[sprite40]

 I here good instrument separation and soundstage

 
It was exactly my first impression along with a set of Westinghouse 6FD7 big bottle in my WA6-SE. I received two of these tubes from Langrex yesterday, one as a spare tube, and they sound great for the price.

 

[IndieGradoFan]

Anyone have a spare set of TS5998 they are willing to part with and that are known to be noise free in a WA22? One of my Chatham 2399s is super microphonic, even with dampeners. These tubes are too pricey for me to buy again and end up with another noisy pair.

 

[Brendanz]

  That's where i put all my tubes in i have several cases  and you can also buy the interlocking cartons like in the pictures for the smaller tubes                                                                                                                                        
 
                                                                          
 
                                                                           

Love those boxes, where did you get them from ? 

 

[wyan]

Thanks everyone for the recommendation on WA5. Also many thanks on the tube advice! I am not in U.S. and I can found a used WA5 locally but not the maxxed version. Not sure if I should try the buy/sell forum.
 
I have ordered a pair of Elrog 300B on the way. Picked up one Brimar 5Z4GY locally for my DAC (clarity and balance! what a steal!). Too bad my order of 5 units at langrex has not been delivered after 45 days. Hope they are not lost during the transition.
 
By the way, I am planning to use WA5 to drive lowther/voxativ full range drivers (98DB) and AKG K1000.

 

[MIKELAP]

 

  That's where i put all my tubes in i have several cases  and you can also buy the interlocking cartons like in the pictures for the smaller tubes                                                                                                                                        
 
                                                                          
 
                                                                           

Love those boxes, where did you get them from ? 

Here are there Ebay my tube seller flea market the blue case was a para medics case it separates in 2 parts got that for $10.00. 

 

[magiccabbage]

  Hi Wyan,
 
I have the first WA5 on the market, bought it back in June, 2007....fantastic headphone amp, AND speaker amp. Using it with the AKG K1000.  Have a new pair of 2 way speakers that sound incredible with the WA5. Grand Teton SE, with 94db sensitivity and 40-27,000 frq response.   www.wavetouchaudio.com  If anyone is looking for reasonable priced speakers with such natural, effortless etc etc etc sound, that are worth far more than their cost, these speakers have it. With the WA5, it's pure magic.
 
I have had zero performance issues in 8 years with the WA5!  In fact, all the stock tubes still work! 
 
I have tried the stock Shugang 300b,  EH 300b, JJ Tesla 300b, and now the Elrog 300b....while those others are ok. the Elrog is so far above them as far as clarity, detail, and soundstage are concerned...no question the Elrog is fantastic.  As we all know, tube rolling changes the sound quite a bit, so I would prob go for the upgraded parts first, as was mentioned....one can always tube roll. 

Ill be looking for speakers come summer time - thanks for posting. Have you listened to many other high sensitivity speakers to compare? 

 

[Stax-i-nox]

Hi magiccabbage,
 
I was at a local hi fi store the other day, and heard the Kef LS-50's ...did not even come close, literally and figuratively!  I have a pair of VMPS 40's that are good, but not like these.  Have not heard any mega bucks speakers recently, but I can say this...these are extremely natural sounding speakers....and I've been around live classical music all my life....these come so close to live, it really is amazing, especially at their price point. 
 
I can safely say, these speakers are "phenomenal".....that's just one positive word that comes to mind.  You would be disappointed to say the least,  if you did not
give these an audition.  Last night, listening to a choir cd in a church setting, the sound was all around me, so 3d, it was eerie. Listening to Tony Bennet, Elvis Presley, Nora Jones, Eva Cassidy etc,  they were floating in between the speakers with such clarity, it was amazing, without being overly bright etc.  Big Band cd's....huge soundstage behind the speakers, and all around me, depending on the recording venue....placement of instruments etc within that soundstage is right on the money...... Trumpets, horns,  like they should sound live, cymbals, drums, clear!
 
All these positive attributes have been with the WA5 at 10 watts!   Will be trying SS with an upgraded Threshold S200 and a Lightspeed Passive Attenuator later this weekend
 
They are without a doubt, very natural, musical, effortless sounding 2 way speakers. What you feed them upstream is important...ANY change is immediately noticed, that's how detailed and real they are.
 
Also, I am listening with older equipment, Sony XA7es CD, Aragon D2A Dac, and I am getting this kind of quality sound! 

 

[TonyNewman]

WA5 is back from repair and I am about to fire it up give it a listen / run in with the new components.
 
Some before and after shots:
 
Before - 2 burst caps and an ugly outcome:
 

 
After - caps replaced and fuses added to prevent this happening again:
 

 
The audio repair fellow was very impressed with both the build quality and the components used in the WA5. I get the feeling he enjoyed working on it.
 
Anyway, will fire this sucker up for a listen shortly.
 
Happy Days

 

[Badas]

^
 
Good repair. Is the first circle to the left safety fuses?

 

[TonyNewman]

  ^
 
Good repair. Is the first circle to the left safety fuses?

 
Exactly. These should blow before caps rupture.
 
For anyone that has not blown a cap - it is nasty. Oily mess comes out of the cap together with some stinky smoke. Rather unpleasant.
 
The new caps also look quite a bit physically bigger than the previous ones. Not sure that matters. All I care about is how it sounds (and not have it blow up again).
 
Righto - time to fire this baby up

 

[IndieGradoFan]

Psvane WE274B 1:1 replica arrived. Burning in now...

 

 

[Badas]

  Psvane WE274B 1:1 replica arrived. Burning in now...

 

 
That's a nice rectifier. I have used it in the WA22 before. Great bass from it. Very dynamic.
 
Evidently needs loads of burn in. So be aware.

 

[TonyNewman]

   
That's a nice rectifier. I have used it in the WA22 before. Great bass from it. Very dynamic.
 
Evidently needs loads of burn in. So be aware.

 
Needs lots of hours to get to its best (200+) and is a little dark, but a very nice tube.

 

[TonyNewman]

Repaired WA5 with Brimars, NUs and EAT 300Bs.
 
The NU brings plenty of tube goodness to the sound for my tastes, so the close to neutral Brimar and EATs are a great match. SQ is excellent, and lets the sweet warmth of the NUs shine without becoming overpowering.
 
The EATs are an under-rated 300B IMHO. Very detailed with great bass and treble extension - a very good neutral power tube and a great match with the NUs.
 

 

[Krutsch]

  WA5 is back from repair and I am about to fire it up give it a listen / run in with the new components.
 
Some before and after shots:
 
Before - 2 burst caps and an ugly outcome:
 
 
 
After - caps replaced and fuses added to prevent this happening again:

 
Sweet... nice layout work. You found the right repair option and congrats on getting your WA5 back into production.