ablaze 0 Report post Posted August 26, 2003 ok, according to antness, he's made some cosmetic improvements to the lites, and they will be shipped tomorrow. so for those ordering, its close! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ablaze 0 Report post Posted August 27, 2003 antness says he'll be shipping the lites out right now at the time of this post! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ablaze 0 Report post Posted August 28, 2003 lites are shipped. but we agreed on EMS shipping ie. expediated, with tracking no. but he shipped it airmail. doesn't do much to add to his already enviable reputation..sigh.. justin, if you're reading this, I hope you have something to say, since I still have that email you sent me confirming the terms of the sale and the agreement that it'd be shipped EMS. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
matbon0013 0 Report post Posted August 28, 2003 That does not sound nice Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ablaze 0 Report post Posted August 31, 2003 eric,masz, please let me know once you receive the gilmores. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pipee 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2003 Units arrived yesterday. Thanks for all your help ablaze. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ablaze 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2003 great! how's it so far? post some pics Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pipee 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2003 (edited) Sorry no digicam so no pics. Looks exactly like the one on the website except that the screws are different and the power switch is those black button switch and not a toggle switch. Not great at review so...I won't. Maybe Eric? Maybe some preliminary impressions. It runs hot. Warm to the touch. Build quality is good but QC not so good. Eric will know what I mean. Or maybe I'm just anal about such things. As for the sound I only have a HeadSave Ultra as reference. Basically the Lite has the same sound as the Gilmore V2 (or my impressions of it). Have it paired with a AKG501 (my main purpose for it). Has no problems driving it well. Better than the HeadSave Ultra. The Ultra can drive the AKG501 to good volume levels but not with the kind of power and ooomph that I heard when the AKG501 was driven with the Glimore V2. Although the Gilmore Lite has a gain of 5 and the HeadSave Ultra has a gain of 10, they both sound like they have the same gain level. Maybe the HeadSave Ultra just slightly more. At the end of the day I felt the Gilmore V2 had slightly more power and drive than the Lite (or what's left of my impressions of it) but basically the same sonic signature. Edited September 5, 2003 by pipee Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ablaze 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2003 thats not bad for a mini-review what anyway, what do you mean build quality is good, but QC is not? got problems with the lites? oh, you're using the supplied Elpac with a step-down transformer I suppose? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pipee 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2003 I guess it's OK lah. Just some cosmetics stuff. Construction is well built. So no problems there. Yep. Using the Elpac with a cheap $5 step-down transformer + a 2-3 pin adapter in between. Don't know how much this affected the sound. I think this is better value for me at $460 compared to the $290 that I paid for the HeadSave Ultra second hand when paired with the AKG501 due to the extra ooomph and drive sound-wise. But I guess it evens out with something easier to drive like the Grados or Senns. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ablaze 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2003 $5 step-down transformer with a $500 amp? hehe you or eric should post some pics Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
N@Z 0 Report post Posted September 6, 2003 What specifically are the differences in sound between your Headsave Ultra & the Gilmore Lite using the K501? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ashleybenton 0 Report post Posted September 6, 2003 So your Gilmore is working fine?? No humming problems at all! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pipee 0 Report post Posted September 6, 2003 So your Gilmore is working fine?? No humming problems at all! Er...what hum? Haha maybe my ears not sensitive enough. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pipee 0 Report post Posted September 6, 2003 (edited) What specifically are the differences in sound between your Headsave Ultra & the Gilmore Lite using the K501? I'm really not good at describing stuff. Best I can describe it is that with the Ultra sound comes out but somehow you feel that it is not driving the AKG501 to it's full potential. Sounds more grainy, more compression (you wouldn't know if you don't compare), more airer? (doubtful) and you know it's having a tougher time driving. The Lite sounds a lot like the V2. Good tonality. Each instrument is more rounded and given special attention. When the music gets complicated, they don't lose focus. With the V2 you get more transparency and a sense of more effortlessness. One thing about the Gilmores I've noticed is that they are not as airy as other amps I've heard. Say like the Corda HA-2 and Sugden Headmaster (now that's one airy amp). It's definitely not a light sound. Maybe it is this missing airiness which makes people like TubeRoller not liking the Gilmores. It gives the impression that there is not much instrument separation and that spacious feeling (soundstage?). I don't know. Edited September 6, 2003 by pipee Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
