Tavish Classic

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Steve Baker, Dec 13, 2018.

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  1. Steve Baker

    Steve Baker Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Columbia, Maryland
    Nice set up. By any chance did you sample the MC settings on the Tavish? Or did you just go with the Rothwell? I'm curious, because I will be switching to MC in the future,( when I get my TD150 up and running). If I need a SUT I will have to start saving $$. Always nice to hear that people with similar equipment are hearing what I hear. Lucky you to score one on the cheap.
     
  2. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    Thanks. I did not sample the MC settings on the Tavish before buying the Rothwell. I had experience with the FET-based MC gain stage on my former Herron and recognized very nice SQ improvements using a SUT and focusing on sending the signal through the tube-based circuit. So yes, I had a bit of expectation bias based on my experiences through similar designs. With this said, I have A/B'd the Tavish MC stage versus the Rothwell SUT and it's not even close - the SUT sounds much better to me. The 61dB gain is a perfect match with my Hana SL cart.
     
  3. Steve Baker

    Steve Baker Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Columbia, Maryland
    I appreciate the reply. I will have to save up some coin for the Rothwell. I will be using a Denon 301 MkII to start. May get a Hana further down the road.
    In regards to the Classic, I spoke to Scott ( the guy who make the Classic), he said to try different settings on the Classic for loading. He also said the using it as shipped will get enough gain for decent playback. In answering my question about a SUT , his response was similar to yours. The recommended SUT for the Denon was the Rothwell MCX or the M1. Again thank you for the response. I have a clearer game plan.
     
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  4. mkane

    mkane Strictly Analog

    Location:
    Auburn CA
    Tavish Vintage owners here and it's really quiet in the silent passages. Nice piece. We use it with our all tube ( HK Citation II triode mode )set-up & Slagle TVC.

    [​IMG]
     
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  5. CowFish

    CowFish Forum Resident

    Location:
    South Carolina
    Tavish Classic phono stage arrived this week and I've started the break in today. Ordered it back in late February, it took quite a while to arrive but I'm fine with that, it's going to be with me for a very long time. I want to put on quite a few hours of playtime before passing any judgement, but so far I'm pretty stoked!
    I did install some socket savers right away to raise the tubes up a 1/2", for maximum posage. I'm not experienced with tube equipment, if socket savers degrade the sound would someone please chime in? Thx

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
  6. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    Congrats! What cart are you running?
     
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  7. CowFish

    CowFish Forum Resident

    Location:
    South Carolina
    Thanks!
    My main cart is a Shure M95ed that I actually prefer over my M97xe. However, right now there's a Sumiko (blue) Oyster mounted to the PL-41 turntable which is a recent acquisition. Since the Oyster came with the table, I figured I'll give it a spin.
     
  8. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    Ah ok, so you're using the MM stage. I was just curious...it's quite nice. I'm preferring a SUT over the MC gain stage.
     
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  9. Steve Baker

    Steve Baker Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Columbia, Maryland
    Reviving this discussion. I have had the Tavish Classic paired with the Denon 301Mk II now for about 15 weeks. The cart is not fully broken in, but the MC setting on this sounds wonderful so far. I was real close to getting a Rothwell SUT , but I will abstain for now. I just want to see how this opens up after some time. Since I was sick over Christmas I did not get to run it as much as I had hoped, maybe get some time on New Years holiday. At the rate I'm going it may take 3 more months. Never seem to have time to listen these days.
    The difference between the Denon and the Shure cart I had on before is huge. I can't see how it will get better. Break in time for the Denon is around 50 hours, I still have about 40 hours to go. I might give the tubes a roll eventually, just not sure how far I want to climb out on that limb.

    My retirement system has improved with each step. As costly as this hobby can be, I managed to eek out better sound without spending thousands of dollars. Most of my cash goes to records.
    2021 has been a disappointing year for me in one regard. I was going to grab a Schiit Sol, and put the Denon on that, but I waited a few weeks too long and the Sol is gone. So I put the Denon on my back up deck a Technics SL Q303, just to get it going. In the future I will put the Denon on my Thorens TD-150, but I was waiting for retirement to accomplish that. Gives me something more to look forward to.
    Given that all my music is coming from a turntable of questionable quality, it still crushes the previous lineups. Knowing how much better the Thorens sounds when dialed in makes the waiting tough. I'm dealing with too many other family, house issues to put everything together right now. Once my renovation is complete ( no more painting etc.), I will get this finalized.

    FWIW I have a new copy of "Blonde on Blonde" in Mono from Sundazed arriving in the next few days. That will get a spin ASAP. The records I have listened to since putting the Denon on are all familiar to me, and each play revealed nuances I had missed before. The Tavish in tandem is quite revealing.
    Any suggestions on tube rolling are welcome.

    SB
     
  10. mkane

    mkane Strictly Analog

    Location:
    Auburn CA
    And your MC load is at ?
     
  11. Steve Baker

    Steve Baker Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Columbia, Maryland

    100 Ω
     
  12. mkane

    mkane Strictly Analog

    Location:
    Auburn CA
    We run ours close to 330. 10x the impedance. I wonder how different the Classic is compared to the Vintage besides the tubes used.
     
    Last edited: Dec 29, 2021
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