Feliks-Audio Elise Tube Amp Review (NOT)

Good to see the Elise gets positive feedback. I loved mine except for one issue, which leads me to the question: Did you notice any hum between songs?

 

Don't forget about the HD800 and the Sonett 1 either!

 

I noticed a slight hum with the default Svetlana power tubes. None with the Mullards.

 

Shame Donald gave up on that one...

 

Couldn't agree more. It's such a sweet little amp, very cool running and cheap on tubes. Perfect tube amp if you want one you can just leave on day after day and not worry about it.

 

Thanks - interesting to see the ZOTL in contrast to the Elise. According to my ears the ZOTL is absolutely quiet. My Elise on the other hand suffered from a constant (european) 50Hz hum which did not change with the volume setting. Cranking up the volume introduced another (tube dependent) buzz but that background hum (even at zero volume) was always there, no matter what I tried - and I tried a lot. I will give the Elise another try - hopefully that sample is fine.

 

HD800

 

Hmm, not sure if my sample is representative. It went back to Feliks Audio for repair and they said it was OK and nobody of their team could hear the hum. There is nobody else in the head-fi group that confirmed that constant background hum. On the other hand I have a second person who also heard the hum. I tried various grounding methods, used DC offset filter, reduced the mains voltage, changed the power meter in the house, brought the amp to other buildings... no change.

I will know more in a few weeks when the new Elise arrives.

 

As the one who originally approached Feliks-Audio with the suggestion for a headphone amp based on the 6SN7 driver(s) and 6AS7G/6080 powers, please allow me to make just a few comments that may perhaps be of interest to folks here.

But first, may I say I am really glad you guys have already found this amp to be truly good value for money, and punching well above its weight. The FA team have certainly excelled themselves with this unit (as they themselves have admitted to!).

As has been mentioned, the stock configuration does indeed deliver excellent performance, but - despite the somewhat runaway nature of this aspect - tube rolling has certainly taken said performance to new levels...which is what usually happens with most tube amps, of course. My own trials have been undertaken with the greatest of care, and have included the C3g, ECC31, FDD20 (with external 12V heater supply) and lastly the EL3N drivers. I have been fortunate in that I have been able to adapt all these tubes myself, using top quality wire, rather than using third party adapters. Each new driver has been trialled over at least 200 hours, with progressive reports as to changes during the stages of burn-in, and with power tubes fixed at GEC CV2523s/Osram A1834s (brown curved-bottom base). The source is an Oppo BDP 103's media player feeding an Audiolab 8200CD's Sabre-clad DAC (but more recently a custom-built tube DAC, again Sabre 9018 based)....often using 24bit/96+kHz hi-res files from HDTracks. My headphones are Beyer T1s (Gen1). (Plus mains conditioner; upgraded power leads; silver interconnects, etc. etc.).

All these drivers brought different elements to the picture, which of course only really means providing for different preferences in sound production. The fact that this amp is able to handle such a variety without any need for internal modification (apart from the external 12V PS for the FDD20) is testament to its outstanding flexibility and versatility - after 18 months and MANY hundreds of hours of such 'treatment', my own amp (and others') shows no signs whatsoever of objection...and with no problems at all concerning hum or such like.

Obviously, everyone has their own preference as to sound signature, so there are bound to be disagreements as to what sounds "best"...or "good", even. The widest range of opinion has definitely been regarding the EL3N driver. This particular tube has shown itself to be a more-than-usually difficult one to pigeon-hole. Much more so than is the norm, a great deal seems to depend on its synergy with the rest of one's system, and not just personal preference. Given a reasonable dose of luck (and/or patience & experimentation) in this regard, the EL3N can indeed turn in an excellent performance...so long as a VERY extended burn-in time is given. I personally found (as did others) that major changes continued to take place well over the 200 hrs mark. It most certainly continues to scale along with other elements in the system....(I'm sure I hardly need to remind folks that it is in fact all these other parts of the system that will determine the final outcome from ANY tube, in ANY amp). But again, no single tube "fits all", of course.

In conclusion...and thanks for bearing with me thus far! - Elise is an amp that has proved itself to be not just wonderful value-for-money at stock configuration, but can also be elevated to a level that can compete with amps costing FAR more, and provide the kind of versatility that will appeal to those with vastly different preferences/persuasions...

 

I don't want to offend, but @hypnos1 just summed up what I don't like about the Head-fi thread. For me, it's enough that a $650 amp sounds good and would even be a good value at $1000. Endless tube rolling with promises of elevating it to FAR more or WOW has proven to be an expensive wild goose chase.

If you spend the money on all those tubes without hearing the miracle, you'll be told that you should burn in the tubes longer, have better cables, or better ear training. Before long, it's easy to spend enough to have bought a DNA Stratus or Zana Deux in the first place.

 

Sorry indeed this is your take on matters, Kon Peki...tube "rolling" is most certainly not confined to the thread you refer to - nor just to this amp. And there are a good many such "rollers" who would say that the results have proven NOT to be "an expensive wild goose chase". Besides, most are sensible enough to let others do most of the leg work (which can certainly soon become rather costly) and then use this as a guide for narrowing down the search for their own particular preferred sound signature.

Hopefully, others here will have a less biased view and attitude towards this whole subject.

 

A simple test for ground loop hum (with US sockets / adapters) as the culprit would be to quickly try this...