[arnaud]

Below is a comparison between two players that I own. One is the Jolida JD100A, which I upgraded with RCA 5751 NOS tubes. The other one is a Philips DVD724, a entry level DVD player which does not sound bad for the price (less than $100).

The equipment used for the comparisons are the Stealth from Ray Samuels Audio with stock tubes, Sennheiser HD650 headphones with Oehlbach replacement cable.

Matching the output level of both players was easy, it roughly corresponds to 1 step on the Stealth stepped attenuator. The comparisons between the two players were made with "short term memory": I was using identical CD-Rs, playing simultaneously on both players, and I would then switch between the two inputs in the preamp.

The analysis below is thus not the typical long term impressions but rather bulk differences I observed between the two players using a variety of recordings (rock, jazz and classical). Over the two hours I did this, differences were NOT huge but, depending on the recording, slightly perceptible to obvious.

Here are my impressions:

Dynamics: the JD100A is a DVD724 on steroids, the sound is MUCH punchier and dynamic on the tube player. This is obvious regardless of the music type or quality of the recording.

Bass: the bass is boosted on JD100A, it has more body, and weight but sounds actually firmer on DVD724. The bass can sound muddy on JD100A. This bass accentuation on the JD100A is likely due to the tubes in the player output stage. I'd need to experiment again to find the right tube for the HD650/Stealth (the RCA NOS tubes were selected at the time I was using the HD600/PreHead combo).

Treble: it is more prominent on JD100A, but it sounds pure/crystalline on the JD100A while grainy and smeared on the DVD724.

Soundstage: it does not seem wider or deeper on the JD100A, but we can pick up reverberation MUCH more easily. The JD100A leaves the DVD724 in the dust on recordings with natural acoustics (classical, jazz).

Resolution: apart from reverberation, the JD100A does not sound more resolving than the DVD724A.

Acoustic instruments (piano, trumpet, other jazz instruments): they sound more dynamic on the JD100A, sound compressed on the DVD724. The DVD274 sounds sterile while the instruments are harmonically rich (blooming) on the JD100A.

Voices: they have more presence (more detail) on the JD100A, maybe because the treble is more prominent than the DVD274. However, the DVD724 does not sound bad.

Large ensembles: the DVD724 sounds very compressed and muddy, the JD100A sounds dynamic but somewhat messy.

That's it for the quick comparison... Arnaud.

 

[elrod-tom]

Thanks for the comparison, arnaud. I found the JD 100A to be an absolute killer on anything accoustic. Very natural and sweet sounding with anything from accoustic guitar to chamber music.

 

[arnaud]

Actually, I just put some electronic music (Violator from Depeche Mode) and the Jolida trounces the DVD player on that too! It's even more obvious than with the jazz recordings! Probably due to the dynamics...

Arnaud.

 

[lifeinabox]

Yup, the Jolida is not only one smooth player but also has excellent pace and dynamics. It's the best cdp I've owned and I've owned a few including the Cambridge Audio D500SE, Cal Audio Icon II, Ah Tjoeb '99, and Sony 555ES over the years. Cured my source upgraditis since I bought it nearly two years ago.

 

[mulveling]

Heh, let me add another pebble to the avalanche. I'm really enjoying my recently acquired JD100A (thanks Tom, for the review). It's the usual suspects over here, too: compared to my dvd players (Toshiba 4900, Panasonic rp91), the Jolida has a reduced amount of digital harshness without sacrificing any detail. Dynamics and bass are better. With the Jolida, my HD650s now have an airiness that I was previously only able to get with the HD600s. And definately, there's something special about this player and acoustic instruments. In particuar for me, piano is brilliant whereas before it sounded a little fake and "plastic-y". While most of the differences are subtle, I did not find any aspect of either dvd player's sound that I liked better than the Jolida. No tradeoffs here, except for not being able to play DVDs on it

 

[arnaud]

mulveling,

Following your post yesterday, I switched my RCA 5751 with Brimar CV4004. Humm, it completely change the tonal balance of the player.

At the time I bought the RCA and brimar tubes, I was using the PreHead and HD600s downstream. At that time, I much preferred the RCA over the brimar then because it made the setup sound warm enough to my taste. I recall I also found the midrange and soundstage much better with the RCA tubes.

This time around with the Stealth/HD650s, it seems that the RCA 5751 pushed the sound on the overly warm side. The brimar tubes yield a more balanced sound with the bass not forward anymore. It also seems like the muddy sound I was getting at times is gone!

The trade-off: there seem to be less impact, as if the player was not trying to "show off" as much as before. Also, during the first couple of hours after switching the tubes, the sound was a bit harsh.

At this stage, the highs have smoothed and I am getting to liking the sound of the brimar in this rig more and more!!

Arnaud.

 

[mulveling]

Quote:

Originally Posted by arnaud At the time I bought the RCA and brimar tubes, I was using the PreHead and HD600s downstream. At that time, I much preferred the RCA over the brimar then because it made the setup sound warm enough to my taste. I recall I also found the midrange and soundstage much better with the RCA tubes. This time around with the Stealth/HD650s, it seems that the RCA 5751 pushed the sound on the overly warm side. The brimar tubes yield a more balanced sound with the bass not forward anymore. It also seems like the muddy sound I was getting at times is gone!

Hi Arnaud,
Glad you are enjoying the Brimars.
Truthfully, I just got my Jolida last week, and though I have the stock tubes, I haven't given them a listen yet. When I first listened to the Jolida w/ Brimars, it was clearly the most natural and balanced sound I'd ever heard from my gear. So, I haven't felt the need to try other tubes yet. I'm just going to relax and enjoy this setup for a little while before the itch to experiment with different tubes requires scratching

Funny though, my Gilmore should be quite similar to your Prehead. Either I prefer a slightly less warm sound than you, or I'm going to be in for a treat when I try some warmer tubes

 

[arnaud]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mulveling Funny though, my Gilmore should be quite similar to your Prehead. Either I prefer a slightly less warm sound than you, or I'm going to be in for a treat when I try some warmer tubes

Actually, when I used my HD650s through the PreHead, I also found that the Jolida - with RCA tubes - was bass-heavy.

So, I think it boils down to the HD650s having a more forward bass than the HD600s... Now that I don't listen to my HD600s anymore, the RCA tubes have probably no reason to be in this system anymore...

So, in your situation, you may not be looking for any "warmer sounding" tubes, at least in terms of bass-treble balance. BTW, the brimar are supposed to be slightly warm already!

cheers,

Arnaud.