What would YOU do?

[mesherm]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... Track=true

This eBay item sparked a mini discussion at work among the few tube people today.
So what would you do asssuming you happened across an unbuilt pristine ST 70 kit?
Would you build it?
or
knowing that building it would probably immediately decrease its value,
would you carefully repack it unbuilt (with silica gel, in plastic) and keep it in a safe place for some undetermined amount of time.
Maybe it could be displayed unbuilt. A trophy like a Van Gogh or a Tiffany lamp.

[TomMcNally]

Good question ...

I think if you pack it away for eternity, all you have is some
cardboard boxes and wrapping paper to look at. Your heirs
will sell it on eBay and pay down some credit card debt with
the proceeds, and no one will really enjoy it.

If you build it, you won't be happy with the ancient components
which might not work all that well, so you'll upgrade it anyway.

Personally, I think I would just pass on it totally.

I have a semi-complete Dynaco collection, a pair of MK-III's,
an ST-35, ST-70, PAS-2, an FM-3 tuner and an SCA-35.
I've upgraded most of them of course, but they
look original on the outside, nice 2 wire power cords and
terminal strips for the speaker connections. It's kinda like
restoring an old car or other antique to me, keep it original
as possible but servicable.

[sorenj07]

i'd also pass. name brands don't interest me so much, i'd rather DIY something. be able to put your name on it :)

[TomMcNally]

1966 Lafayette Catalog

[erichayes]

Hi All,

I have a hard time believing the prices people are willing to pay for unassembled kits circa 1950s-70s, regardless of what they are. I think there are people who want to return to that era, and unbuilt kits provide the opportunity. I can remember building my first amplifier kit in early 1959 (a Lafayette KT-92 bought with 1958 Christmas money from Grandma), and my last kit (a Heathkit ID-4001 weather computer) built in the mid 80s. They, and all the ones between them brought almost obscene amounts of pleasure, even though the latter ones were constructed with a great deal more knowledge of how things tick.

I think the DIY path to "kit" building is a sterling way to get motivated souls involved in construction, and I applaud Shannon and his peers for providing the instructions and parts to do so. But, dammit, I really miss, even now, opening the box and checking off the resistors, caps, star lockwashers, pots, and all the other stuff against the parts list, spreading it all over my bench (I had really neat parents) and playing God with solder and spaghetti.

BTW, I have an Eico 625 emission tube tester kit, unbuilt, NIB, with a meter repaired by none other than Bud Wyatt hisself. (I think the defecto meter was why I picked it up for merely an unreasonable price.) Anyone interested can PM me.

[EWBrown]

Several years ago, I was given an unbuilt "NOS" Dynaco ST35 kit, by my Dad, who had it since the late 1960s, along with a few other Dynaco items, all of which in dire need of repair. FWIW, I still have the original shipping box, it alone is almost a "collectible" in its own right.

I ended up building the 35, keeping everything original, and then using it (the multisection electrolytic cap really needed re-forming, I did that prior to starting assembly).

What all this led up to, was my finding this site, and a rekindling of my hobby interests of decades ago.

Had I just decided to "unload" it on e-bay, who knows, I wouldn't be haunting the DIYTUBE site today Yellow_Light_Colorz_PDT_02 and I'd probably still be assailing my ears with a 30 year old POS Pioneer receiver...

Since all of this, I have acquired three other vintage ST35 carcii, which need new driver boards (alreany built them up) and new caps (I got the Cyrus Chong ST35 cap boards, and C-354 chokes for a REAL upgrade). Part of that deal was two superb MQ-565 OPTs, which went into a DIY35 rev C, along with "boutique" coupling caps. Now all it needs is to move into a new "house", I'll get one of the shiny new ST35 chassis when they become more available. Then it can look good as it sounds Yellow_Light_Colorz_PDT_02

/ed B in NH

[Shannon Parks]

Interesting inflation comparison with the Dynakitparts kit.....

[dhuebert]

I have a friend with a 1949 Belgian standard Beetle. It has 38,000 Km (23,000 Mi) on it. The car is a little rough but runs and drives nicely. Over the last 57 years it has had a few bad repairs done like a front hood from a late 50's car put on. The question is: restore it or leave it as a rough original? Replace the incorrect hood or leave it as a record of the cars history? Whew, I don't pretend to be wise enough to answer this one!

Build the ST-70 or leave it in the box? I would probably leave it in the box as a historical record and rebuild some old piece of crap nobody cares about and feel free to do what ever I like with it.

MTCW.

Don

[TomMcNally]

Some Dynaco ramblings ...

I live at the New Jersey Shore near Atlantic City and make my living as a Broadcast Engineer and Disk Jockey. In the early 80's, I got a job in Philadelphia, about an hour from home. I used to pass the Dynaco factory on Route 42 in Blackwood (I think) Never knew a whole lot about it at the time. Over the next few years a FOR SALE sign went up and the sign came down (it looked like the logo we all know) About the same time, David Hafler became part owner of the radio station I am now a DJ on on the weekends ... 101.5 in Trenton. There are still many Hafler amps in the racks in the old building.

Fast forward to the mid 90's ... I visited a friend in Pittsburgh who had an ST-70 and a PAS preamp he got from a local newspaper ad for like $ 25. It sounded sooooo good. Back home, I was telling one of my engineer friends about it. A few days later, he stopped by the house carrying something the size of a breadbox by the cord. It was a factory wired ST-35 that had lived on top of an FM transmitter at 101.1 in Philadelphia as a monitor amp, and he acquired it when they got a new transmitter and he bought the old one. I rehabbed it with new tubes (from the electronics store in town - they had EL-84's and EL-34's for stereo amps) and I was hooked ! The engineer and 51% owner of 101.1 (now WBEB) in Philadelphia probably knew Hafler, since he started the station in 1961 and lived a lot of history.


The filter board was meant for an ITC cartridge machine.

[mesherm]

Among the after lunch discussions here at work (when not verbally formulating Zombie defense plans Yellow_Light_Colorz_PDT_04 ) is the topic of what a person would bring back if time travel was possible. My favorite would be to time travel back to the 50s/60s and load a small warehouse (prepaid rent of course) with hundredes of Mullard EL34s, 5AR4s, EL84s, WE 300Bs, 2A3s, some 6CA7s and of course Genalex KT88s.
Then one could return to the present and retrieve the now worth-their-weight-in-gold vacuum tubes.

[TomMcNally]

I sold these on eBay for a friend a few years ago ... amazing price.

[WA4SWJ]

Hi Guys,

I'd love to have an original chassis style ST-35. I have Shannon's ST-35 clone and it works and sounds great. But I'd like one of the originls anyway. Haven't been able to win one on the auction site though.

I do have an original ST-70 though that my sweetheart's brother gave me for doing some PWB design work for him. I'm working on putting a diytube driver in it now. Can't wait to hear it.

Regards,

[WA4SWJ]

Yup, I'd just like to have an original. I don't care about the issues you mention. No pets or kids either. I don't mind doing the repairs and I don't mind it if the unit is not fully stock. I'd just like to have one. But, not badly enough to pay what they're going for so I won't have one probably. I do love my ST-70's though, even with their replacement parts. One is an all new clone and the other is a modified old one; both with Shannon's great driver. Wonderful sounding amplifiers.

Regards,

[EdStiles]

Got in a similar position a couple of years ago, found an original, unassembled Audio Research mod kit for the Dyna ST-70 on eBay and won it (not cheap). I decided to write Audio Research about it, requesting info on what I might update on the board to bring it up to current standards. A couple of weeks later I got a envelope with the construction manual and figured that was my reply.

Mind you, this was the full, unassembled kit, NOS tubes, ARC logo front panel etc, all packed in foam and plastic bags.

Lo and behold, a week later I received a reply from William Z Johnson (ARC founder) with specific upgrades - both part subsitutions and value changes that were very detailed (2 pages worth) and an offer if I had any other questions with an email address...... which I used and got more advice and suggestions.

I am just finishing up that amp, using Magnaquest outputs, a Triode power tranny and a black powder coated chassis. Its a keeper on both an emotional level and out of respect for a man and company that can take the time to help where they don't really have to.

An unassembled Dynakit I would look at the same way, rebuilding the board with premium parts, power supply upgrade (40/80/30/20 cap) and teflon wire, then keep it in the family as a working reminder of some of the good things out of the past.

BTW, when I mentioned to Mr Johnson that I owned an ARC SP-3 preamp with the latest upgrades as well as an SP-9, he wanted my opinion on the value of the upgrade and my impression of the sound, an interesting touch.