It's been a while since I wrote my initial impressions about the V5i SS on this amp... And now I must say that I don't wanna return the V5i SS to Charles :smile_phones: j/k. To echo what others have said; the V5i sounds big and punchy, has good imaging/sense of space, mids that I would say as...

I'm currently listening to the Spotify Premium on rMBP > NS-08E (stock tubes + Burson V5i SS opamps) > Senn HD25-1 setup. Max volume on the rMBP, volume knob is set a couple clicks past the 9 o'clock mark on the NS-08E. Connecting them both is a 3.5-to-3.5 I made out of Mogami 2534 and a pair of...

Cool! Which tubes are you pairing them with? I'm currently listening to them with the stock tubes on.

These babies just came in the mail. Left my hex keys at home though... Won't be able to try them out in the NS-08E until sometime tonight. *sigh*

Looks like I'll be picking up a few pair of opamps from Mouser within 1-2 weeks: OPA2134, OPA2604, OPA2227, LM4562. Valvo and Mullard tubes also comes to mind. I think I need to cancel my PayPal account and credit cards... :dizzy_face:

Looks like a pair of NE5532s:

For $46, it's a keeper. I'm rocking rMBP > Hifiman HM-101 > Mogami 2534 + Oyaide lookalike 3.5mm plugs > NS08E > HD25 (Mogami 2534 & Rean NYS231BG 3.5mm), and the whole shebang sounds -- for the lack of a better term -- balanced, at least to my ears. Live recordings like John Mayer's Where The...

Mine has finally arrived! Well-packaged: Against the Note 5 for scale: Tubes on, ready to rock: Them glowing tubes:

According to my country's PO, my NS08E package has arrived and on the way to the PO closest to me. Hopefully I'll have the package by this weekend. Can't wait to try it!

sign me up. I've been wanting to have an amp for work but never got around to building one, so I ordered the NS08E off of fleabay a week ago. but now that there's a chance of SSMH made available again, I'd wanna build one for work and relegate the NS08E to my home/bedside setup. PS: I bought...

Another Mogami-paracord cable job, this time for my IM50:

Just pulled the trigger on this amp. Wonder how the rMBP > Hifiman HM-101 > NS08E > HD25 combo would sound.

Unsheathed, paracord-sleeved Mogami 2534 for my HD25:

just got my pair of IM50s yesterday, and I couldn't be happier. nothing describes this pair better than "fun" and "very enjoyable". if you listen to a lot of EDM, hip-hop, R & B, rock, and/or alternative... give these a try. Krewella's "Live for the Night", Calvin Harris' "Summer", and Cash...

reading the first 15 or so pages from this thread made me pull the trigger on two 6AS7s; a grayplate Sylvania 6AS7G and a RCA 6080. I'm searching for 6SN7(s) as I'm typing this post.   and I haven't even owned the amp.