Justin & Jerry's Hifi Blog

[Alex_UK]

The frog rocks!

[jandl100]

yeah, the frog is the ultimate upgrade.

ribbit

[jandl100]

How does your new mini max compare to the Yaqin??

Nope, not the same types of beasties, James - the Minimax is a phonostage, our Yaqins are integrated amps.

[The Grand Wazoo]

I'm a toad man myself.

[jandl100]

I want the treble clef!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/3606066755...84.m1439.l2649

[MartinT]

Thank you, Jerry. Been looking for one for years. Bought a lovely window 'stained glass' clef many years ago in the Seattle market and left it behind when I moved house

[User211]

Cayin looks nice. What's the valves in it?

TJ Full Music 274Bs - which is a rectifier. Defo better than some NOS Brimar 5U4Gs I also have. Here's some info about the preamp I wrote for another fourm:

"Bought a couple of preamps to play with - I was getting bored, as you do.

One of them is an absolute peach. Mobile pic only - but I rate it quite considerably better than the EAR868PL I had a while back, however it doesn't have a phono stage like the EAR did. I'm not sensationalising here - it is hands down better in my system than the EAR was.

It is a modified Cayin SC-10. I'm not sure how it differs, but sonically it is top rate. I bought it blind 2nd hand off ebay as I was pretty astonished by this system I reported on a while back: Cayin based system at Silverstone 2009


Sales blurb: "This top of the line preamplifier features tube rectification and gain in a classic dual monaural layout. Totally transparent yet rich with detail, this all tube preamplifier sets a new benchmark in ultra high performance audio. Designed and engineered using the finest components, the SC-10 gives ruler flat response, tremendous bandwidth, huge dynamic range, and low levels of distortion. The SC-10 utilizes four 6922 and two 5AR4 tubes coupled with two separate power packs in a dual mono-configuration giving the SC-10 unsurpassed control over all types of sonic requirements. A true reference sound with typical Cayin value."

Just goes to show that some Chinese kit is very good indeed. I think this one will stay a while. Mine is running 274Bs rather than 5AR4s. It sounds like the bolded bits - really! Plus the soundstaging is absolutely first rate. Spacious and capable of projecting both forward and backwards - very 3D!

As always the same components in different systems/rooms give different results. But I just wanted to draw attention to the fact that this is a real contender, and it easily compares with expensive US and UK designs. It cost £900 odd purely because it has next to no recognition as a quality brand in the UK, I suspect. Casework build quality is very high. Much higher visually than the 845 amps or CD player featured in the show report link, for some reason.

BTW: when I say it is modified it was done by Cayin, and its model designation is C-100. It has an SC-10 remote. It has a marking stating that the modification was done for Hit Audio. It is physically huge and very heavy. Retail for a SC-10 seems to be 5000 Euro. Much less from some Chinese sellers, if you have the guts to trust one "

[Reffc]

I was hugely impressed by the Ming Da MC2006 valve phonostage when it was at Jerry Towers for review, it just blew me completely away - I was most distressed when it was taken back - but this little beastie arrived today, and I have to say that it is def in the same league. And it's mine, all mine !! Wowzer!

Yup, have to agree Jerry. Very impressed with the Minimax phono stage when we tried it in my system today. Compares very favourably with the EAR834P imho. Would be more than happy with the Minimax although we only tried the MM stage. Lovely build quality too. You should be very happy with that I reckon.

After you'd left, I switched back to the Croft phonostage and I think that the Croft may have a slight edge in definition but there wasn't much in it at all.

[User211]

Anyway, back to Jezzer's system visit.

I've been to Jerry's quite a few times. Last visit he had the Parasound A21, which he brought round to my place a while back. I subsequently bought one and used it with an EAR868PL - pretty good combo with oodles of power.

I've never told Jerry this, but I thought the A21 was much better in my system than it was in his! I really wasn't that keen on it driving the MBLs. I much preferred the Graaf 5050 he had a while back.

However, the Krell KAV250 is a totally different story - it sounded much more natural than the A21 did. Easily the best power amp I have heard with the MBLs - including my own 211 monoblocks. However, I reckon that McCormack CDP is damned fine as is the Tisbury. You just don't get results as good as I heard yesterday with something naff in the chain.

For my money the Cayin worked really well too and sounded fab on all but some Jake Bugg - which I checked out when I got back home and found the same to be true. Jake appears to like passive preamps!

However, on some Mad Professor "The Roots Of Dubstep" (fantastic - recommended) the Cayin blew the away the passive - injecting plenty of life, colour, vibrancy and dynamics.

No preamp does everything and I am not an advocate of any particular type. I think active solid state, passive, TVCs and tube designs all have positive virtues. However, of a particular type, some are much better than others. I own three types at the moment and am enjoying switching between them.

Anyway back to Jerry's system - if I couldn't run my Apogee Duetta Sigs I'd probably track down some 116Fs. Yesterday they just did everything brilliantly. Which worries me as I have never liked Krells. I heard a KSA 300 a couple of weeks before driving some Ushers. I suspect it is even better than the KAV250 TBH. That plus 116Fs could be truly awesome!

[User211]

BTW Jerry did I leave some fags at your place? Also Kev says can you post his 300Bs back?