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Found 2 results

  1. Let me just start this thread by saying “I love my hobby!†. I love the way I can get my hands on a new amp and (after a bit of running in and possibly a little fine tuning) then hear something that comes across in a completely different way to the last dozen amps I have heard. And this Job INT is a fine example of that. However before we get into the audio details let’s go over the physical and practical aspects of this latest addition to the Goldmund sub-stable that is Job. It is evident initially that the Job INT is a minimalist offering, which we should expect as that is a major part of the reason for the very existence of Job but it is worth mentioning just so that prospective buyers don’t start expecting additional functionality that they will simply not be getting unless they move upmarket to Goldmunds other offerings. There is only the power switch, a volume control and source toggle switch adorning the face plate. I do like the idea of putting the power switch on the front of the amp as it is much more convenient for the user than the usual placement at the back. Probably better still would be the YBA approach of putting it under the face plate so it is accessible and yet still out of the way, still it is where it is and that works just fine. The remote reinforces this minimalist feel with volume up and down buttons and a mute as its only features, no remote source switching on offer here. The back shows us very little. We have the usual power socket and speaker binding posts, nothing strange there, but on the input side of things there are only three options. I understand an argument could be made that there are actually four inputs but hear me out before we start that discussion. On the digital side of things there is a usb input, a coaxial input and an optical… but… the coaxial and the optical are actually the one input and the amp will automatically give preference to an optical signal over a coaxial one so if you want to use the coax in you will have to turn off or unplug any component that is using the optical input. It probably isn’t a big deal for most of us but I’m sure some of us will find it causing an issue (someone always does). And on the analog side of things there is a single unbalanced input, which is digitised as soon as it hits the PCB on the inside so what we have with the Job INT is actually a digital input DAC, Pre and power amp all in the same chassis. Or, if you prefer to look at it another way, a cut down version of the Metis 7 (or at least that is what I am lead to believe, I can find no evidence of the Metis 7 on Goldmunds site, only the Metis 5). There isn’t very much info on the Job INT yet, it is still new enough that many reviewers are still waiting on their loaners to arrive, so we’ll just have to take what info we can find and deal with more as it arrives on the scene. On the subject of the Job power supply I have good news, the Job INT is happy to accept a massive range of input voltage, from 200 to 270 on its ‘220V’ position and from 100 to 135 on its ‘110V’ position. Just the thing for areas that run hot on their voltage at the power point, or areas that run cold for that matter. It is also designed to be grounded so 3 pin plugs only ladies and gents! I can also add that the Job doesn’t seem to generate a great deal of heat, it heats up a little when driven hard or run for long periods but not as much as most integrated amps, I would think it would be quite happy to live in a vented cabinet. And now it is time for a picture or two. I do love that Job sticky tape. Notice the triple layer cardboard? The total weight of the box and packing is about the same as the amp inside. What I did find strange however was the lack of a plastic bag to cover the amp and protect it from rubbing directly on the poly packing. That is a nice, clean face plate. Also a nice, clean rear end. Just because I couldn't help myself, a lid lifted shot as well. Before I get to the sound I have one more observation to make about the Job. I have noticed in the past that some amps don't like it when I turn on the fluorescent light in my bathroom, the interference from the starter causes them distress. I'm not sure why this happens but it is becoming something of a tradition now for me to stop outside the bathroom door and listen to the amp playing while I turn on the light, just to see how it takes it. I have not destroyed any amps like this so I don't think my flat has faulty wiring as such, just wiring that was not installed with my audio wishes in mind. From memory the Parasound Halo only reacted once and only cutting out for maybe a tenth of a second when it did, the YBA Heritage A100 never reacted at all but the Job seems a little sensitive to my bathroom lighting requirements as it cuts out for a full 2 or 3 seconds and only resumes operation once the light is on. I suspect that this amplifier behaviour is due to protection circuitry cutting in and that means that the Job has more sensitive protection circuitry than most but I can't be sure about that, would any techs care to comment on this? Now to the sound. As I mentioned back above the pics the Job INT does not sound quite like anything I've heard to date, however it does fit within the spectrum of other amps I've heard. If you've heard an Exposure 2010S2 and you can force your imagination to remove much of the depth from the presentation and add a little speed and detail then you would not be too far away from the Job sound. Or if you've heard both the Krell 300iL and the Parasound Halo integrated then I can tell you that the Job sound sits pretty close to dead center between those two. This third comparison is probably a little more of a stretch but if you've heard a YBA Heritage A100 and you can wrap your head around removing 80% or so of the richness and lushness from the YBA sound then you also would be pretty close to the Job sound. Those three examples aren't going to be useful for everybody but they are about the best I have been able to come up with over the last 6 days listening to the Job run in. I haven't spun up my test disc yet but i do have a few things to say about the Job sound and my reactions to it. The Job INT sounds very nice at low volume, it has a nice level of detail and manages somehow to create the same level of presence (which I usually refer to as 'eerie') that other amps do but without using a large amount of warmth or depth to assist with the effect. It is very clean, very clear with great detail and without any brightness or harshness to detract from the performance. It also feels as if it utilizes more of its headroom, there seems to be more volume difference between the softer and harder sections of tracks which is very impressive but it did lead to me having to lean on the 'volume down' button a few times after having increased the volume only 30 seconds previously. At high volume it is more complicated because it has all of those characteristics I have just mentioned at low volume but the bass comes into the fray as well. I have had a bit of a complicated relationship with the bass of the Job. Initially I didn't really like it, it also utilizes that 'additional headroom' effect and that can easily lead to, IMO, too much bass*. This is not always the case of course, on tracks with lighter bass the whole performance is brilliant, I ran through the entirety of Big Pig's Bonk and loved every minute of it but put on a more recently recorded disc and all that extra bass that everyone seems to want today comes across so strongly it was starting to put pressure on my brain. I asked BRMSlash his opinion earlier in the week, after some listening we dissected what we thought we were hearing and I managed to come up with an analogy that I hope makes some sense. The bass has a volume speed bump in it, there is a certain band of frequencies that come across more strongly/loudly than those above or below them and this is what was causing the issue. When taken at low volume (speed) the bump doesn't cause any issues, when taken at high volume (speed) it makes the track much harder to enjoy as you are constantly waiting for that sense of pressure to hit your inner ear. Once I had come to what I thought was a reasonable conclusion as to what was happening I set about trying to rectify it, but this is where the lack of options available with the Job limits your ability to tune it, I can't bypass the DAC or pre, I can try changing the digital coax cable but I don't keep a large supply of those on hand, I can't change ICs (of which I do have a large number on hand) so I was limited to changing the speaker cables. I had been using my new Aurealis speaker cables (taking advantage of the opportunity to run in both an amp and new cables at the one time) and I remembered Geoff telling me that they did make a difference in the bass and that some people didn't appreciate that difference so I swapped over to my old standard cables, the Redgum Audio Pipeline cables. This helped smooth out the speed bump, in a similar way to building up the front and back of the bump so that it doesn't feel as sudden as it could, but it hasn't removed it. It has made the bass much easier to appreciate though, it now doesn't hit as suddenly as it used to, so it is a big step in the right direction. So the bass is what is holding up this review of mine, once I've sorted it out I'll get down to business and with a little luck that will be this evening. * I am sure many of the younger readers will be staring aghast and shaking their heads at this concept of having too much bass, after all how could having too much of a good thing be a bad thing. Well it can, it's a bit like having too much chocolate in that the negative effects are not immediately evident to the user, they come into play a little further down the line.
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