EC Aficionado (was: The Studio Jr.)

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

  1. Cspirou

    Cspirou They call me Sparky

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    It's kind of a benefit for fullrange drivers. Data sheets for fostex drivers show the higher frequencies are a bit elevated, however that is only on-axis. With no toe-in it ends up being quite flat.
     
    Last edited: May 27, 2018
  2. murphythecat

    murphythecat GRU-powered uniformed trumpkin

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    lol
    you should see my homemade ceiling cloud. Likely the worst cloud ive ever seen but it works. 4 x 6, 12 inch deep, attached with thick chains and hooks. it definitely look like a bdsm apparel
     
  3. Taverius

    Taverius Smells like sausages

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    I've been trying to order EML 2A3 Mesh for a month but jacmusic isn't responding to orders or emails :(
     
  4. BillOhio

    BillOhio Friend

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    I have a Sovtek and a Mullard on hand. Not sure if I can hear a difference between them. If I can hear a difference I'd say I prefer the Mullard as **Maybe** the sound is .003% fuller on the Mullard.
     
  5. TheloniuSnoop

    TheloniuSnoop Friend

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    If you're in the USA, try George at tubesusa.com
     
  6. BillOhio

    BillOhio Friend

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    Pretty Sure he's in Italy.
     
  7. Mark W

    Mark W New

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    Hi, I have just ordered an AF, after saving up for a long while. Can someone please help me on 2A3 tube selection ? I'm leaning towards EML mesh or EML solids. Anyone have experience running these ? Thanks very much !
     
  8. Taverius

    Taverius Smells like sausages

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    I'm not, and I'd rather not have to pay for import from the USA for tubes made next door, that would be silly.

    So far I've only found one place, in Hungary, and they don't ship outside of Hungary.

    As far as I can tell anyway, the store breaks under google translate.
     
  9. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    I prefer the solid plate a bit more - more solid sound, less warm, harder attack. Costs less too. EML is a good choice, and would be my choice for new production 2A3. Again, preferences and synergies, could be different for everyone.
     
  10. Mark W

    Mark W New

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    Thank you...I really appreciate your input....cheers !
     
  11. Maxx134

    Maxx134 Dunning–Kruger effect poster boy

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    EML Increased weight is what I would prefer..

    I only heard one solid plate (Sylvani) and it was a bit lean.
     
    Last edited: May 29, 2018
  12. Maxx134

    Maxx134 Dunning–Kruger effect poster boy

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    I always found carpeting to suck the life out of a speaker in a large room or living room.

    I would agree near-field listening as monitors with speakers toed-in a bit wouldn't be any issue...

    Agreed, Resolution is a big variable for speakers.
    Clarity at low volumes is difficult, and I can't believe carpeting being any help...

    Anyways guys,
    my post was partially poking fun, I wasn't intending for it to be harsh, so my bad.
     
    Last edited: May 29, 2018
  13. raif

    raif Man made lobster/plankton

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    Sneaking a small update in during work hours, but I plan to write a more involved writeup when there is less life stress.

    EC really knocked it out of the park with this amp. I will admit that I am huge fan of tube amps for aesthetics alone, but the sound was always something I found tough to really qualify. It felt that they tended to chase one end of the spectrum or the other, i.e. as "accurate as SS" or "tube-gooey, amirite guyz?"

    The lyr 3 really opened my eyes to what a good tube implementation could bring to the sound. Coming straight out of the DAC1421, the Elex sounded really accurate. But, something was missing. The Lyr 3 brought the top end to life. It added just that little bit of depth to make the music feel truly engaging. I could probably have been happy with that had I not already invested in the Aficionado.

    But thank god I did... The AF adds that same sense of life and depth to rest of the spectrum. The bass is commanding and engaging, the mids are lifelike and have true presence, and the high end has all the same magic and air the lyr 3 brought, with a little less of what in retrospect was maybe a bit of sizzle.

    So, I am obviously still deep in the new toy phase and I will admit that seeing this beast consuming my workspace helps reinforce the excitement. That being said, after the nearly 20 years I have been in the head-fi hobby, I really feel like I am working with a truly end-game system.

    Chain:
    Soekris Dac1421-> EC AF -> Focal Elex

    AF Configuration:
    Tertiary Winding Mod
    .22 uf Jupiter Caps
    RCA 2a3
    WE 396a
    Shuguang 5ar4

    EDIT: I am terrible at internetz
     
    Last edited: May 29, 2018
  14. kirayamato

    kirayamato Friend

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    Shugang 5ar4 are the default ones ?
     
  15. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Just a tidbit. Craig and I do have difference preferences (he tends to change his mind more often than I do). For instance, he never liked the Jupiter caps (well, let's say he changed his mind on me sometime later because he likes cheap). In this case, he grudgingly admitted that the 0.22uF Jupiter caps were appropriate for this configuration.
     
  16. raif

    raif Man made lobster/plankton

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    yup
     
  17. kirayamato

    kirayamato Friend

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    How do you do the tertiary winding mod or only through craig?
     
  18. Maxx134

    Maxx134 Dunning–Kruger effect poster boy

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    Has anyone seen the capacitor map showing the Jupiter/duelund/Vcap/Jensen ..??
    Its a bit old now but shows just how balanced the Jupiter caps are..
     
  19. BillOhio

    BillOhio Friend

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    I bought my Af used and the seller let me audition the Amp with the stock caps and also the Duelands. I felt there was a prominent improvement in stage, clarity, and general awesomeness in going from stock to Dueland. I later had the chance to hear a Jupiter vs Dueland Af and quite frankly couldn't have told the difference. Going on mine and @insidious meme and @JK47 's experience I'd say that even if that chart is true, it's true to an extremely subtle level.

    If it were me, again, go with the Jupiters and put the price difference towards tubes. I Love my rig as it stands with JJ 2A3's but I'm pretty sure it's a matter of time before I've got a pair of more expensive EMLs on order.
     
  20. Garns

    Garns Friend

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    Now I have corrected my self-gimping of my Aficionado here are some actual impressions. I have pretty much been using it exclusively as a preamp to speakers because... I really like it as a pre.

    It's feeding my monitors: Klein + Hummel O300D, sealed box 3-way with 8" woofers, 280wpc Class AB. Previously I drove these from Yggdrasil 1 via Freya passive. Their input impedance is 10k plus the inline resistance from Freya so... it's a stretch. Mainly, the treble is a bit scratchy and it's ever so slightly limp, but I put up with this because Freya tube mode is a wash - it drops low level detail, is a bit slow, smears the imaging and actually makes the treble less smooth (and I tried a whole bunch of tubes).

    Okay, so compared to Freya passive, what does AF (stock) sound like? Well:
    • Treble is just as present but clearly smoother.
    • More cohesive macrodynamically, at the cost of a very slight congestion in more complex passages. It's more a feeling than an actual congestion. The way I think of it, there's a spectrum which runs from limp with every part clearly delineated, to highly dynamic/aggressive but smeared. The AF is maybe 40% of the way along that spectrum, Freya passive is 20%. My ideal would be like 30-35%.
    • No audible loss of fine detail (though my room may be the limiting factor here). This was my biggest problem with Freya tube and the performance here is very impressive.
    • I feel like low-level detail is being brought up a bit. I think of this as the part of tubey character that isn't to do with warm or gooey tuning. It's done in a very natural way, in particular without compressing dynamics. Depending on taste you could like this or dislike it. In this setup (as a pre into SS Class AB) I'm neutral towards it.
    • Leading edges of attacks are softened slightly. However it is still fast. Delicate impulses and high-frequency transients are reproduced very well.
    • I don't hear the bass as rounded or slow in any way. It seems as fast as the rest of the spectrum.
    • Frequency response only seems to vary from flat insofar as the tubes I put into it do so. I would not call it warm.
    • Imaging is still laser sharp. Probably it is having some effect on the soundstage but the way my room is set up, good luck figuring out what it is.
    Some of these points are just down to the fact that the AF fixes the slight impedance issues I have. But the thing is that it does a really good job of getting out of the way; such slight flavour as it does impose is unobtrusive and agreeable. I have no qualms about continuing to use it as a pre. I am pretty purist about this chain so that counts as a big thumbs up.

    Wall of text about tubes: for power tubes I am sticking with RCA black wavy plate for the time being. For drivers I have been trying WE396a, LM Ericsson gold pin, and CBS JHY. Either all my 396a's are duff (which I suspect might be the case) or I just don't like them in this configuration: too much midbass and top end roll. The CBS JHY and the LM Ericsson are both faster and more detailed and neutral FR wise, in particular having more energy up top. The LM Ericsson is quite lean in the bass and loses some bottom octave, and seems to have something about it (maybe hardness in the upper mids) which is a bit fatiguing after a while. The CBS is maybe 7% less technically accomplished but I think is better balanced, with good extension at both ends, slightly lean in the midbass (my preference) and non-rolled, non-fatiguing treble. I feel like there may be better driver tubes out there but I'm pretty happy with this for now.
     
    Last edited: May 31, 2018

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