[Flooshie]

Beautiful, ArtBoy! I've got mine paired with the Verite Closed.

+1 on audible differences between preamp tubes.

I've rolled a few different power tubes, both PL95 and EL95, including a couple of pricey ones, and I honestly cannot hear a difference between any of them. Others report audible differences between power tubes, so of course take this with a small mound of salt.

Enjoy!

 

[ArtBoy]

Prior to the above post, I ordered some power tubes off of eBay from Europe. Prices not too bad since each set was only $30 including shipping. I got a pair of PL95 ei's made in Yugoslavia and a pair of EL95 Telefunken's (diamond grade) made in Berlin. The tubes in it were EL95's made in Germany. After numerous swapping between them, could not decide if I liked 1 set better than the other. Will listen to 1 set for a while to burn them in then listen to the other set to see/hear if 1 is better than the other. If not, will have a backup set when they burn out.

Also decided to try an atu7 Gold Lion I have from my home system. I like the Bugle Boy better. It is quieter and sounds "cleaner". Maybe I will try other tubes in the future.

Have a Happy New Year and Pleasant Listening.

 

[ArtBoy]

@mynamesjeff was asking about external DAC's. Some reviews I have seen said a Chord Qutest DAC will make a noticeable improvement. I tried using my Chord Mojo as a DAC and could not hear any difference from the internal DAC. Not sure what the difference is between the 2 DAC's besides the price. I also tried using my MHDT Orchid Tube DAC and it had a slightly wider soundstage and "less digital sound" but not enough difference that it would be worthwhile to replace the internal DAC. Maybe my old ears are not good enough to notice differences.

 

[joncb01]

Vert late into this thread, however, I had rolled with the Brimar Yellow and liked what I heard. Just recently I decided to try something different and went with the Mullard - and it was a shock - it sounded like a different amp. I did not believe that AU$60 could do so much. Detail retrieval, sound stage and isolation all improved. Improved depth in the sound stage. I don't know why Auris doesn't use this as the standard tube.