[gonintendo]

Some more thoughts on the mogwai SE v2:

I want to write more on my experience with this amp so far, but it's honestly so addicting to listen to that any spare time I have I want to spend just listening to it, so I'll keep this short. The amp is incredible. The bass on it is like nothing I've heard with my ZMFs. I've listened to some pretty nice amps, SS and tube, and this just blows everything out of the water. There's a bit more midbass kick especially on the higher impedance jacks, but what really impresses me is just how deep this thing digs with dynamic, one area my ZMFs left me wanting a bit more was in the sub bass (compared to planars mostly), but with the mogwai I'm completely satisfied. Everything has immense weight, but it's also so well controlled. My Aeolus went from a relatively polite headphone with a bit of a kick, to a headphone that just kicks like a mule in the bass. And while the higher impedances do boost bass levels, it's nothing like anything I've been able to achieve with EQ. And I actually still prefer the Aeolus on the 32 ohm tap as it has a decent amount of bass level out of the box, but across all outputs it just hits so hard on this amp. It's truly transformed and I love it even more than I did before, which is saying a lot! The midrange is the other standout, vocals are intimate and rich, but without sacrificing any staging. I don't know how it does it but this amp just gives everything to you. No compromises (except maybe a slight noise floor on the 300 ohm tap, I'll get into that later). The VC is also a dream to listen to on this amp. While it's not as big of a transformation as the Aeolus, it also benefited quite a bit in the bass, and the biggest improvement on these cans is a bit more vocal intimacy, which is the main thing I miss on them from the Aeolus. My Audeze LCD-2s were the least transformed as expected, but they still sounded great on the 8ohm tap, and did still benefit from that extra bit of midrange richness this amp provides.

One note: this amp is super powerful. I find the volume pot a bit hard to use with my medium/high sensitivity cans on its own, if I'm not totally rocking out I sometimes have to lower it into the rage where channel imbalance becomes an issue on the 300ohm tap. This is not an issue for me as I have a passive pre-amp in front of the amp but just a heads up.

Justin was incredibly helpful throughout the whole process, he talked me through his product line and helped me get the exact amp I wanted. I also broke the amp the first day I got it (I know I was super sad) by inserting one of the 6L6GC tubes cocked by one pin, causing the whole left channel to go out. I was able to send the amp to Justin and he repaired it for me in no time.
As a PSA: be careful when inserting tubes these new production tubes have super thin plastic guide pins that are very easy to break, and they require a decent amount of force to insert. Follow Justin's instructions of wiggling rather than pushing the tube in if possible. If you think it could be off, just check it. Otherwise you could have to face your amp going up in smoke like mine did.

As for tubes, the amp comes with a great set of tubes. I've tried rolling a few tubes:
A vintage RCA rectifier which I found made a small but noticeable improvement
A vintage Sylvania 5751 input tube, pretty big improvement in clarity over JJ with no loss of warmth
New production Tung-Sol 6L6GC power tubes -> low noise but not as musical as the bundled JJs. I found the mids were a bit more withdrawn and the bass was not as punchy. Possibly just bad synergy with my input tube.
Vintage Tung-Sol 6L6GC power tubes -> actually pretty similar to the new production ones signature wise, but a bit more clarity and smoothness. But I still didn't love the signature with my setup
New production JJ 6L6GC -> I have two sets of these, the first set which originally came with the amp that I repaired with a new guide pin from tubesandmore.com which sound absolutely phenomenal, deep visceral bass, rich intimate mids, smooth highs. The second pair I asked Justin to send me in case I couldn't fix the first pair and while they have the same sound as the first pair, the noise floor is a bit more noticeable (they're kind of buzzy). Over all, these are my favorite power tubes I've tried with the mogwai so far, and Justin made a great choice bundling them.
If you want to roll tubes with this amp I'd probably focus on the input tube, or on really special power tubes.

 

[DJJEZ]

New amp day for me - The red october.

Huge shout out to Justin @ampsandsound , such a cool and passionate dude, was an absolute pleasure to deal with.

This thing sounds insane, has the best midrange of any amp I've ever heard. I've already rolled the gold lion stock 300B's with Western electric 300B's and there is noticeably better resolution/detail and imaging.

I will talk about the red october more once I've spent more time with it and tried all my gear with it but first impressions are extremely impressive.

 

[DenverW]

Amazing! You’re a lucky guy

 

[WillieB]

Great suggestions all! I've always been amazed by the KEF LS50s. I've never heard anything from Falcon, but those are interesting as well. I have to admit, though, that I already had my eye on the Omens. Those would fit perfectly in the space I have created since I got serious about adding speakers. Thanks!

The Zu Omen Mk II have arrived and I must say they are excellent in this small space. It's as if they were made for the Bigger Ben. Tonality and vocals are just so perfect. These paint the air in the room with music and the speakers just disappear. I must say that this turned out better than I expected.

Unfortunately, FedEx in my area is a nightmare and are incapable of delivering a package over 10lbs without it being damaged. My speakers got their famous treatment and arrived with a crushed in corner on each. There were 4 new sets of American Walnut Omen Mk II's left when I ordered mine. There was one new set by the time mine shipped and they are sending those to replace my damaged set. So I think they have one black set left. I hope the replacements make it here. They have a better chance since they are coming UPS. This model, being ported out the bottom, is ideal for my situation/room, the new model that replaces the Omen is ported out the back. Anyway, I really appreciate the recommendations @ampsandsound !!!

 

[TylersEclectic]

Awesome review! I love my Kenzie. I've been talking to just about upgrading, and I finally am going to - but I hate to see this amp go.

Nice!! What are you upgrading to?

 

[Rhinomyte76]

Some more thoughts on the mogwai SE v2:

I want to write more on my experience with this amp so far, but it's honestly so addicting to listen to that any spare time I have I want to spend just listening to it, so I'll keep this short. The amp is incredible. The bass on it is like nothing I've heard with my ZMFs. I've listened to some pretty nice amps, SS and tube, and this just blows everything out of the water. There's a bit more midbass kick especially on the higher impedance jacks, but what really impresses me is just how deep this thing digs with dynamic, one area my ZMFs left me wanting a bit more was in the sub bass (compared to planars mostly), but with the mogwai I'm completely satisfied. Everything has immense weight, but it's also so well controlled. My Aeolus went from a relatively polite headphone with a bit of a kick, to a headphone that just kicks like a mule in the bass. And while the higher impedances do boost bass levels, it's nothing like anything I've been able to achieve with EQ. And I actually still prefer the Aeolus on the 32 ohm tap as it has a decent amount of bass level out of the box, but across all outputs it just hits so hard on this amp. It's truly transformed and I love it even more than I did before, which is saying a lot! The midrange is the other standout, vocals are intimate and rich, but without sacrificing any staging. I don't know how it does it but this amp just gives everything to you. No compromises (except maybe a slight noise floor on the 300 ohm tap, I'll get into that later). The VC is also a dream to listen to on this amp. While it's not as big of a transformation as the Aeolus, it also benefited quite a bit in the bass, and the biggest improvement on these cans is a bit more vocal intimacy, which is the main thing I miss on them from the Aeolus. My Audeze LCD-2s were the least transformed as expected, but they still sounded great on the 8ohm tap, and did still benefit from that extra bit of midrange richness this amp provides.

One note: this amp is super powerful. I find the volume pot a bit hard to use with my medium/high sensitivity cans on its own, if I'm not totally rocking out I sometimes have to lower it into the rage where channel imbalance becomes an issue on the 300ohm tap. This is not an issue for me as I have a passive pre-amp in front of the amp but just a heads up.

Justin was incredibly helpful throughout the whole process, he talked me through his product line and helped me get the exact amp I wanted. I also broke the amp the first day I got it (I know I was super sad) by inserting one of the 6L6GC tubes cocked by one pin, causing the whole left channel to go out. I was able to send the amp to Justin and he repaired it for me in no time.
As a PSA: be careful when inserting tubes these new production tubes have super thin plastic guide pins that are very easy to break, and they require a decent amount of force to insert. Follow Justin's instructions of wiggling rather than pushing the tube in if possible. If you think it could be off, just check it. Otherwise you could have to face your amp going up in smoke like mine did.

As for tubes, the amp comes with a great set of tubes. I've tried rolling a few tubes:
A vintage RCA rectifier which I found made a small but noticeable improvement
A vintage Sylvania 5751 input tube, pretty big improvement in clarity over JJ with no loss of warmth
New production Tung-Sol 6L6GC power tubes -> low noise but not as musical as the bundled JJs. I found the mids were a bit more withdrawn and the bass was not as punchy. Possibly just bad synergy with my input tube.
Vintage Tung-Sol 6L6GC power tubes -> actually pretty similar to the new production ones signature wise, but a bit more clarity and smoothness. But I still didn't love the signature with my setup
New production JJ 6L6GC -> I have two sets of these, the first set which originally came with the amp that I repaired with a new guide pin from tubesandmore.com which sound absolutely phenomenal, deep visceral bass, rich intimate mids, smooth highs. The second pair I asked Justin to send me in case I couldn't fix the first pair and while they have the same sound as the first pair, the noise floor is a bit more noticeable (they're kind of buzzy). Over all, these are my favorite power tubes I've tried with the mogwai so far, and Justin made a great choice bundling them.
If you want to roll tubes with this amp I'd probably focus on the input tube, or on really special power tubes.

Re pins - a while back I got a rare tube with jacked up pins that I was very concerned about. Got one of these and now I use it before putting any tubes in just in case. It works great. https://static.wixstatic.com/media/...a519785fde43da6b5bf~mv2_d_2560_2560_s_4_2.jpg

 

[Rhinomyte76]

Chord is getting some love, thank you both for the suggestion. The TT2 and Dave are a bit more than I'm looking for atm, but the qutest is an option. Appreciate it, and open to other comments .

Another up vote for qutest. It works great with my original run Kenzie, and I have no intention of changing up once my Agartha arrives.

 

[DenverW]

Another up vote for qutest. It works great with my original run Kenzie, and I have no intention of changing up once my Agartha arrives.

I’ve been doing some head to head with the qutest and a Morpheus with mqa I’ve been lended. I’ll have my audio mirror tubadour back this weekend as well.

For the qutest, I’m finding it a bit harsh in the upper mids and treble. I’ve got an after market ifi ipower x coming today from Amazon, as from what I’m reading that may help. I’ll have a better idea how it’s doing as early as tomorrow.

Edit: I've switched the qutest to a lower output (1v), and added the ifi X. It might be placebo, but I feel that a lot of the harshness is lessened, enough that I'm more comfortable listening, even at higher volume levels. Doing some A/B with the sonnet morpheus. The low end on the qutest seems lacking in oomph. A little more precision and separation overall with the qutest, more weight on the notes with the morpheus.

 

[ozziegurkan]

Going to be a first-time owner of an ampsandsound: Bigger Ben V2. It's on its way. Justin has been an amazing help in picking this one for my setup. He is so amazingly helpful despite his busy life. What an amazing customer service experience!

My setup:
- Headphones: Susvara, Utopia, Stellia, Verite Closed, Arya Stealth, LCD-X 2021, Aeon 2 Noire, Meze Liric.
- DACs: Qutest, Hugo 2, Ares 2, Yggy LIM
- Streamers: Zen Stream, MicroRendu, Allo UsBridge, RoonPi, 2Go
- Source: Roon Nucleus
- Pre-amps: Schiit Freya+
- Amps: Ferrum OOR+Hypsos, Pro iCAN Signature, Burson Soloist 3X GT, Jot2, A90
- FOR SALE: WooAudio WA6SE Gen 2

 

[DenverW]

Going to be a first-time owner of an ampsandsound: Bigger Ben V2. It's on its way. Justin has been an amazing help in picking this one for my setup. He is so amazingly helpful despite his busy life. What an amazing customer service experience!

My setup:
- Headphones: Susvara, Utopia, Stellia, Verite Closed, Arya Stealth, LCD-X 2021, Aeon 2 Noire, Meze Liric.
- DACs: Qutest, Hugo 2, Ares 2, Yggy LIM
- Streamers: Zen Stream, MicroRendu, Allo UsBridge, RoonPi, 2Go
- Source: Roon Nucleus
- Pre-amps: Schiit Freya+
- Amps: Ferrum OOR+Hypsos, Pro iCAN Signature, Burson Soloist 3X GT, Jot2, A90
- FOR SALE: WooAudio WA6SE Gen 2

Be great to hear your DAC impressions with the BBv2. I've tried the qutest and was looking at the LIM.

 

[DJJEZ]

Zeos got his hands on the nautilus

 

[duranxv]

Going to be a good listening session tonight with the Nautilus

 

[duranxv]

So I've been hooked on listening to the Nautilus, and I just have to say one thing: WOW.

Before I go into some concise impressions, let me preface by saying this is the best tube amp I've ever heard. The headphone I chose to use is the DCA Stealth because of its faithful reproduction of music. A common criticism of the headphone is that it lacks dynamics and bass, but that's because it needs to be paired with the right amp that is well designed and powerful. Therefore, if an amp can make these headphones sound alive and fun, then that's a testament to the quality of the amp. Safe to say, the Nautilus drove the Stealth wonderfully. After listening at different impedances, I found 32 ohms sounded the best to my ears. I like the fact that you can change your desired sound with the dedicated impedances.

Music sounds incredibly natural and really gives you a sense that you're there. I put the amp through multiple genres of music, even synthwave for giggles. There wasn't a genre that tripped the amp up. Everything sounded great. Bass and sub-bass was tight and with great extension, dynamics and detail retrieval were excellent, and everything sounded big and enveloping. Transients were quick and had a solid-stake like quality. I honestly can't think of any cons to this amp sonically. It has an incredibly low noise floor, and plenty of power. Although I don't use speakers, I like the fact it that it has that versatility anyway. I almost always EQ headphones, but with this amp, I didn't feel the need to. That alone surprised me greatly.

Depending on what you listen to, you could either relax with this amp, or tap your foot to the music with excitement. The fact it sounds this good with the stock tubes makes me excited for the possibilities of some tube rolling with this amp.

In terms of physical design, I think my only gripe would be with the locking mechanisms on the front ports. It does make it a bit cumbersome to switch from one tap to another. If there's ever a Nautilus v2 (perhaps it could be called Poseidon to keep with the nautical theme, lol), I'd love to see if some pre-amp capability could be built in. I'm imagining using this as a pre-amp into a well engineered high-end solid state like the upcoming Zahl HM1. Ah well, a man could dream

Huge kudos to Justin @ampsandsound for this impressive amplifier, and a big thanks for answering my many questions before I pulled the trigger on this amp It wasn't cheap, but then again, no end-game piece of equipment would be. This is something you buy for life (or at least until the next shiny new thing dazzles one's eyes)

For reference, the chain used was PC -> Holo Spring 3 KTE -> Loki Max (put into bypass mode to skip EQ) -> Nautilus -> DCA Stealth

 

[duranxv]

Referring to tube rolling in my post above, for the Nautilus owners here - what "upgrade" (and I use the term loosely here) tubes do you feel elevated your experience with the Nautilus to a whole new level in terms of bass, dynamics, soundstage and detail/clarity?

 

[jeffarm13]

Now that I’ve had the Rockwell Rev. 2 for several weeks, I thought I’d post some more detailed impressions. I don’t think Amps and Sound and Justin get the attention they deserve. This is the second A&S I’ve had (I’m coming from the Pendant SE) and they have both been wonderful. Justin is, as many have noted, amazingly helpful and is very giving of his time.

You can see my current set up in my sig – I try to spend roughly equal time with the Yggy OG and the Sonnet Morpheus. I have mostly been listening to the ZMF Verite Open and ZMF Atrium lately. I’ve tried to listen at various times of day, in different moods, different stress levels, etc. Just living with it basically. I listen to mostly jazz, rock, metal, and “Americana” (isn’t that folk?). I do not pretend to have bat-like hearing and do not claim to be an expert. I’ve owned or heard my share of amps over the years, from entry level Fiio stuff on up through the Schiit Rag 2 and the Pendant SE.

The tubes are the vintage (1951) Sylvania 6B4G tubes that Justin was generous enough to include, with a NOS Sylvania rectifier and a new Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 – the latter two being the extent of the rolling I’ve done to date. I do have several tubes that I will probably get around to rolling in the future, but when I find something I like, I tend to stick with it for a while.

To say the Rockwell is “something I like” would be underselling it. A lot. This amp is amazing. Coming from the Pendant, I noted in my initial impressions that the Rockwell may not have that last bit of slam that the Pendant SE has. I think that will be my final answer on that topic, but here’s the deal: The Rockwell doesn’t lack slam – if it’s in the mix to have the snare “snap” at you or to have thundering toms, the Rockwell doesn’t disappoint – references here include the ZZ Top remasters (especially Tres Hombres, El Loco and Deguello), The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Blood Sugar Sex Magik and most Mike Portnoy-era Dream Theater. For you jazz fans, check Max Roach’s work on Sonny Rollins’ Saxophone Colossus or Art Blakey’s Drum Thunder Suite on Moanin’. I do tend to associate “slam” with percussion. From a different perspective, the Pendant SE may be a little sharp in the transients in comparison, which may contribute to a sense of slam or snap when the music is not necessarily mastered for that – this is not intended as a criticism, merely a subjective observation. I remain a huge fan of the Pendant.

That took more words than I had hoped and this isn’t supposed to be a Rockwell vs. Pendant shoot-out. There is definitely a family resemblance in their respective sound, but unless you prioritize sharp transients (much) higher than anything else, there isn’t much to shoot out: the Rockwell is the superior amp (as it should be given the price differential).

The Rockwell sounds natural, more natural than any amp I have ever heard, and effortless. I think some others may describe this as “romantic.” I can understand using that as a descriptor, but, to me, it has connotations of a syrup-y sound, which is not something I get from the Rockwell, at all, in my system – even with the NOS Morpheus. The Rockwell does have the warmth one expects from a direct-heated triode amplifier (and the absolutely seductive mids that come with it), but it is in no way gooey or thick. When music is fast, the Rockwell has no problems keeping up. Listening to Booker Little run through eighth and sixteenth notes at full speed is a treat. As well, complicated passages don’t get smeared. It’s not “thick” or “thin”; everything simply sounds as it should and it is presented in a holographic way that is difficult to describe. There are times when it feels like the music just envelops me – a neat and addictive trick for headphone listening.

It is very easy with this amp to get lost in the music. The warmth invites you in and three hours have passed before you notice it. It is much easier to get lost in it than critique it – I don’t have any detailed analyses of its high, mids and lows or its imaging or its separation. I will say that nothing is lacking and nothing dominates. Vocals are astounding (Diana Krall’s The Girl in the Other Room come to mind) and are clearly a strength, but not in a way that that detracts from the Rockwell’s overarching coherence. I do not ever find myself thinking that bass or treble sound anything other than natural. I can discern tonal differences in bass notes that I cannot in lesser amps. On the other end of the spectrum, cymbals sound like cymbals and the upper registers of an alto sax or flute sound full and musical (as opposed to thin or brittle).

I think a lot of how we will ultimately feel about any component comes down to system synergy. For instance, Justin’s amps love them some ZMF headphones, and who can blame them? But, I also think that the source is just as important, especially as we move up the quality-of-component ladder. I’ve listened to some music that I like and know well on the Rockwell that has had me question whether my headphones and/or interconnects were full seated. All that to say: If you really want to see what this amp can do, feed it well-produced, competently mixed music. Stuff recorded in a closet and mixed on an iPhone will sound, well, bad. The Rockwell is not going to cover up flaws or add a sense of euphoria to thin/poor mastering. Run some well-recorded music through this amp (translated through a decent DAC if you are digital) and out to some reasonably resolving, comfortable-to-you headphones, and you will find the Rockwell to be outstanding. It’s opened a whole new level of appreciation for well-recorded music like Fleetwood Mac’s Rumors and Steely Dan’s Aja. It’s a beautifully cohesive amplifier.

If you have any questions, I will be happy to try to address them. It can be difficult to reduce to words what we hear and how what we hear makes us feel, so rather than try to rehash and summarize everything I’ve already said, I’ll end with this: The A&S Rockwell Rev. 2 is amongst the very best audio purchases I have ever made. I have never found it so easy to get lost in the music. Thanks for your time.