While we wait....
 

OK, don't know about you lot but I'm just about done with checking here to
find nothing doing, so here are some new words and phrases for 2007 to amuse
you while we wait for summat (anything?) from Plowie's Blog*:





TESTICULATING. Waving your arms around and talking ********.



BLAMESTORMING. Sitting around in a group, discussing why a deadline was
missed or a project failed and who was responsible.



SEAGULL MANAGER. A manager, who flies in, makes a lot of noise, craps on
everything and then leaves.



ASSMOSIS. The process by which people seem to absorb success and advancement
by sucking up to the boss rather than working hard.



SALMON DAY. The experience of spending an entire day swimming upstream only
to get screwed and die.



CUBE FARM. An office filled with cubicles.



PRAIRIE DOGGING. When someone yells or drops something loudly in a cube farm
and people's heads pop up over the walls to see that's going on. (This also
applies to applause for a promotion because there may be cake.)



SITCOMs. Single Income, Two Children, Oppressive Mortgage. (What Yuppies
turn into when they have children and one of them stops working to stay home
with the kids or start a "home business".)



SINBAD. Single working girl. (Single Income, No Boyfriend And Desperate.)



STRESS PUPPY. A person who seems to thrive on being stressed out and whiny.



PERCUSSIVE MAINTENANCE. The fine art of whacking the crap out of an
electronic device to get it to work again.



ADMINISPHERE. The rarefied organisational layers beginning just above the
rank and file. Decisions that fall from the "adminisphere" are often
profoundly inappropriate or irrelevant to the problems they were designed to
solve. This is often affiliated with the dreaded "Administrivia" - needless
paperwork and processes.



404. Someone who's clueless. From the World Wide Web error message "404 Not
Found" meaning that the requested document could not be located.



OHNOSECOND. That minuscule fraction of time in which you realize that you've
just made a BIG mistake (e.g. you've hit 'reply all')



GOING FOR A McPOO. Entering a fast food restaurant with no intention of
buying food, you're just going to the bog. (If challenged by a pimply staff
member, your declaration to them that you'll buy their food afterwards is
known as a 'McPOO with Lies'.)



AEROPLANE BLONDE. One who has bleached/dyed her hair but still has a 'black
box'.



AUSSIE KISS. Similar to a French Kiss, but given down under.



BEER COAT. The invisible but warm coat worn when walking home after a booze
cruise at 3am.



BEER COMPASS. The invisible device that ensures your safe arrival home after
booze cruise, even though you're too drunk to remember where you live, how
you got here and where you've come from.



GREYHOUND. A very short skirt, only an inch from the hare.



MILLENNIUM DOMES. The contents of a Wonderbra, i.e. extremely impressive
when viewed from the outside, but there's actually naught in there worth
seeing.



MONKEY BATH. A bath so hot, that when lowering yourself in, you
go:"Oo!Oo!Oo! Aa!Aa!Aa!".



MYSTERY BUS. The bus that arrives at the pub on Friday night while you're in
the toilet after your 10th pint, and whisks away all the unattractive people
so the pub is suddenly packed with stunners when you come back out.



MYSTERY TAXI. The taxi that arrives at your place on Saturday morning before
you wake up, whisks away the stunner you slept with, and leaves a 10-Pinter
in your bed instead.



PICASSO BUM. A woman whose knickers are too small for her, so she looks like
she's got four buttocks.



SALAD DODGER. An overweight person.



TART FUEL. Bottled premixed spirits, regularly consumed by young women.





* I stopped blogging like he wanted me to, now we got *SFA* in here - OK by
me, if that's how it is, but I ain't gonna hang around a stone-dead ng for
much longer....???

While we wait....
 

"Keith G" wrote in message
...

snip

GOING FOR A McPOO. Entering a fast food restaurant with no intention of
buying food, you're just going to the bog. (If challenged by a pimply
staff
member, your declaration to them that you'll buy their food afterwards is
known as a 'McPOO with Lies'.)

I've previously heard this one called a "McSplurry"!

While we wait....
 

"Bondee" wrote in message
...

"Keith G" wrote in message
...

snip

GOING FOR A McPOO. Entering a fast food restaurant with no intention of
buying food, you're just going to the bog. (If challenged by a pimply
staff
member, your declaration to them that you'll buy their food afterwards is
known as a 'McPOO with Lies'.)

I've previously heard this one called a "McSplurry"!




No-eyed deer - that list was sent to me from the wag who recently first
bought my EAR 'line stage slurrifier' and then my Visaton OB speakers and
who has since regaled me with a string of gags, movie clips, excellent
*proper* smoked bacon and *real* sausages ever since...!!

;-)

While we wait....
 

"Bondee" wrote in message
...

"Keith G" wrote in message
...

snip

GOING FOR A McPOO. Entering a fast food restaurant with no intention of
buying food, you're just going to the bog. (If challenged by a pimply
staff
member, your declaration to them that you'll buy their food afterwards is
known as a 'McPOO with Lies'.)

I've previously heard this one called a "McSplurry"!

I thought that one was for when you need a bit more fibre in your diet!

While we wait....
 

"Keith G" wrote in message
...


OK, don't know about you lot but I'm just about done with checking here to
find nothing doing, ..........


We're all too busy fixing the miriads of Chinese valve amps
that seem to have been dumped on Europe and Scandinavia:-)

I have a fixed bias PP amp on my bench that has 10mm
skeleton pots for bias adjustment.

The owner who imported it directly, told me that it
worked only at very low power when it arrived, so
thinking it had been damaged in transit, he took it
to a local TV repair chap. He soon found the problem,
there was, and never had been, no connection between
the bottom end of the OPT secondary and the ground
terminal:-(

It looks like there might be an opportunity for someone
repairing these amps on a regular basis, to make
good money. At least there is an assured constant supply
of work. The trouble is, you can't spend much more
than an hour max, or the repair has cost half of the price
of the amp:-)

I have seen several of these now. They all bear a remarkable
similarity and have a generic PCB which can be used for
any number of different versions. Fiendishly cunning these
Chinese:-)

Regards to all
Iain

While we wait....
 

Iain Churches wrote:
"Keith G" wrote in message
...


OK, don't know about you lot but I'm just about done with checking here to
find nothing doing, ..........



We're all too busy fixing the miriads of Chinese valve amps
that seem to have been dumped on Europe and Scandinavia:-)

I have a fixed bias PP amp on my bench that has 10mm
skeleton pots for bias adjustment.

The owner who imported it directly, told me that it
worked only at very low power when it arrived, so
thinking it had been damaged in transit, he took it
to a local TV repair chap. He soon found the problem,
there was, and never had been, no connection between
the bottom end of the OPT secondary and the ground
terminal:-(

?

Do you mean the secondary wasn't connected to the LS terminal, or it
just wasn't grounded? the former should result in no output at all, and
the latter should make no difference to the output.


It looks like there might be an opportunity for someone
repairing these amps on a regular basis, to make
good money. At least there is an assured constant supply
of work. The trouble is, you can't spend much more
than an hour max, or the repair has cost half of the price
of the amp:-)

I have seen several of these now. They all bear a remarkable
similarity and have a generic PCB which can be used for
any number of different versions. Fiendishly cunning these
Chinese:-)


Hmm, I just fixed one that had a valve rectifier that was designed to
drive into a max of 4uf, and it was using 100uf. Oddly, the rectifier
had failed. The amp was only earthed via its phono sockets (the IEC
earth was unconnected) and it oscillated at 60Khz when running.

Apart from that, it was a cracker :-) (other than it didn't sound very
nice).

--
Nick

While we wait....
 

"Iain Churches" wrote in message
...

"Keith G" wrote in message
...


OK, don't know about you lot but I'm just about done with checking here
to
find nothing doing, ..........


We're all too busy fixing the miriads of Chinese valve amps
that seem to have been dumped on Europe and Scandinavia:-)


'Miriads'....???

No-one's buying them then...??

;-)




I have a fixed bias PP amp on my bench that has 10mm
skeleton pots for bias adjustment.

The owner who imported it directly, told me that it
worked only at very low power when it arrived, so
thinking it had been damaged in transit, he took it
to a local TV repair chap. He soon found the problem,
there was, and never had been, no connection between
the bottom end of the OPT secondary and the ground
terminal:-(

It looks like there might be an opportunity for someone
repairing these amps on a regular basis, to make
good money. At least there is an assured constant supply
of work. The trouble is, you can't spend much more
than an hour max, or the repair has cost half of the price
of the amp:-)


Check my previous posts on the subject - I have always said to consider that
they might need a little attention from time to time and maybe not buy one
if you can't fettle it yourself!! Even paying some primadonna's price for an
hour's work to sort one out wouldn't make it cost a fraction of a 'Western'
price - how long before there are realistically-priced *specialists* in
Chinky amp repairs, if there's as many about as you claim?

(How Long?? Do you think he and Wun Hung Lo might start summat up? :-)

But what does it prove? Shiny Nigel's EAR 834P phono (same price as a Chinky
300B SET) went tits-up in about a week from brand new....



I have seen several of these now. They all bear a remarkable
similarity and have a generic PCB which can be used for
any number of different versions. Fiendishly cunning these
Chinese:-)


No PCB in my Chinky (which does play up occasionally) - all I have to do is
shove it in the cupboard for a few weeks and it usually comes out with a
better frame of mind on.....

;-)

While we wait....
 

"Nick Gorham" wrote in message
. uk...
Iain Churches wrote:

I have a fixed bias PP amp on my bench that has 10mm
skeleton pots for bias adjustment.

The owner who imported it directly, told me that it
worked only at very low power when it arrived, so
thinking it had been damaged in transit, he took it
to a local TV repair chap. He soon found the problem,
there was, and never had been, no connection between
the bottom end of the OPT secondary and the ground
terminal:-(

?

Do you mean the secondary wasn't connected to the LS terminal, or it just
wasn't grounded? the former should result in no output at all, and the
latter should make no difference to the output.

As I inderstand it, the latter. The output was apparently very low.

Hmm, I just fixed one that had a valve rectifier that was designed to
drive into a max of 4uf, and it was using 100uf.

Yes that's another common design fault. The reservoir cap is often
220µF.

Oddly, the rectifier had failed. The amp was only earthed via its phono
sockets (the IEC earth was unconnected) and it oscillated at 60Khz when
running.

So low (or no) stability margin. The oscilaltion can be cured with a
Zobel network. But one should really find the cause:-)



Apart from that, it was a cracker :-)

Aren't they all? :-)

(other than it didn't sound very
nice).

I can'd descide if the appearance of these things is a good or
bad thing. It shows that there is clearly an interest in thermionic
audio, buit the Chinese experience may not be a positive one for
so many hopeful people.

Iain

While we wait....
 

"Keith G" wrote in message
...

"Iain Churches" wrote in message
...


Check my previous posts on the subject - I have always said to consider
that they might need a little attention from time to time and maybe not
buy one if you can't fettle it yourself!!

The basic problems are with the transformers.
Nothing to fettle there. If you want an improvement,
they should be changed. That's costly.

Even paying some primadonna's price for an hour's work to sort one out
wouldn't make it cost a fraction of a 'Western' price - how long before
there are realistically-priced *specialists* in Chinky amp repairs, if
there's as many about as you claim?

In the EU, you cannot expect a service tech to work
for a bowl of rice a day. From the amount he invoices,
he has to pay social costs, taxes, VAT, rent etc etc.
So it ain't cheap:-) You have had your own business
Keith, so you know all about "overheads" :-)

The availability of these amps has been timed nicely
with the renewed interest in tube audio. Rather like
the Lada Niva, when people living in wintery climates
began to see the advantage of 4WD. The Niva was about
a quarter the price of the cheapest and most basic LandRover,
and made a huge dent in LandRover sales, but only very
short term.

(How Long?? Do you think he and Wun Hung Lo might start summat up? :-)

My feeling is, that once these things are established,
the prices, and thus the quality will improve. Then the
EU and US makers will really be facing a challenge.
But if the current situation continues, people who
have burned their fingers will not be too ready to
take a chance on a Chinky Poo again.

But, it's just Yorkshire commonsense really,
Don't expect owt for nowt:-)

But what does it prove? Shiny Nigel's EAR 834P phono (same price as a
Chinky 300B SET) went tits-up in about a week from brand new....

That can happen with any piece of equipment.
Many of the bespoke tube amp builders are now
offering a 5 year warranty, to underline their faith
in the quality of their products. I know one who includes
a 2yr service check, at a very reasonable price, and if
the maintenance is carried out as per schedule, and
tubes re baissed, and repalced as necessary, there is
no reason why a ten year warranty could not be
offered. Remember Rolls Royce's life time guarantee?
They don't promise the car will just go on and on without
service, but when scheduled maintenance is carried out,
and parts changed before they are worn or broken then
they can promise trouble free motoring with a degree
of confidence.

No PCB in my Chinky (which does play up occasionally) - all I have to do
is shove it in the cupboard for a few weeks and it usually comes out with
a better frame of mind on.....

Point to point is probably the worst of all the
alternatives for predictable performance in a Chinky tube amp.
The Chinese, invented pyrotechnics and also birdsnest
soup:-)

Regards to all
Iain

While we wait....
 

Iain Churches wrote:


So low (or no) stability margin. The oscilaltion can be cured with a
Zobel network. But one should really find the cause:-)



It was fixed by adding the 220p cap across the feedback resistor the
circuit diag showed but wasn't fitted, maybe to improve the HF response.

I think the main cause was the crap output TX's having too much phase
shift at HF :-).

--
Nick