Thanks for sharing that! I'd actually read it in the Zu Druid/Def roundup thread Phil started. Sounds like a very good solution.

My SP-101s should be coming on Thursday and, even though they have a giant PITA foot print I will probably use them immediately rather than waiting till I move in October (I'm just NOT that patient).

Fortunately one of my other obsessions is bodybuilding, so I'm not OVERLY worried about the weight of lifting them on top of the Sistrums.

It should be interesting--I'm hoping to report results as profound as others have.

gopher August 27, 2013 22:12

Keith and Charles,

The Melody stuff is treating me very well. I actually posted a formal review here if you want some in depth thoughts, but I recommend them whole heartedly.

I'm pretty much done for a bit--I have a few things to update in this system and need to take new pictures when I move in October and have a dedicated listening space, but I've replaced the Bolder SBT with a LampizatOr TranspOrt and the Lampizator Level 4 with a Big Six. I also got some Sistrum apprentice stands for the amps and Sistrum SP-101s for my Zu Defs.

When I move in October I'll have a dedicated basement space and a ton of Gik treatments I've been storing at my parents place I can break out. I expect that rig to really shine once I get everything situated.

gopher August 27, 2013 05:36

I've made some major component changes and am in the process
of burning in my gear and fine tuning the sound--with a little
luck there won't be any major changes to follow.

gopher May 08, 2013 17:49

A note to anyone reading, do not underestimate big Chinese tubes. In addition to discovering I prefer the balance of the 211b to NOS GE, I just replaced a NOS RCA 5u4g with a Shuguang 274b and the upgrade was HUGE.

The only non-current Chinese tube in my amp is an Amperex orange globe 12ax7 and the sound is fantastic!

On a side note, I also put an extra tridoe wire lab 8 gauge PC on my Met rum Octave in place of the 10 gauge that was on it and this made a lovely improvement in terms of solidity and dimensionality.

gopher September 22, 2012 17:51

Thanks!

The AN211 is a nice amp that does a great job driving these Zus. I was actually struggling with the amp for a few weeks trying to get the sound I knew it was capable of, and finally got there a couple days ago removing the stock 211 tubes in favor of some 211Bs. With good power tubes in place this integrated is wonderful!

I've read a tiny bit about the Hex, but is it even shipping yet? The cost seems pretty reasonable (at least the introductory price does) but I'm over extended in the hobby so I won't likely be jumping on it in the near future. The Hynes modifications to the Octave on the other hand seem pretty affordable...

gopher September 19, 2012 03:28

I had some magic going with the Def 2 drivers in place that I lost a little with the driver change. I can hear they're excellent and superior, just gotta hone that magic back out.

You're going to love your Def 3s!

gopher September 15, 2012 20:20