[littlej0e]

That is the exact tube setup mine arrived with. For me everything arrived at the same time. That is a little strange.

I purchased a full suite of upgraded tubes, but the amp obviously included the stock tubes as well (you can kind of see the Tak and some of the KR tubes in the back on one of the pictures). I suspect that's why they shipped all the tubes together, but separately from the amp.

 

[pippen99]

I ordered the Tak and upgrade EH drivers and everything showed up together. This was prepandemic so maybe that has something to do with it

 

[mammal]

I received the tubes this morning even though the amp itself is still a couple of days out. Pics of the stock tubes are attached (exact same as @Lucky87). Hope this helps...

How big was the box your tubes arrived in? Any chance a WA33 would fit in it, just was missing? You wouldn’t want to be waiting on something if it was stolen, happened to me once, haha.

 

[littlej0e]

How big was the box your tubes arrived in? Any chance a WA33 would fit in it, just was missing? You wouldn’t want to be waiting on something if it was stolen, happened to me once, haha.

lol... good thinking. The tubes came in one medium-sized box with two smaller boxes inside that each contained one full set of tubes. The amp portion was shipped with a separate FedEx tracking number and is scheduled to arrive on Thursday.

 

[littlej0e]

So...my WA33 EE JPS arrived this morning. I've been using it pre-amp mode with the Raal SR1a, Raal HSA-1b, Holo May KTE, and my custom Pareto Audio source/streamer. I was planning to do a detailed (see long diatribe) of a review, but after a couple hours of listening it became clear that I legitimately don't possess the language or capability for expression to properly convey what I hear out of this magical triumph of engineering. This thing is euphoric poetry personified. I would personally sell blood, semen, and perhaps even a kidney, to buy this amp. The breathtaking human experience afforded by this thing is truly remarkable and leaves me flat out speechless. If you have one, you are extremely lucky. If you don't, do whatever you have to do to get one. Immediately.

@Ciggavelli - this thing provides almost-instant triggers...W-T-F?!? I'm trying to figure out how to strap myself into my office chair so I don't fall out. Guess it's time to invest in a "listening chair" a.k.a La-z-boy recliner! Thanks so much for recommending this, along with everything else. The WA33 EE JPS really brought everything together into a crescendo of slack-jawed transcendence and amazement. It is definitely the cherry on top of the hifi sundae. God help me when the TCs arrive...

 

[mammal]

So...my WA33 EE JPS arrived this morning. I've been using it pre-amp mode with the Raal SR1a, Raal HSA-1b, Holo May KTE, and my custom Pareto Audio source/streamer. I was planning to do a detailed (see long diatribe) of a review, but after a couple hours of listening it became clear that I legitimately don't possess the language or capability for expression to properly convey what I hear out of this magical triumph of engineering. This thing is euphoric poetry personified. I would personally sell blood, semen, and perhaps even a kidney, to buy this amp. The human experience afforded by this amp is truly remarkable and leaves me flat out speechless. If you have one, you are extremely lucky. If you don't, do whatever you have to do to get one. Immediately.

@Ciggavelli - this thing provides almost-instant triggers...W-T-F?!? I'm trying to figure out how to strap myself into my office chair so I don't fall out. Guess it's time to invest in a "listening chair" a.k.a La-z-boy recliner! Thanks so much for recommending this, along with everything else. The WA33 EE JPS really brought everything together into a crescendo of slack-jawed amazement. It is definitely the cherry on top of the hifi sundae. God help me when he TCs arrive...

Please find the courage to write a review about it for us, compare it to something else we all have used / know, it would be much appreciated! As I am considering this amp myself, what was your decision process? It is not possible for me to compare S/EE, JPS/not, Stock/Upgraded tubes and all the combinations and buying TOTL version right now would be a stretch for me (just bought AB-1266 and Bartok, 20k bye bye, adding another 18k is again doubling it). Did you just go for what-the-heck-i-wanna-it-all or did you carefully compared people's impressions and reviews? Thanks!

 

[Ciggavelli]

So...my WA33 EE JPS arrived this morning. I've been using it pre-amp mode with the Raal SR1a, Raal HSA-1b, Holo May KTE, and my custom Pareto Audio source/streamer. I was planning to do a detailed (see long diatribe) of a review, but after a couple hours of listening it became clear that I legitimately don't possess the language or capability for expression to properly convey what I hear out of this magical triumph of engineering. This thing is euphoric poetry personified. I would personally sell blood, semen, and perhaps even a kidney, to buy this amp. The breathtaking human experience afforded by this thing is truly remarkable and leaves me flat out speechless. If you have one, you are extremely lucky. If you don't, do whatever you have to do to get one. Immediately.

@Ciggavelli - this thing provides almost-instant triggers...W-T-F?!? I'm trying to figure out how to strap myself into my office chair so I don't fall out. Guess it's time to invest in a "listening chair" a.k.a La-z-boy recliner! Thanks so much for recommending this, along with everything else. The WA33 EE JPS really brought everything together into a crescendo of slack-jawed transcendence and amazement. It is definitely the cherry on top of the hifi sundae. God help me when the TCs arrive...

I'm glad you like it! It's definitely my favorite audio component that I've ever owned. The TC and WA33 EE JPS combo is something very special too. I think you will really enjoy that combo.

Let us know what you think when you get the TCs

 

[littlej0e]

Please find the courage to write a review about it for us, compare it to something else we all have used / know, it would be much appreciated! As I am considering this amp myself, what was your decision process? It is not possible for me to compare S/EE, JPS/not, Stock/Upgraded tubes and all the combinations and buying TOTL version right now would be a stretch for me (just bought AB-1266 and Bartok, 20k bye bye, adding another 18k is again doubling it). Did you just go for what-the-heck-i-wanna-it-all or did you carefully compared people's impressions and reviews? Thanks!

The problem is trying to properly and coherently express what this thing can do and comparing it to anything else I've tried seems like a fools errand. Regardless, I'll put pen to paper and see if I can explain this thing...somehow.

To answer your question regarding my decision making process, the short answer is both -it was both quite involved and quite risky. I initially began by soliciting opinions from a wide swath of people, say twenty or thirty from four to five different audio forums, then began distilling the recommendations down into a short list of options. It quickly became apparent that the WA33 was the best choice as it was by far the most recommended, especially for the Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC headphones I had already planned to own (FYI, the Wells Audio Headtrip II was the second most recommended). Unfortunately, there weren't a lot of reviews and information out there for the WA33 (especially for the EE, the JPS edition, or both) so I reached out to multiple vendors, dealers, and owners for more information. Despite the numerous glowing recommendations for the WA33 (yep...that was a tube pun), I had more or less settled on the Wells Audio Headtrip II. This was mostly because I was afraid of tubes and subsequent tube maintenance. I reasoned that if I was going to spend 15-20k on an amp, I sure as hell wasn't going to get something that I'd have to keep pumping money into to maintain over the long term (LOL@littlej0e trying to be "sensible" when considering buying a 15k amplifier).

Then...as fate would have it...I just happened to come across a certain gentlemen by the name of @Ciggavelli on a forum called head-fi.org. It turns out he has the exact same condition I do (synesthesia). He was the only person I found throughout all of my research and solicitations that truly understood what I was trying to build and why. Furthermore, he built his system for a lot of the same reasons, so he was an absolute goldmine of guidance for my very unique use case. When he recommended the WA33 EE JPS, and explained his reasoning behind it, that was the final nail in the coffin -I had to get the WA33 EE JPS.


Edit: I will add that I did get to try the stock WA33 at a local dealer. It was good, but the EE JSP edition flat out destroys it by a country mile. The stock WA33 and the WA33 EE JPS aren't the same amp at all. Not even close. So if you do go with a WA33, definitely get the EE JPS edition. Also, for reference I did get fully upgraded tubes: (4 x KR Audio 2A3 HP Power, TA-274B 1 x Takatsuki Rectifier, and 4 x 6C45Pi Electro Harmonix Gold-pin Drivers). At this point, It would be difficult to recommend another configuration based on my experience thus far. But for giggles, I'll throw in the stock tubes and have a go.

Lastly, my wallet feels your pain. Trust me. Mine is currently on life support...

 

[mammal]

The problem is trying to properly and coherently express what this thing can do and comparing it to anything else I've tried seems like a fools errand. Regardless, I'll put pen to paper and see if I can explain this thing...somehow.

To answer your question regarding my decision making process, the short answer is both -it was both quite involved and quite risky. I initially began by soliciting opinions from a wide swath of people, say twenty or thirty from four to five different audio forums, then began distilling the recommendations down into a short list of options. It quickly became apparent that the WA33 was the best choice as it was by far the most recommended, especially for the Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC headphones I had already planned to own (FYI, the Wells Audio Headtrip II was the second most recommended). Unfortunately, there weren't a lot of reviews and information out there for the WA33 (especially for the EE, the JPS edition, or both) so I reached out to multiple vendors, dealers, and owners for more information. Despite the numerous glowing recommendations for the WA33 (yep...that was a tube pun), I had more or less settled on the Wells Audio Headtrip II. This was mostly because I was afraid of tubes and subsequent tube maintenance. I reasoned that if I was going to spend 15-20k on an amp, I sure as hell wasn't going to get something that I'd have to keep pumping money into to maintain over the long term (LOL@littlej0e trying to be "sensible" when considering buying a 15k amplifier).

Then...as fate would have it...I just happened to come across a certain gentlemen by the name of @Ciggavelli on a forum called head-fi.org. It turns out he has the exact same condition I do (synesthesia). He was the only person I found throughout all of my research and solicitations that truly understood what I was trying to build and why. Furthermore, he built his system for a lot of the same reasons, so he was an absolute goldmine of guidance for my very unique use case. When he recommended the WA33 EE JPS, and explained his reasoning behind it, that was the final nail in the coffin -I had to get the WA33 EE JPS.


Edit: I will add that I did get to try the stock WA33 at a local dealer. It was good, but the EE JSP edition flat out destroys it by a country mile. The stock WA33 and the WA33 EE JPS aren't the same amp at all. Not even close. So if you do go with a WA33, definitely get the EE JPS edition. Also, for reference I did get fully upgraded tubes: (4 x KR Audio 2A3 HP Power, TA-274B 1 x Takatsuki Rectifier, and 4 x 6C45Pi Electro Harmonix Gold-pin Drivers). At this point, It would be difficult to recommend another configuration based on my experience thus far. But for giggles, I'll throw in the stock tubes and have a go.

Lastly, my wallet feels your pain. Trust me. Mine is currently on life support...

I cannot thank you enough for sharing your story. It means a lot to me that you found the time to write about it. Even though I do not share your neurological condition, I have my own called misophonia. That's why I live with headphones (literally sleep, work, travel, talk to others). So I understand how catoring to yourself is important to one self.

Very interesting assessment of the comparison of the stock against the fully upgraded unit. I wonder now, what do you think contributes the most? Tubes, JPS or EE? In what order would you put them?

I could imagine stretching later this year for perhaps JPS upgraded Tubes standard edition, or perhaps JPS elite without Tubes, but I don't think I can do all 3. Should I instead save for it?

Or should I simply wait until I can get my setup which is currently worth 20 to something like 50k? (Upgrade Bartok to Rossini, add a Rossini clock, and then add WA33 JPS EE with upgraded Tubes).

It is easy for me to audition DCS stuff at home, so testing a Rossini clock is simple. Testing Rossini DAC itself requires an amplifier, so as you can see I am thinking of what possible upgrade path I could take. If it was feasible to audition everytging at home, things would have been so much simpler.

 

[littlej0e]

I cannot thank you enough for sharing your story. It means a lot to me that you found the time to write about it. Even though I do not share your neurological condition, I have my own called misophonia. That's why I live with headphones (literally sleep, work, travel, talk to others). So I understand how catoring to yourself is important to one self.

You are very welcome! It seems you do indeed understand where I am coming from then. I agree completely that catering to yourself is important. I mean preference is basically the older brother of use case, right? If you spend most of your life in headphones (and can spend a lot of time stationary at home), you definitely owe it to yourself to at least consider getting one of these amplifiers.

Very interesting assessment of the comparison of the stock against the fully upgraded unit. I wonder now, what do you think contributes the most? Tubes, JPS or EE? In what order would you put them?

I could imagine stretching later this year for perhaps JPS upgraded Tubes standard edition, or perhaps JPS elite without Tubes, but I don't think I can do all 3. Should I instead save for it?

Or should I simply wait until I can get my setup which is currently worth 20 to something like 50k? (Upgrade Bartok to Rossini, add a Rossini clock, and then add WA33 JPS EE with upgraded Tubes).

It is easy for me to audition DCS stuff at home, so testing a Rossini clock is simple. Testing Rossini DAC itself requires an amplifier, so as you can see I am thinking of what possible upgrade path I could take. If it was feasible to audition everytging at home, things would have been so much simpler.

Personally, I would recommend saving until you don't have to compromise, espcially considering you are getting Abyss AB-1266 Phi TCs. Also, based on what I hear out of this setup, I'd be extremely reluctant to subtract anything. But if there were a gun to my head and I absolutely had to chose, I'd probably go WA33 EE with stock tubes. You can always save and upgrade the tubes later and in that scenario, I would ditch the JPS wiring. I think the Woo Audio folks actually recommend the WA33 EE non-JPS edition if you aren't running Abyss gear anyway (namely the 1266's). But my main reasoning behind the WA33 EE non-JPS recommendation is because I can hear the friggin' mind of god out of the SR1a's and HSA-1b just using the WA33 EE JPS as a preamp without any Abyss components that will supposedly sound better with the JPS wiring (that's why I'm so excited for the 1266's to arrive). Case in point, I just slapped my old Dan Clark Ether C Flow 1.1s on the WA33 EE JPS and noticed similar "next level" performance, but it stopped short of the "next plane of existence" experience I get with the SR1a's + HSA-1B + WA33 EE JPS in preamp.

Incidentally...my wild-eyed, zero proof, back-of-the-napkin theory is this amp somehow outputs a unique harmonic structure that causes visceral euphoria and deeply emotional reactions to sound. Call it "god harmonics". For example, my wife loves Darius Rucker and has listened the Hootie and the Blowfish album Cracked Rear View literally a thousand times. But listening to the song "I'm going home" on this rig sent her straight into tears in about a minute.

Whatever the cause...whatever the voodoo...this amp is truly something very, very special.

 

[mammal]

You are very welcome! It seems you do indeed understand where I am coming from then. I agree completely that catering to yourself is important. I mean preference is basically the older brother of use case, right? If you spend most of your life in headphones (and can spend a lot of time stationary at home), you definitely owe it to yourself to at least consider getting one of these amplifiers.



Personally, I would recommend saving until you don't have to compromise, espcially considering you are getting Abyss AB-1266 Phi TCs. Also, based on what I hear out of this setup, I'd be extremely reluctant to subtract anything. But if there were a gun to my head and I absolutely had to chose, I'd probably go WA33 EE with stock tubes. You can always save and upgrade the tubes later and in that scenario, I would ditch the JPS wiring. I think the Woo Audio folks actually recommend the WA33 EE non-JPS edition if you aren't running Abyss gear anyway (namely the 1266's). But my main reasoning behind the WA33 EE non-JPS recommendation is because I can hear the friggin' mind of god out of the SR1a's and HSA-1b just using the WA33 EE JPS as a preamp without any Abyss components that will supposedly sound even better with the JPS wiring (that's why I'm so excited for the 1266's to arrive). Case in point, I just slapped my old Dan Clark Ether C Flow 1.1s on the WA33 EE JPS and noticed similar "next level" performance, but it stopped short of the "next plane of existence" experience I get with the SR1a's + HSA-1B WA33 EE JPS in preamp.

Incidentally...my wild-eyed, zero proof, back-of-the-napkin theory is this amp somehow outputs a unique harmonic structure that causes visceral euphoria and deeply emotional reactions to sound. Call it "god harmonics". For example, my wife loves Darius Rucker and has listened the Hootie and the Blowfish album Cracked Rear View literally a thousand times. But listening to the song "I'm going home" sent her straight into tears in under a minute.

Whatever the cause...whatever the voodoo...this amp is truly something very, very special.

You are a gold mine for reading material, thanks buddy. With regards to JPS wiring, I have actually owned their high end Superconductor cable when I had Diana V2 and I honestly could not hear a difference, perhaps this is beyond my level of hearing ability (I am not trying to discount other people’s experiences). So JPS wiring could potentially in this amp be where I save some money (seems to be like 2k). Most likely I will end up getting it all at some point, but I should definitely exercise some patience here. I think part of my problem right now is that I am stuck at home, so listening nonstop to music (while I work for example). However, once the office reopens, I will be able to listen like 1 hour before bed time a day, then maybe the money will go somewhere else. It is also true that before pandemic, I was less into head-fi, so maybe I shouldn’t rush things, provided I already own a good enough setup.

 

[Bigsecret]

Update on experience with EML tube warranty - Today I received an email from Anthony at Music Reference/RAM Tubeworks where I purchased the tubes. Anthony went above and beyond trying to help me, though there was little he could do. He is a first class guy and would recommend to anyone. But, I digress.

He heard from Jac and who told him he was sending me a new tube tomorrow and could take a few weeks to get here. Jac also told Anthony they are not making the solid plate 300B 2.5 anymore but they will send me one that has a different plate but shouldn't sound any different (so much for the matched pair I purchased).

The clincher is that he can't possibly be sending me a tube tomorrow - he doesn't have my address and wouldn't know where to send it. I'm afraid that angered me to the point where I replied to Anthony that he could tell Jac to *** off. I accept I got screwed and I'm tired of either being completely ignored (for 9 mos and numerous emails) or lied to now.

If anyone is considering EML tubes just keep in mind that if you buy from one of the few distributors, they will tell you (or should tell you) that any warranty problems must be directed to EML and that means Jac. There is no alternative. And you certainly shouldn't have any confidence in their warranty. I wouldn't trust that guy to tell me what time it is.

 

[pippen99]

I last communicated with Jac on 04/30. He said that he would make me a replacement solid plate 300B 2.5 but it would take "a long time". So there is two different responses to two different customers. I don't ever expect to see my tubes again. I will wait about another 6 weeks until I start agitating again. It really is only to make Jac have to at least look at my email. I expect what I have gotten so far- nothing!. Anyone who buys EML tubes is only setting themselves up for aggravation.

 

[joseph69]

He heard from Jac and who told him he was sending me a new tube tomorrow and could take a few weeks to get here.

The clincher is that he can't possibly be sending me a tube tomorrow - he doesn't have my address and wouldn't know where to send it.

Is it possible you're misunderstanding what Jac meant by saying he is going to send you a new tube? I'd think it would be sent to Music Reference/RAM Tubeworks to "Anthony" who is the representative for the company you made the purchase from and he'll ship it to you being he does have your address?

 

[JLoud]

Man I hope I never have a problem with my EML tubes because I really like how they sound. So far I've had 5U4G rectifiers and 300B and 2A3 tubes with no issues. But it seems like if you do have a problem you are out of luck.