Jolida and B&W Nautilus 805

Glad you found a suitable match, Lennychen. Yes, I think you did right by not going with the B&W in this case.

Great to see you around here, Joe. You are correct about the EL34. It's weak points are the bass and its treble. The midrange is where it runs away from the bigger tubes.

Although I talk up the EL34, it is actually from afar. I do not own an EL34 amplifier. My Jadis runs KT90 and the AtmaSpheres use 6AS7G.

I prefer the KT90 in almost every situation to the 6550, but would opt for the KT88 if I wanted sweetness. The larger tubes bring the low end grunt, and a big part of the equation is the transformers. Larger transformers are needed to run the big tubes, which is why the amps give more power and can put out better bass than an amp designed to run EL34.

The 6AS7G is an offshoot of the 2A3, and is very fast and immediate sounding. Yet, with a warmth and realness that is hard to describe.

Fortunately, Lennychen is in a good position, as his Jolida is set up for the bigger tubes. The 302 and 502 are really the same amp, the 502 runs the bigger tubes, and doesn't sound NEARLY as good.

On the bright side for me, my favorite uncle is passing his Williamson Circuit amp my way soon. He built it long ago. I am not sure what tubes it uses, but often, they seem to be KT66/6L6, sometimes EL34. I am hoping for EL34, or maybe would go to them, as I am not the biggest 6L6 guy out here.

Trelja,

The midrange is AWESOME with the EL34, but you are certainly right...the bass is certainly lacking. Fortunately the nice folks at my dealer are ordering some Russian tubes they recommend to boost the lower end. I'm not sure which ones they were exactly. Once I get them I'll let you know what I find (and which model they were!).

One final question, if you look at my system, I'm using van den Hul D102 III HB interconnects. Any recommendations on speaker cable? The dealer recommended van den Hul CS102s...which is a silver-copper hybrid, which I think will be a good match keeping the details and clarity.

Thanks!

Oops, those are actually van den Hul CS122 speaker cables...

Oooopps! I misread you on the Jolida, you have the 202, not the 302. The 202 has the smaller transformers, and can only run EL34. Transformers are the reason, moreso than the EL34, that the bass will never fall into the great category, regardless of what Euro or NOS tubes you try. Not to say that it cannot be improved, but you are working against the smaller bandwidth of the smaller transformers.

Still rejoice in that the Jolida 202 is one of the sweetest amps you'll come across, both in terms of sonics and economics. From what it appears, that midrange is really making you smile.

For speaker cable, if you are looking for something under $500, PLEASE try the Coincident 0.5. It is simply a giant killer. Bass is excellent, but the cable is a performer from top to bottom. Erring ever so sligthly to the romantic side. Very full bodied sound, but nice detail. This cable beats out my AudioQuest Midnight at 1/3 the price. You should be able to buy 8' for $200 new. Of course, used would be even less. I just cannot get over how good this cable is, especially when the price is factored in.

If you are looking at anything more expensive, I would give the Coincident CST 1 a shot. It basically corrects any of the 0.5's shortcoming, bringing slightly more slam and resolution. But is the difference worth the difference? Depends on your budget.

I shake my head at people spending crazy money on wire. I have had what many consider the top of the food chain in terms of speaker cable in my system for 8 months, and came to the conclusion that cost is not the determining factor in cable. I ended up replacing it with CST 1, and made a hefty profit along the way, not to mention sound that makes me signficantly happier.

Thanks for the suggestions...I'll do some research.

With some experimentation on speaker positioning, I'm able to tune the bass... Note everything is new and needs breaking in. Then the tubes and speaker wires will be upgraded...