[joseph69]

What about the Takatsuki, what does it sound like? in between these two? or even warmer than KR?

Takatsuki only makes a 300B power tube, as well as rectifier tubes, no 2A3's as far as I'm aware.

 

[RONJA MESCO]

Yea I'm using the same tubes and i think they're the cause of some of the pops and occasional crackles.. Going to try swap back to the KR 2a3 tubes and see how I like it.



Moved the wa33 into the room for a bit to see if there was any change to the pops.. Nope. Still there. Just for kicks, hooked it up to the AMB Gamma2 dac. Lol this small little dac does the job pretty well. I'm digging the sound from its rca out into the wa33. Not bad for a 300 buck more than a decade old purchase. Kinda makes me wonder why I bother to spend more on a dac..

What an amazing piece of kit. I need to get into Woo sometime soon.

 

[Shini44]

Takatsuki only makes a 300B power tube, as well as rectifier tubes, no 2A3's as far as I'm aware.

Yes I mean that one which is in the middle of wa33 and so is kr one.

 

[Roasty]

Yes I mean that one which is in the middle of wa33 and so is kr one.

Tak274b and KR 274b rectifiers

 

[Shini44]

Tak274b and KR 274b rectifiers

Yup these xD any sound different between these?

 

[Roasty]

Yup these xD any sound different between these?

Yea I thought the TAK sounded smoother and more laid back but I think someone else posted recently and heard the opposite.

 

[JLoud]

I had the EML 5U4G and went to the Tak. I think the Tak has the big sound stage of the EML but also seems faster. Minor but nice upgrade for me.

 

[Bonddam]

Last night I was enjoying the KR 2A3. So either they needed a little cooking time or my state of mine was different. Tonight, see what happens.

 

[Bonddam]

Anyone interested in my KR 2A3 quad? I’m not sold on them. Too warm for my tastes. There not dull in upper frequencies. I got them last Friday from Woo. I like a tube sound that mimics the solid state tube sound of Wells HeadTrip. The only headphone I like the KR 2A3 with is 1266 TC.

 

[corbin1]

I've been eyeing this thread for quite some time, curent owner of a WA5 Gen 1. To be honest I absolutely love it but you know how the upgrade thing goes. Can anyone provide a direct comparison of the WA33 to the WA5? My sense is it comes down to "Balanced versus Unbalanced" and "300b versus 2A3". I've read reviews on the 300b versus 2A3, seem to be a lot of fans in each camp. Not so much that one is a dramatic improvement over the other, more that some prefer the sound signature of one over the other all else being equal. I'd love to hear some thoughts / impressions. Owning both isn't really a viable option and I'd rather just own one headphone amp and use the heck out of it anyway... Thanks

 

[ThanatosVI]

I've been eyeing this thread for quite some time, curent owner of a WA5 Gen 1. To be honest I absolutely love it but you know how the upgrade thing goes. Can anyone provide a direct comparison of the WA33 to the WA5? My sense is it comes down to "Balanced versus Unbalanced" and "300b versus 2A3". I've read reviews on the 300b versus 2A3, seem to be a lot of fans in each camp. Not so much that one is a dramatic improvement over the other, more that some prefer the sound signature of one over the other all else being equal. I'd love to hear some thoughts / impressions. Owning both isn't really a viable option and I'd rather just own one headphone amp and use the heck out of it anyway... Thanks

Well the 2A3 vs 300B shouldn't be an issue.
The Wa33 handles both, so you can use whatever you prefer.

 

[corbin1]

Thanks for that, I had no idea. Very interesting. Learned something new already. Still be very interested to hear general thoughts as to a direct comparison.

I wonder if that means the WA5 will accept 2A3 tubes? Thanks

 

[Roasty]

Thanks for that, I had no idea. Very interesting. Learned something new already. Still be very interested to hear general thoughts as to a direct comparison.

I wonder if that means the WA5 will accept 2A3 tubes? Thanks

WA33 only accepts 300b 2.5v variant ie a 300b tube with 2a3 heater. It is a 2a3 replacement. It doesn't accept normal 300b tubes.

 

[corbin1]

WA33 only accepts 300b 2.5v variant ie a 300b tube with 2a3 heater. It is a 2a3 replacement. It doesn't accept normal 300b tubes.

Thanks, the plot thickens. So that seems to take me back to my original 300b versus 2A3 question being in the mix. I gues what I'm really hoping for is someone who owned a WA5 and sold it to buy a WA33 and thinks it's the best thing they ever did or if in hindsight they regretted it on some level. That it was more of a lateral move.

 

[JLoud]

Well I sold my WA5le to buy a WA33, so I guess I qualify. I would sum up the difference as being the WA33 is like a good SS amp with the benefits of tubes. It has the great sound stage of the 5 and the smooth treble but it is faster and bass hits harder. Is it twice as good? Of course not, at this level improvements are much smaller.
I am happy with the upgrade and glad I did it. A bonus is the WA33 is also a very good preamplifier.