Iv'e had this gem 3 mo's, wont listen to my mac 2120 any more. I'm using philips 12ax7's electro harmonics 6sn7's and big bell 6ca7, philips copy's by electro harmonics. The sound is so sweet, i can't stand myself.Ive had may one better amp, in my humble opinion, and that was a classe'25 watter. I highly recommend this amp. To any one just turning on to tubes this is it., reasonable to pick one up, and fun try new tube combo's BEAR

Looks
Sound
Tube rolling should give you the sound you're looking for.

Beautiful looking and sounding amp. With tube rolling, it can sound just about anyway
you'd like. It can be very revealing, or very forgiving depending on which el34, 12ax7,
and 12au7 tubes you try out. It should suit all but the most demanding speakers very well.

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C-J PF-R
C-J CAV-50
Meridian 508

Harmonic purity; Lack of grain, glare, or haze; solid and stable imaging; overall coherent, relaxed and natural presentation. Good build qualtiy and reliability.

Needs retube from stock to perform maximally; Lacks some bass drive and tautness in ultimate terms; Can't go headbanging loud, of course. Captive power cord and generic plastic-capped binding posts are bummers.

I found this piece after hearing the earlier MV-50 and being blown away, and I haven't looked back since. In my range of affordability, I haven't heard a more natural sounding amp, and several more expensive solid state amps I've heard may be more impressive, but not necessarily as enjoyable as this small gem.
When I first took it home to audition against the Classe through my Thiel 2.2's, I hesitated to buy, because although it was clearly the better amp in most areas for realistic portrayal, I didn't know if I could live with the softer bass and lack of treble extension I heard. I went ahead and got it, though, when I couldn't stomach returning to the more cold, hard, mechanical, "reproduced" SS sound, with its zingy imaging and exagerated "detail" on transients.
While still wondering about the MV-55's suitability for my 4 Ohm, moderate efficiency speakers in the areas of control and airiness, I consoled myself with the utterly natural rendering of the harmonic structure of female voice or piano, for instance, and the consistent, corporeal imaging quality and lack of electronic artifacts.
Then I decided to replace the stock Sovtek tube set, based on my tube guitar amp experiences. Without wanting to get into the vagaries of NOS esoterica, I installed first Yugoslovian 12AX7 inputs, then Tesla EL34 powers, and finally American 6SN7 drivers, with consistent improvements realized at each step. Now, here was the bass firmness and extension, top end air and sparkle, and a reduced midrange resonant signature, along with welcome improvements in overall speed and definition. This way, I got higher fidelity, and it still sounds like music. (The amp's sound has also benefitted from an API Powerwedge, using AudioPrism Iso-Bearings underneath, and losing the supplied tube cage, which rings like a bell.)
While I'm sure the MV-55 is not the last word in such areas as dynamic presence, low-level detail, vastness of soundstaging, or bass authority, it gives a wonderful balance of attributes at its price point, and I feel is very good-to-excellent in all performance aspects at its 45wpc power level - provided the owner is willing to upgrade the supplied tubes. This one's a keeper!

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My first tube amp; Prior amps Classe 70, NAD 2200.

As a reflection to JT Backus' 2 star review about the MV-55.

The MV-50 sounds indeed better. Yet the MV-55 sounds pretty close, and it is definitely a good amp at correct price, which no way deserves 2 stars in current market of audiophile amps. The MV-55 would get 4 stars for sound, but gets 5 in this context.
In my opinion the MV-50 (and MV-125) are prodigious amps at incredible value, so if you can get one, don't look further. The MV-125 sounds fantastic with electrostatics.

Everything

Zip

Really not much else too say,that hasn't already been said by most experienced listeners.This piece is simply spectacular.
In regards to the low star review(s)....It's really not worth responding to,for all the obvious reasons.

Similar Products Used:

Most everything

Great Sound

Best with sensitive speakers

This is a great music amp, particularly with vocals and acoustic music. Not dynamic enough for hometheater, but best in price/class for music only systems.

All

None

Hello all,
This is my second review here on the Mv-55 but with it reconfigured in triode mode this time. I've had great results with this amp and am convinced, it is one of the best amp's out there for it's size and power. First the amp is a great sounding piece alone without any changes made to it. It will give you great performance and satisfaction in every area you can think of. This amp can be made to sound even better as I will explain shortly. Now changing the amp for triode has made the piece smoother and sweeter sounding. It still contains excellent transparency and world class imaging and soundstaging, but with a warmer sound compared to the stantard ultra linear tetrode mode. At first crack, the amp was connected to Altec Lansing Voice of the studio (collector speaker's) with a 100db. Man did this combo fly. "Turn down the volume, I'm losing my hearing". The sound was very tight and well controlled, nothing lacking. Under this next review, the amp is pushing 1979 15ohm pair of Rogers with a sensitivity of 82db. Hard speakers to drive but the amp's doing it with it's 20watts triode with no problem. Is the triode mode best suited for the Rogers? NO. How about sensitive speaker's? Oh Yes, but they have to be SET friendly or your going to lose some snap and small inner detail. So after trying the triode, I'm pleased to see this amps performance. It will play the 82db Rogers at satisfying sound levels with only a lost in it's upmost nuetrality leaning to a sweeter warmer sound. Don't bother with triode mode unless your speaker's are very sensitive and you prefer a warmer sound. Now the CJ amp will be returned back to tetrode mode as they are usually connected to my very loved Rogers. With 45watts, this combination is a match made in heaven. At standard setting, the amp played my Proac's beautifully also but I definately prefer the Rogers. OK, so you want to improve the amp? YOU HAVE TO CHANGE THE TUBES. Most people don't realize what a big diffence this makes. Don't bother with the hundreds of 6SN7's out there. Try my picks first as I have done the work for you. Look on ebay and buy 1940 NOS Sylvania 6SN7W short bottle or Sylvania VT-231. This makes the amp much more transparent. I'm currently working on 12AX7's and will share the info when it's complete. The EL-34 are not worth changing as they do not change the sound as much as the driver and input tube's on this amp.

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Various

Sweet sound

This is the first amp that introduces me to the tube sound.

Firstly, thanks for many posts here to respond my e-mail and advise on what kind of tube that I should buy (either new or NOS), where to buy, and what kind of sound it is supposed to be. I did change all of the original CJ tubes to current 12AX7 Ei Yugo, 6sn7 Russia 6H8C, and Svetlana EL-34 tubes. The sound stage and image were better than I had ever heard on the original CJ tubes. I am not saying that the tubes coming along with the MV-55 are not good but changing the original tubes will provide you a better sound quality.

I use this amp connected directly with Wadia 830 CD player via Cardas Cross to drive ProAc Response 1.5 via Monster cable M2.4 biwired. This setup produces a sweet tube sound especially for vocal. With some good CD's record, I could imagine like the singer was singing in my room. I will next try some NOS tubes that some posts here suggest to see how best the sould quality is.

I have a solid state Krell 300iL in another system and did compare it with this CJ. To my ears, CJ is better in vocal and Krell is better in instrument. For vocal sound comparison, I will give CJ 5.0 and 4.5 for Krell.

Lastly, I second the previous post on a UK's post here on his bad experience on the CJ distributor in UK. Pls do not complain such kind of thing here because it does not add any value on the product. If the sound is not good or you do not like the sound quality, pls say it ... but do not use this review here to complain about a bad saleman's service/manner and rank 1.0 for the CJ product that you did not judge the sound by your ears.

Similar Products Used:

Krell 300iL

This comment is for the idiot who posted here about his experience with UK dealer/distributer,This is a place to review the PRODUCTS,all you did was slam CJ in general (1 star rating)because you had a misunderstanding with someone The Conrad Johnson line of Product is Outstanding, especially the MV-55. I am leaving these remarks, along with 5 Stars to counter your thoughtless post
Cheers,
Shred

I bought my first mv55 a few years ago and was so pleased with the overall performance that I recently auditioned a second mv55 for the purpose of bi-amping.That coupled with my valved CJ preamp and CD player and Vonscheikert VR4 gen2's, set the stage for an all encompassing listening experience.Believe me, two mv55's are dramatically more resounding than one!! Well, hooked I was and my financial pain eased by recieving a great deal,in part, due to the much anticipated release of the mv65. One word of caution:Do not audition the second mv55 for bi-amping unless you have the means to keep it...you will feel tortured if you have to give it back.