new Jolida

I found "Jolida JD100S" cd player on Ebay and a few asian websites. Players looks very cool and seems to be improved version of JD100A.

Then I phoned Jolida and they said this is gray market player with inferior parts and that they are working on it to have this "stopped" (i.e. using Jolida name).

I'm not a 100% convinced that player is inferior or knock off (if you look at parts they claim to use, it's seems equal to if not better). What may be questionable is reliability & warranty issues...but don't forget likely the unauthorized Jolida is from OEM factory that makes legit Jolida's.

Also, I read in an older thread Jolida JD 100S was sold in europe/asia 2 years ago already (with no complaints)....makes me say "hhmmmm?".

Remember, Ford Focus was sold/made by Ford Europe for many years until it was released in North America?

Even if a player comes from the same factory with improved parts I don't think that I would purchase it if it is using the pirated name of another company. Jolida does take great pride in their products and is honest about their limitations vs price point. They will tell you straight up that if you are looking for the end-all-be-all to high-end 40w EL34 tube amps you should spend 3K on something else. But if you want a killer 40w EL34 integrated that an average guy can afford the Jolida fills that gap handily.

THere are any number of companies that source products from the same factories and tweek them in different ways to make them their own (Music Hall/Project for example). THey brand them differently and sometimes price them differently. They still use their own name though.

Even if a company gets their products made elsewhere (who can afford not to these days) I would prefer to buy from someone who takes some level of pride in their product.

Just my 2cents.

Hi All,
One thing to consider here is that these products will not even run in the US. Even after "converting" to US voltage, the transformers are not designed to handle our high voltage swings. I receive many calls from consumers that have bought these gray market products only to find out they fry the transformers within only a few weeks.

They are designed to run on a steady 110 volts with absolutely no variation and cannot handle our 120+ voltage.

Well......... I don't know? it looks like a split decision on the Dared. So should I or shouldn't I. I think it would be something I would defintely demo before laying down the cash.

Do they offer a money back guarantee? And do they have a repair facility in the U.S.? Than would be my concern. I would hate to need to ship it all the way to China for warranty issues.

I don't however think that everything that comes out of China is junk. After living there for some time, and living in a city that had plenty of high-edn stuff ( including all the big names sold here ) I found that some of there stuff was good and some not so good. How much do you want to lay down?

oops! thought I was on the Dared thread!

Well while I'm here..... The company out of the UK that is selling the Jolida said that his stuff is originall wired for our 110 and then converted over to 220. So I think if one got a piece and rewired it be as it should be.