EC Aficionado (was: The Studio Jr.)

Put me on the Jr. waiting list if it can do speakers too. Heck, even a speakers only power amp.

 

Is this going to be a more permanent offering, unlike the Studio? I'd like some help understanding the sound differences between this and the ZDS. I get that its not going to be comparable for a while, just putting it out in the ether in hopes of a someday response...

 

It looks like there's been some minor updates for the Studio Jr. on the eddie current site.

Also the BW is back in production?

 

I recall @Marvey saying something about being able to fix some boards that failed QC and eke out a few more BW. I stand to be corrected though.

 

I haven't found any info on the expected power output for the speaker taps, is that known?

 

At this point, the whole design of the amp is still unknown - I think Craig is sneaking it in his to do list. EC has a general goal, of a slightly more lush amp than studio. Speaker taps have been requested by a few here. Crossing fingers for 3-6 watts, but who knows.

 

Its a single pair of 2A3s, you cap out at 3 watts.

 

Triode Labs has claimed 3.5W from a 2a3 SET, but I bet the plates glow if you push it that hard. Well, this is just one more reason to get some really efficient speakers.

 

Your distortion levels at that point would not be friendly either.

 

I am interested in the Studio Jr. as well. Any reason for choosing 2A3 instead of 300B, considering that the BA is now discontinued? Any plan for another 300B amp?

 

So let me get this straight,

• An update to the EC Balancing ACT
• That would mean uber spacious and natural
• Shooting for under 3K?

This could be the answer to what I was looking for.

The form is available online to fill out but it says you must put a 50% deposit. Guess we can't fill it out yet.

 

I recall some reports of issues where the Studio would suffer some distortion when fed (too hot?) SE input from Yggdrasil (and Gungnir Multibit?). Is that understood and not going to be an issue for Studio Jr.? Or should we plan on picking up Jensen step-down transformers from XLR to RCA, or...?

Would there be any value in a switch to bypass the pot, etc. for when used with a pre-amp? (I'm thinking Freya would be very feature-rich for about 2x the price of input transformers.)

Is there collected wisdom on how high speaker sensitivity needs to be for comfortable near-field listening from ~3W? Playing around with rough calculations seems to indicate that for a 1-1.5m distance, hitting 85dB with 5dB of headroom is ok for sensitivities 85 and up (which, duh, given the dB@1m 1W units of speaker sensitivities).

A few people have reported that Utopias pair better with the ZDS than the Studio. Is that due to tuning, or interaction between the amp topology and the Utopia's varying impedance versus frequency? Maybe this is completely unanswerable/unknowable, but I'm wondering if we should expect Utopia to pair better with ZDS than Studio Jr just like Studio, or if the intended warmer tuning would swing things the other way. (I'm willing to trade some soundstage for clarity, speed, dynamics and slam.)

 

^^^ All good questions that most likely can't be answered yet. I think Craig need a rock solid prototype before all our answers can come to fruition...

 

From my experience you'd want a decent amount more efficiency with single 2A3s, say close to 100dB/W.

 

If this will work with the HE-6 it will be a serious contender for my endgame amp. Other options I'm considering are DNA Stratus and Wolf Ear Audio Makoyi. Not sure of any other suitable tube amps that will due HE-6 justice. I suppose Freya/Saga into power amp is an option but I would really like an all tube option.

 

If you want a tube amp for the he6 why not the ear yoshino speaker amps?

And about Utopia with the Studio, I think this is an incredible pairing. Really shows what the Utopia is capable of technically.

 

Those EAR amps are out of budget for me. Looking to spend ~$3,000. Plus, that's a lot of tubes! Honestly though I am open to suggestions as I don't have much experience with tube amps. Also, I know you have to use resistors or the Hifiman speaker adapter box to not hurt the tube amp.