Great Highs and mids

Mains Cable

I've just recieved my CD player 5days ago. I burned it in for 48 hours as recommended. Out of the box I was not impressed by the sound from the player. Once it had been burned in it was a completely different unit I sprung for all the extras such as the ac noise killer, the super crystal and coax output and also the tube upgrade 2 amperex nos tubes. I spoke to kevin at upscale audio web address www.upscaleaudio.com who was very helpful. Needless to say the machine sounds great Imean what more can I say if you are debating about purchasing one go ahead it is worth every penny just give kevin a call.
my system consists of :
Denon Avr 5700 reciever
Jolida 302a tube amp.
Nht 2.5I speakers
Kimber PBJ and Nordost Solar Wind Innerconnects.

Sound stages, Bass,

The mains cable,remote and casing

Hi surfers,
Interested in the bargain of the millenium?
If yes was the reply and you live in Europe then go to this
site hifi-notes.com follow the instructions and got to AH.
I have had my Tjoeb99 since xmas and it's impressed everone who's listend to it,even a guy who design's and make's speaker kit's and driver's for a living (hello Ivan).
After reading loads of reviews on this site i have made certain alteration's to the CDP (thanks folks).
Firstly i changed the mains lead from fixed to removable using a IEC plug and socket.For advice on mains leads go to tnt-audio.com , what a big difference that yeileded.
Next was to damp the casing with bitumen pads,this done on the lid only and (well away from the valve's) pads obtained from any car spare parts shop or hi-fi/electronic diy stockist.
A very cheap but a big difference is to use three or four
tennis balls under the whole unit, these really do work (thanks to the Dutch chap,did try to e-mail him but it didnt work)
So to sum up its a fantastic piece of equipment in its raw format and improve's with time and a little cheap tweak here and there....SO GO AND GET ONE. Thanks AH cd's never sounded so good.

Price
Better by the day
Laid Back and warm sound

Serial No. VE039922044841

Ordered the Tjoeb with no added extras, and took exactly two weeks to arrive.
UPS tracking worked brilliantly, and the price conversion chart on the webpage was very useful.
Player arrived with a 2 pin plug at the end of the power lead...so I immediately changed it to a 3 pin and placed the player on my rack.
From fresh the player beat my old sony player hands down so I couln't wait to see what would happen in 48 hours after burn in!
As my hifi equipment is in my room, the clicking between tracks disturbed my sleep, so I burnt the player in with a dance mix cd with no breaks, thus stopping any clicking.
After 50 hours I am now listening to cds that have gathered dust with new vigeour....
Some tracks just amaze me...
Pre Tjoeb, I tended to listen to my favourite tracks on any given cd, but now I find myself listening to tracks that I never paid attention to. The Tjoeb has no harshness. I listen to all kinds of music and they all sound good with this player...no fatigue creeps in at all....

Tracks that impress the most include:
Suede - The two of us
Meatloaf - For crying out loud
Maria Callas - any song
Three tenors in Concert


I still have a lot more to do to get the best sound from my system but the Tjoeb has rectified my cd problem.

My amp is the Marantz 66KI Sig so it is a shame that the
Tjoeb does not have a remote bus for me to get the most out of the Marantz system control..
Also whilst fast forwarding through some cd tracks the volume increases alarmingly..which seems strange..
but these gripes are a small price to pay for a player that looks and sounds good.

I use Kimber Kable throughout and have the tiny Mission 731's, which really need changing.


Take a risk and order one!!!!

Musicality

None

After one year and two months, my Tjoeb '99 is still a very musical cd player. I was a happy camper. Not anymore. Because there is a much more musical cd-player on the earth, called "the AH! Njoe Tjoeb 4000". Since I've read the specs of the Njoe Tjoeb 4000 and I've seen the picture of its inside, I can't sleep at night. So I have to get one.

Midrange, esp. Strings/Voices, Highs, Listenability of bad recordings (but not at the cost of too much detail)

not ultra detailed, breaks up in large orchestral crescendi, no extreme bass, flimsy casing

To make things short - this is NOT the best cd player there is, nor would this be possible at this price - although some weirdos down below my review make it look like it (were they bribed by the manufacturer?)

BUT: This is IMHO the best digital source availible at this price - and I own it for almost a year now. It beat my old DDE 1.1 by far (except the bass region). It makes me listen up in beethovens symphonies as well as in aocustic jazz or folk. If you listen to techno, look somewhere else - although the tjoeb doesn't do it really bad either.

I've heard better players in my system (the NAIM CD 2) which to me is the most complete player there is - alas, at a price I am not willing to pay on the eve of DVD audio...

Now for the practical part (the mods I have done):
All the professional reviews i have read did not take two things into consideration:

1)the casing is totally flimsy which is bad if you partner it with tubes that are as microphonic as the 6922s
my mod is simple and cheap: 2mm cork mats taped to the top with either hot glue or carpet tape (<- comes loose due to the heat of the tubes...)

2) the tubes: the JAN Philips 6922 are ok, I tried new Teslas as well, not too much improvement, but then i found them on ebay: used AEG E88CCs from I don't know when. After cleaning i put them in and, hey go find some - btw I have no idea about the producer (Siemens, Valvo?). I just hope thy last.

Oh, back to the review:

Additional:
Looks : 0 Points (cant AH! do the mod on the new marantz series?) has anyone out there put this stuff in another box?
mail me!

Anyway: I'd seriously consider it while shopping in this price region

Similar Products Used:

none, compared to naim cd 2, proceed, AA dde 1.1

Excellent sound quality

Light weight chassis

Both of my previous CD players have been CD changers, and I thought I would miss that convenience.
All I can say is that the pleasure of listening to the AH! Tjoeb more than makes up for not being able to hear random selections from different discs.
I purchased mine with the super crystal and noise quieting upgrades and all I can say is it is a great sounding player.
I popped in some upgraded tubes tonight and I am going to let them burn in for a few days before listening to this player again, but I really don't see how the sound quality can get much better. I have been reading the other reviews of this product and I am going to try some of the tweaks!
Kevin at UpScale Audio was quite helpful with the technical questions I had about the AH! Tjoeb, tubes in general, my amp and my speakers.

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha CDC-765, Sony C79ES

Beautiful sounding smooth music

Remote

Wow only describes this product. My solid state system (Home Theater) tended to be a little harsh at times. I had auditioned tube systems in several local stores and did not really enjoy the over smoothness of the music.
The Ah Tjoeb is simply outstanding in my solid state system. I bought the player with all upgrades. I have my ezuipment in a closet, so anything to smooth out the line clutter is a benefit. The upgrade tubes is superb in relation to the speakers I use, provideing smooth and extended base. The highs tend to be a bit rolled off, but I compensated that with the tone control.
Out of the box, the player was awsome. My wife commented that this was the best upgrade in my system yet. After 20-30 hours the smoothness became richer. After a week of constant playing, I now have a system that is so close to Live music, that I have ever heard, in any store demo.

Looking for Love.

System:

Marantz SR96 (Slightly Outdated)Looking for new AV Processor
Bryston 9B-THX
Martin -Logan Aeris I (Fronts)
Martin-Logan Cinema (Center)
Boston Acoustics (Rear Channel)

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha 5-disc changer, Sony DVD-CDPlayer

Female voices and piano sound correct

None that I can think of except it does not look like my expensive preamp

I saw the comments on the t-shirt. He offered me one but made no mention of it being good or bad review. I said what if don't like it and Kevin said it didn't matter, that any review gets a shirt. He said this site is important because owners are more believable. Then he said something like "The Tjoeb will speak for itself" which was brave if not cocky.

But I have to say I love it. I had a Rega on loan at the same time it was breaking it in. Within several hours the Tjoeb ate it for lunch. Mine broke in most of the way within a couple days. Or maybe my memory isn't as good as it should be.

One thing. AOL does not work well with forms. I was going to order on line. Then as luck had it, I had to fly down to Ontario for a service call which is near where Upscale Audio is located. The bad news is I was late and had only twenty minutes before my flight left! No time to audition it. That place is packed. My mouth was watering as there was more tube gear there than any store in the bay area. I have never seen anything like it.

Next service call I'm staying a couple hours Kevin!!!!

Similar Products Used:

Tried the Cambridge, Rega Planet, and Sony ES

Rich harmonics that records seem to have in spades, tight deep bass with smooth highs, pinpoint imaging. Price.

None.

Awesome sounding unit, at any price. This unit sounds more
lifelike than any player I've used. I lived with the Anthem
CD-1 for about a year, and this unit beats it in the Bass
category... the highs are not quite as smooth, and the
midrange is a bit forward sounding... but that can be
easily fixed with some Tube Upgrades. That's the great
thing about this unit, to be able to tailor the sound to
your system. I've been very happy with Sovtek 6922 tubes,
so I ordered a set today. Can't wait to try those out!

Actually, with the slightly forward midrange, this player
does an incredible job with the female voice! Diane Krall
and Patricia Barber give me goosebumps that no other
player has done!, but can also drive me out of the room
with badly recorded Rock and Roll music (Van Halen)...
as a good CD player should do... produce sounds as it
was meant to be, NOT overly smooth and make the sound
boring like the Rega Planet... what a horrible sounding
player that is!

I had the same forward midrange problem with the
CAL Alpha/Delta unit, but I fixed that with a pair of
Yugo tubes... I'm sure the Sovteks in the AH! will do
the job nicely.

Thanks Kevin! Hell of a nice guy to deal with!

System:
Cary SLI-50 Integraded EL34 amp
Tannoy MX-3 Speakers
Basis 2000 with Ortofon OM-30
Cableplex Silver 1 Interconnects
Cableplex Power 1 Power Cords
Kimber 4TC Speaker Cables

Similar Products Used:

Anthem CD-1, CAL Alpha/Delta CD.

Detail, soundstage, bass, dynamics

None so far

Fabulous, like peeling away a curtain from my speakers ! Bass has now come alive.
Right out of box there was incredible air around all instruments and voices.
It also just continues to get better.
At 30 to 40 hours reached another plateau.
By far the most cost effective way to get tubes into your system.

Associated equipment:

ATI 1505 amp
Magnepan 1.6 QR
Velodyne CT120 sub
Morrison ELAD pre-amp

Similar Products Used:

One of a kind !