Coincident Dragon MK I vs MK II

There aren`t many choices of the 6em7 available, you might as well stick with what you have.

Hi Ernie,

Back in 2010, after i bought the latest Franks with 100hrs new and before it was fully broken in, i started with tube rolling, it was my first tube amp (i was a SS person all these while). The stock EH300B was acceptable and reliable: it was good in the midrange but both ends were noticeably rolled off..then Sophia Electric Princess which after trying, i thought it to be lacking in bass but highs were very extended and airy, while midrange was a big improvement over EH300B.

I wrote to Israel if i should to try the Western Electric 300B which some says has the best midrange, OR the KR300B (there were others on the internet commented its poor reliability), his recommendation was simply "Shugang Black Treasure". Truly, it was the best among the few that i sampled. Black Treasure beats the Sophia Electric in everyway, especially the bass. If i remembered correctly, the background is even blacker.

However, this was my experience with Franks (i sold the black bottle 300B with the Franks) with 300B as output tubes. Frank (the amp) was honest enough that i could tell the difference between each brand of tube even before the amp was fully broken in. Well, my observation could be biased because the amps and tubes were all new but i could still tell their characteristics even when it was new. I think i had each tube running between 80-150hrs, switching back and forth. After the Franks was fully broken in, it was very open whereby both ends were more extended, soundstage is wider and deeper, and midrange is more transparent. Overall, a fully burn in Franks, would sound neutral, organic and 3D, and very much 'live'. Once i remembered that i was listening to a Jazz FM station through my Vintage Sansui Tuner, the music stopped and like there was air sucked out from the room. I dozed off at my couch and suddenly jumped out of it, thinking someone was at the door. I had goose bumps. LOL. My MK2 Dragons would sound very identical to the Franks though i never got the same goose bumps as i had with the passive preamp/Franks combo.

I am still using EH300B in my MK2 dragons. If i remember correctly, maybe i'm wrong, that Israel said the 300B driver tubes did not bring about a big change if i used the Black Treasure. This was in 2011. If you got a chance to try the Black Bottles in your dragons, please post your experience. Thanks

Jimmy

Jimmy,
The Dragon is a clear and simple circuit design with much transparency.For this reason I believe you'd hear the effect of the 300b driver tube.
Regards,

Ernie,

I'm using Coincident CPRE and all Coincident cables (Extreme power cords and Extreme Shotgun interconnects & speaker cables). Israel did not publicly mentioned this in his website, but write to him if you're interested. Once you got these cables and pair it with Coincident speakers...you'll not want to remove it. System matching is every important, the cables he designed, sounded best in Coincident's system. Several years ago, as a younger audiophile, i buy & sell, swap cables...i once sold my regular extreme interconnects/speaker cables to another guy who had a passive preamp/VAC power amp. He said Coincident's cables create a heighten sense and does not sound natural. I was still being a SS amp person, and the sound came out to be bass heavy...it was perfect as i was using it as 2-channel music/movie system. Actually, i still do...

You would not believe the outcome of listening to these Shotgun cables system, it's extremely satisfying. Where do i begin?

First, if you're living in New York, Coincident is exhibiting at an Audio Show between April 12-14. They say, picture tells a thousand words...but i say, let music speak for itself. Ask Israel if he's bringing his Shotgun cables.

To demonstrate it's excellency, i used my Onkyo HT receiver connect to my CPRE speakers, using all Coincident cables. I'm using Esoteric X03SE and Magnum Dynalab MD108T tuner...very enjoyable. From the receiver, i had connected an active subwoofer, Energy brand...the result is frequency extension on both ends, and yet tubey warm...couldn't believe it?!

Of course, there was no comparison with Statement Linestage and Dragons Mk2...my Onkyo Receiver was blown away...far far away...it is this good. I mentioned this because i'm a bass freak, like you, bass is paramount to me. Not just bass, but quality and warm/wet bass...i think? My Esoteric X03SE SACD player sounded more weighty in bass and the bass punch is way deeper and fuller. But this comes with a price, big one!

Jimmy

Thanks Charles, i will likely get one in near future...