What's a DAC Posted August 22, 2020 Share Posted August 22, 2020 I have a pair of Walnut K-horns (thanks to members here who pointed me to them) They were original owner and extremely well taken care of in their lifetime. I have them placed in a large room in my house, about the size of a double garage with vaulted ceilings. These are currently driven by an Emotiva XPA-2 300 wpc amp running in 2 channel mode with XLR input from a DAC. Sound is nice, clean and reminiscent of electronic amplification. I demo'd these at the owners house running through a Jolida 70wpc tube amp and they sounded "different". I don't know if it's kosher to say that based on all the other differences in room acoustics between the original owners house and my house. The soundstage is right where it should be. I just get the feeling that it could be better by going to a tube amp. I found a new Jolida 3502p with 2550 tubes for a killer price. I was just wondering what everyone would suggest to really wake these babies up from a music reproduction standpoint. Sorry I don't have the time to list all the different room acoustic principles, suffice it to say I put some serious thought into placement, sealing back of cabinets to wall, etc. The original owner also included a really nice set of bi-amp capable cables, which I am using to drive the speakers but not in a bi-amp mode. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OO1 Posted August 22, 2020 Share Posted August 22, 2020 TO JOLIDA - any good quality amplifier will do the job , whether tube or SS ----------but if you prefer Tubes , the Jolida 3502p amps are being sold with rebates for 1000$ ---you can't go wrong , that's what they sell for used ---- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
What's a DAC Posted August 22, 2020 Author Share Posted August 22, 2020 Thanks Randy, That is the price point I was looking at. Hard to beat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjptkd Posted August 23, 2020 Share Posted August 23, 2020 I've had good luck with Jolida products, almost pulled the trigger on that same unit some time ago still look at them every so often. I'd be curious to hear your impressions if you decide to go that route. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shakeydeal Posted August 23, 2020 Share Posted August 23, 2020 Any decent tube amp will kick an Emotiva to the curb. And Jolida makes pretty good amps. This one should be a no brainer. Shakey 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebes Posted August 23, 2020 Share Posted August 23, 2020 Tubes and Khorns are made for each other. Do some tube rolling with the signal tubes after you've had some time with it. And kick that DAC to the curb and get a turntable. Vinyl rules! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
What's a DAC Posted August 23, 2020 Author Share Posted August 23, 2020 thebes, I have a Technics SL-1200 turntable with a nice Shure type 3 cartridge and about 300 albums. I use the DAC for music I don't have on vinyl (Buckethead) and to process my CD collection. The turntable I picked up from the lady who sold me my Forte ll's which I just replaced the crossover networks with ALK models. Definite improvement. The K-horns already had ALK crossovers from the original owner. I also have the original Klipsch crossovers that came out of the K-horns. The Forte's sound great through the Emotiva. I may just move that amp to the living room and pick up the Jolida for the listening room. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
What's a DAC Posted August 23, 2020 Author Share Posted August 23, 2020 14 hours ago, jjptkd said: I've had good luck with Jolida products, almost pulled the trigger on that same unit some time ago still look at them every so often. I'd be curious to hear your impressions if you decide to go that route. I pulled the trigger on the Jolida. Should be shipped by Thursday. Full price including shipping was $1099 for black chassis and upgraded tubes. This should be interesting. Now to find a reasonably priced power conditioner. One thing about Arizona is monsoon storms. The lightning is horrific. I usually unplug all my electronics for POM. These storms are sometimes a daily occurrence and get tedious. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shakeydeal Posted August 23, 2020 Share Posted August 23, 2020 I have everything but my amp plugged into a PS Audio Power Plant Premiere but I still unplug everything before a storm. Shakey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OO1 Posted August 23, 2020 Share Posted August 23, 2020 2 minutes ago, What's a DAC said: . One thing about Arizona is monsoon storms. The lightning is horrific. if it's that bad , you would need an independent power source that could power the stereo via batteries even if there is no power outage , any glitches would not affect it - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjptkd Posted August 23, 2020 Share Posted August 23, 2020 16 minutes ago, What's a DAC said: I pulled the trigger on the Jolida. Should be shipped by Thursday. Full price including shipping was $1099 for black chassis and upgraded tubes. Wow that is a great price! Do you have a link if there's more available? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OO1 Posted August 23, 2020 Share Posted August 23, 2020 1 minute ago, jjptkd said: Wow that is a great price! Do you have a link if there's more available? Thanks. https://www.underwoodhifi.com/products/jolida 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjptkd Posted August 23, 2020 Share Posted August 23, 2020 8 minutes ago, RandyH000 said: https://www.underwoodhifi.com/products/jolida That is a really good deal anyone on the fence should not just jump but dive on this! Once the sale is over you could likely resell at same cost if you decide it's not a good fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
What's a DAC Posted August 25, 2020 Author Share Posted August 25, 2020 On 8/23/2020 at 11:40 AM, jjptkd said: That is a really good deal anyone on the fence should not just jump but dive on this! Once the sale is over you could likely resell at same cost if you decide it's not a good fit. I think so too. That's where I bought mine. Not sure this is so much a sale as relieving inventory for new models coming out from Black Ice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted August 26, 2020 Moderators Share Posted August 26, 2020 @What's a DAC I moved your thread here into tubes in the Hope's you might get some more responses on your excellent topic. If you want, I can move it back. Perhaps @tube fanatic has some other suggestions for you. Travis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tube fanatic Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 Nothing to add. Tubes and Klipsch speakers make the proverbial marriage made in heaven in my experience. Definitely post your impressions! Maynard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CharlieFromVB Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 FWIW, I've had the Black Ice Audio (Jolida) 3502S for a year or so. I ran it first with Heresys and now with with La Scalas. This is a really solid amp for both speakers. Also has a bypass for better integration with your Home Theater system. Couldn't be happier with my setup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnW Posted May 21, 2021 Share Posted May 21, 2021 Curious what you thought about the Jolida. I bought a 3502p about the same time to go with my Cornwalls. Currently rolling the preamp (12ax7) and power driver (12at7) tubes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Could sound better Posted May 21, 2021 Share Posted May 21, 2021 Build your own amp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RN12 Posted August 7, 2021 Share Posted August 7, 2021 On 8/22/2020 at 1:35 PM, RandyH said: TO JOLIDA - any good quality amplifier will do the job , whether tube or SS ----------but if you prefer Tubes , the Jolida 3502p amps are being sold with rebates for 1000$ ---you can't go wrong , that's what they sell for used ---- any idea where to find a 3502p amp? thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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