EC Aficionado (was: The Studio Jr.)

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

  1. Cradon

    Cradon Acquaintance

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    Actually now that I think of it, bass softness and a slight lack of sparkle and air are the two reasons I sold my Utopia.
     
  2. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Just curious, have some of you guys tried rolling rectifier tubes? Use recommended 5AR4, but try different brands / makes.

    The softness sounds like too much voltage drop.
     
  3. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Not doubting at all what you are hearing, but you have tried other tubes? The reason being is that I am using the AF as a direct Freya replacement in my Oris / Lowther and big woofer setup. My old setup was a Freya -> bi-amps, powering the wide banders and woofers separately. I swapped in the AF where the AF would directly power the horns, but act as a preamp to the existing solid-state woofer amp. I didn't feel there was any difference in perceived bass FR response, otherwise I would have adjusted the EQ on the bass processor. The Freya bass was just a bit tighter, but Freya was also bloomier and looser in mids.

    If I have time, I'll try to get an FR measurement from the AF. I highly doubt it's rolled off below 40-50Hz.
     
  4. BillOhio

    BillOhio Friend

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    Are we saying 'soft' as in lacking slam or as in a generally woolly sound? I'm losing myself to dance right now and don't hear mine as woolly or lacking slam. The amp I've spent the most time with was the Mjo2. I think the 5AR4 I have in is a Mullard. Also, Melvillian did switch the caps out to the Duelands on this one.

    Originally I did find the amp to be bass-light. Since then I've gone from Gungnir Multibit to Yggdrasil A2 and from EH2A3's to JJs. The bass seems good to me. If 'One More Time' had much more bass I think it'd give me a headache. I can't speak to roll off and I don't have as much frame of reference as some others in here.
     
  5. m17xr2b

    m17xr2b Friend

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    I don't have the Af but with 2A3 tubes on the Stratus I don't have growling low bass regardless of tube combos and I've tried almost all of them from NOS to new production. The Teton(OTL) on the other hand does have it with various 6080 tubes so maybe it's just a matter of managing expectation of what you can get from a 2A3?
     
  6. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    The Teton is also 120 ohms output impedance which adds quite a bit of bass to almost dynamic headphone.
     
  7. jexby

    jexby Posole Prince

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    FWIW: have a Mullard 5AR4 (f31 code) in (stock) Af since Day 1, can't truly compare to stock tube but in general have never heard wooly bass when Utopia or Clear were connected.
    with Marconi 2A3 felt the Af slam (for Utopia or Clear) was only exceeded (a bit) by connecting to SS amp or Saga+Vidar pairing.
    that being said, slam on Utopia is a relative term as we all know it's bass limitations.

    current configuration is using Yggdrasil A2 XLR to (stock) Af then SE line outputs into Vidar to LFF HE-6, frankly it's pretty great.
    maybe 3.82% less bass slam and 3.66% less bass tightness than Saga+Vidar with LFF HE-6, and when borrowing Code-X (LFF HE-5).

    one day a dynamic can will be invented which I love and can jack into the Af directly again.
    until then, the AF+Vidar for LFF HE-6 delivers in spades. call me nuts.
     
  8. m17xr2b

    m17xr2b Friend

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    I've tested with 120 on the stratus as well so it's apples to apples on impedance at least.
     
  9. Garns

    Garns Friend

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    Thanks! If this is just tube related I will be very happy. It is certainly true that changing tubes makes a large difference. I will keep trying different combos, and keep putting hours on them to see if they change for the better.
     
  10. msommers

    msommers High on Epipens

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    @k4rstar 's summary of the AF is definitely surprising but brutally honest which is moreso appreciated, especially at this pricepoint. This is yet another data point of an already known trend -- more money doesn't allows equal more enjoyable or "better."

    As a result, what amp(s) at the TOTL price point have you enjoyed more, or now have your sights on?
     
  11. Magnetostatic_Tubephile

    Magnetostatic_Tubephile Friend

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    My head is not constantly shaking (that would be kind of annoying I can imagine) but especially out of the 4-XLR jack, I wouldnt subjectively call Stratus limited in terms of bass depth or bass impact with PMx2 (rev2) and LCD2C. On the contrary actually, I consider bass depth and heft to be one of the highlights of Stratus. Of course havent heard all the headamps in the world - I am sure it could get even better.

    For the record, 6.3mm jack set on 3-ohm output impedance is not as impactful as 4-XLR to my ears but the deep bass is definitely there too. 6.3mm with 8/115/120 output impedance is more limited in terms of bass depth as the impedance increases with my planars. 2x 3-pin XLR output also somewhat limited there, being a bit more focused on clarity/soundstaging/separation.

    ---------------------------

    I applaud K4Star and Garns for the honesty, we need more of that on SBAF. Remember my not-so-excited impression of Metrum Onyx lately? Even though Ive kept the DAC (it just works great to my specific needs in the end), it still sucks as far as value/performance ratio is concerned (e.g. over Schiit Modi MB with Eitr). If any other gear I encounter would suck in similar or other ways, I will not hesitate a second to report my feelings here. Please do not hesitate to act the same way, guys!
     
    Last edited: May 13, 2018
  12. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    I'm pretty sure Stratus zout isn't that high. It's not an OTL.
     
  13. Ray

    Ray Friend

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    Yep, selectable output impedance, 8ohm low,
    120 ohm high
     
  14. Mystic

    Mystic Mystique's Spiritual Advisor

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    The Stratus goes as low as 3ohm on the -6db gain attenuation setting.
     
  15. Ray

    Ray Friend

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  16. cskippy

    cskippy Creamy warmpoo

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    @purr1n I'm currently using a Blackburn Mullard 5AR4, also have an Amperex 5AR4 and stock Russian rectifier.

    The stock tube had the most punch when I initially compared them and the most "weight" to the sound but that also brought some bloom and a mid forward presentation.

    The Amperex tightens the bass a bit, has the least forward presentation of the three, and adds some treble extension/sparkle

    The Mullard is what I normally use. It sits in the middle of the other two tubes, pretty neutral presentation, very little bloom and good extension.

    I'm not sure if any of these would affect the amps performance as they are all 5AR4?

    I'm also completely happy with the sound in its current configuration. My comment in regards to softness is merely in regards to initial attack, not slam. Slam is there in spades, I preferred AF as a pre over Freya with Vidar>Code X6, but even there, there was a softening of the initial attack. This is evident comparing AF to a very good SS amp.
     
  17. Cspirou

    Cspirou They call me Sparky

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  18. MisterRogers

    MisterRogers Ethernet Nervosa

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    Nuts.
     
  19. jexby

    jexby Posole Prince

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    glad our ears are hearing "the same" in regards to softening the initial attack.
    btw,
    a) is there consensus on what is "a very good SS Amp" (in general)
    vs.
    b) a very good SS Amp regarding LFF HE-6 ?

    at this moment, can't comprehend how one would sell off LFF HE-6 when knowing the goodness with Saga+Vidar or Af+Vidar.

    that being said, am happy for your migration to other sonic pastures.
    :pirate07:
     
  20. cskippy

    cskippy Creamy warmpoo

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    I liked Rag the times I've heard it, and I really like my ECP DSHA-1. Doug makes fantastic underrated amps.

    The best I heard HE-6 was with my Pioneer Spec 2. It was just a pain in the ass to use and developed a problem that kept me from using it. I bought Vidar for the interim.

    HE-6, even with mods has a hardness in the upper mids/treble that just got to me, as inevitably they would be cranked as that's the best way to enjoy them. HE-6 also worsened my tinnitus. I can listen at much lower volume with Utopia and not get fatigue...probably the biggest reason I sold HE-6.
     

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