[roderickvd]

You’ll have to wait and see which tubes he sends you. It varies depending on what he currently has his hands on. From what I’ve seen the stock ones are more than decent — good NOS ones just not the exotic expensive ones.

So share photos of your hybrid once you have it! To be honest I don’t think the pictures on Etsy are so great, so am definitely interested to see how it looks in the wild.

 

[andrewchoppa]

Give him another month or two I'm entering month 4, but I know it'll be worth it if I just let the man work. He must be terribly busy, though I can tell he loves it.

This is my first full on tube amp. I have a 5w @ 30 ohm Vincent khv111. A hybrid. It sounds great with everything from my Grados SR80s to my AKG K240 DF 600 ohm. It bogs down on the DFs. Have to dime the pots for full volume, but I just leave it at 3 o'clock. They need the voltage of the otl. My Sennheiser hd 6xx and hd 535 both sound syrupy on it.(in a good way, lots of detail, still) It's a laid back amp. I changed out the Chinese tube with old American tube I pulled out of a 30's radio console. Can't remember the make. Difference was night and day. Running it with a Schiit Modi 3+. That's my only experience with hybrids.

You have a hell of a collection.

 

[andrewchoppa]

Give him another month or two I'm entering month 4, but I know it'll be worth it if I just let the man work. He must be terribly busy, though I can tell he loves it.

This is my first full on tube amp. I have a 5w @ 30 ohm Vincent khv111. A hybrid. It sounds great with everything from my Grados SR80s to my AKG K240 DF 600 ohm. It bogs down on the DFs. Have to dime the pots for full volume, but I just leave it at 3 o'clock. They need the voltage of the otl. My Sennheiser hd 6xx and hd 535 both sound syrupy on it.(in a good way, lots of detail, still) It's a laid back amp. I changed out the Chinese tube with old American tube I pulled out of a 30's radio console. Can't remember the make. Difference was night and day. Running it with a Schiit Modi 3+. That's my only experience with hybrids.

You have a hell of a collection.

Haha - will do. I began in Mid March. He said it;s just about ready for photos (i asked for a red box (i assume he'd stain it but he said recently he was 'waiting' for the red box). Hopefully shipping this week.......... ANd very excited (did I say that already??). Your Vincent looks goo d too. I sent a pic of gear without the Eufonika (of course) and Geshelli.

 

[andrewchoppa]

You’ll have to wait and see which tubes he sends you. It varies depending on what he currently has his hands on. From what I’ve seen the stock ones are more than decent — good NOS ones just not the exotic expensive ones.

So share photos of your hybrid once you have it! To be honest I don’t think the pictures on Etsy are so great, so am definitely interested to see how it looks in the wild.

Thanks for advice - yes - i'll just play with stock for a while. And will it play nice as a pre-amp to Cayin or Monolith/A30 do you think?
And will definitely send photos and review. Attached is his plan for it (new design apparently). I added an XLR jack at front.

 

[LobalWarming]

Hi all,

Loving reading the Eufunika thread!!

I commissioned Wieslaw to make a hybrid amp 2 months ago and he said he is working on a new design - very excited as I believe it's just about finished.

He is using 6SN7 tubes (not sure of brand). I'm new to tube amps (apart from a XDuoo 602 which I actually enjoy as part of a separate cheap stack) and completely new to tube-rolling.

I have Sendy Peacocks (50ohm, 103 db sensitivity) and the hybrid is what he recommended (not good with OTLs - I know). Also Abyss Diana V2s (42ohm, 93 db).

2 questions - are the stock 6SN7 tubes good as they are or will I need/want to tube roll? If so, what are best variants - I listen mainly to rock, metal and other stuff a little bit.

Yes, you will need to roll. It's the rule around here. The 6SN7 has possibly the greatest rolling variety. And the other rule is... you must roll them all.

Just be thankful Wieslaw is building you a hybrid - the rolling combo of driver and output tubes becomes an exponential task. A very very enjoyable task, but still...

My fav 6SN7 list - may not be yours - another reason you must roll them all. But before listing the list, there's another rule - there is no Best 6SN7. Only different flavours that we may enjoy more than others. Or, like me, you enjoy experiencing many different flavours just for the experience.

Check the Big 6SN7 reference thread for the big picture and endless details: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-reference-6sn7-thread.117677/

Basic 6SN7 must-or-could-have:

40s RCA Grey Glass 6SN7/VT-231 - not the most resolving bottle in the family, but great for smoky jazz club vibe.
40s Sylvania VT-231 - military version of the 6SN7 - very good detail and dynamics - late 40s civilian versions are great as well.
40s Sylvania 6SN7W - silly priced, but great tone, detail and soundstage
(Cheapskate hint: Get a 7N7 to 6SN7 adapter. The 7N7 is a 6SN7 with a Loctal base - a base Sylvania created, but didn't really catch on. However... select 7N7 "Frankies" have the same plate structure as the 6SN7W at a quarter the cost of less)
50s Sylvania, Hytron/CBS or Raytheon 6SN7WGT - The canny vintage 6SN7W buyer's choice. I have a few that compare very well to the grail-priced Sylvania 6SN7W.
50s Tungsol 6SN7GT/GTA/GTB - These are still reasonably cheap and offer an enjoyable listen - even the less praised GTB version is great - worth having in the hoard collection.
pre-'56 Fotons 6N8S - ribbed plate are the most desirable - but those are scarce now. For reasons that only @bcowen and his Foton warehouse can explain.
40s Ken-Rad VT-231 - feature big, powerful bottom end, mids are a little veiled compared to other 6SN7s.
40s National Union Black Glass VT-231/6SN7 - sweet liquid tone.

Luxury Consumables Section:
Brimar CV1988 (6SN7) - really sweet tone, great soundstage with not-so-great prices. Clear and Black glass versions.

GEC/MOV/Marconi B65 - A superb 6SN7 for the audio aristocracy.

Mullard ECC32 - 6SN7 pin-compatible - but higher heater current, 900mA vs 6SN7 600mA. It's a rich, rich tube with a rich price. (ECC31 is the same, but has shared heater like a 6N7) And yes there are 6N7 to 6SN7 adapters.

40s Sylvania 6SN7W - again it's pricey so it gets the luxo listing too, Tall bottle version is more luxo priced. Short bottle edition is still very good and pricey.

Melz 1578 - Soviet era special 6SN7 - formerly a good value - now scarce - very unique presentation - with good detail - prefer the 50s vintage. Get brighter and harsher with each decade. Not worth the current price when just over a year ago good samples sold for $50-$75 and now $300+ for reasons that only an insane war can explain.

40s Tungsol Round Plate VT-231 (6SN7) - were considered the creme-de-la-tube a decade ago. Wonderful robust presentation. The 6SN7 version of their 6F8G/VT-99... yes, you can get 6F8G to 6SN7 adapters...

RCA/GE/CBS 5692 - Some go gaga over this tube - super duper overbuilt 6SN7.

Sylvania 'Bad Boy' 6SN7 - a bit or a lot over-priced. Shares similar construction to the late 40s production - but the 3 hole plate variant in the '51-'52 spawned an entire eBay hype marketing business. It's a very good 6SN7 with a stunning marketing department.

That's just a taster list. Within each generation of 6SN7s there's variety between the same manufacturer over a few production years. Must collect them all.

Happy rolling! And comeback for the Twin 6J5-To-6SN7 adapter course in the fall.

And will Dianas work with tube amp as a pre-out to another SS amp with decent power (I have Cayin IHA-6, Topping A30 Pro and Monolith 887)?

Dianas sound magnificent with Cayin and some EQ bass and Sendys sound great on anything (including my Ifi Go Blu). Current Dac is SMSL DO200MK2 and have ordered Geshelli JDac2 with AKM 4493.

Thanks in advance.

Pre-amp out is a stock feature in all Wieslaw's amps. So yes, you can drive a high current solid sand amp. Just have to be careful with gain-staging. Two pots are better than one? Maybe...

Pre-out will be on my custom hybrid I've been discussing with Wieslaw. Of course, mine won't be built before yours, since I'm in no rush - still enjoying my H5, Special Cap Roller edition. Wieslaw is a gifted builder - especially for us who need to save money on an amp so we can buy all the tubes!

 

[andrewchoppa]

Yes, you will need to roll. It's the rule around here. The 6SN7 has possibly the greatest rolling variety. And the other rule is... you must roll them all.

Just be thankful Wieslaw is building you a hybrid - the rolling combo of driver and output tubes becomes an exponential task. A very very enjoyable task, but still...

My fav 6SN7 list - may not be yours - another reason you must roll them all. But before listing the list, there's another rule - there is no Best 6SN7. Only different flavours that we may enjoy more than others. Or, like me, you enjoy experiencing many different flavours just for the experience.

Check the Big 6SN7 reference thread for the big picture and endless details: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-reference-6sn7-thread.117677/

Basic 6SN7 must-or-could-have:

40s RCA Grey Glass 6SN7/VT-231 - not the most resolving bottle in the family, but great for smoky jazz club vibe.
40s Sylvania VT-231 - military version of the 6SN7 - very good detail and dynamics - late 40s civilian versions are great as well.
40s Sylvania 6SN7W - silly priced, but great tone, detail and soundstage
(Cheapskate hint: Get a 7N7 to 6SN7 adapter. The 7N7 is a 6SN7 with a Loctal base - a base Sylvania created, but didn't really catch on. However... select 7N7 "Frankies" have the same plate structure as the 6SN7W at a quarter the cost of less)
50s Sylvania, Hytron/CBS or Raytheon 6SN7WGT - The canny vintage 6SN7W buyer's choice. I have a few that compare very well to the grail-priced Sylvania 6SN7W.
50s Tungsol 6SN7GT/GTA/GTB - These are still reasonably cheap and offer an enjoyable listen - even the less praised GTB version is great - worth having in the hoard collection.
pre-'56 Fotons 6N8S - ribbed plate are the most desirable - but those are scarce now. For reasons that only @bcowen and his Foton warehouse can explain.
40s Ken-Rad VT-231 - feature big, powerful bottom end, mids are a little veiled compared to other 6SN7s.
40s National Union Black Glass VT-231/6SN7 - sweet liquid tone.

Luxury Consumables Section:
Brimar CV1988 (6SN7) - really sweet tone, great soundstage with not-so-great prices. Clear and Black glass versions.

GEC/MOV/Marconi B65 - A superb 6SN7 for the audio aristocracy.

Mullard ECC32 - 6SN7 pin-compatible - but higher heater current, 900mA vs 6SN7 600mA. It's a rich, rich tube with a rich price. (ECC31 is the same, but has shared heater like a 6N7) And yes there are 6N7 to 6SN7 adapters.

40s Sylvania 6SN7W - again it's pricey so it gets the luxo listing too, Tall bottle version is more luxo priced. Short bottle edition is still very good and pricey.

Melz 1578 - Soviet era special 6SN7 - formerly a good value - now scarce - very unique presentation - with good detail - prefer the 50s vintage. Get brighter and harsher with each decade. Not worth the current price when just over a year ago good samples sold for $50-$75 and now $300+ for reasons that only an insane war can explain.

40s Tungsol Round Plate VT-231 (6SN7) - were considered the creme-de-la-tube a decade ago. Wonderful robust presentation. The 6SN7 version of their 6F8G/VT-99... yes, you can get 6F8G to 6SN7 adapters...

RCA/GE/CBS 5692 - Some go gaga over this tube - super duper overbuilt 6SN7.

Sylvania 'Bad Boy' 6SN7 - a bit or a lot over-priced. Shares similar construction to the late 40s production - but the 3 hole plate variant in the '51-'52 spawned an entire eBay hype marketing business. It's a very good 6SN7 with a stunning marketing department.

That's just a taster list. Within each generation of 6SN7s there's variety between the same manufacturer over a few production years. Must collect them all.

Happy rolling! And comeback for the Twin 6J5-To-6SN7 adapter course in the fall.


Pre-amp out is a stock feature in all Wieslaw's amps. So yes, you can drive a high current solid sand amp. Just have to be careful with gain-staging. Two pots are better than one? Maybe...

Pre-out will be on my custom hybrid I've been discussing with Wieslaw. Of course, mine won't be built before yours, since I'm in no rush - still enjoying my H5, Special Cap Roller edition. Wieslaw is a gifted builder - especially for us who need to save money on an amp so we can buy all the tubes!

Jesu Christo man - that is fookin insane!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for your extremely detailed response - I just purchased EVERY single one - cost a tad over $158,000 AUD but damn worth it!!!!!!!!!
But seriously - awesome tube-food for thought - I'm having a ball with this hobby. I think I may have an addictive personality...........

I will start looking up some of these bad boys when the Euf arrives - and gain-staging - what is that? IE how do you set each volume? And if I add my SMSL, it has volume as well............ But it will most likely be Euf into (hopefully if I sell my Topping and Monolith) a Geshelli A3Pro (gets insane reviews) which is 2w but very powerful apparently. And keep Cayin and sell SMSL for Eversolo DMP-A6....Did I mention I may have an addictive personality...............

 

[andrewchoppa]

Are these any good ? $90 AUD with 30 hrs of use.......

 

[mordy]

Are these any good ? $90 AUD with 30 hrs of use.......

I have a pair of those - found them syrupy and slow; there are much better alternatives.

 

[Jimmyblues1959]

Give him another month or two I'm entering month 4, but I know it'll be worth it if I just let the man work. He must be terribly busy, though I can tell he loves it.

I was lucky with my Eufonika H4. It was built and shipped quickly. The problem was that shipping took place during the Christmas Holidays, so it sat in U.S. customs for 6 weeks before he it was finally delivered. No fault whatsoever of Eufonika.

Whenever you order a custom built piece of audio gear you're usually in for a wait. What's more, the covid 19 debacle has only made matters worse with the supply chain issues that it has caused. I ordered a DNA Starlett in January of 2022, which was due to be delivered in November of 2022. I'm still waiting 17 months later. I spoke to Donald North a few weeks ago and he said that my Starlett should be ready sometime in July of 2023. Donald not only stressed how much covid has disrupted the supply chain, but also how it has had a serious effect on quality control of the parts used in the manufacture of audio gear. Many of the parts don't measure up to spec and have to be discarded. This delay issue has become a common problem with boutique audio manufacturers (who are also oftentimes one person operations).

On the positive side, DNA is a great company, building some of the best sounding headphone amplifiers available at any price. So hopefully, my Starlett arrives in July. Best of luck with your Eufonika gear.

My H4 OTL is an outstanding headphone amplifier for higher impedance dynamic headphones, and at a bargain price.

 

[LobalWarming]

Are these any good ? $90 AUD with 30 hrs of use.......

Those aren't the Tungsol of yore. Or even New Jersey. But New Sensor production from Saratov, Russia.

Not in the same league as good vintage 6SN7s.

These Radiotron AU 6SN7s (built on RCA tooling) would be a better bet - for less: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/115805671148

Or these Canadian Marconi (RCA): https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/195803599931

Or go up-market with Sylvi 6SN7WGT pair: https://www.ebay.com/itm/394652885264

Also... you might want to talk to Wieslaw about using a single 6SN7 as a driver, rather than burning a pair of pricey tubes at-a-time and living the audiophile curse of tube matching nervosa.

I went back and forth with Wieslaw about the the choice for dual 6SN7s driving a solid sand output. Made little sense to my cheapskate sensibilities. We or he - it was one of us - concluded a single driver will use less feedback and probably sound better anyhow. My Eufonika hybrid will use a single dual section driver. Or a pair of single section tubes, like 6J5/L63.

For me, I prefer one great 6SN7 to a pair of meh ones. Anyhow, there's many that will extol the virtues of burning a pair of vintage driver tubes at-a-time. However, none of them will be purchasing pairs of tubes for you to burn.

 

[mordy]

Those aren't the Tungsol of yore. Or even New Jersey. But New Sensor production from Saratov, Russia.

Not in the same league as good vintage 6SN7s.

These Radiotron AU 6SN7s (built on RCA tooling) would be a better bet - for less: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/115805671148

Or these Canadian Marconi (RCA): https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/195803599931

Or go up-market with Sylvi 6SN7WGT pair: https://www.ebay.com/itm/394652885264

Also... you might want to talk to Wieslaw about using a single 6SN7 as a driver, rather than burning a pair of pricey tubes at-a-time and living the audiophile curse of tube matching nervosa.

I went back and forth with Wieslaw about the the choice for dual 6SN7s driving a solid sand output. Made little sense to my cheapskate sensibilities. We or he - it was one of us - concluded a single driver will use less feedback and probably sound better anyhow. My Eufonika hybrid will use a single dual section driver. Or a pair of single section tubes, like 6J5/L63.

For me, I prefer one great 6SN7 to a pair of meh ones. Anyhow, there's many that will extol the virtues of burning a pair of vintage driver tubes at-a-time. However, none of them will be purchasing pairs of tubes for you to burn.

It seems to me that there is no need for two dual triodes at all - one is fine for both channels. I don't really know why so many amps are designed for dual triode drivers - maybe because it is more symmetrical and looks better?
However, a 6J5 tube (6J5/6J5G/6J5GT) is 1/2 of a 6SN7 tube. Experience has shown that two 6J5 family tubes sound better than one 6SN7. You need a dual adapter 2 x 6J5 to 6SN7 but the 6J5 family tubes in general are much cheaper than 6SN7 tubes and you can get great sound for much less money than the coveted 6SN7 tubes.

 

[andrewchoppa]

I have a pair of those - found them syrupy and slow; there are much better alternatives.

Thanks for the reply - they're off my christmas card list!!

 

[andrewchoppa]

Those aren't the Tungsol of yore. Or even New Jersey. But New Sensor production from Saratov, Russia.

Not in the same league as good vintage 6SN7s.

These Radiotron AU 6SN7s (built on RCA tooling) would be a better bet - for less: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/115805671148

Or these Canadian Marconi (RCA): https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/195803599931

Or go up-market with Sylvi 6SN7WGT pair: https://www.ebay.com/itm/394652885264

Also... you might want to talk to Wieslaw about using a single 6SN7 as a driver, rather than burning a pair of pricey tubes at-a-time and living the audiophile curse of tube matching nervosa.

I went back and forth with Wieslaw about the the choice for dual 6SN7s driving a solid sand output. Made little sense to my cheapskate sensibilities. We or he - it was one of us - concluded a single driver will use less feedback and probably sound better anyhow. My Eufonika hybrid will use a single dual section driver. Or a pair of single section tubes, like 6J5/L63.

For me, I prefer one great 6SN7 to a pair of meh ones. Anyhow, there's many that will extol the virtues of burning a pair of vintage driver tubes at-a-time. However, none of them will be purchasing pairs of tubes for you to burn.

Thanks again for time and advice man! It's probably too late for me so I'll take it as is and get the pairs. I've sunk enough money into this hobby already, and I'm probably only 1/2 way through my journey.....IS there an end haha???????????

 

[andrewchoppa]

I was lucky with my Eufonika H4. It was built and shipped quickly. The problem was that shipping took place during the Christmas Holidays, so it sat in U.S. customs for 6 weeks before he it was finally delivered. No fault whatsoever of Eufonika.

Whenever you order a custom built piece of audio gear you're usually in for a wait. What's more, the covid 19 debacle has only made matters worse with the supply chain issues that it has caused. I ordered a DNA Starlett in January of 2022, which was due to be delivered in November of 2022. I'm still waiting 17 months later. I spoke to Donald North a few weeks ago and he said that my Starlett should be ready sometime in July of 2023. Donald not only stressed how much covid has disrupted the supply chain, but also how it has had a serious effect on quality control of the parts used in the manufacture of audio gear. Many of the parts don't measure up to spec and have to be discarded. This delay issue has become a common problem with boutique audio manufacturers (who are also oftentimes one person operations).

On the positive side, DNA is a great company, building some of the best sounding headphone amplifiers available at any price. So hopefully, my Starlett arrives in July. Best of luck with your Eufonika gear.

My H4 OTL is an outstanding headphone amplifier for higher impedance dynamic headphones, and at a bargain price.

Thanks for the info mate!! Wow - that's insane, so 19 months and maybe then some......I knew when I spoke to Wieslaw that there would be a long wait (well 2-3 months is short compared to you). Also ordered my Geshelli DAC at the same time and it will be at least as long. All worth it when it's hand-made though. Thanks and enjoy the DNA - I'll look them up (actually no I won't as I'll no doubt ending up wanting one haha!!).

 

[andrewchoppa]

Thanks for the info mate!! Wow - that's insane, so 19 months and maybe then some......I knew when I spoke to Wieslaw that there would be a long wait (well 2-3 months is short compared to you). Also ordered my Geshelli DAC at the same time and it will be at least as long. All worth it when it's hand-made though. Thanks and enjoy the DNA - I'll look them up (actually no I won't as I'll no doubt ending up wanting one haha!!).

I was lucky with my Eufonika H4. It was built and shipped quickly. The problem was that shipping took place during the Christmas Holidays, so it sat in U.S. customs for 6 weeks before he it was finally delivered. No fault whatsoever of Eufonika.

Whenever you order a custom built piece of audio gear you're usually in for a wait. What's more, the covid 19 debacle has only made matters worse with the supply chain issues that it has caused. I ordered a DNA Starlett in January of 2022, which was due to be delivered in November of 2022. I'm still waiting 17 months later. I spoke to Donald North a few weeks ago and he said that my Starlett should be ready sometime in July of 2023. Donald not only stressed how much covid has disrupted the supply chain, but also how it has had a serious effect on quality control of the parts used in the manufacture of audio gear. Many of the parts don't measure up to spec and have to be discarded. This delay issue has become a common problem with boutique audio manufacturers (who are also oftentimes one person operations).

On the positive side, DNA is a great company, building some of the best sounding headphone amplifiers available at any price. So hopefully, my Starlett arrives in July. Best of luck with your Eufonika gear.

My H4 OTL is an outstanding headphone amplifier for higher impedance dynamic headphones, and at a bargain price.

Oh damn-I accidentally typed in DNA Starlett and by mistake, Google took me to the web-page (this is evil magic....) I have seen these before and had to get a towel to mop up my drool...........It is SWEET!!!!! And no doubt and end-game amp!!!! Enjoy!!!!!!!!!