Don't think of it as getting "less" of something you value (i.e. less tube flavor). Think of it more as maximizing the potential for the tube itself to perform as best as it possibly can. What you get less of is bad stuff like high order distortion that makes the sound worse.
Wait...Mischa said it just makes a tube perform at its best.GE vs. GEC become more of a: GE vs. GEc
Damn dude, you have some killer gear!! Congrats!Also gets cat approval. Wife hasn’t seen it yet, but even if she doesn’t like it, she’s been out voted 2-1.
When using CCS over the driver tube, the differences between different brands of the same tube type are minimized, but still there to a degree. E.g. I still find that some of my cheap (well used, low measuring) 6J5's that I have still sound harsher/thinner. So IMO the CCS doesn't get rid of inherent strengths/weaknesses that certain tubes may have, it just makes the tube perform at their best, whatever the best it can manage happens to be - In the case of my 58% measuring Marconi, it tries it's best, haha
Thanks for the write upI had a fun and interesting afternoon comparing the amps. Certainly didn't need the heating on in that room with the 3 amps on.
I started with the Abyss. The OTL V6 was warmer and I could feel the bass more. The SET Red Dwarf is more detailed. Glenn SET 300B is more airy. Red Dwarf is slightly more forward. Pinpoint accuracy with the Red Dwarf. With the Aybss, both the 300B are more detailed and clearer than the V6. I prefer the 300B and Red Dwarf with the Abyss. Remember the V6 is OTL, and in theory OTL amps have no right to play well with such a low impedance planar headphone like the Abyss. Mischa says it does so well because of the massive Clarity caps. Most people think this amp has output transformers due to the 3 cases on top, but those cases are covering massive Clarity caps.
Next onto the LCD4. Remember to turn the volume down if switching between Abyss and LCD4... I thought all 3 amps were closer together in sound signature with the LCD4. V6 fills the headphone with sound, whereas 300B and Red Dwarf are a bit more selective where the sound goes. Touch of bloom with V6 as I noticed with the Abyss. All amps have outstanding bass with the Abyss, V6 slightly warmer, Red Dwarf goes slightly deeper. Wouldn't say I have much of a preference between amps when using the LCD4.
I was using Tungsol 6SN7 BGRP and GEC L63 drivers in both the Red Dwarf and V6. I swapped power tubes from Neotron 6L6G to Spanish Marconi 6F6 in the Red Dwarf and I definitely noticed a warmer sound.
All amps are dead silent when the preamp was set to the max. I couldn't even hear a faint sound of air/hiss which I was surprised about. Ive found the SOTM device works well here. USB straight from the PC or laptop generated quite a lot of noise (but only at very loud levels).
What pairing would I listen to the most? Probably Red Dwarf with Abyss and warmer tubes. But, at no point this afternoon did I think "this particular amp has to go, it's not as good as the others".
Sorry for your suffering with all of that sweet tube gear. We are here for youI had a fun and interesting afternoon comparing the amps. Certainly didn't need the heating on in that room with the 3 amps on.
I started with the Abyss. The OTL V6 was warmer and I could feel the bass more. The SET Red Dwarf is more detailed. Glenn SET 300B is more airy. Red Dwarf is slightly more forward. Pinpoint accuracy with the Red Dwarf. With the Aybss, both the 300B are more detailed and clearer than the V6. I prefer the 300B and Red Dwarf with the Abyss. Remember the V6 is OTL, and in theory OTL amps have no right to play well with such a low impedance planar headphone like the Abyss. Mischa says it does so well because of the massive Clarity caps. Most people think this amp has output transformers due to the 3 cases on top, but those cases are covering massive Clarity caps.
Next onto the LCD4. Remember to turn the volume down if switching between Abyss and LCD4... I thought all 3 amps were closer together in sound signature with the LCD4. V6 fills the headphone with sound, whereas 300B and Red Dwarf are a bit more selective where the sound goes. Touch of bloom with V6 as I noticed with the Abyss. All amps have outstanding bass with the Abyss, V6 slightly warmer, Red Dwarf goes slightly deeper. Wouldn't say I have much of a preference between amps when using the LCD4.
I was using Tungsol 6SN7 BGRP and GEC L63 drivers in both the Red Dwarf and V6. I swapped power tubes from Neotron 6L6G to Spanish Marconi 6F6 in the Red Dwarf and I definitely noticed a warmer sound.
All amps are dead silent when the preamp was set to the max. I couldn't even hear a faint sound of air/hiss which I was surprised about. Ive found the SOTM device works well here. USB straight from the PC or laptop generated quite a lot of noise (but only at very loud levels).
What pairing would I listen to the most? Probably Red Dwarf with Abyss and warmer tubes. But, at no point this afternoon did I think "this particular amp has to go, it's not as good as the others".
No tube rolling on the Glenn 300B... So, I just set the bias on the top and leave it. V6 - no need to bias the tubes - there is a 5998/6080 switch. On Red Dwarf, I gave Mischa a list of all the power tubes I wanted to have run in the amp. Originally, we were going to have a crazy 10 position switch to choose bias point for each tube, but Mischa came up with a design where just a switch for 30mA and 60mA was sufficient. All tubes listed at 60mA can also be tried at 30mA.Thanks for the write up
I am guessing you are self biasing these tubes ?
A lot of glass between those 3 amplifiers.I had a fun and interesting afternoon comparing the amps. Certainly didn't need the heating on in that room with the 3 amps on.
I started with the Abyss. The OTL V6 was warmer and I could feel the bass more. The SET Red Dwarf is more detailed. Glenn SET 300B is more airy. Red Dwarf is slightly more forward. Pinpoint accuracy with the Red Dwarf. With the Aybss, both the 300B are more detailed and clearer than the V6. I prefer the 300B and Red Dwarf with the Abyss. Remember the V6 is OTL, and in theory OTL amps have no right to play well with such a low impedance planar headphone like the Abyss. Mischa says it does so well because of the massive Clarity caps. Most people think this amp has output transformers due to the 3 cases on top, but those cases are covering massive Clarity caps.
Next onto the LCD4. Remember to turn the volume down if switching between Abyss and LCD4... I thought all 3 amps were closer together in sound signature with the LCD4. V6 fills the headphone with sound, whereas 300B and Red Dwarf are a bit more selective where the sound goes. Touch of bloom with V6 as I noticed with the Abyss. All amps have outstanding bass with the Abyss, V6 slightly warmer, Red Dwarf goes slightly deeper. Wouldn't say I have much of a preference between amps when using the LCD4.
I was using Tungsol 6SN7 BGRP and GEC L63 drivers in both the Red Dwarf and V6. I swapped power tubes from Neotron 6L6G to Spanish Marconi 6F6 in the Red Dwarf and I definitely noticed a warmer sound.
All amps are dead silent when the preamp was set to the max. I couldn't even hear a faint sound of air/hiss which I was surprised about. Ive found the SOTM device works well here. USB straight from the PC or laptop generated quite a lot of noise (but only at very loud levels).
What pairing would I listen to the most? Probably Red Dwarf with Abyss and warmer tubes. But, at no point this afternoon did I think "this particular amp has to go, it's not as good as the others".
