Woo Audio 2

[Alta_tom]

Woo WA2, day one. Am working out the kinks, but I can already tell either as a preamp or headphone driver with the A900, that the sound is glorious (not technical, but a true statement, too early for specifics

) Amp is dead quiet with the stock GE 6X4, GE 6AS7GA, and Philips 6922. Got hum with Russian 6H23, slight hum with Seimens US made 7308. Will try EH 6922 and early 60s Big Bugle Boys later in the day. Am wondering if the amp is set up to work best with a true 6DJ8/6922? Time will tell. Matsu****a 6DJ8 arriving in two weeks. Yes, you can see that I am shaking down tubes for my EE tube cd player. Kill two birds with one stone.

After spending yesterday with the A900s and the EC/SS, the obvious difference is the air around the vocals and instruments in the Van Morrison Greatest Hits cd.

As a preamp, throws a deep soundstage in conjunction with my Scott Nixon chip amp. Sorry for the full rig stuff, but it is so much easier to dance around the room without a leash. Neighbors, who needs neighbors!

Will sort through tubes today, try a different rectifier tomorrow, and pop in the Bendix early next week. My 5998 are GE, not TungSol

Will try them also.

 

[jsaliga]

Right now I am using Amperex 6DJ8 orange labels for drive tubes, Tung-sol 5998 power tubes, and Tung-sol square getter 6X4WA rectifiers and the sound is absolutely divine. I have other drive tubes on hand such as a pair of Amperex 6922 PQ white labels and a few others but I have not gotten around to trying them yet. I will be taking a week off of work in mid August, when my new custom built 300B Woo Audio monoblocks arrive. I will probably do more tube rolling with my WA2 then.

--Jerome

 

[jamato8]

Find out what the unit can handle for the filaments of the 6DJ8's and if it can handle the higher current of the 6N1P try them. The 1965 black plate 6N1P is great and I have about 150 nos in 6922 and 6DJ8's of all types.

 

[jsaliga]

I know Jack told me not to use the PCC88's because of the different filament voltage rating.

--Jerome

 

[jamato8]

The PCC88 is and 7DJ8, 7.6 volt heater, and will work fine. People have used the 7DJ8 in place of the 6DJ8 for some time and liked the results. I have some and they work fine.

 

[jsaliga]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jamato8 /img/forum/go_quote.gif The PCC88 is and 7DJ8, 7.6 volt heater, and will work fine. People have used the 7DJ8 in place of the 6DJ8 for some time and liked the results. I have some and they work fine.

I hear you, but I still will not use them because the company that made my amp said not to.

--Jerome

 

[jamato8]

That is fine. There are plenty of other types to try.

 

[Alta_tom]

Woo WA2, day two. The Seimens 7308 hum went away last night, and they sound much better than the stock Philips 6922. A warmer sound. The 1962 Bugle Boys went in this morning, and the soundstage expanded. I now have soundstage depth in my head, didn't know it was possible. Alison Krauss "New Favorite" and Dixie Chicks "Taking the Long Way', very wide soundstage. Am wondering though about the midrange, The Eddie Current EC/SS has a more natural sound with vocals. Am still with the stock 6AS7GA, and perhaps the change to a Bendix 6080WB in a few days will change this characteristic. I may be that my A900 cans are the limiting factor, although that is what I use with the EC/SS. Grado RS-2 should be here on Thursday. Perhaps should have gotten 225s instead.

Shut it down an hour ago, switched rectifiers to RCA black plates, and will watch Barry and listen for a change. May try the EH 6922 tomorrow to see if they have any positive characteristics.

Am still loving the soundstage using it as a pre, and the in-head soundstage is magical. Wonderful inner detail in both applications.

A mention to Jsaliga, thanks very much for your earlier thread, it helped me make my decision to try a tube head amp. Will try to keep my postings on point.

May throw a Litz power cord on tomorrow also, just to see if I can hear a difference. Now back to work

 

[The Pieman]

I am waiting for my WA2! Hoping it will ship from the US this week.

 

[jamato8]

You will need a good 100 plus hours on the unit, even a few hundred for everything to settle and open up.

 

[Agent Kang]

Mullard 6922s definitely have the best midrange IMO.

 

[Alta_tom]

Woo Audio WA2, day 3. RCA black plate 6X4 inserted, sound became more focused, somehow sharper. Very nice. The rectifier bump was well worth it. Will put the EH 6922s in tonight to see what non NOS will do. Should have tested and matched Bendix 6080WBs to try tomorrow night. Am betting on more bass and detail.

 

[Agent Kang]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alta_tom /img/forum/go_quote.gif Will put the EH 6922s in tonight to see what non NOS will do.

Are these the gold pins? The regular EH 6922s are slightly less refined and is somewhat grainy compared to the more expensive NOS tubes but are still very, very good tubes, and can be considered great tubes at 12/pair. The gold pins add a bit more warmth and gives a richer tone. Definitely musical to my ears.

 

[jamato8]

I always found the GE 6X4's to last a long time. I used them a lot in my preamp power supply that I built where I use two of them. There is also a dual plate RCA that is intersting but hard to find. The 6X4's done right are some of the best rectifiers around. There are also some nice Japanese 6X4's that are pretty good.

 

[Alta_tom]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Agent Kang /img/forum/go_quote.gif Are these the gold pins? The regular EH 6922s are slightly less refined and is somewhat grainy compared to the more expensive NOS tubes but are still very, very good tubes, and can be considered great tubes at 12/pair. The gold pins add a bit more warmth and gives a richer tone. Definitely musical to my ears.

Just the standard EH 6922. Tonight with them I lost the soundstage depth that the Bugle Boys gave me last night. Still sounded fine overall, probably due to the RCA rectifiers. For me, the rectifier upgrade is a must with the WA2. Will keep the EHs in tomorrow night and change the power tubes to either GE 5998 or Bendix 6080WB to see what changes. Much fun is being had.