Is the Jolida jd 100 as good as the dealers claim?

My JD 100 transport is not "dead quiet." Audible "chatter" -- more with some discs than others. Jolida says expect some of this, esp.if disc is warped. Anyone else have this experience?

Re tubes, I recently followed a suggestion of Kehut on nanother thread and replaced my Electro Harmonix tubes with Cyro'd Ei Gray Plate ECC83/12AX7s from Ken Chait, the tubeman (Ken is a nice and helpful guy, btw). Both I and my more skeptical partner noticed worthwhile improvement -- richer and deeper mids,I'd have said. For 40 bucks +sh, worth a try. jmd

Sorry it took so long to reply but it took one and a half months to get my player with grade 1 mods from Brice at sound odyssey.He said he was down a tech and that left it all on him.I was first told that they were having trouble getting stuff through customs,then I was told he was short his tech and he promised an upgraded power cord for being so patient.When I finnaly got the player I could hear somthing rattling around inside.I removed the cover and shook the player upside down and a gold plated screw rolled out.I could not find an empty hole so I assumed it was droped by accident.The tubes were supposed to be electro-harminex but all the markings were rubbed off but you could tell it was white letters and the eh tubes are gold markings,no up graded power power cord.
When I e-mailed him he said he had not forgot the power cord it was on its way and the tubes were Mullards he threw in for my patients and he would send eh tubes if I wanted.One of the tubes has the diamond on the bottom,the other looks like an o.It has been about two weeks and no power cord yet.
Now to get to the sound.Absolutly fantastic.Thanks for all of you who recomended it.The sound is lush and full with great bass.The transport is dead quiet and I love it.I have already ordered other tubes to see what difference they make.Any suggestions?The only bad thing is I think the tube bug has bit and I will be looking into tube preamp and amp. Agin thanks too all of you.

Of course we all have different experiences about the gear. Synergy is more important than any one single piece of gear no matter how good it is.

I posted above that it was better than my Wadia 23/ 24/192 Electrocompaniet combo in my system at that time. I also owned the Cary 308T, but in a system ( Thiel 2.3/ SS CJ-amp and pre amp) that I could not get to sound good no matter what cdp I used :-(

I also found the Cary's drawer way too flimsy for a $2500 product( then found out from a chat with Dennis, that this model has had drawer alignment issues with a good number of units that had to be repaired at the factory. Hmmm.

Anyway.. my current happy experience with the Jolida tells me that this player excells at about 3 times its price point, but IF it falls down on the noise/resolution thing, It is not a detriment at all in my system.

My JD100 purchased used for $649.00 with NO level anything mods and very minimal upgrades with Ei ECC-83 Gray Plates(under $20.00 pair)... and a $5200( stupid retail) Electroglide Ultra Khan II Rev/Revised Statement PC found used for a paltry $750(1/7th of retail!! which is quite common)....gives me a sound that is unheard of even at my upgraded $1400 total price point! No one would set out to intentionally buy a mondo expensive PC like the EG to match up with a sub 1K component...but this PC is no ordinary PC, and can transform this player big time, as it does most anything it's stuck on to.Fortunately, I had this one left over from a previous system to use on the Jolida

But,Its not always all about better parts, dacs, transports or circuits..its about the execution and design of such and the synergistic match with your existing components. HDCD is nice..but really not drastically necessary and its also a fact that 24/96 is all you really need to get excellent resolution from well designed digital.

Ill take the well balanced, warm, and nicely resolving Jolida player for the $1400 Ive spent, over the big buck rigs that are perhaps "better" at some things, but cant quite communicate the emotion of my JD.

Im sure at some point when Im ready to upgrade in a few years..Ill be spending some way bigger bucks to have any signifigantly better sound from my digital cdp. The Meitners, Audio Aeros, Reimyo's, Lindemann's and Lectors are out there and blowing us away with their incredible sound.. but I cant afford them right now..and at real world prices, Im just loving this JD

Rocketman4274...you started this thread 8/2/05, but we are yet to hear from you on where you are in your decision to buy a cdp and if you have any thoughts now.

Ken

"The Jolida requires tube rolling, the right aftermarket PC, and other tweaking to properly evaluate it."

Foster, I didn't mean to tap your turntable, but these are my experiences. I have had their amps and worked in an audio salon representing their equipment, and heard it many, many times. I have owned Rotel as well and made the comparison on that.

Finally by the time you add the Jolida mods, tube rolling and power cord you are not talking about a $900 CDP anymore. Now the Cary, especially used, is a very good deal. The Cary uses a better dac, power supply, parts, etc. It also offers upsampling and HDCD.

I think the extra resolution of the Cary suited my Pass Labs amp and high resolution speakers better.

Mike

I happen to like the Cary 308T better than the 308. I think the Jolida is more addictive, but the 308T has more detail. Choose your poison.

>>I had the Jolida in my system for a week.

A week! Mjcmt: IMO that's not enough time to evaluate any front end unless it's mass market stuff. The Jolida requires tube rolling, the right aftermarket PC, and other tweaking to properly evaluate it. My modded unit did not perform at it's best until I tried a few sets of tubes. I also tried more than one aftermarket PC. I respect the Cary nameplate and I have no doubt that the 308 is a quality cdp. But it should be, it retails for $1,500. You're comparing it to a retail $900 player. How about comparing apples to apples. And, I've had the Rotel RCD 1072 in my home and it's a fine player at it's price point. IMO the JD100 does not sound like a tubed Rotel RCD 1072.

It is like a tubed Rotel.

A used Cary CD-308 is much better and can be gotten for $900 or less.

I had the Jolida in my system for a week. I ended up with the Cary. Better resolution, soundstage, and musicality. The Cary has better DAC, parts, power supply, and build. It also offer upsampling and HDCD.

But, if you like the boring Rotel sound, go for it.

Shoe, have you considered a modified Jolida as an upgrade? It's something you might want to consider. The mods do make a difference. The Arcam FMJ 33 is very nice and the Cary 303/200 is also great player. The Cary is very neutral and open/spacious. The Arcam a little more detailed and pointed (but not too technical). To my ear, the Jolida is warmer than both of these, while still remaining detailed. The Arcam has the tightest bass of all three and the Cary has the most neutral sounding, but the Jolida is the most emotional of the three and for me was the winner.

I have owned many players in and above the Jolida price range. I settled on the Jolida with Level 1 Mods. Absolutely incredible for the money and even for much more. I was listening to it last night. Abbey Road. You could hear the sand in the maracas and the palm on the skin of the tambourine. Everything is there. If you can't hear these details on an older recording it's not the Redbook CD that's limiting your ears, it's your player. The Jolida has what it takes to bring these details out, and in a very pleasant, non-fatiguing way. In my book, you can't loose with this player plus a nice pair of tubes.

thanks

Hello,
I have had the Jolida JD 100 longer than anything else in my system, going on a whole year now! . Would really like to hear some A B comparisons between it and used CD players, say around $1000 + - Like maybe Meridian 588 , Arcam FMJ 23 or a Cary 308...I think I have the model #'s right. I have been wanting to upgrade but the Jolida's hard to beat for the $$$
thanks

Ditto Boa2. My JD100 went from very good to down right sublime when I put NOS 1967 Sylvania 5751 tubes (I tried several others but liked these the best) and an MIT Z-cord II power cord on it. Night and day difference for only an extra $180. Try that with the DAC1! lol.

Mamzh, if you heard the Jolida with stock tubes and a stock power cord, you did not hear what that player can do. Not even close. It's no giant killer, in my opinion, but it is one highly musical, non-fatiguing player. I can't say that about half the players I've heard, not at any price.
Howard

I listened to Jolida jd100 and Benchmark DAC1 at a store a few weeks ago. Personally, I prefer DAC1 than JD100. The amp was DK VS MKII and the speaker was VS vr4jr. With DAC1, this system had more detail and better bass. The dealer tried to promote JD100 to me first, however, after comparison, both of us thought DAC1 had better performance in this system.

I also should add; of course, you should try to get a home audition in your system before purchasing. Please let us know your impressions of the unit.

Yes. As far as Judy426 goes "methinks thou dost protest too much." I have the JD 100 and I also have the Simaudio Nova, a highly regarded unit that costs 3X as much and the Jolida with VH Audio Flavor 4 PC, vibration dampening and NOS tubes gives my Nova a run for the money. It has a slightly tubey, open and natural sound. I hate to use the over-used cliche, but it really does lean towards an analog sound. As Kehut says, listen to the goners here who are endorsing it. It may not be as good as the dealers say but it is defininitely worth the price of admission. Buy with confidence!

The Jolida is one of the best values ever. Musically satisfying, technically well-executed and the price is right.

Judy426- I still remember my first ride in a new dark green Dodge Coronet 440 w/ 6 pack option-around 1969 in Norfolk Va. I was about 12 years old then, and I can still hear that sound in my head :)

Thanks for the aside- it brought back a pleasant memory.

Yes indeed! listen to your pals here who say its a great player! I sold my Wadia 23 running as a transport and Electrocompaniet upsampeling DAC after hearing the JD100. I gained a sound much more real to my ears. If you get one you can keep it great by not modding it!

Got a Hemi!..Sweeeeeeeeeet

Actually the 440 6-Pac was a much better street motor.

Maybe Judy426 should put a Hemi in it!!

I have the Jolida, and think it's a great player for the money.

Eben.

UMMM.....I just bought it and have listened to several different players in the $2500 range. I loved the Sim Audio Equinox, but could not justify the extra $$ for it when compared to the Jolida. (with a couple slight mods). I think the Jolida is a fine piece for the money. I think Judy426 has a problem with the company or is just plain bias.

YES - very musical and addictive.

Yes indeed. I have compared mine (with NOS Sylvania tubes) to several players and the Jolida is excellent for the money. I just finished doing an A/B in my system with the $1600 Granite Audio CDP and the Jolida was very obiviously better - more open, larger soundstage, more detail and air, and a lot livelier. The Granite sounded lifeless in comparison.

My conclusion at this point is that you would have to spend upwards of $2000 to beat the Jolida with nice tubes.

No it is not.
Way over hyped.
Listen for yourself.
Yuk.

At the moment I'm listening to Neil Youngs "Unplugged" on an almost box stock Njoe Tjoeb (850.00 ish, I changed tubes) that I bought 6 weeks or so back.
It's another good tubed cd option worth looking into, imho.

Yes, it is.