[connieflyer]

I use the Oppo PM1 with no problem whatsoever. Like to switch from that to the Senn 800 as my main phones now. Currently using the 6bl7's as power and an Nos RCA 6N7 for drivers and have been enjoying this for a few weeks now. Made a small error in judgement the other day, was going to try my KR 231's again as drivers and one end of one of the boxes came loose. Normally I have always held the boxes flat, one small mistake, just once, now no longer have a pair. Made a lovely sound on the floor, pieces easy to locate as the glass was black! So if anyone is looking for one replacement I have one.

 

[LoryWiv]

Hi Elise fans.

I'm sure this question has been asked before, so apologies, but having now found a wonderful headphone amp in the Elise (well, once it's been repaired anyway - that's another story), I am researching headphones that might be a better match than my LCD2s.

I find the combination of Elise and the LCD2s to be a great match, but I am acutely aware of the general consensus that OTL amps are better suited to higher impedance cans and may not have the current/power best suited for planars.

So, if anyone has any suggestions for the ultimate (open-backed) headphone for the Elise (notwithstanding personal preference of course), to be added to my demo shortlist at under £1700 ($2000) (new), I'd be most grateful to hear them.

Currently I have the following:

- Sennheiser HD800s
- Grado GS2000e/3000e
- ZMF Auteur

Any others that ought to be on my list?

Thanks for your thoughts.

Absolutely Auteur, that HP is my daily driver with Elise and I still find it to be a phenomenal pairing.

In that price range I would also consider Focal Clear Mg. Been reading good things about it.

 

[connieflyer]

Good Morning LoryWiv, I see that you also like the Auteur a lot of folks on here do. I just looked them over and look very nice indeed. I was drawn to the LTD Auteur Bocote, of course no where around here to try them, so since I have known you a long time and trust your judgement, was wondering if you could tell me how they compare sonically to other phones in this price range.. I appreciate it, thanks in advance. I have the Senn 800, Oppo PM1 and these that I no longer use and will be putting up for sale, Headfiman 560 and 400i still.

​

 

[LoryWiv]

Good Morning LoryWiv, I see that you also like the Auteur a lot of folks on here do. I just looked them over and look very nice indeed. I was drawn to the LTD Auteur Bocote, of course no where around here to try them, so since I have known you a long time and trust your judgement, was wondering if you could tell me how they compare sonically to other phones in this price range.. I appreciate it, thanks in advance. I have the Senn 800, Oppo PM1 and these that I no longer use and will be putting up for sale, Headfiman 560 and 400i still.

​

Hi CF, and thank you for the kind words. I hope you are well. I think of Auteur as neutral with just a tad of warmth, and particularly strong in the midrange. Some find the treble sibilant, I thought that briefly but after 30-50 hours of use I now think treble is spot on, extended but never overly bright or fatiguing. Auteur is NOT a bass cannon (which i don't care for) but can and does reproduce bass splendidly when it is present, just not accentuated.

The other thing I love about Auteur, in addition to it's handsome looks and intrinsic sound quality, is how well it partners with Elise in my tube rolling journey. I have not once been able to make Auteur sound "bad" (except on truly horrible source recordings) but it does change substantially as I roll tubes in Elise, making it a great companion.

If I were looking now the only other HP in this price range I would look at is Focal Clear Mg. Several of the Kennertons catch my eye at times but still not sure what to make of them, and also the ZMF Verite but that is quite a bit pricier.

Sorry I can't offer more direct comparisons but Auteur has damped down my upgraditis and is currently the only full-sized can I own. That speaks volumes right there. Good luck in your search, my friend!

 

[Karlsushi]

There is only one ZMF dealer here in the UK and therefore only one opportunity to demo, but he does have a set of Auteurs which are available for home demo.

He asks for the full retail price as a deposit (currently £1600 GBP), so it's not without risk, but I have already made contact and plan to take up the demo offer in a few weeks when funds allow.

Looking forward to hear what they can do with Elise.

Aiming to demo Sen HD800s and the Grados and now also the Audio Technicas and possibly the Focals too following the recommendations, so thanks for that.

Someone mentioned before about these all being fairly 'neutral' headphones. I am fine with that. I figure the Elise imparts it's own tube warmth and can also be tuned using different tubes, so a neutral pair of cans seems a fine way to go.

Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[LoryWiv]

@Karlsushi I look forward to your comparative listening impressions!

 

[Karlsushi]

Happy to share them @LoryWiv

Currently I own LCD2s and some Focal Elegias for closed-back duties, so they will be my starting point for comparison. I do love the LCD2s and it is only really reading-up that suggests the amp might not be perfect for them. The Elegias are perhaps a little dry for my tastes, but I just use them with a Chord Mojo as my 'lying in bed falling to sleep' rig, so not the main set-up and they are still very impressive on detail, great build quality and super comfy.

The only other relevant cans I owned were some Audio Technica ATH W5000's a little while back (the raffinato wooden ones). I found them to be really nice and open for closed-backs with nice airy treble, but the bass was completely none-existent. As mentioned, I tend to prefer a fairly neutral/accurate response so I'm by no means a bass-head, but when I say none-existent, I mean, I couldn't even make out double bass notes properly when listening to jazz, let alone electronic bass. A slightly odd headphone, to the point that I wondered if there was something wrong with mine. Needless to say, they didn't last long and I'm a little reluctant to try ATs now for that reason, but I always try to keep an open mind.

I spent a long time looking for the right headphone amp for the LCD2s, largely because I forked out for new LCD2 drivers after one of them died. But I have started to wonder if I was looking at it the wrong way around i.e. I now have a lovely headamp in the form of the Elise and should probably be looking at getting the right headphones for the amp. I think my problem with the LCD2s is that I discovered tubes at the wrong time for them and didn't really want solid state, which I suppose would have been easier in terms of driving them.

Hybrid probably would have been the best compromise, but I fell in love with the Elise and also wanted an amp with preamp outputs so it could fit into my speaker rig which reduced options a bit.

Anyway, I'm very interested to hear if any of the headphones on the shortlist are worth the money as an upgrade for the LCD2s. It will need to take something pretty special as I am really enjoying the LCD2s with Elise, but we all know how it goes...

 

[connieflyer]

I have been using the Sennheiser 800 as my main phones for several years. Just tried the 800s but found it not as enjoyable as the 800. Also the Oppo PM 1 also is excellent with my AE amp. I have used the Senn 700 650 and hifiman 400i that were good but not in the same league as the 800.

 

[Aquileolus]

Hi Folks, really new to the tube world, I'm sure this has been asked for a ton of times, but can anyone please give me some suggestion between Euforia and Elise? Currently Euforia is $650 more than the Elise MK2, is Euforia is an straight upgrade from Elise? And on what circumstance I should choose Elise over Euforia?
I mainly use Hifiman Arya and ZMF Verite Closed, and mainly listen to female vocal / pops, I prefer euphonic relaxing sound, so I choose Feliks over ZMF pendant, but between Euforia and Elise I'm a little struggling because I heard that Euforia is brighter than Elise but also a big step up from Elise, so if budget allowed, which one I should go with?
Thanks guys in advance, any suggestion will be helpfule

 

[ThanatosVI]

Hi Folks, really new to the tube world, I'm sure this has been asked for a ton of times, but can anyone please give me some suggestion between Euforia and Elise? Currently Euforia is $650 more than the Elise MK2, is Euforia is an straight upgrade from Elise? And on what circumstance I should choose Elise over Euforia?
I mainly use Hifiman Arya and ZMF Verite Closed, and mainly listen to female vocal / pops, I prefer euphonic relaxing sound, so I choose Feliks over ZMF pendant, but between Euforia and Elise I'm a little struggling because I heard that Euforia is brighter than Elise but also a big step up from Elise, so if budget allowed, which one I should go with?
Thanks guys in advance, any suggestion will be helpfule

The Euforia has better detail retrieval and is the most neutral/solid state like of the lineup.

The Elise has a warmer tubier sound at the cost of some detail.

Guess this is a matter of preference.
To "analyze" music the Euforia is the better fit though.
Ultimately it's a matter of preference.

 

[Renexx]

I have the Euphoria AE which might be a little step up from the stock Euphoria. I listen with zmf Aeolus and VO and it's never bright just neutral and "wet" sound with stock Tubes. With some tube rolling you can make it warm and romantic sounding like the Elise might be with stock Tubes. Even with warm tubes it's never goey sounding even with warmish ZMF headphones.
Using the VC you will definitely appreciate the added detail retrieval and dynamics of the Euphoria because you can really pick up the changes easily if you switch tubes. Buying some nice NOS tubes will hurt your bank account much more than buying the amp itself because you will always be curious how that other tubes might sound like and the nice 6sn7 and 6080/5998 tubes really costs alot now.
I guess the Arya might be too power hungry for an OTL amp.

 

[Aquileolus]

I have the Euphoria AE which might be a little step up from the stock Euphoria. I listen with zmf Aeolus and VO and it's never bright just neutral and "wet" sound with stock Tubes. With some tube rolling you can make it warm and romantic sounding like the Elise might be with stock Tubes. Even with warm tubes it's never goey sounding even with warmish ZMF headphones.
Using the VC you will definitely appreciate the added detail retrieval and dynamics of the Euphoria because you can really pick up the changes easily if you switch tubes. Buying some nice NOS tubes will hurt your bank account much more than buying the amp itself because you will always be curious how that other tubes might sound like and the nice 6sn7 and 6080/5998 tubes really costs alot now.
I guess the Arya might be too power hungry for an OTL amp.

Thank you for the detailed reply! May I know which DAC you are using with them? And since I already have a nice class A SS amp which is good for detail retrieval, should I just go with Elise with stock tubes? Won't have much budget for tube rolling in near future...

 

[Renexx]

I had an Rme adi2 DAC FS which got replaced by a chord qutest that threw a better soundstage.

I must say I barely used the stock Tubes on my Euphoria so they are not even burned in. They won't give you much more than the RME amp will give you. I really enjoy rolling my tube collection.

Maybe the Elise with stock Tubes is a little more relaxed and warm listening if that is what you are looking for.

I would not keep my euphoria only with stock Tubes. The amp deserves some nice tubes

 

[LoryWiv]

I had an Rme adi2 DAC FS which got replaced by a chord qutest that threw a better soundstage.

I must say I never used the stock Tubes on my Euphoria so they are not even burned in. They won't give you much more than the RME amp will give you. I really enjoy rolling my tube collection.

Maybe the Elise with stock Tubes is a little more relaxed and warm listening if that is what you are looking for.

I would not keep my euphoria only with stock Tubes. The amp deserves some nice tubes

Melz 1578 drivers?

 

[Renexx]

Melz with 1578 stamp from 1982. They pair really well with Gec 6080s when listening with my ZMF Aeolus. Nice huge soundstage