Upgrade Mosfets

[S Clark]

Ya know, Scott. You've got a way with words    🦍 🦍

Sometimes.  Kinda like my arthritis, it comes and goes. 

[tmazz]

My Moscode 600 made three trips to George's shop for upgrades over the years. It always came back sounding significantly better, and while quality was always the hallmark of his work, speed was never really on the table. Luckily it was never my only amp, so I was not high and dry while the Moscode was in the shop. That made the wait a little easier to deal with,

But then, good things are always worth waiting for. 

[HAL]

Scott,
Glad the upgrade worked out for the MOSCODE amp!   

[S Clark]

and while quality was always the hallmark of his work, speed was never really on the table.

When George emailed to say that the amp was finished, he also said he wanted to hang on to it for another 4-5 days to continue to listen, burn in, and adjust.  Got to say, this is admirable in a world where turnaround is king.  Most shops would simply want to get it out the door.   So I've got to agree that George takes pride in the sound of his gear.  And like you, not having this amp did not deprive me of music. 

[P.I.]

I've always heard good things about GK!

I have to say that so far I'm impressed with the sound. Just don't expect George to get in any hurry to work on stuff.  I suspect that he works for a day, then takes off two.  I know he took 3 weeks on the amp before mine. 
But the time and money will be well worth it, I suspect.

George is a lot like the rest of the "olde garde" I think.  We work because we love what we do and enjoy the reality of making another's experience as good as possible.  Old guys are slow, by definition.  We have already run the race and we are taking cool down laps...

[tmazz]

I've always heard good things about GK!

I have to say that so far I'm impressed with the sound. Just don't expect George to get in any hurry to work on stuff.  I suspect that he works for a day, then takes off two.  I know he took 3 weeks on the amp before mine. 
But the time and money will be well worth it, I suspect.

George is a lot like the rest of the "olde garde" I think.  We work because we love what we do and enjoy the reality of making another's experience as good as possible.  Old guys are slow, by definition.  We have already run the race and we are taking cool down laps...

Nah, George took his time 30 years ago when brought my amp to him in the early 90s. Can't blame his age, it's just the way he is.  But he always took great pride in what he did and his work showed that, so I was always willing to put up with the wait.

[StereoNut]

I will second the motion re:GK. He can be quirky as all hell. One call he's very snippy and impatient, the next call he's your long lost pal!     My used Moscode 600 was completely revamped by George a good number of years ago when I first got it. (2011...?)  It took forever, but it sounds great and will drive a pair of cinder blocks! 

A "lifetime" amp in my opinion.

SN

[rollo]

  It should be a step forward knowing the reputation of George.

charles

[S Clark]

It's been 7 months since I put the Moscode 300 in my system to compare to the Moscode 401HR.

This was one of those repair it or junk it decisions.  But when George Kaye described a "double" mosfet option, I decided to gamble the extra bucks on upgrades, and the "in for a penny, in for a pound" decision.   This led to much more investment than planned, a frustrating relationship with George (sloths move faster), and a real question about whether investing $$ in a "backup" amp was wise.  I still don't know it was wise, but I have absolutely no regrets about the investment. 
The short version is that the old 300 is still driving my LS9's.  It's not that it's better than the 401HR, but months and months later, the 401 HR is still sitting on the shelf not hooked up. Now some of that is related to my listening habits-- I'll go through slumps where I don't put on an lp for weeks.  But the truth is, this amp has precision, soundstage, and BALLS that it didn't have before.  The 401 HR still goes into service in the main system, but I'll change it out occasionally.  And when I do, the little 300 stays longer that expected. 
When I picked up the 401, it was because I was chasing the first of three amps to come up used/cheap.  I was looking for a Dodd 120, or a McCormack 500, or the 401HR... all recommended by guys that had the same speakers that I had.  At the time I was using the old 300, and it didn't quite have the control and nuance I was looking for to match with such huge speakers.  The 401 came in at a deal, and I never looked back.  Much later I had hooked up the 300 to find it motor boating (not tube related).  Gary D had fixed it before, but this time he just wasn't able to work reliably.  The amp sat... and sat... and there was no one willing to look at it in Texas. 

But now... this little amp is glorious.  I'd really have to say that it serves as well as it's bigger cousin.  George has delivered on all of his promises that I had suspected were a bit of hype. 
If you are looking for an amp with power, used 300's are out there in the $400-500 range.  Add another $700 and George can make it something special. 
I've always been skeptical of spending more on upgrades than the equipment cost.  Dueland caps are probably amazing, but I'm not the guy to put $3000 into a $2000 speaker.   But in this case, it was money well spent.   

[tmazz]

I felt the same way about the upgrades George did to my Moscode 600.

Glad to hear it worked out for you. 

[S Clark]

I felt the same way about the upgrades George did to my Moscode 600.

Glad to hear it worked out for you. 

At the time George did mine, he had just finished putting the double die Mosfets in a 600.  If you still have yours, it's an upgrade worth thinking about. 
I wanted to wait to follow up on this story.  With amps, it usually takes a while for me to really form an opinion other than first impressions.  It usually comes down to whether the amp stays in the system for an extended time.  In this case, the 300 has really stepped up. 

[tmazz]

I felt the same way about the upgrades George did to my Moscode 600.

Glad to hear it worked out for you. 

At the time George did mine, he had just finished putting the double die Mosfets in a 600.  If you still have yours, it's an upgrade worth thinking about. 
I wanted to wait to follow up on this story.  With amps, it usually takes a while for me to really form an opinion other than first impressions.  It usually comes down to whether the amp stays in the system for an extended time.  In this case, the 300 has really stepped up.

Thanks, I'll have to look up the specifics.

[jimbones]

Did George take his meds??

[S Clark]

Did George take his meds??

He must have, although he took his sweet time getting my repair and mods done.