j-malotky Posted September 16, 2003 Share Posted September 16, 2003 Jim Being another who runs dual 250's, I've been waiting to hear what you think of your brothers JoLida. Please share. JM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neo33 Posted September 16, 2003 Share Posted September 16, 2003 Jim, you have got some nice McIntosh gears there. I love McIntosh stuff. I have my (mostly) McIntosh home theater gears for over five years now and they are still great. I am thinking of upgrading the home theater system sometimes next year with tube amplifiers. The new system will consist of three MC2102 vacumn tube amplifiers which are used to drive the speakers. What do you think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted September 16, 2003 Author Share Posted September 16, 2003 ..."The new system will consist of three MC2102 vacumn tube amplifiers which are used to drive the speakers. What do you think?" Neo33, what do YOU think what I think? I think it's "smashing, baby", as Austin Powers would put it! Having only one MC2102 would be sweet; having two more for your HT system would be the ultimate expression in McIntosh ownership. What more can I say? Your Klipsch loudspeakers would surely thank you for it! JM, the JoLida is everything the SS Macs aspire to be...warm, neutural, solid, detailed, and just plain amazing (it's just more so with the tube amp)! I didn't think I'd really hear much difference between the tube vs. SS debate, but since auditioning this lil' tube amp, music really is more natural. Not to put down the MC250 or the MC2100 (and my ol' MC7200), but the JoLida does have a more well-rounded characteristic about it...it's hard for me to describe in words, but it's somewhat more fuller sounding than the SS Macs (which still sound damn great to my ears). The SS Macs impart a tube-like quality unlike any other SS amps I've ever heard, but you really can't beat a tube amplifier. The differences aren't that dramatic to me, but they're there nonetheless. I can only imagine what the JoLida (or any other high quality tube amp) would do in the reproduction of recorded music through my Cornwalls (my bro won't let me borrow his JoLida...yet)! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j-malotky Posted September 17, 2003 Share Posted September 17, 2003 Jim Thanks for the update. I figured that was going to be the case. I may replace my 250's with something in the future. I have heard the old tube Mc's like the MC60 and 275 and did not think the sound was that much better than the good old SS MCs I have now and worth the effort. Have not heard the 225 or the 30. Maybe they may be worth it. Since I do use these amps for HT also, low powered SET is totally out of the question. I really need a clean 6-10 watts of power for HT so a good 25 - 30 watt tube amp is what I need. Then there is the tube maintance thing. YIKES, have instant flashbacks of my old Fender and Marshall tube guitar amp problems. Not sure if I am ready for that. JM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neo33 Posted September 17, 2003 Share Posted September 17, 2003 Jim, I don't have any Klipsch speakers. My gears are (almost exclusively) McIntosh. JM, tube amps color the sound so magically making it warm and natural that I can careless about solid state amps. And McIntosh is no exception. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted September 17, 2003 Author Share Posted September 17, 2003 JM, I understand how you feel about tube rolling/maintenance, and your ol' guitar amp woes. Granted I haven't heard the JoLida through my Cornwalls, so I don't know how much of a difference a tube amp would be with my system (and I don't really care for the sound of my bro's old AR9s, even with the JoLida in place of the mono Macs). All I know is I'm very happy with my SS MC250 and the MC2100 (which my brother may now sell, inwhich case I'll be getting my MC250 back...he's now using the other MC250 he recently bought to power his HT's center channel). I'm not in any financial position yet to be making any tube amp purchases, so I'm gonna have to live with the Macs for quite some time, and that's just fine with me! If I were you, and you're not too keen on the idea of purchasing a tube amp anyway, then I wouldn't worry too much about it. The McIntosh amps are fantastic SS amplifiers, and our Klipsch horn speakers appreciate good clean Mac power just as well as Horus or Moondog SET monoblocks. I like my pipe organ recordings rather loud, so I've come to the conclusion that a SET amp is definately out of the question for me as well; like you, I also need at least 25-30 WPC, and my MC250 fits the bill perfectly! Even if I was to later find a great deal on a tube amp, I don't see how I could ever part with my Mac. Now if I purchased a mint MC240 or any other vintage Mac tube amp...well, that's another story! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted September 17, 2003 Author Share Posted September 17, 2003 Neo33, you're a lucky man indeed. Do you mind mentioning what McIntosh gear you do have? When I had my beautiful MC7200 amp, I almost won the bid on eBay for a near-mint C36 preamp. I settled on an AMC CVT1030s tube preamp that, eventhough it sounded good, was just too cheap and flimsey for my tastes. You just can't beat McIntosh quality and reliability, and all their gear is built like a tank! I can only imagine how great sounding a vacuum tube-powered McIntosh amplifier is...it's what I lust after! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neo33 Posted September 17, 2003 Share Posted September 17, 2003 Jim, my McIntosh home theater system can be found on this thread: http://forums.klipsch.com/idealbb/view.asp?topicID=38534&sessionID={336E40DE-F0BC-4D9C-A363-874560ED89F8}. My McIntosh music system consists of the following gears: McIntosh C200 Preamp McIntosh MC2000 Tube Amps (X2) McIntosh MCD 7009 CD Player McIntosh XRT28 Speakers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted September 17, 2003 Author Share Posted September 17, 2003 Saw your thread...WOW! By the way, like your choice of cassette decks. I used to own the Nakamichi DRAGON, BX-1, and BX-125; now own both the DR-1 and DR-2. Since not owning a preamp anymore, my brother uses the DR-2 in his HT, and I'll ocassionally use his Sennheiser HD600 headphones to listen to tapes on my DR-1. My love affair with Nakamichi began back in 1979 when my dad bought two 680ZX 3-head decks, which I still consider one of Nakamichi's most popular (and most attractive) tape decks they ever built. It's a shame how the Nakamichi brand is only a shadow of their former self, but times have changed, and so have they. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted September 21, 2003 Author Share Posted September 21, 2003 Well, my brother Tom took his MC2100 away! He's considering selling it either on eBay or AudiogoN.com for between $400 to $500. It's in near-mint condition with absolutely no rust, pitting, scratches, or dents, and sounds magnificent! As we agreed, if he took his MC2100 back, then I'd get my MC250 back; it's hooked back up to my audio system and sounding as good as ever! He has no use for the MC2100 now that he's using his JoLida tube amp for his HT (with his MC250 filling in for center channel duty). I kinda hate to see him sell it; it's in the best shape I've ever seen a vintage MC2100 amp. Most are either dented up and rusty, missing parts, or not even working, and this one looks brand new! If I had the money, I'd buy it from him and keep it for such time as to put it to use for a HT for myself, or another audio-only system, etc. But it's his Mac, and he'd rather sell it and use the money for future improvements towards his HT...so be it. If anyone here is interested in a prestine 1976 McIntosh MC2100 SS amp, drop me a line, either on this forum or by my e-mail address below, and I'll pass the word on to Tom. If someone here wants to buy it, then all the better, and Tom wouldn't have to pay for auction/selling fees. Plus you know you'd be gettin' a nifty SS Mac that hasn't been abused or mistreated! I know I'll always keep my MC250 and my Cornwalls, natch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted September 27, 2003 Author Share Posted September 27, 2003 Just an update: My brother has his MC2100 up for sale on AudiogoN.com with an asking price of $600 (OBO): http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cl.pl?ampstran&1069853756&class&3&4& Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted October 6, 2003 Author Share Posted October 6, 2003 My bro had a potential buyer for the MC2100, but later the deal fell through. It's now posted for auction on eBay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3051555616&category=39783 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted October 6, 2003 Author Share Posted October 6, 2003 I was right in the middle of watching the DVD "K-19 The Widowmaker" with my youngest bro on his HT when my other brother Tom (who recently bought his JoLida JD 202a) paused the flick to tell me about a tube amp he just discovered on eBay. It was just posted a few hours ago with a BIN of $285. We read its description, then searched it on its "Ideal Innovations" website: http://www.idealinnovations.biz/ This Canadian PP tube amp is 20 watts per channel, which is a whole lot more than the lil' ZEN I was considering buying. After about 10 minutes of research, I decided..."What the hell!" I was immediately contacted by the owner in Ohio. I paid him through PayPal; he e-mailed me telling me he received his payment, and that he'll ship it FedEx Ground tomorrow. A few hours ago I was minding my own business watching a submarine flick, and now I'm a new owner of a PP vacuum tube stereo amplifier! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted October 6, 2003 Author Share Posted October 6, 2003 This is the Traditional Model Stereo-40. Output tubes are four 6U5GT and two 12AX7 preamp tubes...I assume they're all NOS JAN military tubes from JJ Electronic(?). Don't know anything about 6U5GT output tubes...they're not 2A3s or EL34s, that's for sure. I don't know whether I would've chosen this amp on my own if it wasn't for the low BIN price and the immediate availability. Talk about spur-of-the-moment! Hope it wasn't a mistake. I guess I'll find out soon enough. It might be great little amp, and easy to modify. I'll probably do some tube rolling later on, but for now I'll just see how well it sounds as is. I'll keep y'all posted, ya hear? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted October 6, 2003 Share Posted October 6, 2003 Jim, That angled chassis sure has a familiar look. Congratulations! fini Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted October 6, 2003 Author Share Posted October 6, 2003 Yeah fini, my Mac hates imitators! Unfortunantly, the deal fell through. The owner mistakenly described it as a 20 WPC amp when in fact it is a 10 WPC Stereo-20. Kelly and Dean and others on the 2-channel forum were right about the amp from their observations from the output tubes. So the owner e-mailed me and appologized for his error, and (to make a long story short) offered a full refund of my payment back to my PayPal account...which I accepted! He didn't know much about his amp other than the bias doesn't need adjusting, and that the output tubes say 6U5GT on them. He doesn't have the owners manual or the carton for it either. He seems to be a nice, honest guy though, so I will give him the benefit of the doubt and wait for him to repay me. Guess this is what I deserve for being too impulsive. The amp does seem to be well built, and their other offerings seem to be quite interesting, so maybe later on down the road when finances permit, I'll purchase a model of my choosing direct from the manufacturer. It was a great price though...maybe too good to be true! I think I did the right thing, instead of keeping it and trying it out. I honestly don't feel comfortable with only 10 watts per side with my listening habits. Just as well...my Mac is happy once again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted October 19, 2003 Author Share Posted October 19, 2003 Well, I did it again, except this time it's a keeper (I hope)! Got to talking to both Dean and Kelly at the 2-channel forum about tube preamps, and Dean just so happens to own a little Bez 6SN7 SRPP line stage preamp from an independent Hong Kong designer/builder that he's been praising lately. It's well constructed, uses high quality components throughout, sounds fantastic, and best of all it's dirt cheap...I was the winning bidder on this eBay auction, and it only set me back $245. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted October 19, 2003 Author Share Posted October 19, 2003 From what I gathered from the auction description, this lil' preamp uses a pair of 6SN7 output tubes, is 5Z4G tube rectified, has a pair of OC3 or OD3 tubes for power regulation, has a beefy 80 watt Ei transformer, with twin chokes and caps, a 23-step attenuator, and point-to-point wiring, etc. Dean claims the preamp's of sound design and solid structure despite its inexpensive pricetag, and should be quite capable being used alongside my SS McIntosh amp. I paid the seller through BidPay, but it'll take awhile for him to receive my payment, and even longer for it to ship from Hong Kong to my Florida address...as soon as I receive it and let it break in for a day or two, I'll post my impressions on this audiophile-grade line stage preamp. Should be interesting...some NOS tube rolling should be in order later on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted December 2, 2003 Author Share Posted December 2, 2003 Man, I just don't know when to stop! Had a few bucks in my bank account when I recently sold a Carver TFM-35x amp and a Nakamichi DR-2 tape deck on eBay. Instead of saving the moola for a rainy day (or for all my many bills), I instead decide that my newly yet-to-arrive BEZ preamp really needs a valve mate! Of course my McIntosh MC250 hates the idea of being replaced, but what better component to use with the 6SN7 SRPP linestage pre than another great vacuum tube amp from Edmund Lam (alias: Lam Ying Wing) of Hong Kong... http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3062258468&category=39783&rd=1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted December 22, 2003 Author Share Posted December 22, 2003 Well, my new BEZ Model T3B Class A 300B SE power amp has left Hong Kong and is on its way to sunny Florida. Edmund has been very informative, relaying to me that a great tube substitution for his stock 6K7G radio tubes would be the 6J7 metal or glass tubes, or even a NOS EF37 red-painted glass tube (Mullard was well known for these tubes in certain Quad amps). I'm really looking forward to driving my Cornwalls (for the first time in their existence) in an all-tube powered system...all I really need now is a CD player with a vacuum tube output, but that'll have to wait awhile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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