[I.Greyhound Fan]

I am thinking about buying a Black Ice F35 tube amp.  Has anyone heard any of the Black Ice integrated amps?

If I buy one I will do the naked Z foil resistor upgrade for their highway robbery price that they are asking.  I would also do a cap upgrade to take it to the next level.

Thanks!

Larry

[nlitworld]

Black Ice & their predecessor Jolida were always a budget tweaker option. I picked up a Jolida integrated amp a years back to test out tube sound on the cheap and learn to fiddle with upgrades. The one thing I didn't upgrade was signal path resistors, but I did almost everything else that was easy. KLE RCA plugs, KLE binding posts, Mundorf Supreme caps, hexfred diodes, Alps volume pot, NOS small tubes and PSvane EL34PH power tubes. The upgrades far outweighed the cost of the unit and the quality it deserved, but I did it for learning and practice. Point being, the sound DEFINITELY improves with each upgrade. It's still not the best, or the quietest, or the cheapest option, but it does pack a hell of a good time into an easy package. Worth playing around with if you're the tinkering type.

-Lloyd

[I.Greyhound Fan]

Thanks.  The new Black Ice reference gear is a long ways away from Jolida.  I think that the stock F35 may be a giant killer, meaning it performs way above its price point.  Adding upgrades are expensive.  Naked Z foil resistors are a $700 upgrade.  Better wiring is $700, new jupiter caps are over $700.
KT170 tubes are also $700.

I am also considering the Galion TS-120se

[Emil]

I had the F22 for a while. Beautiful piece with metal remote.
Support was top notch. Someone always answered the phone and was more than happy to answer all my question.
Can buy the basic amp and upgrade when you get the itch as you already know.
Service and upgrades are performed in Maryland.
45 day return policy
I'd go with the Black Ice for all the above reasons
I eventually sold it because I preferred solid state with my speakers.

[rotarius]

Looking at pics of the PCB, it appears the one weak point in the Jolida has been carried over to the Black Ice.  The tube sockets are soldered to the PCB and the solder joints take all the stress of inserting and removing tubes.  I had this issue with a Jolida and it sent some nasty noises to the speakers and took out some tubes.  The sockets ought to be flanged and screwed to the pcb to relieve the stress.  Other than that, it was a nice amp.

[I.Greyhound Fan]

I had the F22 for a while. Beautiful piece with metal remote.
Support was top notch. Someone always answered the phone and was more than happy to answer all my question.
Can buy the basic amp and upgrade when you get the itch as you already know.
Service and upgrades are performed in Maryland.
45 day return policy
I'd go with the Black Ice for all the above reasons
I eventually sold it because I preferred solid state with my speakers.

How would you describe the sound?  Did it have good detail and resolution?  Was the sound stage wide, deep and tall?  Is there some warmth? How is the top end?  I am sensitive to brightness and sibilants.

Thanks,

Larry

[I.Greyhound Fan]

Looking at pics of the PCB, it appears the one weak point in the Jolida has been carried over to the Black Ice.  The tube sockets are soldered to the PCB and the solder joints take all the stress of inserting and removing tubes.  I had this issue with a Jolida and it sent some nasty noises to the speakers and took out some tubes.  The sockets ought to be flanged and screwed to the pcb to relieve the stress.  Other than that, it was a nice amp.

Thanks!  I am not too worried.  I know how to solder.  I probably won't do much tube rolling.  I am going to use the KT-170 tubes and I may do some rolling with the 4 12AX7 tubes as I have a few.