Description

This system is great for my 800 sq foot apartment, If you've never heard Deja Vu equipment and you're ever in the DC area their store in Vienna VA is amazing, a haven for tubes and analog. I ended up with my amp after years of taking broken gear to Vu's to be fixed and having him loan me gear that sounded so much better. Finally I made a trade and ended up with my current amp and the best and probably last amp I will ever own. Especially since the NOS Aerovox cap upgrade Vu recommended a huge upgrade in every way.. My preamp I picked up on Agon, a cool early Deja Vu prototype full function with an active tubed crossover. Both amp and preamp were built by Pavel their former designer and the synergy makes both greater than the sum of their parts.

Later additions are my Audionote  Dac-3 Signature and Auralic Aries Mini and I'm now addicted to streaming. Audio Note Lexus speaker cables, Furutech power cables, a Jorma Design digital cable,  and my analog interconnects are Kondo and Auditorium 23.

Got  some new footers Gregitek Aries Graf, Combak Ebony Pucks, plus added a Synergistic Black Quantum fuse to my preamp.  Improvements all around the system keeps sounding better and better!

Just got my new Audio Note AN/Jlx's and the system is truly singing!
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Components Toggle details

    • Auralic Aries Mini with Sbooster Power Supply
    A great sounding little streamer and love the Lightning DS app!
    • Audio Note UK DAC-3 Signature
    Audio Note Dac-3 Signature built in1995! I recently had the coupling caps upgraded to AN copper caps. Output tubes are a pair of Mullard CV2492 and the Dac sounds really sweet, transparent, natural, with great tone.
    • Deja Vu Audio Full-Function Tubed Stereo Preamp
    Tubed preamp from Deja Vu Audio in Vienna VA. This is an older prototype with a built-in tubed crossover and phonostage, but I run it just as a linestage. A mix of vintage and current parts, including XLO internal wire and an ALPs volume pot from 1977 that was chosen for it's superior sound quality. Amazing warm, organic, lifelike sound, very synergistic with my amp both designed and built by Deja Vu's former designer whiz Pavel.
    • Deja Vu Audio Custom EL-34 Stereo Amplifier
    A stereo pushpull amp with a pair of EL34's per channel, three 6SN7's up front and a 5U4G rectifier. Triode wired running in Class A putting out 17 warm sweet powerful watts per channel. Vintage Acrosound transformer from the 60's. With Gold Lion KT-77's and a recapping last year with NOS Aerovox Caps from the 1960s. A 60's era  RCA rectifier and Sylvania 6SN7's complete the package.
    • Audio Note AN/Jlx in Olive Wood Finish on Sound Anchors
    I finally pulled the trigger on new speakers after 10 years with my previous JMlabs Micros. Vu at Deja Vu Audio really pointed me in the right direction with the AN/J's they arrived yesterday and look and already sound great. They are the Lexus copper wired version which Vu recommended for it's warmth compared to the silver wired versions.  He also recommended the original paper woofer over the newer blue hemp cones, finding the hemp drivers to be a bit dry sounding. These sound great already and should really start to sing around the 100 hour mark!
    • Cerious Technologies Nano Signature Power Cable
    I have this powering my power conditioner, great budget PC!
    • Furutech FP-S032N With F1-11 Gold Connectors
    I have two of these excellent  12awg  power cords feeding my DAC and preamp, custom made for me by Chris Venhaus at VH Audio.
    • ExactPower 2000 AC Power Conditoner
    Balanced voltage device and line conditioner.
    • Variac 2000VA
    For my power amp, ramps up voltage gradually to a steady 120V.
    • Jorma Design Digital Cable
    The best digital cable I've heard in my system bar none.  Beautiful organic vivid sound with real musical flow. Connecting the Aries Mini to my AN Dac.
    • Kondo AudioNote Japan KSL-Vc
    Kondo's copper interconnect running from my DAC to preamp. I thought it would be perfect to add AN Japan to AN UK and I was right. This cable sounds fantastic an improvement in tonality, timbre, tonal color, and detail. Music flows better and sounds more real.
    • Auditorium 23 Interconnect
    This gave me that final ahhh moment when i connected it between my amp and preamp. Just a gorgeous sounding cable that makes music sound more real and natural.
    • Audio Note Lexus Copper Speaker Cables
    Hooked up my new AN/Jlx's with the same copper wire they are internally wired with, nice to get away from garden hose sized cables to something more human sized.
    • Gregitek Aries Graf Footers
    Carbon fiber and aluminum under my Aries Mini and my amp.
    • Combak Corp Brass and Ebony Footers
    Under my preamp.
    • Synergistic Research Black Quantom Fuse
    Installed in my preamp.
    • Synology DC 214 Play
    NAS server feeding my Aries Mini two 4 TB hard drives in a hybrid RAID configuration.
    • High Fidelity Cables MC-0.5
    I was loaned one of these from my friend Jim @lowrider57, and liked the more relaxed feeling it gave to the music. When High Fidelity was closing them out half price recently I picked one up, it's been in the system for a month now. Nice tweak and I am not much of a tweaker!
    • Blue Jeans Cable Bonded Pair Cat-6a ethernet cable
    From modem/router to my Aries and from my NAS to my router.
    • Deja Vu Audio Custom Pushpull 2a3 amp
    I was loaned this amp by Deja Vu when my own amp went in the shop, it's still there, and instantly fell in love with it. It's pushpull as the title says with dual power trasformers and vintage Eico output transformers. I am officially adding it to my system as I made the decision to keep it, as I suspected would happen all along. It sounds fantastic I love the sound of the 2a3 tube and pushing 15wpc it's a perfect match to my AN-J's.
    • Arcam FMJ-P35 Stereo Amp
    I acquired this little 100 watt Brit amp locally to use as an emergency backup locally for a very good price. I ran it in the system for a day to test it out and it sounds surprisingly good for a modest priced SS amp.
    • Wisdom Cable Technology Power Stage ES-10
    I've been looking for a new power distributor and this unit fit the bill nicely well constructed and sounds good too.
    • Yamamoto Soundcraft YDA-1 Dac
    My old friend is back bought back from the person I sold it too and happy to have my beloved Yamamoto returned to me.
    • Auralic ARIES G1
    I've finally upgraded my streamer my beloved Aries Mini served me faithfully for 6 years but I couldn't pass up the demo deal i got on this G1. Same great Auralic sound just a bit more of it. ;)
    • Wright Sound WPA-3.5 2a3 SET Monoblocks
    Found a great deal on these George Wright 2a3 monoblocks and they sound fantastic. Outfitted with NOS GE/Raytheon 2a3s, and some 60s RCA 6SN7's and RCA 5Y3 rectifiers. Sweet and transparent and dead quiet!
    • RCA Tube caddy
    Picked up this 60s era tube caddy and finally have my tubes sort of organized at least not all over the place!

Comments 196

Owner
Thank you both Spencer and Dan very kind of you guys. I didn't know virtual systems was down glad it's back up its my favorite part of Audiogon. Cheers guys!

jond

Jond, I read the Virtual System was back up, I'm sure glad for it, and it's nice to see your fine system again!

Regards,
Dan

islandmandan

A system worthy of a great audiogoner! Genius choices for a smaller room. Cheer, Jon.
Spencer

sbank

Owner
Thank you @kevinzoe very much appreciated!

jond

jond - great write-up and pictures.  The one picture that stood out was the one with all the tubes (I counted 65 in total)!!!  Your passion certainly comes through in your system . . .  congrats. Enjoy.

kevinzoe

Owner
What a nice thing to say @rman9 thank you so much!

jond

@jond Wow!! it was a great tour of your beautiful system. The B/W picture was a classic touch.. I just recently invested in good quality power cords and interconnect cables.. Its a giddying audio journey for me all in the last couple of years..

rman9

Owner
thank you @digsmithd !

jond

nice system...choices well thought out for sho.

digsmithd

Owner
Thanks @zephyr24069 I appreciate that and indeed sweet and musical was the goal! ;)

jond

Great system and much care is evident in the choice of components, speakers, cabling and layout to make the most of the space.  I'd bet this sounds sweet and musical!

zephyr24069

Owner
Thank you @2psyop what nice things to say but I swear it feels like temperamental old school Jag these days always breaking down. ;)  BTW a big VW fan here in fact I drive a GLI.

jond

Jond I have been watching your system and comments for awhile. I feel like I drive a Volkswagen beetle and you drive a star-fleet cruiser. Very nice equipment and I have heard Audio Note speakers, they are exquisite. Beautiful system!!! My hats off to you.

2psyop

Owner
A few updates the system has been a bit of a struggle I lost the right channel on my amp about 3 weeks ago. Life being what it is, busy, I was just biding my time running the Arcam amp. Welp on Thursday night the Arcam went into fault mode and wouldn't play. Luckily yesterday, Friday, I finally had a few hours to run the amp out to Deja Vu where I snapped a few pics under the hood. Bias pots and tube sockets were cleaned but that right channel is indeed out the hunt for a lose connection commences. In the meantime Deja Vu as per usual kindly loaned me an amp the cute little Synthesis Encore power amp.

jond

Owner
@ronrags Thanks for the kind comments and yes indeed a lot of effort, trial and error, and more than a bit of luck!

jond

It’s great that you found a system that you really enjoy. It takes much effort to get the right combo of components, tubes and tweaks to your liking. We both have a small and intimate listening space but that makes it more special. Even at a low listening volume its magical. Happy listening!

ronrags

Owner
@rhodes Thanks Ken I really love big horns and your system is pretty awe inspiring thanks for the nice words.

jond

Very nice set up jond. Thanks for the commenting on the JBL 4350'S  
  Regards Ken

rhodes

Owner
Thanks @markusthenaimnut and I totally forgot to mention your gorgeous Garrard 401 a dream deck for me!

jond

I like the look and philosophy of your system. Well thought out. I especially like your boutique preamp/amp. IMHO that's where it's at.

Thanks for your kind comments on my system.

markusthenaimnut

Owner
I did a bit of updating I've decided to keep the Deja Vu 2a3 amp, to my complete lack of shock lol, retubing it with better tubes, nothing fancy just Sovteks showed me it was a keeper. Also I added a little Arcam P35 SS amp to act as an emergency backup. My regular amp, the venerable Deja Vu EL34 amp is still in the shop as they search for the source of noise.

jond

Owner
@mapman Cool I had no idea you were in Baltimore! Sounds great and same and stoked for the first UMD basketball game tonight!

jond

Been to Deja Vu. Great go to shop for tube gear.  Love the Audio Note and CJ stuff.  Would love to hear.  If ever up Baltimore way let me know if interested in a listen.

mapman

Owner
@alexpoth1512 thank you! I run the amp off the variac set to 115v at the recommendation of my dealer. It's a 15 watt amp and a 2K transformer so plenty of current.

jond

What a magnificent set! Variac is for starting up Class A amps? :)
It denotes dedication, love, passion, heart!! Congrats!

alexopth1512

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