Jolida JD-100A Tube Rolling

I have tried several tubes in my Jolida. My conclusion is, that tubes, like every other component, are system dependent. You may need/want improvement in areas where I do not, or vice versa.

So heres my thoughts so far.....

Stock 12ax7s - Laid back, very warm, works well in an analytical system (like mine), acceptable bass, not the most leading edge detail (attack).

EI 12ax7s - once warmed up these have a much less forward sounding midrange, especially female vocals, extended highs, acceptable bass, nice attack. Might work well in a warmer sounding system.

EH 12ax7s - very well balanced tonally, acceptable bass, more highs than the stock, and more attack in the midrange, and less in the midbass, particularly with percussion. Deep and wide soundstage.

Sovtek 12ax7LPS - tonally balanced, deep authoritative bass, extended highs without too much aggression. Good soundstage. Good leading edge attack.

RCA Blackplate 5751s - Tonally balanced, nice attack, acceptable bass, a little grainy but plenty of inner detail.

GE JAN 5751s - Lots of bass, edgy and grainy. Not good for my system.

I am yet to try.....Sylvania Blackplate 5751s, Sovtek 12ax7WAs, and the Svetlana 12ax7s.

Currently I using the Sovtek LPSs, they are fairly new in the player. So far I am liking them in my system. The EH worked darned well too. The stock tubes, once warmed well, werent that bad either.

Here are a few links for new production tubes sales...
The Tube Store
Boi Audio Works

How does the Jolida compare to the Phillips? I am considering upgrading my Sony DVD/SACD player. The jolida kills my cheap sony with redbook FWIW.

Good luck.

Thanks Distortion for the descriptions. I think you're right about the system dependence - at least tubes are a lot cheaper than most of the other components to roll. :) I'll just save up all the tubes I roll to re-roll them when I change out other components.

As for the Jolida vs. the Philips, there is no comparison whatsoever. I was very excited as the Philips arrived, anticipating great redbook sounds to boot along with getting a good DVD/SACD - my last CDP is a Sony CDP-520ESII from the late 80's. I started playing various favorite CDs and was very disappointed. I actually found the sounds more pallatable with upsampling turned off, but not impressive. Then I played a burn-in disc for a few days with no great improvement. A few months earlier friend brought over his Rotel RCD1070 and that was an impressive improvement that I could hear from another room.

After this, I purchased a Channel Islands DAC and P/S. This was a noticeable improvement. I found tweaks for the CI that I could do, but found that by the time I was finished, I could buy another player. I started looking for a Ah Tjoeb that's when I saw all of the positive posts about the Jolida. Although the CI DAC sounds a lot better than the Philips, doing A/B comparisons between the Jolida DAC vs. the CI, there is no comparison. A lot of it is probably my new found love for the tube sound. I'm going to start tweaking the Philips now to improve the general performance to improve DVD and SACD performance, but don't anticipate the same sound although I'm sure improvements will occur. The two weeks that I've owned the Jolida, I've not listened to any SACD's if that says anything.

I'd better stop, I'm changing the focus of my own thread.

Sorry, didnt mean to get you off topic, you're the first person that I know that owns both. Thanks for the input. As far as tubes for the Jolida, check out my thread in the "misc" category, its titled "CDP-Tube Suggestions." Some great suggestions are there as well. I just updated it today, as promised when I tryed some more tubes.

FWIW, I bought a VD Power 3 Powercord for the Jolida and really liked it. The VD performed better than several low priced PCs that I have. I feel that this CDP really starts to shine with upgrades.

When I try the Sovtek 12ax7WA's I'll post them on my thread as well. I have been told that the WA's are a warm sounding tube.

I agree, tubes are cheap, and they satisfy my need to tweak.

Thanks, I'll check out the other thread. Did you buy your player upgraded or did you get it upgraded afterward? My player is stock, but I've been looking at doing the upgrades. If you did buy it stock, I'd be interested in hearing about the sonic changes after the changes and what changes you had done. Some of the changes look pretty easy to DIY, so I'll probably start there.

"Distortion", I am looking foward to your comments with the Sovtek 12AX7WA's. I have tried the EH and my summary opinion parallels yours. Same with the stock tubes. In regards to the Sovteks WA's, I find these to be overall smoother, more fluid and homogenous, slightly more depth to the soundstage, and reasonable attack. Perhaps slightly rolled off on the top compared to the others, though not to an amount that makes me think something is missing. Close but not quite. A very romantic sounding tube.

My only complaint on the WA's centers around a feeling that there is a very fine, though light, haze to the sound. It is difficult for me to describe or quantify. On a well recorded CD I struggle to notice it once I sit down and start listening critically. But, when I first sit down to listen or, just listen indirectly or in passing, I perceive this fine haze to the sound - most noticeable on vocals. When I switch to the stock or EH tubes, I do not notice this. So I don't think it is something in my system.

Anyway, your comments on these tubes will be interesting.