Cat JL2 with blown board. Advice needed


This is an older non signature model. A tube went out and the resistors protecting the output transformers combusted taking out one of the boards.

Now the good news: an upgrade to a signature model won't cost anymore with the damage. The bad news: this is my only stereo. Ken Stevens himself advised that it's really not the intent of the amp to use it for amplifying football and CNN. His point is that he doesn't do that and he can get tubes a lot cheaper than I can.

I really liked the amp even in it's non signature form. I have a symphonic line tube pre amp and Eggleston Andra speakers. I have been told that the Symphonic Line Kraft 250 is even better than the JL2 however no one has told me definitively against the JL2 signature.

Given the speakers and how I am going to use the amp, do I get it fixed and keep it or move on?

What would the amp be worth as is? You can buy the amp, pay $5000 to upgrade it and have a factory certified JL2 signature. It should have value.

Or is the signature even better than the Kraft 250 or any other SS amp in the $8k used range? If the signature is the cat's meow in it's range I am leaning towards keeping it and dealing with buying a lot of tubes frequently. I probably use the amp 750 hours a year.
defender1844

Showing 3 responses by pubul57

The CAT JL2 Signature is likely the best push-pull, transformer coupled amp in the world. The Symphonic Line is proabably the amp that Ken Stevens would recommend if you did not buy his amp. So you basically have to excellent choices. I always prefer tube amps to SS amps, no matter how good the SS amp is; but that is my taste. I'm not sure you can get a defintive answer to your question. The ergonomics with excellent sound, and matching your preamp, go for the Symphonic Line. But for me the CAT is the choice for ultimate sound quality, but it is a lot of tubes, heat, and as you already know, a blown tube can do some real damage to the amp - no fuse protection as far as I know; that may be good for best sound, but you do have to own them over time.
The CAT is great, but the problems you describe and I experienced are easy to fix if you know what you are doing, but I would not have a clue, and those that by the amp need to know this can be an issue for those of us with two thumbs. But, like you say, undoubtedly one of the finest amps on the market.
Ken did tell me that if I did not buy his amp, he would suggest Symphonic Line. I've never heard an SS amp I preferred to tubes (the best I have owned personally was the Pass XA30.5), but I suspect this is just a matter of taste of what tubes do and what SS does and the reality being they can never really sound like each other. We all look for different things that satisfy us, so I don't think there can be any defintive claims for which is better for all listeners. If you can't be happy with the sound of either, you are unlikely to ever be satisfied. If I could find an SS that I preferred to my tube amps (Atma-Sphere, Music Reference RM-9SE, or my Ars-Sonum integrate) I would defintiely prefer the convenience of SS.