Prima Luna vs jolida

Hi 2out2sea

I think you may need to try different tubes with that Jolida 502B. I agree with Donjr that you should ask Jolida for their input as well.

Here are my findings with tube rolling with my Jolida 502P which I think may be comparable to the 502B. This was with my system so YMMV.

For thicker bass and very clean tones I found blue glass JJ KT88 tubes paired with Mullard CV4024 and JJ 5751 preamp tubes did the trick.

I found with the Tung Sol KT-120s Preferred 7025s and Penta Labs 12AT7 tubes I had very good performance in the mids and highs along with tight bass. Lots of nice separation and detail.

My favorite overall sound was with a NOS JAN GE 6550 quad JAN GE 12AT7 and 5751s. These tubes were expensive but man the music was awesome in my system. I had a very hard time giving these tubes back to the gent that loaned them to me.

My least favorite combo was with black solid plate Penta Labs KT-88 tubes with reissue Tung Sol 12AT7 and reissue Mullard 12AX7s. Bass wasn't as tight and sound was flat to me.

Again these were my findings I'm sure others have had different experiences.

Sorry if this is a duplicate response. I tried to post my Jolida findings yesterday but I didn't see the post this morning.

i may try to contact jolida, but i am starting to wonder if a different tack may serve better. john hillig at musical concepts and i have talked and i may just modify my b&k into a state of the art amp. the cost is going to be essentially the same as getting a single jolida. all high end bits in my amp is starting to sound pretty good. i dunno at this point. i wish there were a way to trial gear. it seems very few, and none of the equipment i'm interested in, offer a trial period. demo equipment would sure go a long way into helping with these dilemmas!!!

I hear you 2out2sea. I've done my share of buying and trying and re-selling at a loss. Sometimes it is the only way to go if you want to demo gear. Are there any Jolida dealers near your or an audio society where other members have various amps for you to audition? If I lived close to you I'd lend you tubes to try in that Jolida 502B. Hmm how about buying some power tubes or preamp tubes for your friends Jolida to try and tailor the sound to your liking. The re-sell of tubes isn't as bad as re-selling amps. It is a lot easier to re-sell tubes than gear IMO.

Best of luck with the search.

I use KT120s, Psvane 12AX7-T IIs, and Mullard NOS 12AT7s, none of which are expensive, and all of which sound amazingly good, although I said that about the other tubes I was using before this group. I researched the crap outta the "Tube Amp World" before deciding on my Jolida, and I just could not ignore the fact that their power amps occupy their own price category with weirdly modest to zero factory hype, and are well regarded nonetheless.

guys, firstly i wanted to say thanks for making audiogon one of the best forums out there. i've been visiting this site for almost 15 years and i've never been insulted, ignored or ridiculed. it's very refreshing. many thanks for the help, advice and wisdom.

i am actually considering the butler tdb2250 at this point. maybe a high end hybrid will work the magic i am looking for in an amp. again it's a shot in the dark. it's also 3k so i dunno.

as i sit here listening to my b&k i am really leaning towards the musical concepts upgrade path. new high end caps throughout and a significantly upgraded power supply all at around 1100.00 is starting to make more sense. i am 98% of the way to ideal. 1100.00 seems like a moderate investment to push it over the top. i'll never get my money back out of it if it tanks though. that's not sitting well in my stomach.

wolf, my buddy has a jolida 502b b/c i convinced him to buy it almost 15 years ago. i have always thought their gear was underrated. however, while not rich, i now have more disposable income and am moving up the ranks. that is why i was looking at getting the 502p's and running them as mono's. i'm just too cheap to waste money on the krell or levinson stuff. just too much hype and i've never heard anything that i really liked other than tubes. the b&k is really not bad and i think you tube guys would like the sound. i'm just looking for that last little bit...