I have this JD801a for about 14 years, and lately, It was still working flawlessly, but the sound was not, was it was before, so I decide to change my tube, the capacitor.. I found a new JD801A once I finish my repair of my amplifier, the sound is now more define and deeper than before, I change to JJ tube, and for the capacitor I got to obligato and Nichicon. I would I never thought that the change would be so amazing, I have Paragdim speaker 9se that I change the capacitor also, and the TEAC VRDS 10, for CD...

The problem is more for running the tube you need to put the JD801a ont the side and do the biasing, and be very cautious when you performed it.... otherwise this Amplifier is incredible once it got new tube, and capacitor. Have fun

I have this JD801a for about 14 years, and lately, It was still working flawlessly, but the sound was not, was it was before, so I decide to change my tube, the capacitor.. I found a new JD801A once I finish my repair of my amplifier, the sound is now more define and deeper than before, I change to JJ tube, and for the capacitor I got to obligato and Nichicon. I would I never thought that the change would be so amazing, I have Paragdim speaker 9se that I change the capacitor also, and the TEAC VRDS 10, for CD...

The problem is more for running the tube you need to put the JD801a ont the side and do the biasing, and be very cautious when you performed it.... otherwise this Amplifier is incredible once it got new tube, and capacitor. Have fun

I have this JD801a for about 14 years, and lately, It was still working flawlessly, but the sound was not, was it was before, so I decide to change my tube, the capacitor.. I found a new JD801A once I finish my repair of my amplifier, the sound is now more define and deeper than before, I change to JJ tube, and for the capacitor I got to obligato and Nichicon. I would I never thought that the change would be so amazing, I have Paragdim speaker 9se that I change the capacitor also, and the TEAC VRDS 10, for CD...

The problem is more for running the tube you need to put the JD801a ont the side and do the biasing, and be very cautious when you performed it.... otherwise this Amplifier is incredible once it got new tube, and capacitor. Have fun

I have this JD801a for about 14 years, and lately, It was still working flawlessly, but the sound was not, was it was before, so I decide to change my tube, the capacitor.. I found a new JD801A once I finish my repair of my amplifier, the sound is now more define and deeper than before, I change to JJ tube, and for the capacitor I got to obligato and Nichicon. I would I never thought that the change would be so amazing, I have Paragdim speaker 9se that I change the capacitor also, and the TEAC VRDS 10, for CD...

The problem is more for running the tube you need to put the JD801a ont the side and do the biasing, and be very cautious when you performed it.... otherwise this Amplifier is incredible once it got new tube, and capacitor. Have fun

I have this JD801a for about 14 years, and lately, It was still working flawlessly, but the sound was not, was it was before, so I decide to change my tube, the capacitor.. I found a new JD801A once I finish my repair of my amplifier, the sound is now more define and deeper than before, I change to JJ tube, and for the capacitor I got to obligato and Nichicon. I would I never thought that the change would be so amazing, I have Paragdim speaker 9se that I change the capacitor also, and the TEAC VRDS 10, for CD...

The problem is more for running the tube you need to put the JD801a ont the side and do the biasing, and be very cautious when you performed it.... otherwise this Amplifier is incredible once it got new tube, and capacitor. Have fun

I have this JD801a for about 14 years, and lately, It was still working flawlessly, but the sound was not, was it was before, so I decide to change my tube, the capacitor.. I found a new JD801A once I finish my repair of my amplifier, the sound is now more define and deeper than before, I change to JJ tube, and for the capacitor I got to obligato and Nichicon. I would I never thought that the change would be so amazing, I have Paragdim speaker 9se that I change the capacitor also, and the TEAC VRDS 10, for CD...

The problem is more for running the tube you need to put the JD801a ont the side and do the biasing, and be very cautious when you performed it.... otherwise this Amplifier is incredible once it got new tube, and capacitor. Have fun

Overall balance; tonal richness from lows to highs; musical sound with good dynamics, soundstage and sense of depth.

Only the placement of the bias adjustment interface (on the bottom).

I''ve had my JoLida 801A for 2-3 months now and I''m just thrilled by it. It''s vastly superior to the solid state amp/preamp separates (Sonographe SC-1 by conrad-johnson and Adcom GFA 555)I used before, which cost nearly the same new as the JoLida does new. I cannot compare this amp to other tube electronics. But I''m enormously impressed with the presence, richness, and humanity of the music that comes through it. I still can''t believe I''m blessed with such an enjoyable music playback system. I could go on and on, but I''ll just say that right now my upgrade craving has completely disappeared! I''ve started some modest tube rolling. So far I like the Svetlana KT88s as output tubes; for the pre-amp tube there I two I like best and haven''t chosen between yet (all four I''ve heard sound very good): the NOS JAN-Philips 12AX7WA may be my favorite but I also really like the Tungsram ECC83 I just started listening to today. I still have one 5751 to try out. I haven''t yet switched the 6SN7 tubes, but the Sylvanias that came with the amp sound good.

Similar Products Used:

None.

Good high end quality sound

A bit bright

I reviewed this piece several reviews below and gave the 801A the best marks. I feel compelled , however , to add something in light of all the ridiculous hyperbole spewed forth by the dealer(s) who submitted the other opinions. The 801A is a bit bright for a tube amp and requires careful matching with the other system components. You should audition this piece before buying it. I have rather dark cables and get away with the extra treble. People with less forgiving set-ups should consider other amplifiers. The Jolida amps based on EL34 tubes are not as bright and may be the best bet for others.

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha , Acurus DIA100

The SJ-801 has several strength but the two main attributes which I see are the tube compliment and the transformers.

For the preformance and cost it's hard to find major weaknesses. However it can be a bit bright. Bias pots underneath heavy transformers make it more difficult to bias.

To start off, this is the first tube amp I have ever owned.
However, after owning the SJ-801A for one year I must say it would take a lot to turn back and go to SS because I am still very pleased with its performance.

Now after a year I have found that using NOS or fresh pulls work wonders on the tube layout of the SJ-801A. With the tube set up as such: 4x6550, 2x6SN7, and 1x12AX7 this really gives the owner a lot to choose from. Furthermore, the two 6SN7 give a big performance and there are still a lot out there at affordable prices. As for the 6550 I got lucky with a GOOD used set of Tung-Sol (RCA labeled) and this set the stage for a great combination. I thought I was "There" with the amp not thinking much to improve on except compactors and such.

Well the metamorphous continued. Upon taking my amp in to be properly biased the technician suggested the Sylvan 8417 tube instead of the 6550 and that I should give it a shot. The changes would be minimal and reversible if I didn't like it. So I did. The sound stage was stunning and the detail was incredible. The highs are more open and the lows are very controlled. As for the midrange it is everything I could want. Yes, the 8417 can be expensive but no more than new quad set of KT-88 and sometimes much less. As for KT-88 I have not tried them but I'm sure sound really good.

So what does all this rambling mean well it says the SJ-801A is an excellent amp. It offers an excellent platform to improve on which can rival many of the "Big Guys". BTW, the transformers are really really good. Not so much to my experiences, being new but valid none the less, but according to my friend whose been in the tube business many years says that the transformers are what makes the SJ-801A so sweet. He ought to know his HK Citation II is beautiful and sounds just the same. The transformers on the HK Cit II are legendary.


System:
*Jolida SJ-801A-integrated amp (Sylvania 4X8417, 2X6sn7 Sylvania VT-231, 1X5751 Sylvania Gold Brand triple spaced.
*Alpha Core Micro Purl, AG silver -Interconnects
*Alpha Core MI-2 Veracity, OFC-Speaker cables, single run.
*Jolida SJ-603 with (5751 "Command" instead of 12ax7's)-CD Player, soon to upgrade.
*Coincident Speaker Technology 'Conquest'-Speakers @ 92% efficient.
*Topaz 'Super Isolator'- Isolation transformer
*Custom made power cables for CDP and Amp

Sound and Value

Customer Service

This is more of an addendum then a review. I have since replaced my 6SN7 tubes in the 801. The biggest thing I noticed was a decrease in distortion a higher levels. That is a major Plus for the amp.

On the down side I am really pissed at Jolida's Customer Service Dept. I called them regarding replacement parts. NONE, NADA, they don't have nor do they sell them. I also wanted to get schematics for all of my Jolida amps, $10 a pop for a dinky 8.5 x 11. Kiss my ass. I've got 3 of their amps and I can't get a schematic?

Let me tell you a story of customer service. Hickok (makers of the finest tube testers years ago) and Dynaco (makers of the famed ST-70) had great customer service. You got REAL manuals (not photocopies of the same thing with the model changed) with schematics. In the back of those manuals was a parts list with every part, so you could order replacements. This does not exist anymore in America. We are board swappers. My problem is that the very nice gold covers on the transformers have hazed. I was willing to pay for replacements, but no. Now I have an amp that looks rather cheap. I hate looking at it because of that. Their CS rep told me to just remove the entire finish (leaving it bare aluminum), now to those who have seen this amp, how do you suppose that would look? Do you suppose I was talking to a ding-dong?

Lets get some better CS in this country....PLEASE!!!! I will not leave negative stars about this because it has nothing to the product itself. Future buyers beware. See Jolida should have sold me the covers and gave me some schematics. The Internet is powerful.