[jpelg]

Great thread. Thanks for posting Jude. Funny that Canman was just talking to me about this sound system on our ride to the Grado meet last weekend. And now to see the actual pics is very cool.

Jeff, how do you pronounce Wadia? Is it "wah-dee'-ah", with the accent on the "dee" sound? Or is it "wah'-dee-ah", with the accent on the "wah" sound?
Also, is there a known derivation of the name? Just curious.

(I know, silly questions, but I like to pronounce things correctly

)

 

[jefemeister]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jpelg Jeff, how do you pronounce Wadia? Is it "wah-dee'-ah", with the accent on the "dee" sound? Or is it "wah'-dee-ah", with the accent on the "wah" sound? Also, is there a known derivation of the name? Just curious.

Good question. That used to confuse me as well. I'm not very good at phonetics, but the "Wa" part is pronounced similar to the beginning of "want", the "di" is like the letter "d", and the "a" is short. emphasis on the "d." Incidently, out logo is the "di" part of our written name with the bottom section cut off. It took me a long time to realize that as well.

edit: the name comes from "Wadia F. Moses" who I believe was the grandfather of our founder and first engineer.

 

[chiefroastbeef]

this is one of them "sorry about your wallet" posts isn't it...

 

[Hajime]

Wow, I'm jealous.

If there is a Head-Fi meet at the Wadia headquarters this summer I'd seriously consider coming just to hear Wadia's amazing gear. Wow, look at those DACs!

 

[tom hankins]

Man there products are beautiful. Those kind of pictures always make me want touch myself.

 

[jefemeister]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jude Any 921’s they had were either shipped, or at HE2004 in New York.

The 921 protos were at HE, we are just getting production for the 921 up now. We delayed bringing it out earlier because we have substantially changed some things. For example, we now do the I/V conversion in a discrete, potted implementation. Power supply has been slightly modified and now has 2 chokes instead of 1. Output stage refined.

edit: modified ealier text: The digital part is the same except now the overall output DIP switches are located on the rear of the unit and controlled via microcontroller.

 

[KR...]

Quote:

I've an 830 and love it. It also drives HD-600s directly which is a nice bonus.

How do you do this? Does it have a headphone jack I must have missed, or do you use a device like the Antique Sound Labs UHC-Signature Universal Headphone Converter with it's preamp?

 

[eric343]

Nice! Wadia Marketing should arrange for Jefe to get a raise for the excellent job he's doing spreading goodwill and winning the hearts and minds of headphiles

 

[Hirsch]

Nice timing of this thread! My 301 just arrived today

 

[jude]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gpalmer Heh, I hope you snagged some gear to review while you were there!

I put the PowerDAC in my pants, but somehow they noticed.

So instead, I left with this. It's a Wadia 6, an older (circa-90's) player, and one that was of a very solid reputation back in its day. I've always wanted to hear the famous "Wadia sound" from that generation, to compare it to the current "Wadia sound" I'm more familiar with -- the previous and most recent Wadia generations are reputed to sound different, and, as I'm finding out, they do. I won't comment much more on the Wadia 6 at this time, but I will say that it doesn't sound like the Wadia 861, which I spent a lot of time with at home. I'll also say that it's not as ultimately resolving as the current generation of Wadia gear, but it would still show very well against most of the other high end sources I've heard to date with its overall performance -- call it high resolution (and mildly up-front), but with a nice romantic tint. I prefer it to any Meridian I've heard to date (I haven't yet used the new G series Meridians). While I have it, I'm going to make use of it with components that require balanced sources up front (the HeadRoom BlockHead is at the very top of my list). I'm not sure how hard the Wadia 6 is to come by, or if there would be any difficulty getting one serviced if needed, but I'm surprised it isn't more of a topic in used high-end CD player searches.
Quote:

Originally Posted by rycet Wow, Amazing. When can we have a meet there?

We had one there almost exactly a year ago (it was at their previous headquarters). We had a great time, too. As Jeff stated, plans for another Wadia-hosted Head-Fi Meet are starting to brew (see below).
Quote:

Originally Posted by jefemeister Nice pics Jude. I had a blast showing you around....

Thanks, man. I'm sure it was pretty obvious by the look on my face throughout the tour that I had a great time, too.
Quote:

Originally Posted by jefemeister ....We are definitely holding a head-fi meet sometime this summer, date TBD. I'll take those who are interested on a tour during the meet and, of course, the soundroom will be available for anyone who needs a break from headphone listening....

Great idea. The listening room will be a hit. Guaranteed.
Quote:

Originally Posted by jefemeister ....BTW, I know you took a lot more pictures. I (and I'm sure others) would love to see them even w/o descriptions as I know that's time consuming.

Yes, I'll post them this weekend as a simple page full of the photos that weren't posted in this thread.
Quote:

Originally Posted by jpelg Great thread. Thanks for posting Jude. Funny that Canman was just talking to me about this sound system on our ride to the Grado meet last weekend. And now to see the actual pics is very cool....

Thanks, jpelg. Weird coincidence, eh? I couldn't be at the Grado-hosted meet, and I couldn't make HE2004, so I was feeling like I had to do something hi-fi-related. Besides, my mother was in town to help out with the new baby, so I felt it an ideal time to temporarily abandon my wife and newborn son for the hi-fi plains of nearby Saline.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jefemeister The 921 protos were at HE, we are just getting production for the 921 up now....

Yeah, I heard pretty early 921 prototypes, and I know it has evolved since those early protos. Please call me when you have them set up again, and I'll head out to hear 'em.
Quote:

Originally Posted by Hirsch Nice timing of this thread! My 301 just arrived today

Lucky dog, you! I've enjoyed my experiences with the 301, and am looking forward to reading how it fits in with you, Hirschizer.

 

[jefemeister]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jude It's a Wadia 6, an older (circa-90's) player, and one that was of a very solid reputation back in its day. I've always wanted to hear the famous "Wadia sound" from that generation, to compare it to the current "Wadia sound" I'm more familiar with

The W6 was actually our first one-box CD player. It was introduced in 1992 @ $4500. Here's a product timeline showing major product launches:

1988: 2000 dac, 1000 dac, 64.4 dac
1990: 4000 adc, Pro dac, 2000T tran
1991: X32 dac, 3200T tran
1992: 9 dac, 10 interface, 7 tran, 6 cd
1993: 15 dac, 8 tran
1994: 12 dac
1995: 17 adc, 21 cd, 23 cd, 26 dac, 22 tran, 16 cd
1996: 25 dac, 20 tran
1997: 27 dac, 860 cd, 850 cd
1998: 270 tran, 830 cd
1998+: 301 cd, 302 cd, 861 cd, powerDAC, 130/150 adc

 

[AndreYew]

Jeff,

Thanks for the answer about CD index points --- I guess I may have to start saving my pennies.

Another question for you, perhaps contentious: did the green-colored transport in the 861se actually make any measurable difference?

--Andre

 

[Genetic]

Thanks Jude & Jeff it was... it was...I dont know what is was...

This line of products is obviously amazing but is there a «entry level» for this kind of quality?

Amicalement

 

[ServinginEcuador]

Thanks for sharing the photos and info with us jude. That was an awesome walk-thru of the Wadia plant. I enjoyed the whole thing.

Wow, if that's the stuff that they're allowing you to talk about and show I'm interested in seeing their releases of products in the near future that they're keeping under wraps.

 

[13DoW]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KR... How do you do this? Does it have a headphone jack I must have missed, or do you use a device like the Antique Sound Labs UHC-Signature Universal Headphone Converter with it's preamp?

I made my own HD-600 cable with XLRs on the end (note that you need the other sex connector that Headroom uses for their balanced connections). Or, you can make an adapter to go from the two phono outputs to a 0.25" stereo headphone jack. I find the 1V output setting to drive HD-600s and the volume control is built in!

Regards
13DoW