Massdrop x Eddie Current ZDT Jr. (Official Thread)

Discussion in 'Headphone Amplifiers and Combo (DAC/Amp) Units' started by Hands, Nov 15, 2017.

  1. Lyander

    Lyander Official SBAF Equitable Empathizer

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    "Good things come to those who wait" DAMN. I know chances are slim, but any hope for there being another drop when certain people have more disposable income at hand? =_=

    @Hands, how do these pair with low-z cans? I can see there's a dedicated output for that, but wondering if performance might be nerfed compared to hi-z one.
     
  2. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Tube rolling guidance will be provided in a little bit. Testing some right now. Don't want to say anything unless I am absolutely sure.
     
  3. Riotvan

    Riotvan Snoofer in the Woofer

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    That's a good sign about the pot. I'm a stickler when it comes to pots due to my low volume listening.

    I'm not much of a tube roller as long as i can get the tube replacements easily enough i'm happy.

    Thanks for the impressions guys!
     
  4. msommers

    msommers High on Epipens

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    Would it be fair to say that this amp would be a strong indicator for the EC house sound if I was thinking about a ZDS for the future?
     
  5. AppleheadMay

    AppleheadMay Friend

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    The rate at which the number of requests that drop goes up is insane!
     
  6. Elnrik

    Elnrik Super Friendly

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    I heard this at the Klipsch booth at RMAF. I think I posted a pic in the RMAF thread showing it. It did not sound pleasant with the Klipsch headphone (to my ears). My first impression was that the tone was F'd up. I didn't spend much time on it because of that, as I was there to hear the HP3. Anyway - disclaimer: I had never heard the Klipsch headphone or the ZDT Jr before. I'm also not sure how the Klipsch boys had it set up, what DAC they were using, or what source, so take all of that with a grain of salt.

    Not sure why I'm even posting this. I don't want to badmouth Massdrop or EC or anything. Just my honest experience with it.
     
  7. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    As much as it could be for $399. @Hands did a good run through and impressions of the NBM amp - BEFORE it became a co-branded Massdrop EC product. Mids and highs are first rate. You can make an argument that the bass is better than most super high Z (40+ ohm output impedance) OTL amps. Bottom line is that Craig liked the amp enough that we considered selling these under the EC name for the heck of it.

    There are substitute vintage American tubes for those Russian tubes (these specific Russian tubes seem to be copies / equivalents of Western NATO bloc tubes). No one has explored this yet, so I am sure that improvements can be gained.
     
  8. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Was this the amp or the HP-3? Did you try the amp with more normal, less colored sounding headphones like the HD600 or HD650?
     
  9. Cspirou

    Cspirou They call me Sparky

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    The specs don’t list power output, anyone know what it is?
     
  10. Dotard

    Dotard Acquaintance

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    On that note, does anyone have experience with Massdrop support and tube amplifiers in general? My own experience with esoteric tube amps from far away places has been a bit spotty. I'm curious as to the Massdrop strategy when it comes to support here (wait times, replacements, etc.).
     
  11. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    With this being warmish and recommended for HD650, would a Schiit multibit dac take it too far? I actually don't mind a little syrup, but want to be able to get layers and detail.
     
  12. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Last edited: Nov 15, 2017
  13. ufospls2

    ufospls2 Friend

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    Any thoughts on this paired with the Utopia? Tempted to give one a shot just to try it with it. Also no shipping information that I could find, which is a bit worrying. Is it going to be a receive the amp in July or August sort of thing?
     
  14. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Modded HD650 or stock? I can try this at home tonight.
     
  15. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Would definitely work with Utopia or HD800.
     
  16. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    Dynamatted, spider removed, single foam disk, no-quarter modded.
     
  17. ButtUglyJeff

    ButtUglyJeff Stunningly beautiful IRL

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    Too bloomy for the Atticus?

    edit - as of now there are 977 people interested in this drop. I know not everyone is going to pull the trigger, but this thing is going super fast
     
    Last edited: Nov 15, 2017
  18. Cspirou

    Cspirou They call me Sparky

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  19. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    Seems to work well enough. I actually just tried my MA900 and E-MU Purpleheart through both the low and high outputs. Surprisingly there was only the faintest hiss coming through the headphones with the volume turned all the way up. Pretty darn quiet! And performance is good too on both headphones. The high output sounds a bit more lively, but it's also more likely to interact with impedance curves. I would not be concerned running headphones through the low output from a performance perspective.

    I am curious if the ECC89 and 6FC7 tubes are actually direct equivalents to the 6N24P (or close enough for this amp), as well as if the 6AK5W or 5654 tubes are equivalents for the 6Zh1P-EV, or whatever it is that's in the other stage up front.

    Even better, though, is if there are other tubes not marked as equivalents that will work safely too...(Or, you know, worse for nervosa.)

    Well, I can't say it's perfect at low levels. It depends on how low we're talking. All I know is it seems much better and comparable to other decent amps on my ZDT Jr, whereas the loaner NBM was pretty bad. Sometimes you also just get bad luck with the pot lottery on any amp, or it's possible I hit the jackpot with the pot in the ZDT Jr.

    It's not that warm. I would classify it more on the neutral spectrum. I run my ZDT Jr. with my Metrum Amethyst, which is kinda dark like the Modi Multibit in some ways. I find it to work just fine.

    Warmth does not necessarily mean a lack of space, layers, air, and detail. Just keep that in mind. The best tube amps will add that tube magic, possibly even including some warmth, but have amazing spacial and detail characteristics.

    Relative to what? What are you used to, and what do you find too bloomy for the Atticus? I don't find this to be a particularly bloomy amp, but if you're coming from the Jot or something, you might feel otherwise.
     
  20. steve

    steve New

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    It's called "ZDT Jr."...

    So anyone would like to compare the jr and the original ZDT?
     

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