5
POWER CONDITIONERS
CAT amplifiers have built in isolation transformers which already provide tremendous
power conditioning. Use of any additional external devices will restrict current delivery
and degrade dynamics and bass response.
SPECIAL POWER CORDS
Your amplifier is provided with a decent standard power cord. Feel free to experiment,
but beware of cords which sound significantly “different”. In our experience, this is a bad.
Subtly better is what you should look for, better bass definition, blacker, tighter etc.
BREAK IN
Your amplifier will sound better after a few hours of use. We play amplifiers here for at
least 72 hours, so they usually sound quite great right out of the box, but they will still
improve a bit after another few hours of playing time. Leaving the amplifier on without
playing music will NOT help break in your CAT amplifier!
WARM UP
Your amplifier will sound best after about 15 minutes of dynamic warm up, playing
music at normal levels. Simply leaving them turned on will do nothing regarding warm
up. We are aware that many other products, especially solid state, do indeed benefit
from static warm up. If you have such a product let it warm up by itself. There is no point
in wasting tube life by leaving the amp on without playing music.
USE OF OUTPUT TAPS
The JL7, like most tube amplifiers, have output taps to maximize power output into either
4 or 8 ohm speakers. The negative, usually black, speaker cable lead should be connected
to the negative terminal on either side of the amplifier and the positive terminal, usually
red, will be connected to either the “4” or the “8” terminal.
CHOICE OF OUTPUT TAP
Do not assume that the best sounding tap will be the one which maximizes power into
your speaker. Many times the other tap will sound best. Generally speaking the 4 ohm
tap will sound tighter and have better control, but the 8 ohm tap will sound bigger and
fuller. (The 8 ohm tap has been specially designed to deal with the high capacitance of
electrostatic speakers, so please be certain to try it if you have such a speaker.)
