UA LA2A and LA3A, Worth it ??

[marshallplexi]

I tried their 1176 reissue and didn't like it... I find my MC77 much better compared to an original.

What do you guys think of the new productions LA2A and LA3A compared to the original ones ??

What would be a modern COLORED tube comp (CL1B is great but a bit too clean for me) ?

Thanks !

[Empire Prod]

I own 6 vintage LA3As and 2 of the new reissues and I can honestly say that to my ears the reissue LA3As sound just fine.

Also all my vintage LA3As sound slightly different from each other where my reissues sound very close.

[marshallplexi]

Great !

Anybody else ?

[666666]

I once had a bunch of old vintage LA-3As. Indeed they were all different from each other. Picked up a few of the reissues... immediately sold all the old ones. The reissues sounded and performed way better than all the old ones... this very well may be due to the age of the old ones, they probably needed a serious tune-up and then some. I'm not a tech, but I believe over time those T4 units get tired... with my old LA-3As, some clamped really hard, some barely clamped at all, a lot of variation in the compression behavior... thank goodness UA brought back the LA-3As and did a great job!

Also, I find the UA 1176 reissues absolutely excellent. I'm sure the MC77 sounds great too, just "different"... pick the one that sounds best on the sources you're dealing with.

[popmann]

Do a search. I did extensive testing on several old ones and one new one a couple years back.

Short version: Each unit was different sounding. I think they did a good job with the reissues.

[marshallplexi]

Yeah i know the old ones tend to send different from each others. But hey, that's Vintage right ??

I mean, i know that if i want the Pultec sound, i need to get an old one... I tried several clones but they just nail the size of the old ones.

I am basically asking if the UA reissues sounds any good compared to the old one. Same color, same size, etc... I was quite disappointed with their RI of the 1176 so, i am being carefull... I am not saying it's a bad comp, i am just saying it just doesn;'t sound like an old 1176 or an MC77 (which to me sounds a lot closer/almost identical to an old blakcface...) Anybody else ?

[Empire Prod]

Originally Posted by marshallplexi

Yeah i know the old ones tend to send different from each others. But hey, that's Vintage right ??

I mean, i know that if i want the Pultec sound, i need to get an old one... I tried several clones but they just nail the size of the old ones.

I am basically asking if the UA reissues sounds any good compared to the old one. Same color, same size, etc... I was quite disappointed with their RI of the 1176 so, i am being carefull... Anybody else on the LA2A ?

Cheers,
Anth.

With Pultecs it is a little different because there really is not much to the pultec circuit and a large part of the sound comes from the transformer that can no longer be made.

With vintage LA3As there are things like wiring and yes there are definitely differences between older and newer components, but the sonic difference is nowhere near as dramatic as let's say the difference between a Pultec EQP1A and an Amtec.

[marshallplexi]

OK !

How about the LA2A ??

[Empire Prod]

Originally Posted by marshallplexi

OK !

How about the LA2A ??

Throw it in the oven for 20 mintus at 350 degrees and it should be pretty warm.

[marshallplexi]

Not that good, eh ?

[Empire Prod]

Originally Posted by marshallplexi

Not that good, eh ?

I was just kidding. I haven't A/B'd them against each other.

[peeder]

I dig my reissue LA2A prenty but I haven't played with an old one in years. Give me an old one and a box of old tubes and I can probably get a reissue sounding close enough to it to fool you.

[lowfreq33]

The new one sounds pretty great. Haven't a/b'd it with an old one, but I think it's more important to have a pair that matches as opposed to a new/old issue.