This topic is usually a mine field, but you seem to have changed your objectives a bit.
Do you want to make the J2 sound "its best" to you? Are you trying to justify keeping it?
Do you want to find out what amps you have that sound best to you using a chain you normally don't use and/or in a room the gear is not normally in?
How much time do you have?
You asked for opinions, some will be repeated. Below works for me, and I'm thrilled.
1) Don't worry about what other people think. You're not trying to prove anyone wrong or correct, I don't think. You're not a professional reviewer.
This is for your enjoyment.
2) Use music you know well and listen to regularly. If you don't regularly listen to "reference" recordings, then don't use them.
3) Take notes, and check your notes for consistency when you're done.
4) Level match to the best of your ability if you're going to do any back-to-back listening. Try listening at different volumes at different times of day when you're in a good mood or a crappy mood.
5) Do some back-to-back listening, but I'd recommend leaving each in the system for a month or so. My impressions of amps change over time as I get used to them. The immediate relative difference between two amps doesn't matter as much to me as how much I like an amp long-term and get to live with it a while.
6) Use the chain you plan to use and in the room you plan to use it. If the phone is not your normal source (or one of them), I'd avoid it. If you have multiple sources (particularly if one is analog and one is digital), use them all.
7) Blind is better if you really want to try and remove some bias, but just pick the amp you like. You're not publishing a study. The placebo affect and confirmation bias are real, but do you really care?
As long as it's fair to you and you're happy, then wooooo hooooo!
It may seem obvious, but after you're done and happy, I'm sure we'd all love to know how it turned out.
An analogy just came to me - It's a shot in the dark. Let's say some other forum members and I enjoy durian. We each may even have a different preference for type. You may wretch at the smell of it and think it's all horrible. If that's true, we'd all be correct, and that's fair. Wouldn't you agree?
Do you want to make the J2 sound "its best" to you? Are you trying to justify keeping it?
Do you want to find out what amps you have that sound best to you using a chain you normally don't use and/or in a room the gear is not normally in?
How much time do you have?
You asked for opinions, some will be repeated. Below works for me, and I'm thrilled.
1) Don't worry about what other people think. You're not trying to prove anyone wrong or correct, I don't think. You're not a professional reviewer.
This is for your enjoyment.
2) Use music you know well and listen to regularly. If you don't regularly listen to "reference" recordings, then don't use them.
3) Take notes, and check your notes for consistency when you're done.
4) Level match to the best of your ability if you're going to do any back-to-back listening. Try listening at different volumes at different times of day when you're in a good mood or a crappy mood.
5) Do some back-to-back listening, but I'd recommend leaving each in the system for a month or so. My impressions of amps change over time as I get used to them. The immediate relative difference between two amps doesn't matter as much to me as how much I like an amp long-term and get to live with it a while.
6) Use the chain you plan to use and in the room you plan to use it. If the phone is not your normal source (or one of them), I'd avoid it. If you have multiple sources (particularly if one is analog and one is digital), use them all.
7) Blind is better if you really want to try and remove some bias, but just pick the amp you like. You're not publishing a study. The placebo affect and confirmation bias are real, but do you really care?
As long as it's fair to you and you're happy, then wooooo hooooo!
It may seem obvious, but after you're done and happy, I'm sure we'd all love to know how it turned out.
An analogy just came to me - It's a shot in the dark. Let's say some other forum members and I enjoy durian. We each may even have a different preference for type. You may wretch at the smell of it and think it's all horrible. If that's true, we'd all be correct, and that's fair. Wouldn't you agree?
>> Do you want to make the J2 sound "its best" to you? Are you trying to justify keeping it?
No to both. To me it sounds smooth but boring. I just wanted to make sure I'm not driving it incorrectly and the speakers are suitable for it. But I tried two different speakers and it's sound signature persists. So I guess that's how it's voiced.
Heck no, I'm not trying to justify keeping the J2 nor any other amp I have!!! I'd rather sell them all but need to power the speakers somehow, at least the passive ones. So I'd say I don't care what the amp is, as long as it sounds good and doesn't fail.
So I asked my wife to give them a listen. Now, she does not give a sh*t at all. Just to see if our thoughts are in line and I'm not making things up, we listen to 3 amps per evening. Have been for the last week.
Well, 90% of the time, our thoughts on the sound character are very close. The major characteristics are perceived, I would say, mutually and in agreement. It's hard to argue if the sound is presented in a flat panorama, behind the speakers, as an example. That's just how it is, and there is no discussion about it.
The argument comes in when two amplifiers reproduce piano differently. Which one sounds better, that's the discussion. Some things are personal but some are not.
So, to answer your question, this thread stated out by evaluating the J2 and giving it a fair chance. But there were other amplifier participants for evaluation purposes. This is how this discussion drifted from me and evolved into comparing amplifiers and understanding what make the comparison fair to every participating amplifier.
So the iphone source should be ok.
Two different sets of speakers. Tannoy V8, Sony SS-a5
There's the J2 and it's tested against 8 other amps.
No to both. To me it sounds smooth but boring. I just wanted to make sure I'm not driving it incorrectly and the speakers are suitable for it. But I tried two different speakers and it's sound signature persists. So I guess that's how it's voiced.
Heck no, I'm not trying to justify keeping the J2 nor any other amp I have!!! I'd rather sell them all but need to power the speakers somehow, at least the passive ones. So I'd say I don't care what the amp is, as long as it sounds good and doesn't fail.
So I asked my wife to give them a listen. Now, she does not give a sh*t at all. Just to see if our thoughts are in line and I'm not making things up, we listen to 3 amps per evening. Have been for the last week.
Well, 90% of the time, our thoughts on the sound character are very close. The major characteristics are perceived, I would say, mutually and in agreement. It's hard to argue if the sound is presented in a flat panorama, behind the speakers, as an example. That's just how it is, and there is no discussion about it.
The argument comes in when two amplifiers reproduce piano differently. Which one sounds better, that's the discussion. Some things are personal but some are not.
So, to answer your question, this thread stated out by evaluating the J2 and giving it a fair chance. But there were other amplifier participants for evaluation purposes. This is how this discussion drifted from me and evolved into comparing amplifiers and understanding what make the comparison fair to every participating amplifier.
So the iphone source should be ok.
Two different sets of speakers. Tannoy V8, Sony SS-a5
There's the J2 and it's tested against 8 other amps.
not that I care does J2 is worst of your amps, but just wanted to write 2 facts ( important to all tested amps):
-Tannoy V12 is incapable of producing low bass, being made as sorta universal monitor/PA
- Iphone as source is classic example of "Garbage in, Garbage out" scenario ; that's preventing hearing of actual differences between amps
I have (several) Tannoys, don't have Iphone; in fact , I have phone with better audio section than Iphone is having, but I'm not even counting on possibility to use it as sound source, except maybe in my car, but even then if I'm really bored
-Tannoy V12 is incapable of producing low bass, being made as sorta universal monitor/PA
- Iphone as source is classic example of "Garbage in, Garbage out" scenario ; that's preventing hearing of actual differences between amps
I have (several) Tannoys, don't have Iphone; in fact , I have phone with better audio section than Iphone is having, but I'm not even counting on possibility to use it as sound source, except maybe in my car, but even then if I'm really bored
It is fighting with wind mills, Don Quichote 🙂
I see people using very expensive tube amplifiers and speakers using smart phones as sources with Spotify and MP3.... seriously debating the virtues of having the current audiophile capacitors changed to Obbligato paper in oil capacitors. The word FLAC already being offensive 😉
I see people using very expensive tube amplifiers and speakers using smart phones as sources with Spotify and MP3.... seriously debating the virtues of having the current audiophile capacitors changed to Obbligato paper in oil capacitors. The word FLAC already being offensive 😉
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You aren't going to be able to hear the things you need to hear with that source and speaker setup. With lower grade gear and sources you are sucking the life out of that amp.
The detail that this amp can produce is much higher than those speakers can produce and what that source is providing. If you get a chance to test that amp in a relatively high end setup you may change your mind. I have had a lot of gear go through my house (I find stuff, fix it and resale it for fun) and the first watt preamp and power amp that I have is by far the best I have ever heard.
Maybe there is something wrong with the amp but I suspect it is what I stated above.
Tann V12 is as good as you can get it from decent coax, except what I wrote for bass reproduction , and - even more important - that box is sucking life from mids
nothing against V12 - great product for purpose, but as is - hardly decent reference
same driver in simplest possible setup - OB, with sub or any decent sort of bass helper, would run in triple circles around V12, with same xover or - even better - xover from CPA12
regarding source, - oh yeah
comparing beautiful sauces combined with week old pizza dough
my point - all important differences between amps are smeared/buried, no matter which amp could eventually win a heart of tester
nothing against V12 - great product for purpose, but as is - hardly decent reference
same driver in simplest possible setup - OB, with sub or any decent sort of bass helper, would run in triple circles around V12, with same xover or - even better - xover from CPA12
regarding source, - oh yeah
comparing beautiful sauces combined with week old pizza dough
my point - all important differences between amps are smeared/buried, no matter which amp could eventually win a heart of tester
I have heard that speaker only once. It wasn't bad like you said but it wasn't necessarily great either. Maybe it was a bad source! Lol.
didn't say it's bad (plenty of worse ones, claiming different), just stressing difference between as is and potential
Sorry, I worded that weird. I meant to say that you said it was not bad. "Like you said, it wasn't bad" is how i should have strictured the sentence.