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what was the last piece of hifi you bought

Just so. It's an interesting exercise to listen to this amp hot (literally) on the heels of a couple of powerful (250-400WPC) amps / amp-combos which are designed for the lowest possible distortion figures. With the J2, NP freely admits the distortion numbers are dismal by modern standards (e.g. 0.02% 2nd harmonic), but the user manual is begirt with graphs and data that explain the highly rational reasons why he takes the design pathways he does - which boils down to finding the optimal compromise between objectively good on-paper performance with subjectively enjoyable sound.

And he's right. The J2 is inefficient, outputs just 25WPC, and distorts to an extent no-one outside the world of small-scale valve-amp production could possibly tolerate. Yet the result is one that you don't need precious-metal lug'oles to understand. The J2 is not just subjectively more enjoyable, the resolution is significantly better than the alternatives I have here: low-level musical details, ambient cues, tonal shading, vocal-intelligibility, instrument separation, &c are all rendered better, more clearly, more distinctly. It's not a "this picture is prettier than that picture" thing, it's more believable music, closer to what was recorded, but not at the cost of excruciatingly forensic fidelity.

Good stuff.

Sounds right up my street. The minimalism under the hood is very appealing to me. Enjoy. Do these crop up used very often ?
 
Sadly they are rare in the UK. This model's no longer made, but I'm not sure there's even an active UK importer for First Watt and Pass Labs at the mo.
 
Just so. It's an interesting exercise to listen to this amp hot (literally) on the heels of a couple of powerful (250-400WPC) amps / amp-combos which are designed for the lowest possible distortion figures. With the J2, NP freely admits the distortion numbers are dismal by modern standards (e.g. 0.02% 2nd harmonic), but the user manual is begirt with graphs and data that explain the highly rational reasons why he takes the design pathways he does - which boils down to finding the optimal compromise between objectively good on-paper performance with subjectively enjoyable sound.

And he's right. The J2 is inefficient, outputs just 25WPC, and distorts to an extent no-one outside the world of small-scale valve-amp production could possibly tolerate. Yet the result is one that you don't need precious-metal lug'oles to understand. The J2 is not just subjectively more enjoyable, the resolution is significantly better than the alternatives I have here: low-level musical details, ambient cues, tonal shading, vocal-intelligibility, instrument separation, &c are all rendered better, more clearly, more distinctly. It's not a "this picture is prettier than that picture" thing, it's more believable music, closer to what was recorded, but not at the cost of excruciatingly forensic fidelity.

Good stuff.
Nicely put!
 
Loads . Went a bit mad. Present to myself for not dying this year so far. Had a brush with cancer

so 401, 12inch pu7 , acoustic sig cart , record cleaning machine and LDA TT PSU
Sounds like you deserve a treat John. Glad you are still here. Every day above ground is a victory.
 
What you reckon to them John?

I recently bought the Massdrop HD6xx (supposedly 650s) and can confirm they are lovely. Balanced and easy to listening to, not over emphasised in any area. They can certainly turn out bass when needed but don’t make it tiring as some cans can :rolleyes: IMO, and probably more interestingly John Darko’s, they are fabulous vfm.
 
Very, very nice. Pleased with it?
Yes, really please with it. The lp12 play back is something else now, it’s like that transformation you get when you first go aktiv with your speakers. Everything is cleaner and clearer, more defined, the soundstage has opened up, loads more info coming through which was missed out before. Some of the old vinyl I have been playing recently are from late 60’s early 70’s and they are sounding better than ever. CD player is still my old mimik at the moment, it’s sounding better with the analogue outputs plugged into the line in, than the digital output into the pnp, still saving up for either a Moon 260D T or Naim Uniti Core.
 
What you reckon to them John?

Was very impressed, though they seemed just a tad on the bright side. I seem to be extremely sensitive to this (might be my tinnitus) but otherwise loved them. Great depth, speed, resolution etc. Was surprised how good/natural the bass was too, as many have commented that it lacks in this area. Sounded very well balanced to me. They do clamp like a bastardo though, so will need stretching. It seems the HD650s might be closer to my personal preferences though, so am going to give those a shot instead. Hopefully they’ll retain what I loved about the 600s, but shift the focus just a tad away from the treble and mids.
 
Was very impressed, though they seemed just a tad on the bright side. I seem to be extremely sensitive to this (might be my tinnitus) but otherwise loved them. Great depth, speed, resolution etc. Was surprised how good/natural the bass was too, as many have commented that it lacks in this area. Sounded very well balanced to me. They do clamp like a bastardo though, so will need stretching. It seems the HD650s might be closer to my personal preferences though, so am going to give those a shot instead. Hopefully they’ll retain what I loved about the 600s, but shift the focus just a tad away from the treble and mids.

Thanks John, i've thought about them myself, but went with a cheaper option, some Beyer DT770 pro's, which i'm very impressed with to be fair. Will see about some 600/650/660 in future.
 


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