Review: Woo Audio WA6 vs. WA6SE (stock units) - Page 31

And...

Yeah... that's a good question... do you leave the phones connected to the WA6, when turning on and off to change phones, or tubes???

And...

... are the Blackgate Std caps (in black) really any better than other caps - since most vendors "upgrade" to the BG Std caps, and not the best / most expensive Blackgate N / NX caps (in red)???

I realize the BG N/NX caps are very difficult / impossible to find in certain values (i.e. 1000uf 25 or 35v or 50v, etc.) - so they may not be an option.

But... are the BG Std caps worth the cost of the "upgrade?"

And... what caps would you suggest (that don't cost any more) that are a good alternative to the BG Std caps.

I always leave my headphones plugged in. The one thing I always do before powering my WA6 up, down, or switching headphones, is turn the volume control to minimum. I've been doing this for about a year with no problems at all.

With the WA6 transformer driven output you could have it on with nothing plugged in, and wont dump a capacitor full of voltage into your phones when you do plug them in. So I was told.

So I could probably switch headphones while leaving the amp turned on without ill effects? I'd prefer that route than turning the amp on and off...

I asked Jack. Not a good idea to leave it on without a headphone plugged in for extended periods, but ok to leave it unplugged for a few minutes at a time, as long as volume is turned down.

Just got my WA6 (stock; no upgrades). Sounds pretty good with the HD650. Volume is not a problem going from the X-Fi (at 60% master volume) to the E-Mu 0404 USB to the WA6 out to the HD650: a little higher than 11 o'clock is the highest point I'm willing to go with tracks that go near/past clipping.

My HD650 still has no veil with the WA6. I was hoping for a warmer (or maybe thicker) sound, honestly. Amped with the WA6 sounds pretty similar in overall balance to unamped or with the Total AirHead (I have not done any direct comparisons yet, though), with the most obvious improvement being better bass extension. It also seems like the sound is more lively, the soundstage and instrument separation are better, and the bass quality is improved. I don't hear any added distortion to the sound.

I wasn't expecting to be amazed, so I'm about where I expected at this point. I'm glad I finally bought a decent amp, though. I'll eventually get around to trying all of my other headphones with it.

edited to add: Just tried my other headphones with the WA6. Not much to report. No volume problems with the K701, but I think it still sucks and it still has a veil if you go above a pretty low volume. Did not try my portable headphones (KSC-35, PX100, K81DJ). The K501 fared the best - it and the HD650 are the only headphones I'll use with the WA6, I think.

Get the upgraded Sophia Princess 274b rectifier and run it in for about 80 hours and you will be pleasantly surprised.

My experience in upgrading gear is that the differences are rather subtle (unless going from total crap to something decent) and it takes many extended listening sessions to really get to appreciate all the improvements that the better gear offers.

Yes, the difference between the stock WA6 and maxed WA6 is not that big and takes a while to hear the subtle improvements (I've heard both), but the difference between the stock rectifier tube and the Sophia rectifier tube is bigger. The stock rectifier has slightly more plasticky sounding treble, with less soundstage and depth, mids were not as rich and full, and the bass was not as tightly controlled or as powerful vs the Sophia.

Absolutely agree with you about the Sophia. I was responding to ferraro's initial impression of the WA6, that it really takes a while to get to appreciate all the good things about the amp.
I've had the 6SE for more than a month now, and it continues to surprise me every day.

Okay then.

The stock 6 without the pseudo dual power supply will not wow. The amp needs the pseudo dual supply. Anything I build has this or dual power supplies. I also use the nonpolar caps in Super E but then that gets expensive for some but IMO, since I do it myself, worth it.

I'm now listening to my Stax SRS-2050II System, and it is better than either the HD650 and K501 out of the WA6.

For at least a year, I was very happy with my SR-202 as the only headphone (besides the PX100 and KSC-35 directly out of my laptop) I cared to listen to. What made me consider dynamic headphones again was the announcement of the HD800. Thinking it would be among the best headphones ever made, I decided to pre-order it. However, I got tired of waiting, got wary of spending so much for a single headphone, and realized that my Total AirHead was too low-end, so I canceled the HD800.

Too late, though; I had caught the headphone bug. So I did a little research and ordered a Denon AH-D7000. The D7000 impressed me so much, initially, that I gave up on the SR-202. However, I eventually realized that I found the sound signature to be too v-shaped and the mids too thin (as in lacking body) to justify the price, so I sent it back and got a HD650. After having the HD650 for a little while, I found it to be pretty damn good, so I decided to "realize some of its potential" and buy a WA6. However, I missed the bass and impact of the D7000, so I (foolishly) bought the DT770 Pro 80 ohm, didn't like it, and (foolishly, once again) immediately bought the HFI-780, which is better than the DT770 Pro but crap compared to the D7000 (the HFI-780 has thumpy bass that cannot compare in any way to the D7000's tight, impactful, powerful bass).

Well, fast forward a couple of weeks to today, and after finding myself pretty disappointed in how the HD650 sounds through the WA6 (if anything, it is too thick - too much congestion in any track that has a lot of [upper?] bass), I just now decided to try my SR-202 (I barely listened to it the past two and a half months, and didn't give it a chance due to wanting to like my new headphones). Surprise, surprise, it is as awesome as I remember it being before I went down this newest path. So clear, so natural, so real-sounding, and all this with no congestion.

So, around three months and $1300 later (not including the D7000), I realize, once again, that my SR-202 is better than any dynamic headphone I've heard. I thought that perhaps the WA6 would change my mind on that. The D7000 was something unique, though - if I were to give up all dynamic headphones to keep just one at this point, it would be for the D7000, since it offers something an electrostat most likely cannot (powerful, impactful, head-shaking, yet very textured and refined, bass).

But I'm probably being too quick to judge the WA6. Hopefully it will improve over the next ninety-something hours (100 hours recommended burn-in time). If it doesn't, it would be very smart of me to sell off all of my dynamic headphones costing >$100, my Total AirHead, and the WA6, and to get an Omega II system sometime in the future. I'm not sure I want to give away my identity on this site, though (through PayPal). I've acted the jerky way I have sometimes due to anonymity. I might use eBay, instead.

If I were supporting myself, I would be much smarter with my money. I'm not in financial trouble, but spending $1300+, without much thought, on headphones and an amp over the course of four months is just stupid.

I'm probably going to be spending over $3000 on a headphone and amp (Omega II), eventually, though, so... But it will be the endgame, not a wild goose chase.

Hi Guys,

I'm quite newbie to this tube amps world.

What are those things that are covering the tubes?


Thanks,

Herbie's Tube Dampers