). Sounded like crap in the store, tho after a little investigating, discovered someone had jacked the treble WAY up on the receiver the were connected to, & one of the speakers was missing it's jumpers, so only mids/highs were functioning on that one. The drama wasn't over once I got them home & unpacked. Cosmetically, the Polks were perfect... but detected a buzz in the mids after firing them up. Of course, the store where I purchased had no more in stock, and I'd had bad luck with the other nearby store... so I contacted Polk directly. They informed me the speakers had a 5 year warranty. Emailed the speaker serial numbers & a copy of the receipt, and a few days later, 2 new mid drivers showed up on my doorstep. Sounded much better, tho the ole Technics wasn't doing them justice... and I had read that the Polks respond well to more power. So... that started me down a slippery slope. Since most of my listening in the office would be digital sources, picked up a Sony TA-E1000ESD digital preamp for $100 (WITH remote!) off of Craigslist. Then picked up a Yamaha M-45 power amp for the mids/highs & a Yamaha M-65 power amp for the bottom end. The difference in sound quality was quite stunning. Since my mid-80s vintage cd player (NAD 5340) had digital/coax out, put that into the system, tho I have to say, my Panasonic dvd player (with HDCD decoding) sounds better via optical/toslink. So... this whole sequence of events got me to thinking I should revive my 2 channel system that has been languishing in the den.

Back in the mid 80s, I bought a Carver M-500t amp & C-1 preamp brand new (Sensuous Sound, Tampa, Florida). I ran them to a pair of Infinity RS-9b bookshelf speakers. My college roommate & I built a homemade subwoofer (dual 10s, in sealed enclosures) & used a Cerwin Vega passive crossover (110 Hz). The NAD 5340 was also added in the mid 80s (Kubans, Sarasota, FL), as was a Yamaha TX-900U tuner and Aiwa AD-F990 cassette deck. I was very happy with that system over the years, and it served me well into the late 90s. While living in Charlotte, NC, I stumbled onto a pair of Carver Amazing Platinums in the local rag (Creative Loafing). If memory serves, I picked them up for $1100 from the original owner, WITH the original boxes. Naturally, the M-500t wasn't quite up to the task, so I bought a second one off of Ebay & horizontally bi-amped them (I know... a mistake). Around 2k2, I had the ribbons rebuilt by Dave Sauter. Shortly thereafter, the 2 channel system was moved to the living room, to make room for the theater system in the family room. As a result, the 2-channel system has seen very little use since.

Setting up the system in the office has re-energized me to revive my BETTER 2 channel system in the den. I have several options at this point. In addition to the C-1 and (2) M-500t's, I also recently acquired a C-4000t and (2) M-1.5t's (sucker for a good deal). Have debated running the M-500t's in mono configuration for the ribbons, and the M-1.5t's in mono configuration for the woofers. Or, I could do the MkII mods to the M-500t's & leave off the M-1.5t's. Or... could sell the M-1.5t's & buy two more M-500t's & have (4) M-500t's all in mono configuration. Geez, the M-500t's are getting hard to find in decent shape, and WITH the rack handles.

Admittedly, the system still will not see a LOT of use... the 7.2 system in the living room gets the bulk of my listening, just because of the location. Nonetheless, it's time to resurrect the Carver system. I have cases of vinyl stored away, & want to use the Carver system to get back into it (once I purchase a new turntable). My last turntable was destroyed by the moving company (broke the counterweight clean off of the tonearm- no big deal, was a cheap Pioneer turntable from the early 80s).

And once I finish this project, it'll likely be time to upgrade the living room theater system to 4K & ATMOS... always something on the horizon! Anyhow, that's my story!