So I see you took the plunge on the Clear mg in the end @LoryWiv I took some HD800s' on home demo a couple of weeks a go and they went back to the shop pretty quick. Very impressive headphones, but not my cup of tea. I did however note the plentiful headroom with Elise compared with my...

I had a similar problem to this with a tube buffer in my system a little while back, which I eventually discovered was interference from a wi-fi booster (one of those TP Link boosters that uses the electrical mains cables to transmit the wi-fi signal). Could be that or other interference. But...

@shafat777 my understanding is that if your XLR to RCA cable is wired-up correctly, then you are essentially just converting the XLR signal to a single-ended connection and therefore there is no benefit in doing this over a straight RCA to RCA connection. It shouldn't do any damage if your...

Thanks for clarifying. That is a shame and a significant thing to miss out on when they usually come with a lifetime driver warranty! Got stitched up with a faulty driver on my LCD2s last year, so the lack of warranty is probably a deal breaker for me. Yes, fair point. But that still doesn't...

Hi @SpanielChops I have been considering purchasing some Auteurs and recently contacted the guy at Acorn Audio about a demo (which all sounded a bit high risk as he expects a full RRP deposit (£1699) and also demands that you to take full responsibility for safe return, which all sounds rather...

Happy to share them @LoryWiv Currently I own LCD2s and some Focal Elegias for closed-back duties, so they will be my starting point for comparison. I do love the LCD2s and it is only really reading-up that suggests the amp might not be perfect for them. The Elegias are perhaps a little dry...

There is only one ZMF dealer here in the UK and therefore only one opportunity to demo, but he does have a set of Auteurs which are available for home demo. He asks for the full retail price as a deposit (currently £1600 GBP), so it's not without risk, but I have already made contact and plan...

Hi Elise fans. I'm sure this question has been asked before, so apologies, but having now found a wonderful headphone amp in the Elise (well, once it's been repaired anyway - that's another story), I am researching headphones that might be a better match than my LCD2s. I find the combination...

I agree with the point, but as I'm sure others will point out, the way an amp controls your cans has as much to do with current as it does with power. Feliks don't supply a current rating but I expect this would go some way to explain why it feels more 'powerful' than the power rating suggests...

I only ever had the previous version on a week long home loan. I sent it back, in part due to practical reasons, but also because it was right at the beginning of my first dabble into tube amplification and was drawn in by suggestions that an OTL amp wouldn't drive my LCD2's properly. Well...

I have just taken delivery of a new 2021 Elise and will be using it as a preamp as well as a headphone amp. Of course a lot depends on the speakers you are hoping to drive and the style of music you prefer, but I have found that a good combination for a tube preamp in general is to use a Class D...

On a slightly more positive note, I have been told that the replacement drivers use the newer soldered terminals, so in theory should be more reliable. Plus, you get a new 3 year warranty on them. There is no doubt in my mind that there is a design fault with the older models and maybe someone...

Update on this for anyone interested. Following a direct question about the dodgy terminal, Audeze have clarified that they no longer use this kind of fixing on the terminals and now instead use a solder joint between the terminal and the driver plate. Potentially good news for reliability...

Definitely didn't damage the driver due to high volumes. The way my audio engineer explained it to me, is that the bolt/terminal used on this version of the LCD2 (2016) is very rigid (see photo) and so it puts undue pressure on the drive unit every time you move the headband to put the...

Still waiting for a response. Their website says to contact your local dealer if outside the US. Which I did and was told they're not taking on any repair work currently (due to Covid of course). I did find a different dealer willing to send them to Audeze thankfully, but haven't had a quote...

Hi all, I have some 4 year old Audeze LCD-2's and am really disappointed that one of the drivers has failed. I can see a few reports on the Internet of this being a recurring issue, which of course Audeze strongly dispute. As they are out of warranty and I live outside the US, it is looking...

Thanks for the responses. The unit has the stock tubes I believe and as it is from 2018 I am assuming the mark 2. I will be having a play with a different DAC as a source later following a very sensible suggestion that it could possibly be the high voltage output of my Chord DAC not helping the...

I have an Elise on home demo currently. A fabulous sounding unit, but with a couple of reservations which I would appreciate thoughts on before I pull the trigger. Firstly, the amp seems to be quite prone to bluetooth/phone interference. It is a demo unit which was built in 2018, so it is the...

Well, it's certainly funny that you still have a wife :wink:

Yes, aware of all that. I have been buying and selling hifi for years myself. Many times starting my for sale description with 'reluctant sale of...' which is often the case. It was the situation of just having posted about my excitement about getting hold of an Elise and the next post was...

Well that sounds like a thumbs down if ever I've heard it :(

Hi all. New Head-fi-er here and thoroughly enjoying the website and thoroughly helpful people on here. Having spent the majority of my hifi life investing in full stereo/speaker set-ups, I am now getting into headphones in a more serious way. I am also very new to tubes (i.e. valves - yes...

Thanks again @kvik . Very helpful. Really like the look of the Feliks, but like you say, perhaps not the best for the LCD2s, which is a shame because they're lovely looking units which seem to be very well reviewed. The other one I now have my eye on (after a bit of saving up) would be the...

Fair question. Here's the background if you're interested (hopefully this doesn't send this chat down a rabbit hole though!). The set-up without the head-amp includes a DAC (Chord 2Qute), a passive preamp, a power amp (using an IcePower Class D module) and then some little Spendor speakers. I...

Thanks @m-i-c-k-e-y That looks interesting. Not sure about availability in the UK and always a bit concerned about Chinese products if anything goes wrong, but the unit itself looks like it ticks the right boxes. Had a look at the Feliks units too, so thanks for that @gimmeheadroom . Hadn't...