All right -- maybe not for life but -- with budget in mind here is what I did today and why this is a HOBBY.
Own -- Jolida 302B integrated tube amp. Fully modded by Underwood Hifi -- Love the sound for the buck. I have stuck with it -- had it stored a couple of times now and have it back out. The hobby part? Well today it was setting the bias again. I hadn't done that in a while and thought I better. Yeah baby too true. Recommendations for bias settings are between 34 and 44 mV. Not mA but mV. So I found mine was set at the high end of that. Took them down from near 44 to 36 just to see -- oh my.
The tubes? A matched set of Svetlana EL34s -- wonderful musically in this amp for vocals especially. Once I got the bias down -- boy I had forgotten how wonderful it is.
More on the hobby portion in another forum but with the bias at the lower end of the range -- musical beyond measure. Lovely, lovely sound. More adjustments to the system made today too. Oh yeah -- Matched Mullard NOS 12AX7s and some Telefunken 12AT7s round out the current tube arrangement -- great compliment for the system. I keep other tubes around -- just to roll in and out. Love the JJ Tesla Blues -- as much for the look at night as anything but they do work well in the power slots.
Lots more on this but I'm keeping the Jolida -- note the modded part carefully -- it made all the difference.
Own -- Jolida 302B integrated tube amp. Fully modded by Underwood Hifi -- Love the sound for the buck. I have stuck with it -- had it stored a couple of times now and have it back out. The hobby part? Well today it was setting the bias again. I hadn't done that in a while and thought I better. Yeah baby too true. Recommendations for bias settings are between 34 and 44 mV. Not mA but mV. So I found mine was set at the high end of that. Took them down from near 44 to 36 just to see -- oh my.
The tubes? A matched set of Svetlana EL34s -- wonderful musically in this amp for vocals especially. Once I got the bias down -- boy I had forgotten how wonderful it is.
More on the hobby portion in another forum but with the bias at the lower end of the range -- musical beyond measure. Lovely, lovely sound. More adjustments to the system made today too. Oh yeah -- Matched Mullard NOS 12AX7s and some Telefunken 12AT7s round out the current tube arrangement -- great compliment for the system. I keep other tubes around -- just to roll in and out. Love the JJ Tesla Blues -- as much for the look at night as anything but they do work well in the power slots.
Lots more on this but I'm keeping the Jolida -- note the modded part carefully -- it made all the difference.