Joule Electra LA-150 MK3 vs MK2?

It would also be interesting to see what our systems compare like in terms of amps. I am running the 3.6s with 60 watts. You are using something like 800 or 1600 depending on how we count monoblocks. The thing is, I have 60 (well, okay, 90 at 4 ohms) watts from Nelson Pass, and his watts are different than everyone else's watts. I don't feel any lack of slam! On Shostakovitch's 8th on the quick blasts I can easily get to 110/115 db (read from meter, not estimated) without distortion I can tell/hear. (Like I said Nelson watts aren't normal. Try that with a 90 watt Sony or even NAD amplifier!) But it would be fun to hear your system and see what 800 watts sounds like :)...

But I digress - this is a pre-amp thread.

Hello Lightminer,

Two points.

1 - The perceived loudness or even measured peak sound pressure does not depend on nominal power you quoted but only on the headroom which is peak power over the duration amplifier power supplies can hold it. If you measured, say 115 dB then knowing the distance from the speaker to the place of the measurement as well as sensitivity of your speakers (at this frequency) is very easy to calculate the power your amplifier generated during this measurement. There is no magic here whatsoever.

2 "without distortion I can tell/hear" - distortion which you can clearly tell or clearly hear is of HUGE magnitude (at very best more then 1%). Much more dangerous are distortions which only your inner old so called "reptilian" brain detect and it gives some signals to your cortex that "something wrong here. Don;'t know what, don;t care but something is not right". Cortex perceived it as slight or substantial discomfort and its called listener fatigue.

A few months ago, I published an article in EnjoyTheMusic describing challenges of faithful music peak reproduction and if you wish I can send it to you.

What iSancez and other owners of LA-300ME are saying, as I understand, is that Joule-Electra LA-300ME preamp re-creates musical crescendo without (or minimum) of subtle distortions leading to much more realistic experience of listening to "preprocessed, recorded" music.

Thank you

Hello iSanchez,

In your review of LA-300ME you wrote that you need upgrade your power supplies for full spec. I wonder if you did it and if it was sufficiently long enough for burn-in to take place and if so - did you hear improvments?

I am asking because as increadibly good LA-300ME was sound when I auditioned it first time - the sounds is much better now. I hear more details, more "there" - actually much more "there" etc etc

All The Best
Rafael

Hello Rafael,

I had the LA-300ME to full spec now. I only have about 20 hours on it, but from the first moment the improvements were quite obvious. The bass is deeper and tighter, the highs are silkier and more "luxurious" if you will. More detail surfaces from the music overall. There is even more effortlessness from the sound, which IMO is quite an achievement since this characteristic was already one of the strongest points of this preamp.

What really impressed me the most is the mid-range. Voices are rendered with such a level of realism that even I find it eerie now. There is simply more "life" in the voices and much more air. Voices are one of the sounds we're most familiar with and when they sound so real from reproduced music, it is one of the most surreal experiences one can go through as an audiophile.

I'll post a follow up once I get more time with the LA-300ME.

Best,

iSanchez

"I'll post a follow up once I get more time with the LA-300ME"

Thank you - may be its better to start separate thread. Voices are good if you know them in life...methink. I use cello, therefore since I "know" it - or I want to believe so...

All The Best
Rafael