music hall 25.2 DAC mod

I've owned the music hall 25.2 DAC for about 1 month and also contacted Gary regarding the mod. He let me know the mod includes a new tube, the JJ6922. He said to try the tube on my own, and if I liked that upgrade, I would like his mod. Well, I just got the European tube installed 2 days ago and it **immediately** made a dramatic difference. Warmer, more weight, more holographic, seemingly deeper bass, though there is a little bit of roundness in the bass as tubes are known to do....that's part of the sound. The JJ is supposedly a new tube that uses the old Tesla factory which is somewhat famous. It has gold pins and it just sounds way better than EH.

BTW, isn't that funny, I also tried the EAT on the Electro-Harmonix tube, and seemed to like it but wasn't too sure. It actually doesn't fit the JJ because the diameter is too small even though the tubes have the same spec.

I'm strongly inclined to get the mod. Gary has good feedback on Audiogon and seems to know what he's talking about. Go to google images and search for Music Hall Dac25.2. You'll come up with sellers that include photos of the 25.2's circuit boards. Compare these pics to photos of modded unit on Gary's site. Indeed, w/o being a techie, it seems he's really adding some premium parts that are immediately apparent due to larger size/different color, especially around the tube area.

Keep me posted if you pull the trigger, and I will try to post my impressions on the mod if I do that in the next week or two. BTW, I would definitely take him up on the A-B comparison/audition since you live in SoCal. Let us know!

Thanks,
Audiohound

Well I took the advice above and tried the JJ6922 tube and immediately noticed a more liquid sound and greater depth and seperation. Only thing is, the one I ordered does not have gold pins. I do not know if that will matter much ?

I AM LOOKING FOR A (DAC) THAT IS THE BEST OF ALL WORLDS THAT IS WELL UNDER $1,000.00! I HAVE LOOKED AT PRETTY MUCH EVERY (DAC) OUT THERE AND IT IS VERY HARD TO CHOSE ONE THAT WILL WORK FOR ME! I READ ABOUT THE (MUSIC HALL 25.2)THE (WAVELENGTH AUDIO PROTON) (PS AUDIO DAC III) AND ALOT MORE AND I HAVE NO IDEA WHICH TO CHOSE! I WILL BE DOWNLOADING ALOT OF OLD (70'S FUSION JAZZ & R&B ALBUMS, CASSETTES) DOWN TO (LOSSLESS FORMAT) TO WHICH I ALSO NEED TO KNOW ALL THE SETTING TO (RECORD-IN)FOR THE BEST SOUND QUALITY BUT I ALSO NEED TO KNOW IS IT BETTER TO RECORD IN (WAVE OR OGG) AND WHICH CODEC RECORDS AT THE BEST (SOUND QUALITY) AND USES THE LESS HARD DRIVE SPACE? I NEED HELP WITH ALL OF THIS FROM ALL THOSE WHO HAVE VAST EXPERIENCE WITH ALL THESE PROBLEMS AND CHOICES?

If it sounds good....then it sounds good! I got mine with the gold pins from Antique Electronic Supply in Tempe,AZ, however, it cost $23 which is more that the usual approx. $12 that I saw at other vendors. Maybe there's a cost differential for gold pins, not sure. They tested the tube before sending it for $1 and got it to me quickly since I'm in SF, but s/h was $10 (ouch!).