[budx3385]

Quote:

 
Perhaps you are right, Bud; particularly if I were running the Tesla 1. Heard it with the Stratus yesterday and, even single ended, and using the stock 2A3s, the sound was very nice.
 
I'd like to add that the Burson Soloist was very competitive with it, but I imagine with the better tubes and from its XLR output, the Stratus would win the day in the end.

 
Hi Dave. I'm glad to hear that you had an opportunity to listen to the Stratus with the T1 and the HD800. I'm sure the Burson is excellent (their discrete opamp is absolutely fantastic, and besides, they're also "down under"!), but even my TOTL Rudistor ss amp doesn't provide the emotional presence that the Stratus provides. IMHO, all you need is the right tubes.
 
If you lived here in Phoenix, I could even let you choose! 

 

[meton]

 
Now that my Stratus is well-burned-in, I pulled my modded Sonett out of the closet for a final direct comparison, using all of the latest tweaks to be fair (eg, Marigo feet, latest DHC cable). Close. Comparable clarity, but with respect to presence and emotional impact, no contest. I feel very happy.
 

 
Does the Stratus eclipse the Sonett to the point that you would be happy living with only the Stratus or are there circumstances in which you would put the Sonett to work for certain types of  genre / headphone listening? 

 

[budx3385]

^  That's exactly what I'm trying to decide. But so far, I haven't come across a disk that the re-tubed Stratus didn't play with full presence. Like I said, I am very happy with its SQ.

 

[TIMITS]

I know this is premature but it will be nice to know the differences in sound quality between the Status and the revised version of the Sonett due sometime later this month.

 

[madbull]

DNA Stratus + Grado PS500 + Eric Clapton's From the Cradle = sonic bliss.

 

[budx3385]

Quote:

DNA Stratus + Grado PS500 + Eric Clapton's From the Cradle = sonic bliss.

 
yeah !!!  you waited a looong time -  glad to hear you finally got there - yeah !!!

 

[Zsubbo]

Are there any measurement out there for the Stratus ? Also 8 ohm-s for output impedance is pretty high for something like a Grado, so I suppose I cant use it to drive my Grados.
 
Al trough it looks really nice, I'd really like to audition it with my K1000s

 

[Donald North]

Some Grados have a pretty flat impedance curve and are less influenced by source impedance of the amplifier. It varies among headphone models and listener preference. Because Grados are high sensitivity, on the Stratus I recommend using the -6dB gain setting through the 1/4" output. With this setting the output impedance is reduced to 3 ohm.
 

 

[Zsubbo]

Thanks for the fast answer, appreciate it , will the sonett drive the K1000s for moderate levels, or its better to save up for the stratus ?

 

[Donald North]

The original Sonett was created for traditional efficiency headphones and is no match for the K1000. The Sonett 2 has much lower output impedance (28 ohm versus 120 ohm) and plays the K1000 loud (at least louder than I care to listen for long) with rock music. I was listening to Radiohead's "Pablo Honey" tonight through the combo with the volume control at 7 which I found to be a moderate, enjoyable volume setting. With classical music you may need to turn the volume to maximum because of their lower average recording level.
 
The Stratus can produce more than 4x the power of the Sonett 2 and with 8 ohm output impedance and, in my opinion, is the better match for the K1000.

 

[Duckman]

Purchased a pair of EML 2A3-S as recommended here, and am happy to report that they have magically transformed the Stratus into a superb LCD3 amplifier.
 
Apologies for my previous doubts

 

[madbull]

Quote:

Purchased a pair of EML 2A3-S as recommended here, and am happy to report that they have magically transformed the Stratus into a superb LCD3 amplifier.
 
Apologies for my previous doubts

 
You're gonna keep it then? Good choice!
 
Thanks for the report. I'm dying to buy me a pair of these tubes.

 

[fejnomit]

Stratus #007 arrived yesterday, delivered to my office by Mr. North himself.  Since then I have been in a state of sonic bliss unrivaled by any previous single audio component's arrival.  (And I'm not just saying this because Donald was nice enough to hand deliver the amp...)
 
Yesterday was spent with EML 2A3-meshplates, EML 5U4G mesh and the stock 6N1P.  And I will be frank with you, sacrilegious as it may sound, I was about to jump off the Audez'e band-wagon.  Until now.  I was never fully satisfied with my LCD-2s so I eagerly bought a pair of LCD-3s hoping for the horizon to broaden and the wax to wane, only to discover that same "humidity" that coated the previous iteration.  "Humidity" was the best word I could come up with since it's like a veil, to be sure, but not exactly a textile one, to my ears; it has a somewhat thick, summer morning aspect to it, covering everything in the sonic landscape, making edges less distinct, blanketing the sound with pre-storm silence.
 
This, I had to assume, was part of the Audez'e house sound.  T-1s, HD800s do not do this, at least not on my amps.  They both have their own frequency signature but they are not humid, not with my WA-6SE (with the magical EML 274B mesh) and my Wright 215i (with NOS Siemens EL84s); with these, they both reach for the stars.  The D7000s do not do this either.  They are tough to find the right amp for but my SAA-modded Phonitor has allowed them to sprout wings.  The closest I came to being able to see through to the music of the LCD-3s has been using the ECC35 driver with KR PX4s in the ECBA.  The extra oomph of the 6SL7 variant clears a lot of the humidity away - for the LCD-3s as well as for the HE-6s and K1000s...
 
Until now.  The the Stratus has brought out THE BEST I have ever heard from the LCD-2s and 3s, the K1000s and the HE6s -- AS WELL AS the T-1s and HD800s, which is where the ECBA cannot compete - at least at early blush.  The dynamic punch of the Stratus is like a hot desert wind at sunrise, drying the dew upon contact.  The deep extended bass actually shakes my body and the sparkly treble bites into me, creating a kind of sonic harmony and rightness I have been in search of since I started this, ahem, hobby, a while ago. 
 
Well done, Donald!
 
That being said, I am also eager to try the solid plate EML 2A3s, along with some of the NOS 5U4Gs I have acquired.  Might throw in the 274B to see how that sounds too.  Also on order will be a NOS 1960s RCA black plate 6BQ7a once Brendan has them cyroed and back in stock. 
 
Thanks to all on this thread for convincing me to make this move!

 

[Duckman]

Quote:

 
You're gonna keep it then? Good choice!
 
Thanks for the report. I'm dying to buy me a pair of these tubes.

Yes, I'm keeping it.
 
I'm puzzled at the radical difference a tube change has made. Thanks Bud for pushing the envelope.

 

[madbull]

I'm gonna order them meshplates right now!