The 302 is a sweet, clean sounding amp. the gear has undergone many improvements since original models. And there are upgrades. One can upgrade caps and resistors and diodes and even wiring. Jolida can do it. Many people do this stuff themselves. I have been selling Jolida gear for several years. We have had very few problems, many happy customers, and Jolida provides great support. The 1501 hybrid is overlooked, but has a real nice sound with upgrade package 1. At the prices paid you cannot expect to have the very best tubes and capacitors, etc. Those items get costly. You want the very best get out 3k to 5k at least. if you want a great value Jolida provides that. hope this helps someone to make a decision. I have a 502 hooked up to some Advent 6003s now using the DACIII upgraded. It sounds super to me. Those Advents go great with a tube amp.
Review: Jolida JD-302b Tube amp
Category: Amplifiers
I started looking for a low budget SS integrated amp (Creek, Cambridge, Arcam or the like) when I found out that a make like Jolida was available to try out tubes I decided to give it a try. I considered Antique Audio but Jolida provided more inputs (4 instead of 3) which is enough for a tuner, CD, cassette, and TV. While this limitation can be overcome with a switcher (i.e. Niles) this was a ‘cleaner’ solution.
After un packing the amp I was initially un-enthused and a bit disappointed. Granted I was just ‘building’ a system at that time and using an old pair of Infinity speakers and an old Sharp CD player. However very quickly I was amazed at the new amount of detail I heard in all of my music. I was pulling every old CD out of my collection to hear them ‘new’ for the first time. Mostly JAZZ and World Music (African).
The only sonic problem that I have encountered with this unit is some RF interference to my proximity to a local radio station. At very very low volume you can hear the radio system coming through the speakers. This is due to the fact that I live in a 30 story apartment building whose whole wiring system acts as one big antennae.
As time pasted I upgraded the surrounding components which has contributed to me liking the system only that much more.
On an entirely non-sonic note - the effect of the glowing vacuum tubes contributes to the ambiance of a listening space and serves to focus one more of the senses during a listening session. Not to mention inciting many a comment from non-audiophile guests.
Associated gear
Click to view my Virtual System
I started looking for a low budget SS integrated amp (Creek, Cambridge, Arcam or the like) when I found out that a make like Jolida was available to try out tubes I decided to give it a try. I considered Antique Audio but Jolida provided more inputs (4 instead of 3) which is enough for a tuner, CD, cassette, and TV. While this limitation can be overcome with a switcher (i.e. Niles) this was a ‘cleaner’ solution.
After un packing the amp I was initially un-enthused and a bit disappointed. Granted I was just ‘building’ a system at that time and using an old pair of Infinity speakers and an old Sharp CD player. However very quickly I was amazed at the new amount of detail I heard in all of my music. I was pulling every old CD out of my collection to hear them ‘new’ for the first time. Mostly JAZZ and World Music (African).
The only sonic problem that I have encountered with this unit is some RF interference to my proximity to a local radio station. At very very low volume you can hear the radio system coming through the speakers. This is due to the fact that I live in a 30 story apartment building whose whole wiring system acts as one big antennae.
As time pasted I upgraded the surrounding components which has contributed to me liking the system only that much more.
On an entirely non-sonic note - the effect of the glowing vacuum tubes contributes to the ambiance of a listening space and serves to focus one more of the senses during a listening session. Not to mention inciting many a comment from non-audiophile guests.
Associated gear
Click to view my Virtual System
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- 9 posts total
- 9 posts total