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R/E/P => R/E/P Archives => The Acid Test => Topic started by: mjgreeneaudio on September 11, 2008, 01:21:52 PM

Title: James Gangwer Service
Post by: mjgreeneaudio on September 11, 2008, 01:21:52 PM
Everyone,
I purchased a Soundelux E-47 mic used and when it arrived it was not working properly.  Instead of sending the mic back I worked out a deal with the seller to pay for the repair.   In looking at who serviced Soundelux mic's I again found the name James Gangwer.  
James is well know around here as a great tech and guy. I know JJ has sent him quite a few mic's to work on and I now see why.   I sent the mic to him and just received it back yesterday.  I put it up today to check it and all I can say is wow.  James showed an amazing attention to detail and knowledge that is unrivaled.  He replaced a couple of the caps that had blown, replaced the tube, and reworked the power supply that was out of spec.  
The mic is truly a gem and in no small part because of James and his work.  He will be getting a few of my other "projects" that need fixing.  

If your in need of great service then James is your man.  His pricing is great and unlike many service guy's I have used, his attention to detail is incredible.

Thank you James and also JJ for suggesting him in all of your other posts.

Michael Greene
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: JGauthier on September 11, 2008, 04:35:53 PM
Im all for tech review posts! A good tech is hard to find.

How about posting where he is (what city) and website/contact info for anyone else who comes across this thread and doesn't know James?

Google may quickly solve that for most, but it would be great to have it here too! Smile
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Fibes on September 11, 2008, 04:36:29 PM
Thanks. As soon as I have some cash and the time to box some stuff up that's where i'm sending a few pieces, it's good to hear.
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: mjgreeneaudio on September 11, 2008, 05:17:32 PM
Doh!  I was in such a hurry to sing his praises that I forgot.  

http://www.jamesgangwer.com/

Michael Greene

Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Silvertone on September 11, 2008, 06:09:41 PM
mjgreeneaudio wrote on Thu, 11 September 2008 12:21

Everyone,
I purchased a Soundelux E-47 mic used and when it arrived it was not working properly.  Instead of sending the mic back I worked out a deal with the seller to pay for the repair.   In looking at who serviced Soundelux mic's I again found the name James Gangwer.  
James is well know around here as a great tech and guy. I know JJ has sent him quite a few mic's to work on and I now see why.   I sent the mic to him and just received it back yesterday.  I put it up today to check it and all I can say is wow.  James showed an amazing attention to detail and knowledge that is unrivaled.  He replaced a couple of the caps that had blown, replaced the tube, and reworked the power supply that was out of spec.  
The mic is truly a gem and in no small part because of James and his work.  He will be getting a few of my other "projects" that need fixing.  

If your in need of great service then James is your man.  His pricing is great and unlike many service guy's I have used, his attention to detail is incredible.

Thank you James and also JJ for suggesting him in all of your other posts.

Michael Greene



Hi Michael,

James is great. He took care of my Sony C37A as well as re-built one of the capsules in my very very rare stereo Russian tube mic. He had to completely rebuild the plastic ring from scratch on the upper capsule as someone had rotated it the wrong way and broke it. The front and back plates would just flop back and forth cutting in and out. He sent pictures every step of the way and I assembled it into a little book.

You can't even tell unless you look very close and see one capsule is sea foam green and the other is clear. The best part is they sound the same!

I've attached this picture before but it's a good one to see the length of detail that James goes through.  All for a very very reasonable price IMHO. He did so much work I renamed the mic the Popov/Gangwer Mic (as it came from the Radio Institute Popov St. Petersburg Russia).

index.php/fa/9914/0/
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Silvertone on September 11, 2008, 06:11:48 PM
Here is a picture of the capsules close up...

index.php/fa/9915/0/
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Silvertone on September 11, 2008, 06:16:03 PM
Dig that transformer and the tube has the wiring sticking out of the bottom and would appear to have been hand blown (if you saw the tube on the other side, for the other capsule it has a little curly cue on it). I could be wrong about the tube but there are no other markings...

index.php/fa/9916/0/


James is a godsend....
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: J.J. Blair on September 11, 2008, 06:26:47 PM
Now, if that's not Eastern Bloc design, I don't know what is!
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Silvertone on September 11, 2008, 08:12:59 PM
J.J. Blair wrote on Thu, 11 September 2008 17:26

Now, if that's not Eastern Bloc design, I don't know what is!



Scary huh, you can just imagine the old Russian woman with the handkerchief on her head putting this stuff together... with fellow comrades assembling hand grenades in the next room...
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Barry Hufker on September 12, 2008, 01:26:46 AM
If you look closely you can just barely see "Made by Boris and Natasha for Fearless Leader"... Pretty cool.
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Brad Lunde on September 12, 2008, 11:58:33 AM
 I remember when I was first introduced to James I was told, "this is the guy you can send a bag of parts for a completely disassembled U47 and he'll send back a working, proper sounding microphone".  We used James for all our warranty work on Brauner when we imported them for so many years, including KHE's.  Always perfect.  I connected him up with David Bock as well and he was the only out of warranty US service shop for Soundelux.   Now he's still helping out with fixing up Soundelux mics since they went out of business with parts David finds from time to time from old Soundelux parts vendors.  Sending a mic to James means I don't have to worry about it anymore!
Brad
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Brian Kehew on September 13, 2008, 07:10:16 PM
Stereo mic? I hope those capsules rotate, or...  

Wink
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Silvertone on September 14, 2008, 09:33:46 AM
Brian Kehew wrote on Sat, 13 September 2008 18:10

Stereo mic? I hope those capsules rotate, or...  

Wink


You have to read above and you'll find out the answer...
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: CHANCE on November 26, 2008, 11:27:39 AM
Silvertone wrote on Thu, 11 September 2008 15:16

Dig that transformer and the tube has the wiring sticking out of the bottom and would appear to have been hand blown (if you saw the tube on the other side, for the other capsule it has a little curly cue on it). I could be wrong about the tube but there are no other markings...

index.php/fa/9916/0/


James is a godsend....


What tube is that? It appears to be a sub miniature, and I see it has a socket which is rare on a submini.

edit: looking again and comparing in the other pics the size of the tube compared to the PSU, it's not a sub mini
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Silvertone on November 26, 2008, 06:40:57 PM
CHANCE wrote on Wed, 26 November 2008 10:27

Silvertone wrote on Thu, 11 September 2008 15:16

Dig that transformer and the tube has the wiring sticking out of the bottom and would appear to have been hand blown (if you saw the tube on the other side, for the other capsule it has a little curly cue on it). I could be wrong about the tube but there are no other markings...

index.php/fa/9916/0/


James is a godsend....


What tube is that? It appears to be a sub miniature, and I see it has a socket which is rare on a submini.

edit: looking again and comparing in the other pics the size of the tube compared to the PSU, it's not a sub mini



I believe it is a sub mini. It's smaller than the size of your pinky finger. Look at the size of the capsules. The power supply itself is about 4 inch's wide. I should see what the tubes in the power supply are.

James said if it ever went (or the one on the other side that you can't see) an AC701 is what he would probably have to try next. I believe this to be a proprietary component built by the Radio Institute Popov, St. Petersburg themselves. James could not identify the tube.

Bear in mind that this was designed in 1969 and around 50 prototypes were manufactured in 1970 by the government owned Popov Institute. Had they went into production the design/plans would have gone to Lomo to manufacture. Unfortunately around that time solid state mics were becoming popular (even in Russia).

So possibly this tube would match a Lomo tube out there, I really don't know. I just hope the mic keeps going as she has quite a reach and a sound unlike any other tube mic I've ever owned.

James saved the top capsule and kept the original design. Unfortunately he couldn't find any sea foam green plastic... The capsules seem to match dead on, so I couldn't be happier.
Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Edvaard on November 27, 2008, 12:59:41 AM
Silvertone wrote on Wed, 26 November 2008 18:40



I believe it is a sub mini. It's smaller than the size of your pinky finger.





Like the tube found in my brothers' first hearing aids.

I was very young when I first saw one of those tubes (brothers were older) and had no concept or knowlege of "microphone" at the time, so I thought that little "glass finger bulb" (as I called it in my mind) magically collected sound and sent it up the wire to my brothers' ear peices.




Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: Edvaard on November 28, 2008, 03:02:55 PM

Like some of these ...


http://www.wps.com/archives/tube-datasheets/Datasheets/Rayth eon-SP-7073-360-20M/2.JPG


Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: JGauthier on February 11, 2009, 01:56:58 PM
Just another plug for James. Sent him an e47 for repair and he was fast and painless!

Title: Re: James Gangwer Service
Post by: mjgreeneaudio on February 11, 2009, 02:45:45 PM
JGauthier wrote on Wed, 11 February 2009 11:56

Just another plug for James. Sent him an e47 for repair and he was fast and painless!




That is good news.  James is awesome.