If you had a question for Mr. Bob Carver.....

[treitz3]

If you had a question for Mr. Bob Carver, what would it be? Serious questions will be answered by the man himself. Just thought that I would throw it out there for any Polk Forum members. FYI, he will be attending this year's Carverfest and will be hosting a Q&A session to answer any questions that you may have.

This is NOT a joke!

You have until September 5th to ask your questions and please keep in mind that some questions may hold proprietary information, therefore it may not be able to be answered.

Thank you for your time. Tom.

 

[jtwrace]

where is te carver fest?

 

[Dominick22]

What is the most difficult advancement currently facing amplification development.

Dominick

 

[JonFo]

Are there any possibilities of using the advances in Ultra-capacitors to better handle the high-back EMF of electrostatic speakers?

One could imagine that the high emery storage / release / absorption characteristics of the UltraCaps being pretty convenient in a power amplifier designed for electrostats (or other reactive speakers).

 

[treitz3]

Nice Questions. Thanks and keep 'em coming!

Jwtrace, it's located near the NC/TN border about 7 miles W of Bryson city. The event will be Sept. 10th - Sept 15th. There will be gear there that very few people in the world have had a chance to get their ears on. PM me if you are interested in coming.

 

[treitz3]

What is the most difficult advancement currently facing amplification development.

Dominick

Hello Dominick and thank you for your input. Are you referring to tube amps or SS amps?

 

[TomDac]

Here's one for Mr. Carver:

Share your memories of MartinLogan's beginnings. It is my understanding that He and the Gayle were good friends and were both up and coming at the same time.


Also..

Does he plan to do anything like the Lightstar Reference amps anytime in the future?

 

[treitz3]

Does he plan to do anything like the Lightstar Reference amps anytime in the future?

I can answer that one for you now, but I will still ask him. His passion is tubes. The Lightstar was excessive in cost and was something that he never got to complete, he just designed it. He sold and left the company before the Lightstars were complete. Everything was ordered, but they weren't built yet.

From what he has relayed, he would like to stay away from business and just make it back into a hobby. Designing and building tube amplifiers. No employees, no corporate BS, just Bob, his designs and tubes. He said that he hasn't felt this happy since he started Phase Linear. Just like today, back then he wasn't worried about production. When asked what he wanted to do when he retired, he responded "work till I drop".

I will most certainly address everything mentioned here on this thread so far. I'm actually interested in his thought on him and Gayle. Thanks for your question!

 

[TomDac]

Cool info on the LightStar. I almost bought one from Cherian, but I had just bought my Pass and couldn't see replacing it..

At the MLC Get-Together last year, I had the pleasure of talking to Gayle's ex-wife Karen, who shared some of her stories from the early days of ML. Smoke coming out of the basement, etc. Very interesting. Some of them included Bob and I guess they all knew each other quite well....

Tom.

 

[Horchem1972]

Carver questions

I would like to know who he recommends to have Carver ribbons repaired.When he bought Carver back why didn't he start producing replacement ribbons?

 

[treitz3]

Hello Horchem1972. The gentleman who handles all of the Carver ribbon repairs is Mr. Dave Sauter. Here is some pricing information as well as his contact information. He is the only authorized ribbon repair service available.

Carver Ribbon Repair Pricing:

Model: Ribbon Size/Price each/Price set

Original Amazing Loudspeakers (4) 30" Ribbons/ $215 ea./ $800
Platinum Amazing Loudspeakers (2) 60" Ribbons/ $465 ea./ $900
Silver Amazing Loudspeakers (2) 48" Ribbons/ $415 ea./ $800
AL-III Loudspeakers (2) 48" Ribbons/ $415 ea./ $800

All repair pricing includes return shipping in the lower 48 states.
International shipping will be additional charges.

Please contact Dave prior to shipping any items.

Dave Sauter
7055 Clifford Rd.
Madison, NY 13402

315-893-7838 [Note:] This phone number will be good until around November

 

[treitz3]

When he bought Carver back why didn't he start producing replacement ribbons?

Did you happen to mean when he sold Carver?

Replacement ribbons are still being made today. See the above post to find out who bought all of the inventory/ribbon repair parts from Carver. The last I spoke with him he had enough ribbon on hand to repair between 7-800 ribbons, FYI.

 

[Horchem1972]

Reacquired Carver after bankruptcy

I thought I read somewhere that he had purchased Carver after the bankruptcy.If not,I am sorry.Why doesn't he go the Roger Sanders route and do business on his own?He has many loyal Carver and Sunfire owners that find his knowledge invaluable.I have owned four differant models of the ribbons speakers and enjoyed all of them.I still prefer the AL-III Plus series the best.The flattest speaker I have ever measured in a room with an RTA.Augment it with a quality subwoofer and it will play as clean and loud as you would ever want.I sold all of my Carver equipment because it is very hard to get fixed or find quality replacement parts.He could open up the repair shop and live happily ever after.

 

[C.A.P]

Having owned several Carver amps and pre amps along with CD players. Run into Silver Amazing s. I would just like to thank Mr. Carver for his fortitude and willingness to not except the norm. I loved my Sunfire amp. It was great with all my ribbons and planers. His designs and ability to think OUTside the box has been a star in this industry.

Thank you Bob !

C.A.P:bowdown:

 

[treitz3]

Please forgive me for the shameless bump since we are on a time line with questions. Tom, please delete this post if this is not acceptable. Thank you.

The last date to be able to ask a question is the 5th of September. After that, you have lost your chance. Keep in mind that Bob is also getting up there in the years and one day this opportunity may not be available.

 

[jtwrace]

Who did Bob consider to be his biggest competition? Why? What did he do about it?

 

[bostonaudi]

Carver mentioned in the last issue of TAS that there were inherent technical problems with Class D amplifiers, and that there still aren't any good sounding Class D amps being offered commercially. He asked if the interviewer wanted him to explain why, and it was never expanded upon. I'd like to hear more from Bob about Class D and what exactly he doesn't like about them, and what he feels still needs development.

thanks

 

[User211]

Carver mentioned in the last issue of TAS that there were inherent technical problems with Class D amplifiers, and that there still aren't any good sounding Class D amps being offered commercially. He asked if the interviewer wanted him to explain why, and it was never expanded upon. I'd like to hear more from Bob about Class D and what exactly he doesn't like about them, and what he feels still needs development.

thanks

No dis-respect to Bob, but he IS wrong. http://www.chapteraudio.com/

These sound great. Honestly. Much better than any other class Ds I have heard.