EC Aficionado (was: The Studio Jr.)

Discussion in 'Headphone Amplifiers and Combo (DAC/Amp) Units' started by AppleheadMay, Nov 10, 2015.

  1. gbeast

    gbeast Mighty Moral Power Ranger

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  2. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    One of these days, I may create a goofy modern website to 2017 audiophile standards with a photo of Craig in a lab coat peering over one of this amps opened up. The photo will be taken with an 85mm and shot wide open at f1.4 with very little depth of field. In addition, the website will have zero pricing information (or at least make the price extremely difficult to find, or make up some MSRP BS like $9999 for the Af), wattage specs (neglecting to mention the wattage is into 8 ohms, hoping to fool you guys the wattage figures are into typical headphone loads), and only include one word terms of awesomeness - maybe some select quotes for shills. Navigation to pages of the site will be done via Star Wars wipe transitions. Might throw in some close of ups of a transformer or capacitor.
     
  3. JoshMorr

    JoshMorr Friend

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    With all values or names blurred out of course.

    Website also needs testimonials from pro engineers who helped with obscure Grammy winning albums (guy who changed light light bulbs for Phil Collins, Keith Richard dealer, etc). Last I would throw in some graphs of measurements of unknown sources that show perfectly flat something or other, doesn't matter what so as long as its flat.
     
  4. BillOhio

    BillOhio Friend

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    ...or 'authorized dealer' links with all the authorized dealers in another continent no matter which continent you are searching from.
     
  5. Peti

    Peti Facebook Friend

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    Great to hear the first two units are about to be burnt in. It was mentioned before (if memory serves me right) that this amp might be shipped with some input tube but I was wondering if the rectifier will be included? What is the verdict on included tubes and rectifier vis- a-vis the Aficionado?
     
    Last edited: Aug 31, 2017
  6. 2chinzz

    2chinzz New

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    Only the rectifier tube will be shipped. If you want input tubes (2a3 x 2 + 5670/2c51) there will be an additional fee.
     
  7. doukhobar

    doukhobar New

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    Hello,

    New to Eddie Current products, but not new to tube amps or headphones. I've been lurking for a few weeks and have a several questions pending before putting down money. It's okay if folks aren't sure, but I'm just trying to get a feel for how this amp sounds. I do realize the first wave has not been shipped yet, so there probably aren't many actual user reviews written up yet. I currently have a Decware Taboo III and use it to drive HE6 and HD800 as well as my Omega 3XRS high eff. speakers. It is pretty useful. I like the idea of an amp with both speaker taps and headphone usage, as I have several set ups going. I am also okay with changing around my headphones to get better pairings.

    Anyway, the reviews I've read of EC products are all glowing - especially the Balancing Act and Studio, obviously. Unfortuantely, the Studio is just simply out of my price range. My specific questions are as follows:

    1) I realize the Studio was a no holds barred top of the line design with very rare and expensive parts, especially the transformers from what I've read. While I enjoy tube rolling, the review by Romaz on Head-fi talked about the special transformers 'rolled' the Studio. He said the amp has " two Tribute inter-stage transformers created by Pieter Treurniet of the Netherlands". My question is, does the Aficionado (i.e. Studio Jr.) have these same transformers? Just one transformer, or a different transformer all together? (sorry I do not have the schematic in front of me). Also, do the same quality of parts used in the Studio cross over to the Studio Jr to some level?

    2) Sonically, how does the Studio Jr compare to the Balancing Act? Ryan Clarin on Inner Fidelity gives a great review of the BA (which I realize is discontinued) and a little about the history of Craig's devices. Retailing for $3,950, he says of the BA: " flat-out declare this amp, easily heard within the first few minutes of listening, to offer the most expansive, most realistic soundstaging of any headphone amp I have ever listened to. Its damn right other-worldly, and is simply instant transportation into something very hard to describe but easily heard and felt. It’s a seamless soundscape that develops perfectly in front of you as a listener from wide left to wide right, without any sort of blob-effect in-between that occurs with lesser setups". So, my question is, does the Studio Jr sound as good, specifically does it have as good of a sound stage as the BA?

    3) Last for now, the studio puts out 800mW into 32ohm. I image this amp will be approx. half the power. Does anyone think this would be enough to power the HE6? Probably not, right?

    Thank you all in advance for your time and thoughts!

    Matthew
     
    Last edited: Sep 6, 2017
  8. bengo

    bengo Friend

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    I'm far from being the expert here, but AFAIK
    1) Aficionado has interstage capacitors, not transformers (one major reason why it is about 2x cheaper)
    2) The soundstage is usually credited to high-frequency AC heaters which are common to all(?) the EC tube amps, certainly including BA, Aficionado and Studio.
     
  9. doukhobar

    doukhobar New

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    Thanks! Was the BA also having interstage capacitors?
     
  10. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Give me a sec. Super busy morning. Will answer this soon in detail.
     
  11. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    The Studio's power of 800mW is into 100 ohms. The "800mW into 32 ohms" for Studio is a mistake on the website. Into 32 ohms, the Studio should be 2W. The BA (using 300Bs) is 1.5W into 32ohms. The Af is also 2W into 32 ohms (same as Studio, but probably a little less than Studio into 8 ohm speaker loads). The Af does push the tubes a bit harder, running a plate voltage 20% higher than any other EC amp before it. FYI, Craig uses actual headphones (Senn HD600, Grado RS2, etc.) and watches until he sees clipping on the scope to arrive at the power numbers. I'm surprised he hasn't blown up his headphones yet.

    The Af does not use interstage transformers. It has an interstage cap like the Balancing Act. The Af is the spiritual successor to the BA (same basic topology), with higher performance, more features, at $700-800 less. Craig was never into rolling caps before, but I sort of got him into it. I think we rolled over a twenty caps and picked one that we liked. I wanted something akin to the original BA's organic sound, but with better clarity and microdynamics. The amp was briefly shown to the public at the Pasadena mini-meet. We made some minor adjustments since then for production: eliminated that last bit of treble grain and shifted the tonal balance a wee bit warmer and bassier. (I would be lying if Donald's masterpiece, the Stellaris, did not influence our decision).

    The major departure from the BA would be the power supply. I already mentioned higher rails. We went with a custom made EI transformer (sounds better than torroid). Also the power supply circuit was a back-to-basics brute force filtering approach: CLCLC (capacitor and iInductors). The output transformers, the Cinemags have a tertiary winding for feedback (they are like the McIntosh transformers of yore), but we decided against using it for Af. The tertiary winding tracks the secondary winding voltage exactly, and therefore was leveraged for for the SE output. The primary goal of Af was engagement rather than accuracy (Studio).

    The Studio is a totally different beast with different sound. Neutral, even perhaps lean if you expect a "tube" amp. It was intentionally called the Studio for this reason. The Studio and Af actually used the same output transformer; but the Studio uses feedback in the circuit, whereas the Af does not. The Af 's bass and warmth might be somewhere between ZDS and ZD. There is a lot of room for tube rolling to shift the tonal balance one way or another. However, the Af sound is different from ZD. It's hard to describe the differences despite similar tonal balance. The ZD is OTL, but with a good amount of feedback. The Af is transformer coupled.

    Af, Studio, and BA all have the high-frequency (50kHz / 40kHz) filament heater. It's believed that the high frequency heater contributes to the spaciousness of these amps.
     
  12. doukhobar

    doukhobar New

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    Thanks Marvey.

    Thanks for clearing up that typo on the website. My setups are all high efficiency speakers and low wattage amps. I do about 95% of my listening through speakers, and a little bit on headphones late at night. Can I ask if you or anyone you know has tried this amp with Omega speakers? These speakers are about 95db efficiency - I have the 3XRS and Super Alnico XRS on hand that I run currently using a Dennis Had KT88 amp. I also sometimes use the Decware Taboo III with the Omega 3XRS and it sounds great. The Taboo also does just 1W at 8ohm, and it still gets the 3XRS quite loud and very crystal clear with non-complex music. The Taboo outputs 1.6W at 32ohm, so it sounds like your amp is definitely more powerful at 32 ohm and perhaps overall. I am really curious how the Af would pair with these speakers. I realize that is an incredibly specific question.

    Anyhow, it seems like the sound staging which I've heard so much about regarding the BA is maintained in the Af. I have not heard the ZD or ZDS to get a feel there - I've actually not had the chance to hear any of your gear! Though it has been recommended. That's an interesting technique using the tertiary winding off your transformers. I really wish I could hear one. I do remeber reading that the BA had two pre-amp outputs as well - what an amazing and flexible took. But I guess it did not have speaker taps, so the Af wins in my book for that alone. Is it true the amp was voiced with speakers in mind first? Can you remind me which speakers were used? I realize this thread goes on a bit, but I've read all of it at some point.

    Also, thanks for the detailed reply overall. I think these are really important questions folks will want to know who are researching this amp!
     
    Last edited: Sep 6, 2017
  13. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Should be fine on the Omegas. I've tried it out on the 92-93db Fostex En168 Sigma BLHs, Moth Cicadas (93-94db) without an issue, even from a phonostage that would a bit more gain from the MC (just turn the volume knob to 2-3 o'clock position). Have also tried with Lowther DX3s.

    As far as how they would compare, I can't really say because of my friendship with Craig, I won't comment on competing amps (other than to say that I might really like them). Ultimately just different sound and power levels. I do feel that if folks have 94-95db efficient speakers, they should at least try a 2A3 or 45 SET at least once in their lifetime.
     
  14. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Just a quick word on the Speakon connectors, be wary of Chinese knock off "compatible" connectors (right). They won't work in the authentic Neutrik jacks. We learned the hard way by buying cheap cable from eBay.

    IMG_20170829_150008.jpg IMG_20170829_145958.jpg

    Part # is NL2FX. Mouser: 568-NL2FX.
     
    Last edited: Sep 6, 2017
  15. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    To reiterate on tubes:
    Rectifier: 5AR4 (5V4 and 5R4). NO OTHER TUBES!
    Driver: 6N3P (2C51, 5670, 6854, 396A)*
    Power: 2A3

    *There are a ton of driver tubes to choose from already, some quite different sounding from each other. Please don't do weird tube adapter stuff and run tubes the circuit does not expect.

    Shipping status
    The first five have been shipped out. They are in-transit. Build rate is two+ per week. We expect all amps in the first run of 25 to be delivered by sometime in November.

    Shuguang 2A3 black base quality concerns
    I mentioned the Shuguang 2A3 black base in a prior post. I now rescind this recommendation. Solder and crap all over the pins make fit difficult and are an accident waiting to happen.

    2A3 fitment - be careful!
    Finally, for those not familiar with the 2A3. There are four pins. Two of the pins are slightly smaller than two others. The tube only goes in one way, but with sufficient force, it is possible to press in the 2A3s incorrectly, causing something very bad to happen. This is a very easy mistake to make.
     
    Last edited: Sep 12, 2017
  16. Luckbad

    Luckbad Traded in a unicorn for a Corolla

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    @Marvey Driver tube typo. 398a should be 397a. Edit: 397a should be 396a. Effing phone typing. I'm old.

    Other identical tube: 6CC42. You can probably use 6N26P as well (let me know if you want to try one. I have several for my MHDT DACs).

    I didn't want an Aficionado at all until getting the Super 7.
     
    Last edited: Sep 10, 2017
  17. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    LOL. Should be 396a.
     
  18. HitmanFluffy

    HitmanFluffy Hoping to see real genitals someday!

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    Do people really jam in the 2A3 pins the wrong way? Even the first time I got to doing it it struck me as idiot-proof.
     
  19. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    giphy.gif

    LOL. More seriously, I think if someone where unfamiliar with tubes, it could be pretty easy to do. Some tube sockets are easier to do this with. I mean, a only a bit more force would be necessary.

    The more scary thing is people trying out the wrong tubes, simply because the pins fit in the sockets.
     
  20. gurubhai

    gurubhai Friend

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    @Marvey : You sure about 5y3? That's only 125mA max. That would be cutting it too close I would think.
    Also, no reason why the 5V4 / gz32 shouldn't be compatible.
     

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