7. Our Listening Session after the Latest Modification
The modifications I've written about so far took more than two months and were finally completed at the end of March. So, I decided to invite two of my most trusted friends, Nishikawa-san, a friend from my Pioneer days, and Motoki-san, who is still passionate about music at 92 years old, over to my home to listen to the DA30 mono SET together and share the true joy of listening to music. That day was Monday, April 14, 2025.
The speaker system driven by this amplifier consists of a pair of old JBL L26 with ONLEN 5000T Esprit super tweeters added. While it can't produce exceptionally larger-scale music, it does produce the crisp sound that is characteristic of JBL. The music playback device was my Android phone at the time: Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G. The output from the amplifier was sent to my “Improved U4” via Bluetooth, and the U4's DAC output was input directly into this DA30 mono SET via a BELDEN 8402.
My Model 7 k, which had already been improved upon over the years, was no longer necessary. As for the Improved U4's tube this time, I used the vintage BRIMAR E88CC made in the UK for all of the listening sessions. So, from the U4 point of view, the E88CC is the output stage, but if we think of this voltage amplification stage as including the DA30 mono SET, the E88CC could also be considered the first stage inserted before the driver tube, WE310A.
Therefore, the playback amplifier system could have a very simple configuration of only three stages: BRIMER E88CC, WE310A, and GEC DA30.
On the morning of the day, I set up the STC4310A mesh as driver tube, new dome type GEC DA30 as power tube, and STC 5R4GY as rectifier tube - an all of made in the UK tubes line up. The the day arrived we started listening with this setup and the first music I selected from YouTube Music was THIS. The first attack of the vibraphone, its sharp, beautiful tone, made all three of us jump in surprise. What a “Real-Sound”! Then the powerful ensemble of guitar and bass reverberated off the wall just in front of us, filling the air.
After that, we enjoyed this kind of music one after another: Anne-Sophie Mutter - Beethoven Violin Concerto, and Rita Payés - Nunca vas a comprender.
When we are surrounded by truly great sound, we are drawn into the musical world, and overwhelmed, the usual audio expression becomes meaningless. After a quick lunch, we replaced the rectifier tube with a pair of WE274B engraved from “Ookubo-san’s Collection”. Everyone understood why this tube has been called the "Holy Grail". The thickness and density of the mid-low range make us feel rich and fully relaxed. We wanted to experience it forever - it's a wonder that can only be described as mysterious.
Well, I’d like to introduce you to each word of Nishikawa-san and Motoki-san. Nishikawa-san told me that “The Sound is on a completely different level to anything I've ever heard,” and Motoki-san’s word was "Until I reached this age, I had never experienced such a wonderful world of music. I am simply happy today.” The listening session that day turned into a veritable concert, with just us enjoying great music from around the world.
Either way, I was sure that Alan-san, this DA30 mono SET’s new owner, would be very pleased with this “Real-Sound”. And furthermore, both the late Ookubo-san and his surviving wife, Setsuko-san, would be truly happy that this DA30 mono SET could be passed on to Alan-san, who knows its value so well.
Well, I've recommended “iPhone Adventure” here at Jeff's Place, but I've actually upgraded to five Android smartphones over the past three years and have personally experienced the rapid improvement also in sound quality. During my own “Android Adventure”, POCO X7 Pro and POCO F7, released by Xiaomi last year, in particular, have shown an astonishing improvement in dynamic range, including a lower noise level, and I even think their realistic three-dimensional sound field reproduction and the density of each sound could surpass that of the latest iPhones.
While it's certainly not lossless, I’ve felt it is very musical. Thankfully, I can experience at any time the sound quality that far exceeds the standards of a lot of source devices, except FM tuners, which I've been actually involved in developing over the past half-century.
What's even more amazing is that an extremely simple amplifier, such as this DA30 Mono SET, which perfects vintage tubes, can deliver such excellent sound quality with the latest streaming music. And now, I believe we could be seeing the true horizon of “Real-Sound”, a new value in enjoying music that is different from so-called High-End audio in the market.
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