Jolida JD-9A Phono Preamp

124

Comments

  • thehawkman
    thehawkman Posts: 6
    edited March 2008
    Face wrote: »
    I heard one at m00npie's, it sounded fantastic!

    I agree that it sounds fantastic out of the box but if you replace those stock
    "firecracker" tubes with some EH 12AX7 gold pins it takes it to a higher level.
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  • BaggedLancer
    BaggedLancer Posts: 6,371
    edited March 2008
    Still waiting on a tracking number for my new turntable. Should be here by tomorrow along with my 180g pressing of DSOTM. Gonna be some sweeeeeet listening this weekend hopefully.
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  • nikolas812
    nikolas812 Posts: 2,915
    edited March 2008
    Sweet!!
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  • BaggedLancer
    BaggedLancer Posts: 6,371
    edited April 2008
    FINALLY tracking information is showing a delivery date of this week on the turntable, damn backorders. Considering I broke my other table gonna be an ipod week for now.
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  • royphil345
    royphil345 Posts: 3
    edited April 2008
    Using the reduced outputs recommended for use with an active preamp or receiver, my JD-9A still seems to put out a little more than most phono stages rated at 40dB / 70dB. Since only one set of specs is given and they're high... I'd have to assume they are for the higher outputs I'm not using.

    The higher outputs obviously put out far more than any other phono stage I've ever used... So high in fact, I wouldn't want to use them with an active pre... So, I'd have to assume the gain is considerably higher than an average 40B / 70dB phono preamp.

    I'm no math whiz... but common sense is telling me the JD-9A is capable of considerably higher than average gain. Are you sure about those calculations? Take cartridge loading into consideration? Is voltage increased by a phono preamp or current?
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  • m00npie
    m00npie Posts: 697
    edited April 2008
    thehawkman wrote: »
    I agree that it sounds fantastic out of the box but if you replace those stock
    "firecracker" tubes with some EH 12AX7 gold pins it takes it to a higher level.


    That is exactly what Face got to hear. I replaced the stock tubes as soon as I received the Pre with the Electro-Harmonix 12AX7-EH GOLD.
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  • madmax
    madmax Posts: 12,434
    edited April 2008
    royphil345 wrote: »
    The higher outputs obviously put out far more than any other phono stage I've ever used... So high in fact, I wouldn't want to use them with an active pre... So, I'd have to assume the gain is considerably higher than an average 40B / 70dB phono preamp.

    I'm no math whiz... but common sense is telling me the JD-9A is capable of considerably higher than average gain.

    My thoughts exactly when I hooked up mine.
    madmax
    Vinyl, the final frontier...

    Avantgarde horns, 300b tubes, thats the kinda crap I want... :D
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  • analog97
    analog97 Posts: 328
    edited April 2008
    1. The Jolida specs are false
    2. The math is correct (see earlier posts)
    3. The Jolida President Michael Allen refuses to answer fair questions.
    4. Jolida can take a hike.....I could never buy anything from that company. Caveat emptor:eek::eek::eek:
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  • royphil345
    royphil345 Posts: 3
    edited April 2008
    m00npie wrote: »
    That is exactly what Face got to hear. I replaced the stock tubes as soon as I received the Pre with the Electro-Harmonix 12AX7-EH GOLD.

    I thought the stock tubes had nice mids, but they seemed to lose it a little at the frequency extremes and get a little grainy. I've been running the Groove Tubes Mullard copies for awhile. They retain a little extra warmth in the mids, but seem to do better at the frequency extremes. Nice improvement. I've heard good things about the Electro-Harmonix gold pins. I'm going to give those a try too. Keep putting it off because I'm actually pretty satisfied with the sound of my vinyl these days.

    Hope everyone gets as much enjoyment out of their Jolidas as I'm getting out of mine :)
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  • royphil345
    royphil345 Posts: 3
    edited April 2008
    analog97 wrote: »
    1. The Jolida specs are false
    2. The math is correct (see earlier posts)
    3. The Jolida President Michael Allen refuses to answer fair questions.
    4. Jolida can take a hike.....I could never buy anything from that company. Caveat emptor:eek::eek::eek:

    Am I to assume then that you don't actually own a JD-9A, so you can't experiment a little and find the JD-9A OBVIOUSLY has CONSIDERABLY more gain than 40dB / 80dB?

    Since Jolida sells simple, classic, designs that often aren't updated for years... and they are a company that strives to offer tube gear for less by cutting costs... It would make sense that they probably don't keep designers on full time to answer your questions about products that were designed and tested years ago. I don't think MANY companies could answer the kind of questions you're asking about a product... and I think your math is screwed up... Caveat emptor:eek::eek::eek:
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  • analog97
    analog97 Posts: 328
    edited April 2008
    I don't think MANY companies could answer the kind of questions you're asking about a product... and I think your math is screwed up... Caveat emptor

    1. My math is correct. But, please feel free to double check and report your differing findings or point out what you believe to be my error.
    2. Please refer to post #82.
    3. I continue to believe that all honest questions deserve an answer. There is no excuse for an audio company refusing to answer a simple technical question about their product. Failing to do so will lose many potential customers.
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  • Dennis Gardner
    Dennis Gardner Posts: 4,861
    edited April 2008
    analog97 wrote: »
    3. I continue to believe that all honest questions deserve an answer. There is no excuse for an audio company refusing to answer a simple technical question about their product. Failing to do so will lose many potential customers.

    Ask Polk Audio for frequency response graphs for their speakers....the silence will be deafening.
    HT Optoma HD25 LV on 80" DIY Screen, Anthem MRX 300 Receiver, Pioneer Elite BDP 51FD Polk CS350LS, Polk SDA1C, Polk FX300, Polk RT55, Dual EBS Adire Shiva 320watt tuned to 17hz, ICs-DIY Twisted Prs, Speaker-Raymond Cable

    2 Channel Thorens TD 318 Grado ZF1, SACD/CD Marantz 8260, Soundstream/Krell DAC1, Audio Mirror PP1, Odyssey Stratos, ADS L-1290, ICs-DIY Twisted , Speaker-Raymond Cable
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  • analog97
    analog97 Posts: 328
    edited April 2008
    I am referring to published specs by Jolida that are in error. There are many proprietary concerns by audio companies that are fully understandable. If Polk Audio published a speaker sensitivity of, say 125db, that would be similar to the Jolida out-of-wack published spec. OK?
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  • madmax
    madmax Posts: 12,434
    edited April 2008
    A polk speaker with 125 dB sensitivity! :eek:
    I want a pair!
    madmax
    Vinyl, the final frontier...

    Avantgarde horns, 300b tubes, thats the kinda crap I want... :D
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  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 19,029
    edited January 2010
    So, would this be a good choice for a Music Hall MMF-5 going into a Dodd MLP?

    Or would I be better off getting Gary to add a phono stage to the MLP?
    ~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~
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  • george daniel
    george daniel Posts: 12,096
    edited January 2010
    Tom,,,IIRC Troy has an external phono made by Gary,, I think that it might by worth investigating,,IIRC Gary may be able to add one to/into your MLP.
    JC approves....he told me so. (F-1 nut)
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  • madmax
    madmax Posts: 12,434
    edited January 2010
    treitz3 wrote: »
    So, would this be a good choice for a Music Hall MMF-5 going into a Dodd MLP?

    Depends on the sound you are looking for. This pre is big and ballsey.
    madmax
    Vinyl, the final frontier...

    Avantgarde horns, 300b tubes, thats the kinda crap I want... :D
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  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 19,029
    edited January 2010
    Well rounded throughout the spectrum of frequencies, great dynamics, texture, detail and smooth sounds. Not rough or edgy.
    ~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~
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  • madmax
    madmax Posts: 12,434
    edited January 2010
    This pre has a dynamic kick-**** sort of sound.
    madmax
    Vinyl, the final frontier...

    Avantgarde horns, 300b tubes, thats the kinda crap I want... :D
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  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 19,029
    edited December 2012
    *clears throat*

    This thread kind of hit a brick wall and died a meaningless death, so I thought I'd dig it up from the Polk graveyard and offer anybody who read all of the diatribe an end result. It turns out that I did have a chance to hear this unit in my rig at an audio event. We had a sealed copy of David Gilmore's Live in Gdansk LP that was purposely not played until the event [this was a couple of years back]. After using the NG and steam cleaning the brand spankin' new LP's, we gave it a spin with the Jolida JD-9 hooked up and in action. We didn't read any manuals, we didn't try various IC's and we simply put it to whatever DIP setting matched the cartridge. With no upgrades other than the PC and the tubes, we started listening.

    No issues whatsoever. I sat and listened to the entire album with a buddy of mine and it just simply sounded great. We did not adjust, fiddle, move, tweak or otherwise do anything. We just sat and listened. Everything from the bass extension to the ambiance to the subtle details were present and one did not have to strain to hear any of it. It was flat out enjoyable as all get up. Oh, I gotta tell you this....we put on some sort of AC/DC LP after the PF and whilst listening, in the middle of the song, one of the performers laughed. The laugh was so real, my buddy and I burst out in laughter because it just came out of nowhere and sounded rather funny, in an evil sort of way. We talked about this "laugh" we heard later that evening and I asked my buddy [Jerry] if he had ever noticed it before. He hadn't and either had I and the kicker was that we had both heard the song what seems like millions of times [slight exaggeration] before. Both of us broke out in laughter when we heard it that night though.

    Anyhoo, since then I have heard various tubed [that I had to end up rolling to no avail] and non-tubed vinyl pre's in the rig and my preference is still with the Jolida JD-9. It would be what I would consider an exceptional "entry level" vinyl pre-amplifier. Either that or the synergy with this component in my rig beats everything else I have tried. YMMV.

    MM, you were right.

    Tom
    ~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~
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  • Erik Tracy
    Erik Tracy Posts: 4,673
    edited December 2012
    This was on my list for 2012.

    If it weren't for some big expenditures, I was gonna pull the trigger on this unit.

    Thanks for sharing! Something to save for in 2013.

    H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music.
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  • scottyboy76
    scottyboy76 Posts: 2,905
    edited December 2012
    Buy me one too erik, my rega mini is weirding out on me.

    Im sure this is a big step up in quality from what i have used, maybe even more than my rega tt and system would do justice.

    I just know im gonna try to do my homework, get something quality, and get deb and me back to spinning some of our old music we love.

    Mhardy has been trying to guide me through finishing building a kit pre that i was given the main pieces for, but im thinkin its a little(lot) over my head.
    humpty dumpty was pushed
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  • Dawgfish
    Dawgfish Posts: 2,554
    edited December 2012
    I love mine, in fact mine may be the very unit you were listening to trietz3. If the event happend two or three summers ago (forget exactly which one) with a silver JD-9 that very well may have been my unit. Jerry was looking after a bunch of my equipment while I was in the process of moving and was away working for the summer. He took really good care of my stuff and I owe him one for that. I told him to listen to any piece of equipment he wanted to as much as he wanted to. If that was indeed it I'm really happy that others got to enjoy it. It's a hard phono pre to beat in it's price range.
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  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 19,029
    edited December 2012
    Good morning, Dawgfish. That was the one. I have a photo of the rig it was featured in somewhere around here. If I find it, I'll post it.

    Tom
    ~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~
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  • Dawgfish
    Dawgfish Posts: 2,554
    edited December 2012
    Awesome! I would enjoy that! Hope you and everyone else on the board is having a wonderful holiday season.
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  • Mike Reeter
    Mike Reeter Posts: 4,315
    edited December 2012
    Has anybody performed any of the extensive mods on the JD-9? Replaced caps or op-amps? Many documented threads about this pre, just curious as if anyone here has a modded unit, and how it compares to stock.
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  • Erik Tracy
    Erik Tracy Posts: 4,673
    edited December 2012
    Mike Reeter wrote: »
    Has anybody performed any of the extensive mods on the JD-9? Replaced caps or op-amps? Many documented threads about this pre, just curious as if anyone here has a modded unit, and how it compares to stock.

    There is quite the extensive thread on just this topic over at audiokarma.org

    Seems like the JD-9 can be heavily modded - guess it depend on how for down the rabbit hole you want to go.

    H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music.
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  • Mike Reeter
    Mike Reeter Posts: 4,315
    edited December 2012
    Erik Tracy wrote: »
    There is quite the extensive thread on just this topic over at audiokarma.org

    Seems like the JD-9 can be heavily modded - guess it depend on how for down the rabbit hole you want to go.

    I've been through that thread, I really don't know enough about phono preamps to determine whether or not to purchase a modded Jolida, or pick up a Rogue Audio Ares phono pre for about the same money. My gut tells me Rogue, my bank account says Jolida.
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  • Toolfan66
    Toolfan66 Posts: 17,244
    edited December 2012
    I replaced my caps with great results a couple years ago.. I used clarity caps and have wanted to move up the chain in clarity caps for some time now in this unit..


    Face has done this mod as well, I also think he has done a couple of other mods in his unit as well..
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  • Erik Tracy
    Erik Tracy Posts: 4,673
    edited December 2012
    Mike Reeter wrote: »
    I've been through that thread, I really don't know enough about phono preamps to determine whether or not to purchase a modded Jolida, or pick up a Rogue Audio Ares phono pre for about the same money. My gut tells me Rogue, my bank account says Jolida.

    Start with a stock JD-9 - seems to me the recommendations here are 'glowing' (bad tube pun intended).

    Then go down the rabbit hole yourself with mods....its about the journey - cuz there is no 'destination' in this hobby! :cheesygrin:

    H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music.
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