Maybe the "people with good knowledge" mean the fact that you can select the output impedance on the Stratus. If you flip the 'TRS' switch to 'IEC' to use the higher output impedance, the amplifier's frequency response will start to follow the impedance curve of the Utopia more, giving a boost to the bass. See this article on InnerFidelity for more info on this topic.
So far latest tubes are RT select 6N1P, KR 2A3s and WE 274b rectifier . Sounds like live music. Most of the time you can hear the room where it was recorded. Just a hint of tube sound- very detailed but not sharp
Next I am going to remove the WE 274b and try a WE 422a instead to see if the performance suffers.
Here's a question for those that know the answer. Where is the fuse located on the Stratus and what amp is it? I'm going to try one of the Synergistic Research blue fuses.
It's in the IEC box on the back. You need a small screwdriver to pop it open. If memory serves, the fuse is a large, 1A, slow blow. You might want to go up to 1.6A to avoid unnecessarily blowing it. If it's a 2A fuse, you could use a 2.5A. You can look at the stock fuse to confirm the current rating. I have learned from experience that 1.3x -1.6x the stock fuse rating is often best with the blue fuses.
I heard the greatest impact from a blue fuse in my DAC. The change in the Stratus was more subtle. The good news is you have 30 days to find out for yourself how it sounds in your system.
EDIT: I checked my records. The Stratus uses a 5x20mm 2A slow blow (T) fuse. I suggest buying a 2.5A fuse.
Maybe the "people with good knowledge" mean the fact that you can select the output impedance on the Stratus. If you flip the 'TRS' switch to 'IEC' to use the higher output impedance, the amplifier's frequency response will start to follow the impedance curve of the Utopia more, giving a boost to the bass. See this article on InnerFidelity for more info on this topic.
Yeah this was what the guy was referring to. We miscommunicated with each other during that conversation. In other words, I've been using the old Sennheiser HD424X with the Stratus, yes the headphone with 2000 ohms. It is truly an extremely fast headphone, with absurd levels of airiness for a dynamic. Though it has very little bass, which is the only serious gripe I have with it. Besides that, this pairing is truly incredible. I'll expand my thoughts into an overview of the headphone once I use it a bit more, since I just got it yesterday.
Not a whole lot on my end with my HD800. There's a subtle difference in sound stage a bit and separation a bit more, but nothing too big of a difference.
Just joined the Stratus club! I've got @auricgoldfinger old amp in fact. Just listening to the stock tubes to start, the Status is everything I'd thought it'd be. Can't wait to do some tube rolling on it and try some different headphones out.
I can confirm that the EML & Carbon 2.5's sound good together. It's an extremely bright pairing with new tubes but subsides fairly quickly. You wont hear them at their best until about 250 hr's.
Hi guys and Stratus owners,
I perfectly know that the Stratus has true differential / balanced output, but I have a question regarding the the SE inputs, which are the only available given the fact there's no balanced input circuitry.
Reason is that I have a fully balanced DAC (Gungir Multibit), and having played with it for almost 2 years now in all sorts of SE / BAL configs, I know how much better everything gets when exiting balanced from the DAC, for various multiple reasons, the first being the 4.0 Vrms output (I don't want to open a debate on SE vs BAL).
Thinking on how it would be possible to feed the Stratus with the best quality output, and being an owner of a GS-X mk2 amp, I realized I could be taking full advantage of the GS-X preamp / loop stages.
The GS-X has both a BAL XLR and SE RCA loop outputs, and I thought why not using the SE loop outs to feed the Stratus with the untouched 4.0 Vrms signal from the Gungnir.
In theory the line level loop stage, which like the pre stage is of really high quality and lowest noise on the GS-X, should be able to bring the DAC signal completely untouched to the Stratus throught a pair of RCAs.
Has anyone used loop outputs before to feed their Stratus? I believe most Stratus owners have balanced sources, but ultimately feed the amp with SE signal from their sources?
I already searched everything on the topic in the thread, and I recall Donald himself talking about the possibility of installing XLR inputs in future revisions but I suppose it never happened.
Thanks everyone for the clarification!
The GS-X has both a BAL XLR and SE RCA loop outputs, and I thought why not using the SE loop outs to feed the Stratus with the untouched 4.0 Vrms signal from the Gungnir.
I have a similar setup with my Ayre AX-5 Twenty integrated amp. In my case, the balanced output from my disc player goes to the amp and the single-ended loop out to the Stratus. However, the AX-5 Twenty (and your GS-X mk2, I suspect) doesn't perform a balanced to single-ended conversion - it takes either the non-inverted or inverted signal and passes it along. In the end, you're still not getting any benefit from the balanced output of your source. I have it set up this way so I can watch movies and listen on headphones.
Most of the true balanced inputs to tube headphone amps use transformers to convert the differential signal to single-ended for amplification. You could do this yourself by inserting a component like the Jensen ISOMAX PC-2XR between the balanced loop out of the GS-X mk2 and the Stratus, just be aware that you lose quite a bit of signal level during the conversion process. Jensen also recommends keeping the output pair of unbalanced cables as short as possible (up to a max. length of 10 ft). I've tried this setup before and the line losses weren't worth it, in my opinion.
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
