ForSure
Head-Fier
That's good news. The sound it generate is so sweet. I think mine get in the zone after the 100 hours mark.
Elekit 300B Amp kit
- Thread starter SuperDuke
- Start date
ForSure
Head-Fier
BTW, I set the headphone output jumper to "3" for the LCD2C. You may want to play around with that too. It is easy to change, all I have to do is removed the front plate.
Susyara!? How does it sounds?
Susyara!? How does it sounds?
I am driving the Susvara from the speaker taps. have not tried them from the jack yet. It's the best they have sounded. TOne is incredible, very dynamic, detail and excellent stage
HiGHFLYiN9
Member of the Trade: Zynsonix
Has anyone compared to the Bottlehead Mainline? I'd be very interested to hear how the two match up (ultra-premium DIY headphone amps).
I don't have the mainline but did build the Kaiju and I prefer the 8600 to the Kaiju
I have a mainline on order, but I'm not sure you can compare these two. I don't have an 8600, BTW. The 8600, with tubes. The EleKit 8600 pricing is:
$1395 for the kit + $300 to $1200 (or more) for tubes
The MainLine is $1200 with tubes.
Ok, at $1700 (The Tube Store) the 8600 isn't that much more.
Looking at VkMusic for the base model and all the upgrades (no tubes), the total is $2765 (I assume CA$), or $2155US - more than double the Mainline, once you add tubes.
Now if you compare to an Eddie Current, Woo WA5, or the new Cayin HA-300, the price is competitive, but not spectacular.
ELEKit with all upgrades and good, tubes: $2467
Woo WA5-LE: $3699
Eddie Current Balancing Act: NA new, ~$3500 used
Cayin HA-300: $3,999 (I think)
GemTune GP-01: $859 - ChiFi crap, but has VU meters!
ModWrite HA-300: $8000
ok, after doing that research, the $2467 is actually a pretty darned good deal. Still, it should be in another league compared to the Mainline.
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I can post more after I fix my volume pot and use the 8600 for awhile (waiting on a new jumper socket and pin header). For now I can say I've not heard another amp like it with the Susvara- crazy dynamic, big open sound stage - just a joy to listen to. I've not used the headphone out - just the taps. It also does not break a sweat driving 86db monitors to more than comfortable volumes.
HiGHFLYiN9
Member of the Trade: Zynsonix
Eh... in my experience it's hard to judge based on pricing alone. You're dealing with different domestic markets, direct purchase vs distributor, shipping costs of transformers across seas, and different engineers creating the circuit. If you purchase the Elekit in Japan, it's 108,000 Yen which is $1,016 dollars at the moment.
Just a random example, but I built a $700 Chipamp and it promptly replaced my Manley Stingray, there was no comparison. Just boils down to circuit design and your preferences. I like my S.E.X. better than my Mainline with some headphones like the Elear.
It's not hard to get a Mainline above $2K if you replace the caps/resistors/wiring/connectors/etc. : https://bottlehead.com/smf/index.php?topic=7152.15 ... whether it's competitive is another matter. Given my preference of 300B tubes I wouldn't be surprised if I liked the Elekit better, but I don't like to assume
Just a random example, but I built a $700 Chipamp and it promptly replaced my Manley Stingray, there was no comparison. Just boils down to circuit design and your preferences. I like my S.E.X. better than my Mainline with some headphones like the Elear.
It's not hard to get a Mainline above $2K if you replace the caps/resistors/wiring/connectors/etc. : https://bottlehead.com/smf/index.php?topic=7152.15 ... whether it's competitive is another matter. Given my preference of 300B tubes I wouldn't be surprised if I liked the Elekit better, but I don't like to assume
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"Design and preferences" absolutely -
it's taken me awhile to know what kind of sound I really like. I think if I was starting over in headfi I would ask myself "what kind of sound do I like?" rather than "what amp is best" or "is this amp better than that amp?" If I had to do it all over I'd have gone to more meets earlier on and heard a greater variety of gear.
that said - I have had great joy building kit amps. I lucked out w/ the 8600 b/c I had the joy of building and ended up w/ a sound I really like. To me it's Clear while still Rich w/ tone, Open with a large stage, and dynamic - all those are at the top of my list and whups... I said I was not going to go into impressions this early
it's taken me awhile to know what kind of sound I really like. I think if I was starting over in headfi I would ask myself "what kind of sound do I like?" rather than "what amp is best" or "is this amp better than that amp?" If I had to do it all over I'd have gone to more meets earlier on and heard a greater variety of gear.
that said - I have had great joy building kit amps. I lucked out w/ the 8600 b/c I had the joy of building and ended up w/ a sound I really like. To me it's Clear while still Rich w/ tone, Open with a large stage, and dynamic - all those are at the top of my list and whups... I said I was not going to go into impressions this early
ForSure
Head-Fier
I want to say the Lundahl Transformer are the magic ingredients which make this amp so special. Victor from Vkmusic know his stuff. And consider the cost of Lundahl and the time he spent on R&D, this is a bargain deal.
Victor has been a big help and always responds to emails promptly.
HiGHFLYiN9
Member of the Trade: Zynsonix
Anyone heard of this amp?
Transcendent Sound "The Masterpiece": $699 + tubes
Way cheaper, but probably not as good. Question is, how much.
Transcendent Sound "The Masterpiece": $699 + tubes
Way cheaper, but probably not as good. Question is, how much.
thanks for the suggestion!
My guess is it is a very nice amp (I built one of his amps in the past). I don't think It's as versatile for hard to drive planars and I think that price is w/o tubes.
Once I work all bugs out of mine I'll report back w/ impressions compared to other HPs and amps.
HiGHFLYiN9
Member of the Trade: Zynsonix
I found on another thread the Masterpiece has a capacitor-based output (no output transformers) and puts out 360mW into 100Ω cans, which should be very adequate for most headphones (although now-a-days headphone wattage output has gotten a lot higher for PMs).
Based on what is inside, along with the xformers and chassis, you get a lot for your money. The added chokes in the PS and silver mica caps are nice additions at this price level too. Also plenty of room inside if you want to add a big film cap in the PS
...not saying this is better than the Elekit, but looks like a good option at the price.
Based on what is inside, along with the xformers and chassis, you get a lot for your money. The added chokes in the PS and silver mica caps are nice additions at this price level too. Also plenty of room inside if you want to add a big film cap in the PS
...not saying this is better than the Elekit, but looks like a good option at the price.
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