So I didn't buy the Jolida -- Part II

OK, I'm back from my hiatus from the forum. As requested, I wanted to provide some additional feedback on the CD player I purchased about one month ago. As some of you may recall, it is a no name (actually a "Bada") Chinese CD player called the HD-22. I paid $500 bucks for the unit. Originally, I was going to get a Jolida JD100, but decided to roll the dice on this less expensive unit. It has a single tube (6N3). I just discovered that it has two outputs -- one for tube stage and the other is a transistor stage output. I haven't played around with the two pair of outputs yet to determine the differences. Maybe I'll do that later.

Anyway, I've been listening to it more and more, and the more I listen, the better it gets. In fact, I took the CD player to Verastarr outside of Atlanta, GA to get it modded. One reason I took it there is because they also modify the Jolida JD100 CD player, so I got a chance to hear my stock CD player vs. a modded Jolida served up with a Jolida integrated tube amp (502B, I think). Not surprisingly, the Jolida sounded better.

The folks at Verastarr performed the following mods on my CD player:

-- Upgraded the opamps to Burr Brown ones.

-- Replaced two pair of cheap RCA outputs with rhodium over silver plate Cardas Audio jacks.

-- Rewired internally with teflon-insulated pure solid core silver-covered copper wire.

-- Replaced the diodes in the power supply with Fairchild Stealth ultrafast soft recovery diodes.

-- Damped the inside of the chassis, transformers, and transport with copper damping sheets.

Once it was finished, I got a chance to hear my modded HD-22 against the modded Jolida. I was surprised once again -- I couldn't tell the difference between the two units! Keep in mind that I still have the cheap Chinese tube in my unit (a new tube is forthcoming).

OK, so far, so good. But once I got home, hooked it up, and took a listen, I only noticed a very subtle difference. Not sure why. Maybe it was because the demo was done on a 60 watt integrated amp vs. my system -- a Musical Fidelity A3CR preamp and 150-watt Odyssey Stratos. Maybe it was room acoustics or speakers, I don't know. Anyway, I'm glad I did it because I learned a lot about the process. Nevertheless, I expect a change in the tube will make the biggest difference in sound. Stay tuned.

By the way, when we took the hood off of the HD-22, we noticed that the circuit board called for a Burr Brown opamp (inscribed on the board); however, the stock opamps were not Burr Browns. This CD player is probably a knock-off of a more expensive player, no doubt using the same boards. Otherwise, the player is very solidly built and many of the other internal components are of higher quality than other CD players at its price point. It weighs in at a hefty 18 lbs. and has two torroidal-type transformers.

Final comments -- I have a great CD player. For the price it can't be beat, although there's no warranty -- only a 30 day return policy. I upgraded to this CD player from the highly regarded Cambridge Audio 640C CD player (retail is $499), and the stock HD-22 blows it away. So don't be afraid to try the less expensive Chinese audio products. I'm finding out that they are just as good as the name brand stuff in many respects (which, by the way, is probably made in China anyway). My friend has an Audio Experience (Chinese product) tube preamp. You can find them on audiogon for about $300. We conducted an A/B test and it sounds just as good as his Audio Research LS-7 preamp. They look nice, too. He recently upgraded the tubes on the Audio Experience and now it sounds even better.