Jolida FX Tube DAC

12ax7 tubes? do not have experience here...but try speaking with Brent Jesse...you'll find him on web. Not a great website, but a great guy to get advice from on options. Honest...bought from him many times over the last 7 years or so...maybe a dozen NOS tubes or more. Highly recommended. good luck.

I have had a Jolida Glass FX DAC for about 3 weeks now. I used to have a Musical Fidelity V-DAC which I used to connect my computer and TV to my Antique Sound Lab AQ-1003DT EL34 based tube amp. I live at the low end of hi-fi but it is what I can afford and I am happy with it. It still surpasses the box store stuff by miles.

The V-DAC is highly rated but the sound quality never measured up to my Jolida JD-100A CD player. I hated listening to music through it off my computer or HDTV. I use only lossless formats ripped from my own CD's. The V-DAC is thin, muddy and compressed compared to the JD-100A. It makes me not want to listen in comparison. Better to just get up and swap CD's.

I read the few reviews on the Glass FX available and while some sites like Absolute Sound were favorable, some bloggers gave less than flattering reviews (although these seemed to be based on customer service issues). Anyway, I snagged a brand new one off eBay for under $300.

The V-DACii about $300. The Jolida Glass FX is about $400. The Glass FX is way more than $100 better. It is several steps above and at such a close price point. They aren't even in the same league. The Glass FX is so close to the JD-100A in sound quality that the difference is barely discernible and I have to account for the fact my unit isn't even burned in yet.

I can actually listen to Apple Lossless through this DAC and where the V-DAC wore me out this has me listening with full enjoyment. My wife, who dismisses high end audio, sat up and took notice when I ran an HDMI cable to the HDTV to a Toslink/SPDIF cable out the back into the DAC (and into the amp). When she says she can hear the difference I have to chuckle.

The mids and highs are crystal clear. It is a little thin on the bass end. The bottom line is I can listen to quality audio without having to swap out CD's if I don't want to and I'm loosing the smallest fraction of fidelity. It comes with Tung-Sol 12AX7 resissues which aren't too bad. I look forward to doing some tube swapping.

I like that it uses an actual power cord so that can be upgraded too. The tubes are easy to access. It is solidly built. In a nod to what I guess is the younger folks there are blue LED lights behind the tubes. I can do without it but it isn't a deal breaker. Audio quality USB, HDMI, Toslink, and interconnects do make a difference so don't go with the cheap stuff from the box stores, Amazon or eBay. In fact I recommend Pangea USB (Audio Advisor) cables for the low price point. They easily rival Audioquest offerings and specs and deliver a wonderful audio improvement.

I hope this helps you and others in making a decision about this fine DAC. I have spent enough hours listening to it to know I am completely satisfied. When you are enjoying the music, notice that the foot is tapping and you are getting into the groove; when the stereo sound stage is clear and wide; when you are able to discern everything that is going on int he ensemble; then it is very, very good.

So getting to the tube rolling - here is what I have swapped/listened to so far: 10 year old JJ ECC83's; Groove Tube 12-AX7M Mullard reissues also from about 10 years ago (these were great tubes - don't think you can get them anymore); Telefunken smooth plates; Telefunken ribbed plates, Amperex Holland Bugle Boy's from the early '60's. Again, they come with the new Tung-Sol's.

So what defines success in tube rolling? Is it that different tubes have differing sonic qualities when installed in a piece of audio equipment? If so, you will have success when you roll the tubes in the Glass FX.

I haven't decided on which tubes I am going with yet. That always takes awhile. Surprisingly the Tung-Sol's actually work very well. I am leaning towards the Bugle Boys. When it comes down to it though it is always a subjective choice made by the listener that fits their particular preferences. So all I can say with certainty is that swapping the tubes changes the sonic characteristics.

Again, the tubes are very easy to access.

This is an aside but if you have the FX DAC or the integrated and don't care for the bright blue LEDs there are a couple of things you can do about it. I have the FX10 integrated on a shelf directly above the computer monitor in my office and the blue LEDs were very distracting.

I first took out the tubes and put a couple of layers of dark red fingernail polish on the LEDs, which created a much less obnoxious purple-blue color and cut down the brightness.

After awhile I felt that wasn't enough so I took off the bottom plate of the amp and clipped one of the leads to each LED. It was a very simple process and I was much happier with something that now looks like a tube amp instead of a video game.

Really nice amp, I use it with a pair of JohnBlue JB3 speakers and it's a wonderful combo.