Enrique Jackson 17 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 Hi Everyone I recently bought some Carver gear to rotate... I just bought a C1 pre amp and m 1.5t to rotate with my NAD 1600 pre amp and ADCOM GFA 555ii...I'd like to hear any advice/suggestions, impressions on these components, thank you! 3 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Community Admin Sk1Bum 8,170 Posted December 30, 2020 Community Admin Share Posted December 30, 2020 Hello Enrique, and welcome to thecarversite.com. We're glad you're hear. There is a lot of information here, much technical know how, and a pretty good bunch of folks that are happy to help. The C1 is a great preamp, and with the BillD upgrade, it's nothing short of phenomenal. I've never owned an M1.5t, but many here speak very highly of them. Once you get to Novice status, please consider uploading some pics of your gear in the Members Systems area. We all like pics of all kinds of audio gear. In the meantime, kick your shoes off, turn up the music, and welcome aboard. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Enrique Jackson 17 Posted December 30, 2020 Author Share Posted December 30, 2020 Thank you! Sir will do! 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
johnrotten 887 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 Welcome!!! 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BluesMan57 962 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 Welcome to the forum. Glad to have you aboard.... 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Enrique Jackson 17 Posted December 30, 2020 Author Share Posted December 30, 2020 Thank you Sir! 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dennis47 521 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 WELCOME @Enrique Jackson! Glad you found us. Be sure and post your impression of the C-1 & M-1.5t combo... @Sk1Bum is quite right about the C-1 BillD upgrade... a big plus! 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dadvw 2,183 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 (edited) Get them both refurbished and they will sound great and last a while........grin Edited December 30, 2020 by Dadvw 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AndrewJohn 4,139 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 Welcome to TCS! Glad you found us. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Turbo 1,352 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 Welcome aboard @Enrique Jackson!!! Glad you found us here at TCS! I have an M-1.5t in my system now and love it! It sounded very harsh and grainy though when I first started using it some 15 years or so ago now. The dual caps in my unit failed on the right channel taking out several output transistors and I had just repaired and re-capped my unit a year or two before I joined this site. You can see my write-up in the link below: I was perusing many results from my google searches concerning this amplifier being grainy/harsh and found many posts to this effect on the M-1.5t. So I really believed it just sounded harsh. I eventually found an M-400 and replaced the M-1.5t with it and it sounded much better to my ears. So I ran it for several years. But I decided I wanted to try my M-1.5t again and really cranked it up loud and it sounded grainy and harsh then it went into protection mode. But after I went through it, completed the repair and replaced all the caps in both amp boards and on the power supply, I was shocked at how clean and clear this amplifier sounds now. It sounds fantastic to me, I've never looked back and have been using it in my HTS as the Front mains amp for many years now. Another thing I noticed after the repair was how much cooler the amp runs now compared to before. It used to run very hot even at lower volumes. Now I can crank it very loud and it only gets slightly warm to the touch now. I'm convinced now that the grainy/harsh sound I was hearing was caused by those failing low and mid rail power supply dual caps at C13 & C14 about to fail on my M-1.5t. Any harshness in sound from this amp means it needs to be refurbished quickly. Another sure sign is a warm running amp at low volume levels. Again, welcome to TCS! Kick back, crank it up and stay awhile. There's a lot of great, knowledgeable folks in here in all things Carver! 2 4 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AndrewJohn 4,139 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 Ditto what @Turbo posted above... That m1.5t amp is gold. But, it's also ~30 years old. Those capacitors are a) old, and b) probably never had the quality as capacitors made today. A full refresh will shock you when you hear the difference. I have 3 of these amps..., 😉 2 1 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Enrique Jackson 17 Posted December 30, 2020 Author Share Posted December 30, 2020 Thank you Andrew, I just acquired my M 1.5t and my C1, I wanted to change up my gear from my current rig, I got these 2 recently from a nice Vintage stereo shop here in Houston TX for a decent price, he said he found no bulging or leaking caps etc...only my awareness and playing time will tell, I'm currently pushing a pair of Klipsch Chorus ii and pair of CV DX9s that I rotate in, with and ADCOM GFA 555ii via NAD 1600, and at times tweeking with and Audio Controll C -101, I hoping my expectations will be met and thank you 1 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
EAHBuckeye 219 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 Welcome! 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Java1960 20 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 Welcome Enrique. I too am in the Houston area. I have 2 M-1.5 and a few other Carver Pre and Amps. None have been refurbished as of yet. I would love do the BillD upgrade on one of my C-1 and the MKII upgrade on the pair of M-1.5 now that it is available. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Charlie 15,619 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 Greetings Enrique!! We're glad you found us!!! 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Enrique Jackson 17 Posted December 31, 2020 Author Share Posted December 31, 2020 Thank you Charlie! 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Brian_at_HHH 1,877 Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 Welcome to the group! Nice choice of equipment to rotate through in your system. Like others have indicated, the minus to any older equipment is that caps, etc. are due for a refresh after 25+ years, and the sound will improve very noticeably in most cases, and can, potentially, be a bit of a ticking time-bomb. The plus, is that many older quality components, for example Carver gear, really lend themselves to this, and can give you an absolutely killer system for a tiny fraction of what you would pay for new, or even recent, used equipment. It's an amazing way to jump from good to fantastic, and can leave you money to put towards other items (e.g., speakers, etc.) that improve things even more. There are plenty of folks here who can either guide you, or help you with getting things done. Oh, and yes, it IS very addictive. Trust me - I thought I was immune to it. Nope, not a chance. OCCD is incurable. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Enrique Jackson 17 Posted December 31, 2020 Author Share Posted December 31, 2020 Thank you for the warm welcome Brian!... you're right OCCD 😆, an Obsession for sure, especially when I have to sneek around wifey to buy and install components in a coy manner, I can't wait to put my Carver gear into Sound!... thank you and Happy New Year! 1 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Community Admin Sk1Bum 8,170 Posted December 31, 2020 Community Admin Share Posted December 31, 2020 29 minutes ago, Enrique Jackson said: especially when I have to sneek around wifey to buy and install components in a coy manner, Once the award system gets patched, we have a sticker for that 1 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Receiver2000 751 Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 Hi Enrique Welcome!!!! So good to have you with us. Lots of great guys around here with lots of knowledge and fun along the way. Enjoy looking around!!! 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Enrique Jackson 17 Posted January 1 Author Share Posted January 1 Thank you! I'm overwhelmed knowing there such a following lots to absorb! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AndrewJohn 4,139 Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 On 12/30/2020 at 5:42 PM, Java1960 said: [...] and the MKII upgrade on the pair of M-1.5 now that it is available. Adding a link..., And suggestion that you go to Nelion for the M1.5t MkII upgrade - it's his invention. https://nelionaudio.com/index.php?/services.html/carver/carver-amplifiers/carver-m-15t-mkii-restore-and-upgrade-r20/ Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Enrique Jackson 17 Posted January 1 Author Share Posted January 1 Ok will do thanks Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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