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This blog post, focusing on the Leben CS-600 and CS-600X tube amplifiers, began as a thorough introduction to vintage tubes after I bought a Leben CS-600 in 2024. It expanded to cover other Leben Hi-Fi Stereo Company amplifiers, from early models to their latest tube-based products, with a focus on integrated amplifier designs.  In addition,… Continue reading The Leben CS-600 ~ An Introduction to Leben Tube Amplifiers

In December 2023, I upgraded from a Pentax K5 to a Nikon D3. With the K5, I used either a 35mm macro limited lens or a 77mm 1.8 limited. The K5 had deteriorated gradually. First, the SD card slot stopped working, with cards getting stuck, leaving only the USB port usable. When that eventually failed… Continue reading The Nikon D3 in 2025 ~ Review, Photos, Thoughts

“Unfortunately, many of our best performances are out there in the universe someplace, and you still as professionals have to go in at ten o’clock on Wednesday and make a record and hope that every few records you might catch a really good day. And the rest of it is being professional and, certainly as… Continue reading Bill Evans: The Paris Concert Two + An Interview by Jim Aikin

Here’s my first tube photo in a while: a Russian 5U3C (Cyrillic: 5Ц3C) rectifier tube from 1976. It’s what’s known as New Old Stock (NOS), meaning that the tube has never been used. The tube was bought for a Kondo Audio Note KSL-M7 preamplifier clone produced and sold by the Chinese brand Sunbuck on Aliexpress;… Continue reading Kondo Audio Note KSL-M7 amplifier “clone”/ Exploding Capacitors

In October, I did some night photography experiments with a Nikon D3 and a Pentax K1. On a  Pentax forum, I saw a couple of photos taken with an old Pentax K10D, which is the last DSLR camera from Pentax built around a CCD (Charge-Coupled Device) sensor. The 10D was released in 2006 following a… Continue reading The Pentax K10D in 2025 ~ Review, Photos, Impressions

The Pentax 77mm f/1.8 lens, the brainchild of Japanese lens designer Jun Hirakawa, stands out with its unusual focal length of 77mm and f-stop value of 1.8. These specifications diverge from more traditional choices like 50mm, 80mm, or 85mm, and apertures such as f/1.4 or f/2.0, clearly showing Hirakawa’s unique approach. Interestingly, the 77mm, launched… Continue reading Pentax 77mm 1.8 Limited Lens

Some consider the Carl Zeiss 35mm f/2 Distagon the best 35mm lense made for Pentax mount (ZK). It was discontinued in 2010 resulting in high prices for deadstock and lenses in mint condition (especially in comparison to the same lens with Nikon or Canon mount, and they are rarely seen for sale on sites like… Continue reading The Zeiss 35mm f/2 distagon (ZK / Pentax mount) in 2025

Originally designed for use in televisions and radios, 6CS7 tubes are rarely used in audio products. The chief designer and owner of Leben Hi-Fi Stereo Company, Mr. Taku Hyodo, who is often referred to as one of the eight best tube amplifier designers in Japan, has a fondness for the 6CS7 type, presumably because of… Continue reading 6CS7 Tubes: Data, Specifications & Usage