[vc1187]

  Nice pics there. I must admit, they are sexy to look at, and their aesthetics did force me to stick with them longer than I normally would. The stock tubes, as boring as they appear, suit my system better relatively speaking. I will take all suggestions into consideration. I need to be cautious regarding generalizations about planars. I had the LCD-3Cs prior to getting the HE1Ks, and admittedly they would have gotten along very well with the EML meshes. Unfortunately, the HE1Ks have as much of a higher frequency presence as they do the lower frequencies, with a slightly recessed midrange. Overall, I consider them to be very neutral. Their classification as warm, I suspect, is due to the amount of bass they present. 
 
Is the consensus that the EML 5U4G is a smooth, bassy tube, and hopefully not to the detriment of transparency? I would really love to keep the EML 2A3 meshes, like bigfatpaulie said, they sure are beauties, and I don't hear the descriptors they garner used for any other 2A3 tubes. I would surely like to maintain their best attributes coupled with another tube.

I had similar findings with the EML Mesh 2A3 tubes.  I find that with the Stratus, tube pairing is extremely important when it comes to finding OK synergy vs. amazing synergy.  Surprisingly, some cheaper rectifiers pair very well with the stock 2A3s, Shuguang Nature Sounds, and EML Meshies on the Stratus.  Ever thought of giving NOS rectifiers a shot?  The RCA 5U4GB rectifiers are very cheap, but I find that it pairs very well with the Shuguang Nature Sounds in my Stratus.  I haven't found an amazing pairing with the EMLs yet, but I also don't have planar magnetic headphones to test out my pairings with, so your findings may differ from mine.

 

[adamaley]

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions. @vc1187, I am considering everything at the moment, and will look into the NOS 5U4GBs.

 

[budx3385]

Thanks, guys, for sharing your Stratus findings here! 
 
Here's a suggestion: If you try using Google (or Firefox or Duckduckgoose or ...) to search this thread a bit more for the tubes you are considering (eg NOS rectifiers), you might find highly relevant comments by the lucky ppl who received a Stratus before you. In particular, drheadphone tried pretty much everything, and his astute comments are scattered throughout the earlier pages of this thread. Sorry there isn't an index. Of course, YMMV with your choice of headphone, music, beverage, and ...
 
Happy Listening!!!

 

[adamaley]

Thanks. Patience will be the key for now. I am letting many different elements settle in right now, then I will spring for the right tubes.

 

[MusicJunky]

Hi there anybody tried a schiit Yggdrasil, a dna stratus and a pair of HD800S (new model) in one combo yet? Curious as to how this setup would sound. Thanks

 

[yage]

  Hi there anybody tried a schiit Yggdrasil, a dna stratus and a pair of HD800S (new model) in one combo yet? Curious as to how this setup would sound. Thanks

 
Might want to put your question to the most recent DC Head-Fi meet impressions thread. We had all three hooked up together at one point in time. (I was not one of the lucky listeners to hear this combo, though.)

 

[MusicJunky]

Might want to put your question to the most recent DC Head-Fi meet impressions thread. We had all three hooked up together at one point in time. (I was not one of the lucky listeners to hear this combo, though.)

Thanks for that man just asked over in the thread.

 

[Frihed89]

  It is mostly tube-related. I purchased a Marconi U52 rectifier, and EML 2A3 meshplates prior to taking possession of the amp. Ultimately, the EML meshplates were a bad decision to be paired with the HE1Ks. Overly brittle highs, recessed mids, and bass-wise - baby ain't got no back. It did a lot of things great. Details galore, great soundstaging, loads of harmonious reverb and air leading to nice decay. However, the highs hurt on some songs, there was a lack of body all around, affecting the tone of instruments. In short, it just unnaturally had too much air and nothing grounded. So, after thinking it needed some burn-in and giving it time, up until last night, I gave up and put in the stock power tubes, and SPLADOW! Tone - much better. Weight and mids - check. Strident high frequencies - Tamed, but still glassy on some material. The bass though - much improved and satisfactory for my music preferences. To put things into perspective, I have been enamored by the amp from the moment I pressed play. The resolution, soundstaging, imaging, transparency are phenomenal, and leaves everything I have owned in the dust. But I needed more of that SET sound, like I had on my Bottlehead SEX, in addition to these great technical things, which is why my relatively new pair of EML meshes have to go. Now, I'll be looking to the EML solids to provide me with the warmth, smoothness, bass punch, and shift the mids forward. It's always a fine balance, I know. I switched from a NOS Novosibirsk 6N1P to a cryo 6N1p-EV Voshod driver tube this morning and some of the glassiness has subsided. I love the transparency and linear nature of the Marconi U52s, so I would rather not mess with two variables at the same time, but I am willing to listen to suggestions on what to try in their stead. However, Ideally, I would rather introduce changes with the power tube right now. Thanks for reading this long spiel, but you did ask. Lol.

My experience is that there are two different varieties of sounds (with gradations in between) for many of the DHT tubes (especially the 300B, 2A3, and 45).  One is a "beautiful", engaging sound that pulls one into the music and the other leans in the direction of "accuracy", being more life-like and neutral. Both capture the tone, timber and texture of music superbly, but in different ways.  Ultimately, the choice is highly personal...I don't care what anyone says.  I own a pair of 2-stage (direct coupled) 2A3/45 mono amps made by Fi Audio; a 300B power amp made by Audionote (UK), and the Stratus. I have also heard the complete line of Audio Note amps for these 3 tubes.  These amps are the best example in the beautiful category. The Fi amps tend more in the direction of "accurate", as do many of the offerings of Bottlehead.  My own impression is that the Stratus is that falls into the beautiful category, although I may have altered the sound a bit (depending upon who listens) by replacing some of the capacitors and resistors in the amp with Audionote parts, based on my experience with my 300B amp. Don't get me wrong, Donald has made outstanding parts decisions.  I was perfectly satisfied with the Stratus from the moment I first plugged it in.  But I am cursed by experimentalism, when it comes to amps, but NOT headphones.  I went down the road of flagship headphones, but the ones i tried just didn't work out.  My own experience is that many of these newer headphones were designed to be the Maggies of headphones and need a lot of current, not juts watts, that they are poorly balanced and integrated across the frequency spectrum, and absurdly expensive.  But that's my brain talking, not yours.
 
I am fortunate to have a pair of AVVT 2A3 meshplates.  Since they are long since out of production and "unobtainable" (like the WE300B), i'll leave it at that.  But I also have some older RCA dual plates, which i pop in the amp from time-to-time for certain music.  They do bring warmth with them.  In my 2A3/45 monos, i mostly listen to the type 45 tube - EML solid plates.  I prefer them over the mesh plates for just the reasons you gave.  I suspect you will have the same experience with the 2A3. I have also played with the rectifiers. I do like the U52 and also the Brimar 5U4G, and I am not at all dissatisfied by the VT244 (is it?) made by RCA and NU.  The Sylvanias aren't bad either.  If you want tighter bass at the expense of the U52's mid-range and treble, pop in a 5U4GB.  Finally, I never really liked the sound of the drivers that came with the Startus, so I experimented with the 6BQ7A, and ultimately found a tube i really liked, made by Mazda.  They are less strident than the stock tube, and somewhat warmer.  Let me say, also, that I heard a pretty wide variation in sound  across different makes and varieties.  Whereas I tend to prefer 1950s type US-made small triodes for tunes like the 12AX7, 12AU7, 12AT7, etc., this proved not to be the case with the 6BQ7A.  The older US-made tubes I tried with square getters sounded unresolving and overly-warm.  
 
We all have different impressions of what we hear and what we like, but I am certain that the amp is a gem, the best-sounding headphone amp to my taste that i have ever heard.  

 

[Sorrodje]

@Frihed89:  Any experience with Current 2A3 production from KR Audio ? 

 

[Frihed89]

  @Frihed89:  Any experience with Current 2A3 production from KR Audio ? 

Nope. Sorry.

 

[adamaley]

@Frihed89 , I just put in an order for the Mazda 6BQ7A. Unfortunately, it only seems to be available from a guy in France, and so will take a while to get here. Could please give more feedback on how it bests any of the following 6BQ7As, if you've heard them: RCA, Sylvania, and Westinghouse. I have those three inbound due to suggestions from @drheadphone . I'm very reluctant to let go of the EML meshes for the EML solids because I doubt they can deliver some of the magic I get with them. Also, the Marconi U52 has grown into its own, and its transparency and mid-range quality is extraordinary. My only gripe is the overall tonality which is still dominated by the EML meshes. They're just like a wife, I guess, can't live with them, cant live without them.
 
I switched over to the stock driver tube, and the sound warmed up a bit, and the highs are less shrill. Ultimately, I'm looking to inject some more warmth yet still maintain clarity using the driver tube. Research on this thread informs me that the 6BQ7A are warmer and less icy compared to the Russian variants of which I have 3 - and they are all way more tipped up and etched than the stock tube. I am 90% up to where I want the sound to be, and I really hope one of the incoming driver tubes puts the cherry on top of everything. 
 
I have a RSA Elgar power conditioner coming in today, and I anticipate it will take away some of the glare and charged air the EML meshes hint at. Alternatively, it may do the opposite and cause things to go completely haywire. Oh, how I love this madness........

 

[vc1187]

  @Frihed89 , I just put in an order for the Mazda 6BQ7A. Unfortunately, it only seems to be available from a guy in France, and so will take a while to get here. Could please give more feedback on how it bests any of the following 6BQ7As, if you've heard them: RCA, Sylvania, and Westinghouse. I have those three inbound due to suggestions from @drheadphone . I'm very reluctant to let go of the EML meshes for the EML solids because I doubt they can deliver some of the magic I get with them. Also, the Marconi U52 has grown into its own, and its transparency and mid-range quality is extraordinary. My only gripe is the overall tonality which is still dominated by the EML meshes. They're just like a wife, I guess, can't live with them, cant live without them.
 
I switched over to the stock driver tube, and the sound warmed up a bit, and the highs are less shrill. Ultimately, I'm looking to inject some more warmth yet still maintain clarity using the driver tube. Research on this thread informs me that the 6BQ7A are warmer and less icy compared to the Russian variants of which I have 3 - and they are all way more tipped up and etched than the stock tube. I am 90% up to where I want the sound to be, and I really hope one of the incoming driver tubes puts the cherry on top of everything. 
 
I have a RSA Elgar power conditioner coming in today, and I anticipate it will take away some of the glare and charged air the EML meshes hint at. Alternatively, it may do the opposite and cause things to go completely haywire. Oh, how I love this madness........

 
I have a Sylvania 6BQ7A, but still prefer stock 6n1p or cryoset 6n1p-ev to it.  The Sylvania 6BQ7A sounds good with certain tracks due to the extra warmth and body that it injects, but sounds bloated or nasal-like with other tracks.  I find that the cryo 6n1p-ev sounds closest to the relaxed nature of the stock 6n1p, but has a little more energy and detail.  

 

[adamaley]

In my system, unfortunately, the Cryo 6N1p-EV tips things over the edge for me in terms of overly accentuating the details and treble sparkle. The warmth of the stock driver is a better fit to my ears, and, believe it or not, I am searching for even warmer. I am on a mission to keep the EML meshes and the Marconi U52 in my system and my last hope is to find a driver tube that complements those two. I guess a driver tube with the same characteristics of the U52 is what I am longing for.

 

[vc1187]

  In my system, unfortunately, the Cryo 6N1p-EV tips things over the edge for me in terms of overly accentuating the details and treble sparkle. The warmth of the stock driver is a better fit to my ears, and, believe it or not, I am searching for even warmer. I am on a mission to keep the EML meshes and the Marconi U52 in my system and my last hope is to find a driver tube that complements those two. I guess a driver tube with the same characteristics of the U52 is what I am longing for.

I keep forgetting you're running an HEK instead of HD800.  I can totally understand that the 6n1p-ev would tip things over the edge, especially with the EML mesh plates.  They do so in my setup too if I use the EMLs with the HD800.  
 
I wish you the best in your search for this holy grail of a driver tube!

 

[jsgraha]

  In my system, unfortunately, the Cryo 6N1p-EV tips things over the edge for me in terms of overly accentuating the details and treble sparkle. The warmth of the stock driver is a better fit to my ears, and, believe it or not, I am searching for even warmer. I am on a mission to keep the EML meshes and the Marconi U52 in my system and my last hope is to find a driver tube that complements those two. I guess a driver tube with the same characteristics of the U52 is what I am longing for.

In my setup, the warmest input tube was 6bq7 RCA. And my favorite was cheap Gold 6N1P-VI. I bought 4pcs for $18 shipped to AUS last year. They seem more balance than 6n1p-ev (being bright) and 6bq7. I use it for both he1k and hd800.