jolida 502b


new to hi-fi. what are your thoughts on this product? are the modified versions found here at audiogon worth the money? reccomendations for integrated amps/seperates below $2500 new or used, tube or ss. listen mainly to classical and jazz. acoustic piano and vocals important. room 14x18 with 8' ceiling.

aloha keith
Ag insider logo xs@2xatagi
I have a 302b (50w/50w) that I modified according to what Mike (owner) of Jolida recommended. They are much simpler than the extensive Mods others are doing. With them there is a noticable tighter bass, overall detail and clairity, and quicker pace and timing. The Jolida recommended mods in order include:
1. Improve power supply w/ 4 hexfed diode replacement. (biggest improvement they have seen accourding to Jolida)
2. 4 wire wound resister replacements to pin 5 of preamp tubes. (better signal transfer to preamp tubes)
3. Upgrade premp 12ax7 tubes.(more noticable sonic improvement than output tubes - what you feed the power amp is very important)
4. Upgrade EL34 output tubes.
The other extensive mods others are doing have a small return for the money according to Jolida. Infact the capacitor, silver wire, volume control, etc.mods are very expensive upgrade and the ones I listed make the largest improvement.
My 302b uses the beloved EL34 tubes with its huge soundstage, romantically seductive sound, now clearer and faster. Who needs home theatre! Try watching a plain old video through tubes. Dialogue is so realistic and movie music is captivating. It sounds large and you don't even need a subwoofer.
I'm not minimizing music appreciation - as my wife says "It sounds like the musicians are on a stage in the living room." She is a trained choir singer and she likes it better than my Linn. It bums me out a bit, but the truth is that with the 302b (EL34 tubes) it sounds like music not sound bits.
Email me with any questions if you like.
Enjoy!
thanks for the response tab, very interesting and informative. wondering if you could give me some insight into your system, room size?

aloha keith