Oh Sh#7! Eddie Current Studio B

Discussion in 'Headphone Amplifiers and Combo (DAC/Amp) Units' started by purr1n, Aug 15, 2020.

  1. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Amp and Sound Ovation. Unless you go custom with Craig such as order it with a 2A3.

    My guess is about a dozen.
     
  2. CharlesM

    CharlesM New

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    The amp arrived safe. I just plugged it with a pair of JJ tubes.
    I'll get my Utopia back in a few days and I wait for it before making a first feedback, for now the Stellia is on.

    [​IMG]
     
  3. WoodyLuvr

    WoodyLuvr Friend

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    Congrats!

    Actually, very well put; thank you for sharing your thoughts and most especially your tube selection.
    "...somewhat over the top tubes..." you're telling me sir! :bow:

    How are you liking those brutally accurate Takatsuki 300Bs? I wonder how many on board here realize how much those tubes cost you! Did you experience mild heart palpitations when you were ordering them? I feel my heart skipping, just thinking about it! :p I have been extremely fortunate enough to have heard a few pairs over the years (and in superbly engineered amps) and was quite surprised by their bass detail and control. They are just as nice sounding as the Western Electric 300Bs perhaps even better with classic and progressive rock.

    I concur. A nicely designed amp doesn't necessarily need expensive output tubes to sound wonderful. The type and quality of output transformer used, coupled with a thoughtfully designed output circuit (with excellent values) and carefully selected driver tubes, will many times have a much greater impact than the output "power" tubes themselves ever will. But again, it all really depends on the design, target values, and build quality of the amp and the special consideration(s) one makes to achieve that specific (desired) sound signature.

    Well, enjoy your new magic maker good man! Cheers.
     
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    Last edited: Aug 23, 2021
  4. WoodyLuvr

    WoodyLuvr Friend

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    Nice to see that I am not the only lunatic who believes he hears a difference between globes and coke bottles!

    I think it was an older (early 30s) pair of Majestic G-45 globe tubes that first perked my ears but it wasn't until later when I was rolling a pair of museum rare (circa 1929-1930) Perryman Electric Co. PA245 globe tubes on a friend's DIY SET HeadAMP in Osaka that I could confirm that I was indeed hearing something different from the later ST (shoulder shape aka coke bottle) Type 45 models that were on hand.

    The globe shape to me sounds slightly more open, a tad more romantic, while the later ST (bottle) shape offers more oomph and punch. Don't quite know which one I prefer but I think I lean towards globes unfortunately healthy ones can be quite expensive :(

    Here is a close-up pic of the amazing woven-mesh plate on a 1929 Perryman PA245

    [​IMG]
     
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  5. CharlesM

    CharlesM New

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    Ok so I've spent around 15h on the Studio B this week. I still haven't received the Utopia but I did spend time with the Stellia and the Abyss Diana v2 that I had at home until recently.

    TL;DR : Stellia is a perfect match for the Studio B, Diana v2 is not.

    Well a complete different experience between the two headphones.
    Now I knew that the Diana was not an easy headphone to drive, and my best experiences were with the Paltauf HPA100 that outputs 20w under 32ohms and with a cheap 100usd Chinese transistor amp (BRZHifi) on which I have 0 info but that is very powerful.

    [​IMG]

    (From top to bottom: QLS QA390, BRZHifi amp and the Paltauf)

    Anyway the Eddie Current Studio B is not designed for the Diana v2. I knew it already from the specs and first feedbacks here but you know , it's always better to try at home when you can.

    It was a complete different story with the Stellia. I have had the Stellia for a couple of months now and I used it on different amps. The ones mentioned above, but also directly on the QA390. At the end of the day, the better experience for me was using my DAP (Sony WM1A) with a portable amp (Romi BX2+).
    This was the only setup that could provide the right amount of power (so not too much) while keeping the treble within an acceptable range - as I find the Stellia to be a little bright.
    The Studio is a different story, a better one, by far. The Stellia is handled perfectly, giving a stronger sense of oumph in the low region while making the meds sound just the right amount of warmth and with a great sensation of space.

    Out of the analysis that I tried to describe here, the proof for me was that I spent a lot of time with the Stellia on, without noticing the time go by. This means for me that I'm completely satisfied with a setup. Otherwise I usually stop the listening sessions when I'm bored or tired by this or that in the sound. This did not happen here.

    Can't wait to see if the Utopia will prove a great match as well. I have my idea but let's wait for it.
     
  6. Josh Schor

    Josh Schor Friend

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    just got my studio b a few hours ago. have the tubes craig sent plus genelex 300b's. totally cold it wowed me with the space in placement of instruments and between them. I have using a Lyr 3 and this is another galaxy. Will add details on what I am hearing as it warms and breaks in. Using fostex rp50 moddied by Marv and focal elex . waiting for my jar hd600 to be completed and returned.
     
  7. Josh Schor

    Josh Schor Friend

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    have about 70 hours on my studio b. wow it continues to open up, very balanced sound , slightly warm (which I like). I am a tone and attack freak. This amp presents instruments with correct tonality to my ears, piano, guitar, horns and vocals. Leading edge of the music is fast and starts and stops quickly. Listening with focal Elex and Bifrost 2, great combo. This amp has wonderful space around the instruments and the field of music being listened to, its a joy. Using Genelex 300b's. Going to have a set of Utopias soon to listen to and see if that's the way to go.
     
  8. batriq

    batriq Probably has made you smarter

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    Great summary. I think there’s a synergy between the DAC and the tubes used. For example I wouldn’t use BF2 with WE’s (tried it and it’s too lush)
     
  9. jexby

    jexby Posole Prince

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    good point. with BF2 and Aficionado i felt the Bendix 2c51 was slightly preferable over WE. might be the same with Studio B?
     
  10. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    I didn't realize it until recently. The 45 globes don't have the top mica plate on the ST "coke" bottles, which help keep everything straight. Some of them (the inner pair) have small plates for the electrodes. Other (the outer pair) have no support!

    5F4A0033 (Large).JPG

    Downside to the globes is that they are hard to find in good condition. A few which I've collected have the plate bent down because of the lack of mica plate and ST shaped glass to keep it up straight. One globe 45 I purchased had a short and smoked one of the cathode caps. Love seeing streaming / smoking caps. Because of this, i generally don't recommend buying the globe tubes unless you really know what you are doing or can self-repair your own amp.
     
  11. batriq

    batriq Probably has made you smarter

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    oh, I haven't tried the WE as a driver. I was referring to the 300B's
     
  12. batriq

    batriq Probably has made you smarter

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    Yeah, for this reason I am careful to store the pair of globes I have in an upright position.
     
  13. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Bendix 2c51 is more neutral, clearer, less colored, and the best IMO. WE is warmer and only better if you need the warmth. Both are getting very hard to find. The rest seem to be a good distance from the Bendix and WE. For a while, the Bendix was unobtanium. I've seen them come back, probably people random people stumbled into estate sales and didn't know what they were.
     
  14. Josh Schor

    Josh Schor Friend

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    Having slight power supply hum from the transformers? anyone else having this? is it a problem?
     
  15. atomicbob

    atomicbob dScope Yoda

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    What is your mains voltage?
    Studio B power supply transformer is quiet at 115 Vac.
    At 120 Vac mine emit a slight mechanical hum with magnitude of 42 dBC at 50 cm from the supply at 120 and 360 Hz.
    Verified with a Staco Variac.
    01 20210403 SSL kitchen Studio B 50cm edit.png

    It is not a problem other than the slight mechanical hum when the ambient sound level is very quiet.
     
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  16. Garns

    Garns Friend

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    My Aficionado power transformer hums pretty noticeably. Not DC offset - I tried blockers which made no difference - just seems to be the way it is.
     
  17. CEE TEE

    CEE TEE MOT: NITSCH

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    Awesome investigation above by @atomicbob . I recently saw 127-129V at my office which surprised me. Back down to normal now.

    I am trying to remember if tightening down the transformer helped when I had the Super 7. I think it did. May want to check, I recall the adjustable metal band holding the transformer got loose during shipping. Without going back 7 years in email and finding history for a different amp...does anyone know if this might help on the Aficionado or Studio B?
     
  18. totlsota

    totlsota New

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    My Studio B is like the other headphone amps I’ve had - it hums without voltage regulation. With voltage regulation it is more quiet. I use a PowerInspired regenerator. I’ve had it from the past and spent a lot of time comparing with and without it with the studio b over the last month. I have sometimes quite variable voltage and it absolutely helps.
     
  19. Beefy

    Beefy Friend

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    At night, my wall voltage rises as high as 130V, which makes my DIY DAC mechanically buzz. Now this is two very high quality 30VA transformers - custom fully encapsulated and shielded units from SumR.

    Had me scratching my head for a long while.
     
  20. Mystic

    Mystic Mystique's Spiritual Advisor

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    I’ve got that too.

    Thank you for this. My outlet runs between 118 and 120vac. Plus or minus 2 throughout the day. Guess that’s what the hum is about, did some tests and it’s not DC offset or the tube.

    I can only hear it when I put my ear right up next to the power supply in a silent room. Comforting to know that it’s normal and won’t hurt the amp.
     

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