Darkvoice 337 - A Review - Page 12

Hello guys!

I just wanted to let you know that the DV337 fan club has expanded again. I bought mine some weeks ago from Casque Hifi / AudiophileChina. Aside from a small bump in one corner, the amp arrived in good condition. And the price, 648 US$ including shipping, wasn't too bad.

This is my first headphone amp, so I cannot really compare the amp to any other dedicated one. In itself, I have to say that I simply love it. My K701s sounded very nice indeed, I couldn't help but to grin when listening to the combo

If you wonder about the past tense, sadly enough, I haven't been able to do any listening for more than a week now. A NOS Sylvania GB6080 decided to arc at first power-up, breaking the right side element of the phones before I could turn the power off. I'm still waiting for the repair... In a sense I was lucky that I didn't have the phones on my ears when it happened, I can imagine that my ear drum would have suffered serious damage as well.

As for now, I've tried some 6AS7s and 6080s on the triode side and various 6SJ7s, GTs and WGTs on the pentode side. My favourite ones for the moment are 6AS7Gs from Bentley Acoustic Corporation and 6SJ7WGT Gold Brands from Sylvania, but Sylvania GB6080s and RCA 5693s come in close. (To be completely honest, the greatest difference I've heard so far was when I changed the stock tubes away.)

I'll post some more impressions when I get my phones back. Right now the only ones I have are some old Technics in-ear-gadgets which don't really represent the pinnacle in sound quality. It has to be said though that even those do sound abnormally terrific with the 337.

Since the K701s are quite low impedance phones, I've been thinking of trying some more exotic triodes like 5998 or 6528, if I would be lucky enough to come across a pair with a decent price. Do you have any opinion on how they match with the K701s?

First of all, welcome to head-fi! And congrats on your 337

I actually wouldn't recommend the 5998 with the K701. The K701 isn't warm sounding, and the 5998 are less warm than the 6AS7. Just my opinion of course.

hi Skylab, since you have an opera, how do you compare the 337 and opera? is there a better one or do they sound completely different? i know opera is SS and 337 is tube but that's all i know. and i'm asking because i can see myself getting some 600 ohm beyer, from dt770 to 990 some day. maybe 880.

It's really very difficult to compare a tube amp and a SS amp. Both these amps are excellent, but they sound quite different.

I do think that the 600 ohm Beyers do better with tube amps, in general, however.

i'm tiny bit surprise because i read meier audio pair great with beyer. i also like headfive with dt990 pro myself. but thanks anyway. you just saved me the fund for a pair of 600 ohm beyer. yea 337 is that "cheap" in Hong Kong.

mj,
I think the 701 and 337 are perfect match,

Congratulations

I just placed a down payment a few days ago, how long did it take for all you guys to receive your units?

In my case the delivery was really fast, only a few days from the payment. I was positively surprised with that. In fact, the customs procedures took nearly as long as the shipping, or that's at least how it felt at the time...

6080 V 6as7

Awhile back I posted I might prefer the 6080 in the DV337 but that I needed to give the 6AS7 another listen to confirm that impression.

I do actually have the JAN RCA 6AS7 NOS and not the commercial ones I thought I had.

I took a last listen to the 6080 before reinserting the 6AS7.

Well, 1st impressions can be wrong and , boy, was I wrong :-)

The 6AS7 has all the detail and bass but is much more organic and lush sounding. There really is no contest for me, I far prefer the 6AS7.

The 6080 is more hard edged. It doesn't have more detail, it just has a bit too agressive a presentation of that detail.

This can be impressive at first but becomes a bit fatiguing in the long run.

Actually the 6AS7 presents more information.

eg. I here more of the echo of Diana Kralls voice on Love Scenes with the 6AS7.

Her voice is smoother, warmer , with less hard edge.

I am very glad I didn't trust my 1st impression and retried the 6AS7.

That exactly mirrors my experience.

My used black plate RCA 6AS7G was damaged (broken key) and 48 hours of running didn't help the hum in my 336i. Rather than try a new grey plate RCA I installed a used Raytheon 6080.

I don't find this 6080 fatiguing, but I can't say it sounds any different than my iBasso D1 with AD797 opamps - i.e. sounds SS not tubey.

My NOS JAN-CRC RCA 6AS7G just arrived today, so I'll be listening this weekend. Hopefully I'll hear the same where you found, "The 6AS7 has all the detail and bass but is much more organic and lush sounding".

I know the 336i isn't a 337, but I'd think that observations in the 6AS7G would translate between the two, somewhat.

Let us know what you think. I look forward to your impressions.