2. amps-preamps
  3. 151113-136265

JADIS DEFY7, can not get it to sing

Hi
I hope some of you old pros can help answer my,,well lets say help me figure out how to get my Jadis defy 7 to sing. I purchased the amp used (like new, as the seller had a  Jadis JA200 mono blocks laready and the Defy sat quiet, So I bought it in 2008. Months later i purchased a  MINGDA tube pre amp, sounded AWEFUL, Not even close to my jadis Orch reference, KT90's EI tubes, that intergrtaed was really all I needed, i made a  huge costly mistake selling and buying the  DEFY 7, I do believe that w/o a  powerful pre, to DRIVE the FQ's into the Defy, the Defy will not respo9nd. 
The sound is flat, lifeless, no dynamics, The Orch Refer had HUGE sound stage, bass, GORGEOUS life like mids, nice sweet highs. 
I wanted more and bought the Defy,. 
I just had the Defy cked in Baton Rouge, had the KT90's brand new EH tuibes biased . 
I have a  ONKYO preamp arriving next week and am about to buy a  Mitshibushi Pre amp, 
I have a  LITE LS9 , chinese tube preamp, and that pre sounds like the,,no worse than the heftier Ming Da. 
This Lite LS9 is suppose to be a copy of the Jadis 200 pre, It weighs only 7 lbs, the trans is light weight.
I get  the idea the jadis Defy needs a  great hefty powerful prem, which is what folks told me back when i bought it, I did not believe them. 

I am low on  cash and will list the Defy for $3500 and i will pay shipping. 
I will then wait fora  great used Jadis intergrated, say a  DA50.

But I 1st want to try the 2 solid state pres to see if i can get the Defy to wake up.
It I can get some better respose , i may keep it and look for a  good used Audio reserach or a  macnintosh.
I do not have $6K for a jadis pre used. 
My budget is $1K
any help is greatly appreacitaed.
I have the uncredibly  SEAS Thor MTM speakser along with the CAYIN tube cd player with upgraded opamps .
As I say I am very close to selling the hge, hardly used (Like New) amp, due to my doubts that I can get the amp to respond like its tiny brother , The Orch Reference. 
btw I am the one who coined the tag *shootout* wayyyy back in 2000, or 2001 
I stared a  thread of speaker shootouts,,,and based on that long thread, i bought the SEAS THor kits. 
I now see *shoot out* is now the common tag for speaker and stereo components comparison.
My old login was Bartokfan.
Look forward to any suggestions in my dilemma.
paul
new orleans
mozartfan
jond's avatar
jond
5,794 posts
 
Keep the amp and sell every preamp you have including the ones on the way use that money to buy a good used tube preamp on Audiogon, It doesn't have to be a Jadis. You made a mistake pairing a bad preamp with your amp, the preamp has a huge influence on overall sound quality.

So you bought the amp 11 years ago, what preamp were you pairing it with prior to the Ming-da? Have you ever gotten good sound in the time you've owned the amp? Also what speakers are you driving?
mrdecibel
3,063 posts
 
The OP, in his initial post, mentions the speakers he is using. All that is needed is to read.....imo
unison77
50 posts
 
I would wait until the Onkyo preamp arrives next week. I don't expect it to be a perfect  match for the Jadis, but there are unexplainable things in audio and you may be surpsised at what you hear...Of course, don't spend your money on the Mitsubishi preamp... 
mozartfan OP
2,143 posts
 
No it is a MARANTZ 90's modle pre which is on the way. , The Onkyo was a  intergrated, which i canceled purchasing. 
The Mitsubishi pre I also canceled.
Even if the marantz pre produces superior sound over the bland flat chinese tube pre (I bought it as it mentioned it was a  copy of the Jadis 200 pre curcuit, the trans in the Lite LS9 weigs about 1 lb = has no dynamics, no fidelity, no nothing, but does have 10 tubes in the design, which is another reason i bought it  and was cheap at $600). 
<<Thanks for all the helpful ideas, but after pondering my situation, I plan to sell the Jadis Defy.. 
It is too heavy for me to move, and too big for my listening room. 
I started my audiophile journey witha   jadis Orch Refer and now hope to go back to a  Jadis intergrated.
The Jadis Defy is too much for my needs. 
Sadly I never got to enjoy the big amp, but thats my mistake in not believing folks who mentioned I will need a  good pre to bring the Defy to life.
I will use a  david Hefler 220 amp with the Marantz pre , until I can find a   jadis intergrated, at a price I can budget. 


mrdecibel
3,063 posts
 
mozartfan, when I owned it ( for about a year's time ) it produced quite more heat, than my 100 wpc Krell KSA 100. And, because of my, admittedly, high volume levels, microphonics was a big problem ( other tube products, as well, not just the Defy ). Another poster here, on your thread, who made a comment, briefly, but deleted his post, suggested using a passive preamp. The Defy would work well with a passive, and I am currently a big advert to passive preamps ( I love my Luminous Audio unit ). But, it still is a lot of amp, and the recommendation I have, is the same. Sell it. My best to you, Enjoy ! MrD.
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