Impressions on Jolida JD9?

Any owners of the Jolida JD9 with Needle Doctor upgrades? Upgraded version features ESA Clarity Cap output filters, and Tung Sol gold-pin12AX7 tubes. If so what are your impressions? I'm thinking about getting one. I had a Pro-Ject Phono Box RS but after just 6 months, the left channel went out.

I could get a warranty replacement on the Pro-Ject or a refund and then buy the Jolida for $100 less.

 

I bought a used JD9 about 4.5 years ago and have been using and enjoying it since. The phono pre is a really good deal - completely blew away the onboard phone stage on my Rega Brio 3, and it sounded better with my DV20X2L vs a Dynavector P75 mkII in PE mode that I borrowed for a few weeks to A/B. The tube output adds some nice warmth to the sound. I think you'd have to spend quite a bit more to beat it.

I haven't upgraded the caps in mine, but I put in some nice vintage RCA 12ax7 tubes and upgraded all the opamps per that ongoing thread at Audiokarma.org (Official Jolida JD9 thread | Audiokarma Home Audio Stereo Discussion Forums )

The JD9 is super flexible with tons of gain and loading options. I've used it with a Denon DL-110, Ortofon 2M Blue, AT150MLX and finally with my current cartridge, the DV20X2L. It sounds great across the board — but there are some people that are claiming the lower output/MM side of things suffers from a cheap/bad gain attenuator. *shrugs*

Keep an eye out for a used one — you can pick one up pretty cheap and they're pretty popular so there always seems to be one on Audiogon or USAudioMart.

 

I'm mostly just curious where you bought the Pro-Ject from that offers a refund on a broken item six months later - I need to shop there.

As for the Jolida, it has a sterling reputation, but if I were in your shoes I'd get the refund. The reason being the carts you use are likely very well served by the built-in phono stage in your integrated, and it seems lately you've concluded big analog purchases don't give you much benefit (I'm going by your threads and what I see pop up in the forsale forum, not trying to put words in your mouth).

 

Have a jd9-ii bought new from needle doctor around 2014, base model without the upgrades. Recently bought some tung sol gold pins to roll as I heard the stock model has no-name Chinese tunes. Nope. Pulled out a pair of tung sol's same as I was going to put in except for the gold pins which honestly I doubt make much of a sonic difference. So, not sure you're getting much in the tube dept if you get the upgraded version. Clarity caps I cannot speak to.

Re the unit itself, I upgraded from the basic Peoject phono box and very happy with my 2m bronze. The versatility with loading etc and upgrade paths seems to be where this thing shines. Agree w/ above regarding the MM gain attenuator. Supposedly it goes through an extra circuit to drop the gain down for moving magnet. I have bypassed by using the higher gain moving coil and output jacks and just deselecting the moving magnet switch on the back of the unit. Can't really go past 9 o'clock on the volume knob with this set up, but it sounds much less veiled and more dynamic to my ears. Beauty of the rig is the various settings you can use and the experimentation that results. Would recommend if you get a good deal.

 

Needle Doctor. They have been a true pleasure to work with.

 

I don't care for the mc portion of the preamp in the Halo Integrated. I found I get much better results with an outboard preamp. And the Denon DL-301MK2 if the cartridge I listen to most.

 

The Jolida is OK but I wouldn't pay too much for one honestly. The pricing after mods "professionally done" puts the whole value thing out the window IMO. I had one and modded myself, the most expensive parts are the opamps and output caps, I actually really liked the sovtek 12ax7 lps tubes which are super cheap. Working on the resistor loading board and opamp boards is a pretty tight fit and I never got that far. The design is a little unorthodox as far as I can tell, the circuit has room for improvement with the easy and advanced modding but it still hits a ceiling indicative of the price at around $600.

I wouldn't listen to all the giant killer talk. You could soup up a Honda Civic to be a fast car but you could also do the same to an already fast car to destroy the Honda.

A big and valid complaint of the Jolida is that it has a very high gain and the lower gain output is a compromise.

 

This is a really good point - back in the day it seems the JD9 could be had for a low price, and an online modding community sprang up around it. Then they raised the price, and charge still more for a "pre-modded" version. Now thats in the ~$1000 price point, is it still as a strong contender?

 

FWIW, a $1000 phono stage that is absolutely excellent and not on many people's radars these days as its kind of old: Sutherland PH3D. I had one and loved it. Runs on 12 D batteries you change once a year. I was cleaning the other day and found the big ziplock bag of mostly-new D batteries I saved after I sold it.

 

What to do with all that gain?

 

My brother has this JD9 and is going to bring it over and let me listen to it in my system, so I can actually audition it before I make a firm decision.

 

I have a JD9 II upgraded version from Music Direct and love it. It's versatile with the ability to handle most any cartridge MM or LOMC, and it sounds great!

 

This pretty much covers my impressions as well. The mods don't really do much other than raise the price, the circuit and the build is what it is. I found it a nice unit for its flexible loading and high gain for some LOMC carts, but for a bit more, other options outperform it. Everyone that gets caught-up in modding anything seems to always think their result is superior. That's human nature.

I like the Rogue Audio Titan, the Rega Aria, and the Lehmann Black Cube SE at the $1k price point. The OP might actually find that the Denon cart is well suited to being used with a step-up transformer and then into the MM stage in his preamp. It'll be smoother and likely more quiet than some active solutions. The Tube Box SE isn't so bad either and he might just give that another chance since it is still warrantied. Pretty much anything can fail at any time, so it isn't constructive to worry about a whole product or product line with just one failure like that.
-Bill

 

Bill, I believe I've met you and bought a turntable and some vinyl from you when I went up to Salem a few months ago to visit my best friend. My name is Jeff and I came up from AL.

 

Thanks! I have a poor memory for some routine events (for me). I meet a lot of people running a shop. All of them want to or do buy a table and some vinyl! I'd probably remember the visit if we spoke on the phone a bit. The computer screen and text is rather impersonal. I hope that you enjoyed your visit (and I wasn't too boring or too much of a dufus!)
-Bill

 

Ahh, man, I enjoyed the visit and talk with you quite a bit. I bought a Rega P2 as a gift for a family member. My friend was the dufus that kept hanging outside while we were shooting the turntable/vinyl stuff. I'll be seeing you again as I make two to three trips a year up to Salem.
--Jeff

 

Thanks, that's nice of you. Fewer and fewer people see the need or advantage of supporting local businesses any more. Doing so not only displays the character and responsibility of the consumer towards their chosen community, but builds a solid relationship, and reveals rewards and ensures service backed by human ingenuity. It's always a pleasure to meet friendly new folks and to reacquaint with past customers who have become friends over the years.
-Bill

 

I tried a stock jd9, original version w/ no mods.

I couldn't get it dialed in the way I like with any of the adjustment switches.

With my DL-160 I tried both the MC and MM settings - ALL of them for gain and loading. It was not a good pairing, so I flipped it back.

 

Note that it's not an all-tube design. Only the input section is tube, it's still an op-amp based design. I had one for a time, it was decent, but not huge on detail IMO.

 

This. And buy an iPhono 2. You won't be disappointed.

 

A big thanks to all of you for your valuable input. Much appreciated!

 

It's actually the other way around. It has a lot of SS gain via opamps and then a tube output section.
-Bill

 

Thanks for the correction.

 

I got a great deal on my used JD9 and was able to trade in my old stage on it. I really like it with my Dynavector 10X5. Really enjoying vinyl a lot more with it. It came with Mullards, I need to check and see if they are new or nos.

For $500 right now I would probably go with the I-phono 2. Consistently outstanding reviews.

 

If something breaks in 6 months you should get a refund. I think good dealers would do an exchange and often add extra warranty benefits. Anyway in UK it is little known that legally 'not fit for purpose' can extend to several years old. Also if you paid by Credit Card I think they will refund in such circumstances here. If this is not available in USA your consumer laws need vastly improving.