[leftside]

Woo is a good one stop shop for upgrading the tubes if you are fairly new to the tube scene. If you know your tubes, you can probably find better deals elsewhere.

 

[cheeseeater]

My opinion is hype. Some he has previously chosen for the WA22 you would have to pay me to install and even then I would have a hard time installing them.

I like clear statements and that one is pretty clear.
My amp came with Shuguang cv181z and I think they're pretty good. As someone who has experimented WAY more than I have, would you say that I like the shuguang do much because I haven't heard enough?

 

[Badas]

I like clear statements and that one is pretty clear.
My amp came with Shuguang cv181z and I think they're pretty good. As someone who has experimented WAY more than I have, would you say that I like the shuguang do much because I haven't heard enough?

I haven't heard the Shuguang CV181's. I dd early on listen to the Full Music CV181's. I think they come from the same factory. They didn't impress. At that stage I was trying to get away from brightness and enjoyed the RCA6SN7 type tubes. So I didn't use them long.
I would recommend trying more NOS (New old stock) tubes. Nearly always they beat new production tubes*.

*With the exception of new production Takasuzuki and EML tubes. EML doesn't make tubes for the WA22.

 

[abvolt]

  Tried out some black base Marconi B65's this evening. Very nice - silky smooth. Sound very similar to the more expensive metal base B65's. I'll be keeping these in the amp for a while.

 
Very cool I'll bet those are hard to find..

 

[leftside]

I've been demoing a solid state Audia Flight phono preamp for the past couple of days. At first I couldn't tell much difference between it and the existing tubed Allnic H-1201, but gradually I could start to hear an extra depth to the music and an extra clarity, but the differences were subtle.
 
The WA22 is very quiet with the current set of tubes and this solid state phono preamp. Even with the WA22 turned up to the max and my preamp turned up to the max (and no music playing) I can only hear a slight hiss - and this is with a turntable as input!
 
The WA22 will highlight/reveal whatever there is lower down the chain. For these reasons, and as much as I love the Allnic, I will be keeping the Audia Flight. I don't feel I'm losing anything and I did get a few gains in other areas.

 

[leftside]

I've started posting up pics of various different 6BL7 tubes if anyone is interested. These will give your WA22 nice clean power. I've been running 4 for almost a year now.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/806043/for-6bl7-tube-users/345#post_13119511

 

[AlexDDD]

Hello everybody!
I would like to ask if somebody could recommend me a good new production power tube for the WA 22 and where can I get it(preferable across Europe).

 

[leftside]

That's a good question. We know of plenty of new production rectifiers and driver tubes, but not power. I can't think of any. Anyone else?

 

[2K9R56S]

I've had my WA22 for about 2 years now.  Prior to it I had a Little Dot MKVI+ and acquired several pairs of power and driver tubes that I kept when I sold off the LD.  My first Woo and first tube amp was a WA6, which was sold to buy the LD.  Anyway, I've got a few hundred hours on the WA22 now.  Its Pros outweigh its Cons, and it's a piece of equipment I'm definitely holding onto for a long time.  At least until the Powerball office pool hits.
 
I'm using an Oppo HA-1 as a preamp/DAC which is being fed from an Oppo BDP-105, JRiver on a dying Mac Mini, CD changer and a Budgie phono preamp.
 
I can't paint the sound picture with an audiophile adjective glossary brush.  All I can say is, I like its overall sound compared to the other amps I've owned in the past.  Using the stock tubes as a baseline, tube rolling has been part of the fun of making it sound even better.  Add to that the fit & finish, build and material quality, USA made and Woo's customer service.
 
Cons and/or nitpicks...  I don't like the stepped volume attenuator.  My WA6 didn't have one so I wasn't expecting this to have one.  These days it looks like they're sold without them.  Oh well.  Also I think it's a bit underpowered with my LCD2s and 600Ohm DT990s (even with 5998 tubes) for my volume level preference.  It will drive them, but not as effortlessly as my Mjolnir 2 does.
 
Lastly, I could never get a Sophia Princess 274B to work in it.  All my other rectifiers of varying age and price work fine.  My original Sophia cut the volume output in half and would emit a blip of static with each volume step.  I sent it back and the replacement I got did the same thing while the glow would alternate from bright to dim.  Woo's suggestion was to try it with the stock power and driver tubes, no dice.  Sophia Electric suggested I have my amplifier repaired immediately and claimed that the original tube I sent to them for replacement was charred on the inside and filled with black smoke.  Complete BS.  So the replacement went on eBay with this story and a disclaimer.  A WA6 owner bought it and it works perfectly for him.
 
Current setup pic.
 

 

[leftside]

What are those two tube devices below the Woo?

 

[2K9R56S]

  What are those two tube devices below the Woo?

 
Mjonlir2 sitting atop a 1 In / 4 Out XLR switchbox.
 
http://www.diyaudioblog.com/2016/11/balanced-audio-switchbox-audiophile.html
 

 

[abvolt]

   
Current setup pic.
 

 
Nice looking set-up..

 

[davehg]

That's a good question. We know of plenty of new production rectifiers and driver tubes, but not power. I can't think of any. Anyone else?

I just use the Mullard 6080s from Langrex in the UK

 

[abvolt]

I just use the Mullard 6080s from Langrex in the UK

I do agree that's an excellent sounding power tube..

 

[AlexDDD]

Do you have the option to get them already in matched pairs?