Introduce yourself here

[GoulashBrother]

My name is Steve, I'm 54 years old, and I'm going to retire next year. I just bought a new Harley, will eventually ship it to Europe and travel the continent.

Can't wait to quit my job. I am tired of working for someone else, and next year on December 31st I'm going to tell them to take their job and shove it.

Man, Steve, you must be single

Seriously, not bad at 54 and I think your Harley
travels sound just right, or at least I know I would enjoy it. A word of advice (I always have some)

Do it now! I know it is trite, but even at my age (60)
stuff I used to enjoy doing is disappearing. Now,
I can see the end of my biker career coming. I know
it's natural and I have lots of other activities, but..................
I don't like it one bit.

John Galt

[GoulashBrother]

John,

No, I'm not single, in fact I'm on my third and last wife. I finally realized that divorce is too expensive so thw next time I will either leave her or kill her just kidding.

Actually, I have a very young wife, and I will be a father again in November. It's going to be a boy. My other baby is my Harley.

I'm always open to advice so give it to me.

Have a great day!

Steve

Hi, I'm Duane and I'm 50 yr old and I just took a disabilty retirerment, so I'm on a forced retirement, but retirement none the less. Please don't pitty me, I'm enjoying this too much! Look foward to what other ER's are doing.....Duane

[LEX]

Howdy Folks!

I go by LEX, I am fifty, on the home stretch of a way too long, and tortured path that has taken me from being a scientist starting out in the 1970's to present day, which finds me as a corporate lawyer trying to wind down. This forum has been the functional equivalent of reading the original script of the Shawshank Redemption for me over the last two years. I have read virtually every posting, and its is often a diversion for me as I slog through my day at my desk in this organizational themepark where I work. I have no doubt some gnome in the IT Department monitors every key stroke I make, so I am posting from my home. I am a free spirit, gathering enough cash for the last wild run for the fence, dodging managment's sticks and stones, to escape with whats left of my health, sanity and FIRE based parole. I would have ER'd a decade ago with well over seven figures, but my ex-wife beat me to the cash. If one is supposed to learn from their mistakes, then I have plenty of knowledge to share on this forum.

I thank all of those that have made this forum possible for this important resource.

[GoulashBrother]

Lex,

You sound tired and burned out. Quit while you have your health and get a life. As far as your ex is concerned, she took your money so what. Money is not everything.

Also, do you know why divorce is so expensive?
Because it's worth it.

Welcome to the forum, and I look forward to learning from some of your mistakes. I've made some myself.

Steve

[LEX]

Thanks, Steve;

I am burned out, but its friday, so that helps. I have a few ends to tie up, but I am closer to my objective simply by being a part of this forum. The one great thing about my current situation is that I will revert to dumpster diving and dog food to make my retirement permanant and still have the better part of the deal!

[nearly50]

Hi, everyone, I'm Rich (but not wealthy) and I plan to retire early no later than the day before I turn 50 (I'm currently 49, hence my user name). That is so that I can brag that I retired "in my 40's".

I've had a successful career in engineering lasting nearly 30 years and I am ready for a change, not because I dislike engineering, but because I can support my family on what I've saved and invested over the years.

I will probably continue to work on an hourly basis as my colleagues still seek me out from time to time for consulting, but mostly I want to do the following before I die:

See the US and visit every state.
Visit my relatives overseas on a regular basis (Australia, India and Canada)
Finish restoring my antique radio collection.
Spend more time with my hobby, which is vacuum tube electronics, mainly hifi and guitar amplifiers and speakers.
Learn to speak Spanish and maybe Hindi and Cantonese.

I've run the numbers, come up with a withdrawal plan (72t SEPP plus pension and cashing in funds, and later on SSI and if required a reverse mortgage) and I was surprised that my retirement disposable income will be higher than now when both my wife and I are working, mainly because the house will be paid off very soon, and because my taxes will drop by 93% .

I look forward to joining in on some of the lively discussions around here.

[nearly50]

Hi, Cutthroat,

Glad to meet another tube-head. I am mainly interested in the art of vacuum tube audio design, 'cause I love it when the sound comes out of those glowing red bottles!!! And the wonderous smell that comes out of them, have you noticed? (no not burning resistors, but the subtle fragrances that electronic components give off when run at high temperatures).

My very first electronics project was a 6V6 single-ended 2 stage 4 watt amplifier (from an old issue of Radio-Electronics) back in '69 when I was only a 13 year old, connected to a 4 inch full range speaker mounted in an open-back cabinet (actually, a TV cabinet that I found one garbage day). All the parts were cannibalized from thrown out TV sets. I soldered it up and turned it on, connected it to my hand-me-down Garrard turntable, and to my amazement, it worked! First time. Sounded fantastic then, but I had nothing to compare it against. Who knows, if it hadn't worked I may not have chosen engineering as my profession and become a doctor like my mother wanted me to be.

Later on, I built more and more complex and powerful amps, some of which are still running today after nearly 35 years, but I've never tired of the home-brew audio scene. I've had some chance to play with guitar tube amps, since I play guitar non-professionally, trying to replicate the tone of vintage Fender and Gibson amps, with varying degrees of success. When I am fully retired, I'll be doing a lot more of this, if my hearing holds out that is.

Currently, I'm running bi-amped Velleman amps (kit built, 90WPC) into Magneplanar MG3's with a 2x500W homebrew amp (modified Marshall Leach design) driving eight 7 cubic foot subwoofer cabs. You can feel it in your chest when the subs kick in.

Maybe this deserves its own topic?

Rich

50,

Magnaplaners are hogs for power. Have you ever tried SET amps and Horns? I'm currently using 1.8 watt per channel monoblocks - 45 output tubes into Klipsch Belles (104 db.)

[nearly50]

I've thought about going the horn/SE triode route, but haven't gotten around to it yet. How well do bass reflex subwoofers match with horn loaded mains?

I might play with an SE/Horn combo later, but I won't pay the inflated prices for asian SE amps when the component parts are coming down in price (check out Antique Electronics Supply in Tempe for the prices of SE output transformers over time).

I have a bunch of 6080's lying around in my tube caddy, so I might try to make a Futterman or Circlotron OTL amp first. Of course, these amps are touted to be "colorless" so I might as well buy a used Krell.

Rich

[bruce1]

Nearly50 and Cut-throat

We should start another thread on tube amps and old Radios. I have about 50 old radios some working some not in a room upstairs and in the attic. I have restored a few including a National HRO. I have a functional harmon kardon tube amp from the late 50's (about 10 watts) and want to replicate a pair Macintosh MC 30 amps. I can get my transformers from Hammond but they are pricey and I am looking for other sources

My first amp was a 6SN7 dual triode and a pair of 6V6 in push pull. I was about 15.

Bruce

[bruce1]

NEarly 50

Does the Antique Electronics Supply have a web site?

thanks
Bruce

[nearly50]

Bruce, direct your browser to www.tubesandmore.com

and I'll start a new topic in the Other Topics forum to continue this discussion.

When I first saw Tubes, does anyone remember them,
I thought "Hey, I wondered whatever happened to those guys?" No kidding!

John Galt

[Hyperborea]

Quote:

When I first saw Tubes, does anyone remember them,

Yeah, I've got one of their albums on vinyl. *For the FIREee or FIRE wannabe they've got a great song. No, not "White Punks on Dope". I mean "What Do You Want From Life?" that sums up and satirizes a lot of the consumerist lifestyle.

I haven't thought of them in a while since my turntable has been broken for a couple of years. *I'll have to decide what to do with all the old albums. *I'm not sure if I want to replace the old table (an old Pioneer PL300 from 1979 - it owes me nothing) or sell off the vinyl (400 - 500 LPs and ~50 singles including some 60's Stones and Beatles) and use the proceeds to buy CDs.

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/M...dItemId=362558

What do you want from life
To kidnap an heiress
or threaten her with a knife
What do you want from life
To get cable TV
and watch it every night

There you sit
a lump in your chair
Where do you sleep
and what do you wear
when you're sleeping

What do you want from life
An Indian guru
to show you the inner light
What do you want from life
a meaningless love affair
with a girl that you met tonight

How can you tell when you're doin' alright
Does your bank account swell
While you're dreaming at night
How do know when you're really in love
Do violins play when you're touching the one
That you're loving

What do you want from life
Someone to love
and somebody that you can trust
What do you want from life
To try and be happy
while you do the nasty things you must

Well, you can't have that, but if you're an American citizen you are entitled to:
a heated kidney shaped pool,
a microwave oven--don't watch the food cook,
a Dyna-Gym--I'll personally demonstrate it in the privacy of your own home,
a king-size Titanic unsinkable Molly Brown waterbed with polybendum,
a foolproof plan and an airtight alibi,
real simulated Indian jewelry,
a Gucci shoetree,
a year's supply of antibiotics,
a personally autographed picture of Randy Mantooth
and Bob Dylan's new unlisted phone number,
a beautifully restored 3rd Reich swizzle stick,
Rosemary's baby,
a dream date in kneepads with Paul Williams,
a new Matador, a new mastodon,
a Maverick, a Mustang, a Montego,
a Merc Montclair, a Mark IV, a meteor,
a Mercedes, an MG, or a Malibu,
a Mort Moriarty, a Maserati, a Mac truck,
a Mazda, a new Monza, or a moped,
a Winnebago--Hell, a herd of Winnebago's we're giving 'em away,
or how about a McCulloch chainsaw,
a Las Vegas wedding,
a Mexican divorce,
a solid gold Kama Sutra coffee pot,
or a baby's arm holding an apple?

[JonnyM]

Yah Tube Heads,

You don't think I would play my Axes thru transistors would you? Well would you?

I don't have any skill at repair, but I love the sound of guitars thru tube amps. My current faves are old Fenders. I have a Bandmaster Reverb and Pro Reverb. That's 6L6 x 2 for about 40 watts of vibrant tube tone.

I'll be comparing notes and of course once you have all that free time convincing you to build me a custom tube amp powered by a pair of 6v6's.

JonnyM - It's about making music

P.S. Tubes still play now and then, their Bass Player is tight with my drummer.

[bruce1]

JonnyM

The free time starts in a year or two then who knows. My first amp was a pair of 6V6.

Bruce