[David A Silva]

Ok , thanks
I love my UltimatE but I’m always curious when I read reviews about amps driving ZMF headphones with their high Impedance and I wonder what some of these reviewers would say if they compared them with an UltimatE

I now have 3 ZMF hps - Auteur, Verite Closed, and Caldera. They are all well driven by my Ultimate, despite different impedance ( the Caldera is 60 ohms ). What I like besides the excellent performance is the wonderful variety of tubes that can be rolled!

 

[Nick Ryan]

I now have 3 ZMF hps - Auteur, Verite Closed, and Caldera. They are all well driven by my Ultimate, despite different impedance ( the Caldera is 60 ohms ). What I like besides the excellent performance is the wonderful variety of tubes that can be rolled!

ZMF headphones all sound great with the UltimatE, which do you prefer from your selection David?

 

[UntilThen]

My comments on the 807 tubes. With WE 420A as driver, my unlikely pair of Radiotron and Sylvania 807 sound wholesome with fullness of midrange and bass. The Western Electric driver also highlight the high frequencies. A most pleasing listening experience. 807 tubes are cheap enough to be my daily power tubes.

On the 6as7 amp, I've been using Raytheon 5751 and a GE 6BX7gt with the 5998 switch on and it's as electrifying as the 5998 tube. This amp can use 6as7, 5998 and 6BX7 / 6BL7 as power tube.

 

[VanHai]

I have questioned my decision to buy GEC KT66. It is a big, beautiful tube, sounds very clear, clean, airy and elegant. But I could not find any drivers that gave it a thumping, heavy-footed sound. It hits just like a welterweight, not a heavy weight, until I find this short little dude.


I do not have ECC35, but Westinghouse 5691 (RCA made) really delivers and elevates the GEC KT66 to the top tiers that belongs to EL39, EL38, EL3N etc...

 

[mordy]

I have questioned my decision to buy GEC KT66. It is a big, beautiful tube, sounds very clear, clean, airy and elegant. But I could not find any drivers that gave it a thumping, heavy-footed sound. It hits just like a welterweight, not a heavy weight, until I find this short little dude.


I do not have ECC35, but Westinghouse 5691 (RCA made) really delivers and elevates the GEC KT66 to the top tiers that belongs to EL39, EL38, EL3N etc...

It’s all about synergy. That’s one reason I don’t sell tubes I don’t use - you never know when it will be the right one in a certain combination.

 

[David A Silva]

ZMF headphones all sound great with the UltimatE, which do you prefer from your selection David?

The Caldera and Verite Closed are tied for first place Nick. A bit more bass presence in the VC, a bit more upper midrange & treble in the Caldera. Imaging good in both, just a bit more vertical height in the Caldera, the Caldera timbre sounds more even by a bit.

 

[UntilThen]

A better bottlehead crack, so to speak, hehe.

A better Bottlehead Crack is an understatement. This 6as7 amp has got my attention now with a single 6BX7 as power tube and the 5998 bias switch is not on. It sounds great with the switch on or off. In the ON position, more current flows to the tube.

I could not imagine a single 6BX7 sound as solid as a 5998 in this amp. I won't miss the 5998 now if the 6BX7 sound this good. 6BL7 too. Part of the reason is the gain but everything in the music is elevated.

6as7 mu is 2 ; 5998 mu is 5 ; 6BX7 mu is 10 ; 6BL7 mu is 15.

With 6BX7, it drives Susvara with the volume at 11 am.

 

[HannaLevy]

Buying a homemade amplifier on eBay is always an adventure. Before making a decision, it is better to study the seller's reviews and ratings. Some homemade products can be great, but there's also the risk of ending up with something that doesn't live up to expectations.

 

[David A Silva]

Buying a homemade amplifier on eBay is always an adventure. Before making a decision, it is better to study the seller's reviews and ratings. Some homemade products can be great, but there's also the risk of ending up with something that doesn't live up to expectations.

Please read 642 messages about this amp. I like home made baked goods too.

 

[UntilThen]

Buying a homemade amplifier on eBay is always an adventure. Before making a decision, it is better to study the seller's reviews and ratings. Some homemade products can be great, but there's also the risk of ending up with something that doesn't live up to expectations.

Except I know the builder personally and have tested all these amps. There must be 20 owners of Ultimate now and all are full of praise for the amp and the builder.

I don't blame you for making such a statement about buying an amp from eBay but this is a proven tube amp. Eric choose to sell on eBay and his reviews and ratings are solid.

 

[mordy]

Except I know the builder personally and have tested all these amps. There must be 20 owners of Ultimate now and all are full of praise for the amp and the builder.

I don't blame you for making such a statement about buying an amp from eBay but this is a proven tube amp. Eric choose to sell on eBay and his reviews and ratings are solid.

In this case it is a real great adventure - we chanced upon a builder with decades of experience who builds a superlative product at a very reasonable price. Because of the versatility of this amp we have all embarked on great tube rolling adventures, often with lesser known tubes that are inexpensive and bring great results in this amp.

 

[Deleeh]

A better Bottlehead Crack is an understatement. This 6as7 amp has got my attention now with a single 6BX7 as power tube and the 5998 bias switch is not on. It sounds great with the switch on or off. In the ON position, more current flows to the tube.

I could not imagine a single 6BX7 sound as solid as a 5998 in this amp. I won't miss the 5998 now if the 6BX7 sound this good. 6BL7 too. Part of the reason is the gain but everything in the music is elevated.

6as7 mu is 2 ; 5998 mu is 5 ; 6BX7 mu is 10 ; 6BL7 mu is 15.

With 6BX7, it drives Susvara with the volume at 11 am.

Hello,
I actually still have some 6as7g tubes left.
5998 IBM,6080 Mullard (2 pairs,one of them has the same charge and is ultra rare)
6080 GE,CSF Thomson (CSF is my favourite tube on Euforia)
7236 I don't know if they would run on Eric's amplifier.
6AS7G Rca and Svetlana you can still get quite well.
I have them there too.
I could still get my hands on a mega rare Tung Sol 6AS7G pair.
The amplifier could be worthwhile for me instead of the Super Ultimate.
Apart from the 6BX7, there are other options that would also find their way into the Ultigreg.
I also like the fact that it only needs one 6AS7G tube.
I would actually already have most of it there for long and good listening sessions, including driver tubes.
The Junior chassis would appeal to me even more with dual cap.
I really have to think about it when the Euforia is sold.
Unfortunately, the sale is a long time coming.

 

[UntilThen]

Hello,
I actually still have some 6as7g tubes left.
5998 IBM,6080 Mullard (2 pairs,one of them has the same charge and is ultra rare)
6080 GE,CSF Thomson (CSF is my favourite tube on Euforia)
7236 I don't know if they would run on Eric's amplifier.
6AS7G Rca and Svetlana you can still get quite well.
I have them there too.
I could still get my hands on a mega rare Tung Sol 6AS7G pair.
The amplifier could be worthwhile for me instead of the Super Ultimate.
Apart from the 6BX7, there are other options that would also find their way into the Ultigreg.
I also like the fact that it only needs one 6AS7G tube.
I would actually already have most of it there for long and good listening sessions, including driver tubes.
The Junior chassis would appeal to me even more with dual cap.
I really have to think about it when the Euforia is sold.
Unfortunately, the sale is a long time coming.

Using Raytheon 5751 Windmill, GE 6BL7gta and RCA 6BW4 now. Also using HD800. Gain is now very high. Volume knob is now only 9 am but what a sound !

This is going to be another accidental discovery. 6BX7 and 6BL7 sounding great in this 6AS7 amp. I think this amp is not going back to Eric.

Fyi, I've used Mullard 6080, Bendix 6080wb and Tung Sol 5998. All sounding excellent. I observe that this Mini 6AS7 like the Mini Ultimate is more forward and mid centric than the Super Ultimate. I found this to be excellent for vocals. Right there in the middle smack against your face. There's more depth and height in the soundstage whereas the Super Ultimate is wider.

I just did an A/B of the 6as7 amp with the Super Ultimate, the latter has WE 420A, Radiotron 807, Tesla EZ81. Both sounded excellent but what I said above is right on the money.

 

[rollinbr]

This showed up today!!! My SuperSilver SupremE!

The only bad thing is my right foot has been giving me problems the last couple of weeks. Went from plantar fasciitis last year to a pain running down the outside top of foot and up where the Peroneus Tendons are (edited).... So I'm leaving the UPS store, stepping off a 6 inch curb, holding a fairly heavy box, SuperSilver SupremE, with my left foot and I hear and feel a loud pop in my right ankle...Oh that's not good. Came home and unboxed SupremE as quickly as I could.... Been listening to a few songs with the Psvane 2A3 tubes... Still have a few errands to run this afternoon... Walking gingerly on my right foot for now but I know I'm going to have to have my ankle checked out....

 

[David A Silva]

This showed up today!!! My SuperSilver SupremE!

The only bad thing is my right foot has been giving me problems the last couple of weeks. Went from plantar fasciitis last year to a pain running down the outside top of foot and up where the Calcaneal Tendon is.... So I'm leaving the UPS store, stepping off a 6 inch curb, holding a fairly heavy box with my left foot and I hear and feel a loud pop in my right ankle...Oh that's not good. Came home and unboxed SupremE as quickly as I could.... Been listening to a few songs with the Psvane 2A3 tubes... Still have a few errands to run this afternoon... Walking gingerly on my right foot for now but I know I'm going to have to have my ankle checked out....

Congrats on your 2nd McChanson amp, the SuperSilver SupremE! Beautiful looking piece of gear!
Sorry about your foot, I hope it heals up quickly and is not serious.