[bazelio]

V. cool!  I've never seen the inside of mine.

 

[RKML0007]

Nice to meet you #40, I mean... deuter! =)

 

[RKML0007]

@bazelio, Craig said all ZDS' look like this pic. He grabbed this amp off the shelf and showed me its guts and glory.

 

[listen4joy]

Piece of art!  either this or the stratus will be a great amp for hd800. i would live in peace with any one of them.

 

[Liu Junyuan]

Very nice interior. So those pictures were taken at EC?

 

[RKML0007]

Yessir - those fingers belong to the designer himself, Mr. Craig Uthus!

 

[songmic]

I posted a picture of the innards of my ZDS (#91) several months ago in this thread. As far as I can tell, it looks identical.

 

[RKML0007]

Here is an internal shot of my ZDS (#91). You can see how it's different from the earlier models.

Yes, behold the consistency and craftsmanship of Eddie Current point to point wiring. Yesterday, I learned that the tech's name is Edwin! Craig's own words, "my tech is an artist." I agree!

 

[Storytime]

Hey, all. I sent in my order form/check via snail mail on Friday, so the folks at EC should receive it today. Can't wait to hear the finished product!
 
As I'm preparing for the arrival of my ZDS, thought I'd start scoping out tubes, and I've got a couple questions:
 
Is there a difference in SOUND between the RCA 5691 redbase and the RCA VT229 blackbase? Or is it just a matter of one being industrial production and the other military production?
 
On the previous page AppleheadMay mentioned getting some "brand new Sophia 6SL7" tubes--are all Sophia 6SL7 tubes new, or are there NOS versions as well? People wrote some very nice things about them earlier in this thread (or was it the now-dormant "EC Zana Deux tube rolling pls share" thread?) Where those comments about the new-manufacture tube, or a NOS version?
 
Thanks in advance for your input.

 

[AppleheadMay]

  Hey, all. I sent in my order form/check via snail mail on Friday, so the folks at EC should receive it today. Can't wait to hear the finished product!
 
As I'm preparing for the arrival of my ZDS, thought I'd start scoping out tubes, and I've got a couple questions:
 
Is there a difference in SOUND between the RCA 5691 redbase and the RCA VT229 blackbase? Or is it just a matter of one being industrial production and the other military production?
 
On the previous page AppleheadMay mentioned getting some "brand new Sophia 6SL7" tubes--are all Sophia 6SL7 tubes new, or are there NOS versions as well? People wrote some very nice things about them earlier in this thread (or was it the now-dormant "EC Zana Deux tube rolling pls share" thread?) Where those comments about the new-manufacture tube, or a NOS version?
 
Thanks in advance for your input.

 
The Sophias are all new. You have three quality grades though. I wouldn't atke a chance to skimp on a bit of money and get the best grade, your ZDS is certainly worth it.

 

[vc1187]

  Hey, all. I sent in my order form/check via snail mail on Friday, so the folks at EC should receive it today. Can't wait to hear the finished product!
 
As I'm preparing for the arrival of my ZDS, thought I'd start scoping out tubes, and I've got a couple questions:
 
Is there a difference in SOUND between the RCA 5691 redbase and the RCA VT229 blackbase? Or is it just a matter of one being industrial production and the other military production?
 
On the previous page AppleheadMay mentioned getting some "brand new Sophia 6SL7" tubes--are all Sophia 6SL7 tubes new, or are there NOS versions as well? People wrote some very nice things about them earlier in this thread (or was it the now-dormant "EC Zana Deux tube rolling pls share" thread?) Where those comments about the new-manufacture tube, or a NOS version?
 
Thanks in advance for your input.

RCA 5691 red base and RCA VT-229 are different tubes and there is a huge (IMO) sound difference between the two.  One being excellent and one sounding like pure sh!* (In the respective order that you listed them).
 
I don't believe there is a NOS version of the Sophia 6SL7

 

[Storytime]

Wow, thanks for the speedy responses, AppleheadMay  and c1187!
 
Looks like a RCA 5691 redbase is in my future. As for the Sophia 6SL7--yikes, $100 for "Grade A"! I'd have to think about that. I might just save up for a Mullard ECC35 and stick with the 5691 till then.

 

[Storytime]

Okay, I've got another ZDS question, this time about placement and heat generation:
 
The most logical spot to place my ZDS would be on the top glass shelf of my electronics shelving unit, where it would sit about two inches to the right of my B&W center channel speaker. Does the ZDS vent so much heat from its sides (or generate heat directly from the tubes) that it might damage the wood enclosure of the speaker? And does it generate so much heat straight down that it would heat up the entire glass shelf, thereby threatening the bottom of the B&W speaker and even possibly making the taller components on the shelf directly below (like my Yggdrasil DAC) overheat?

 

[bobmysterious]

It rests on large rubber feet, so you won't have any issues with the shelf heating up.  I'd imagine your speaker will be fine, though it will most likely be warm to the touch.

 

[RKML0007]

5691, ECC35, and 6SU7GTY inbound! Muwahahaha....