So I bought the Willsenton R-800i

@jbhiller Good to hear that the amp arrived and is leaving a good first impression. As I said before, I have nothing much to compare it with and it´s good to hear already that the sound it produces is nice right from the start. Also: You also own Cornwall IVs, so that´s even better for me when you talk about all the sound details.

Some of the tubes it comes with are really good. I have to roll back so to speak to really compare, I started exchanging very early. But from what I hear the JJ in the 12AX7 slot is really good, and from my own experience I can say that russian produced NOS 6SN7s can produce sound equally pleasing to the Sylvania GTBs I also own. But the quality varies and I hope yours came with a good pair. Both pairs of 300B and 805 should PSVane Hifi, so not bad either.

The sloppily translated manual says: „805 adjust bias data refers to: 120mA“, I took it as a recommendation to have the 805s running at 120mA. It´s not been a problem to turn the screw to get them there. Apart from that there are also no other problems or signs that tell me I shouldn´t.

ps: Only yesterday I learned (= read online)  that JJ is using the old machinery used for producing Telefunken ECC83s. So that´s a good sign.

@jbhiller 

At some point, I'll be curious about your views on coupling caps and tube rolling.  I have trouble leaving mediocre caps in place that link to the speaker outputs, BUT I need to patient and get a feel for this guy.  

Getting familiar with the sound and character of the new amplifier and exercising patience, agree. Once you have established a good feel for your amplifier then you can decide what it is you want to sonically modify or tune via capacitors and tubes.

At this initial stage you already like what you are hearing. And based on your description this is a solid and well-built amplifier, with a good foundation for future upgrades. You’ll be able to transition from good sound to very good/excellent sound  with wise capacitor and tube changes. You’re in a good place.😊

Charles 

@jbhiller 

Congrats on your new amp, wish I was still in the area to hear it in action.

Given your amp history - Carver Crimson, Marantz Ruby - I would have thought the HiFi Rose would be the next logical step?😀

@chmaiwald , thank you!!  I should note (for whatever it might be worth) that I "upgraded" the crossover networks in the Cornwall IVs, damped the horn mid and horn tweeter, and installed proper binding posts.  Some may hear a difference some may not.  I used high quality Cardas solder, VCap ODOM caps throughout, Path Audio resistors, and some decent binding posts from Partsconnexion.  I did not change any values/tolerances with the swapped parts. 

Also chmaiwald, I think you are spot on about the bias setting. Strangely, biasing it at ~90ma, as opposed to 120ma, did not result in things sounding sluggish, slow, or out of place.  

@charles1dad,  you are wise.  I have always enjoyed your feedback and guidance.  There are folks on here that seem to want to litigate everything--you seem to be the opposite and are always helping and sharing knowledge! Thank you!

@djspinner , you are correct! I hate to admit it. I'm guilty of making too many lateral moves.  Maybe I just sell all these amps and buy a Jadis or Japanese tube amp!  But my goal is not to have a big collection but rather find different pieces to allow different "sonic meals" if you will.  No piece of gear is really ever perfect so I like to experiment and have different presentations. 

Last night's listening session went way too late! 2:30 am.  

@jbhiller 

Thanks for your thoughtful comments, I appreciate them.

Charles