[hypnos1]

Came across this today; GU-50 amp pics: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...et=pcb.10156502239606333&type=3&theater&ifg=1

Hi chrisdrop...there seem to be a good few amps out there using the GU50....here's just a few of them lol ...WOW!

 

[DecentLevi]

Oddly, although both of my EL12 Spez are sounding fantastic and balanced L/R as ever, one of them is only about one-third as bright and as hot as the other. Is that perfectly OK up to a certain point until it gets dark and cold enough? Otherwise I better be on the safe side and order another pair of EL12 Spez. Although not specifically for use with the Euforia, LOL... Is there anyone who has experience with EL12 Spez of the Tesla brand as opposed to Telefunken? Thanks

 

[connieflyer]

Was in touch with Lukasz, and ask him about the 2A3 amp progress, and he replied back to me, I asked him if alright to share and he replied it was okay, "Yes this big project is still open. We’re going to take extra time with all other priorities now. But we learnt a few good tricks, also how to make an excellent electrostatic amp and surely will hear back about it soon.

Cheers
Lukasz " so it looks like they have discovered some new ways with the electrostatic amp circuit. Interesting.

 

[hypnos1]

Was in touch with Lukasz, and ask him about the 2A3 amp progress, and he replied back to me, I asked him if alright to share and he replied it was okay, "Yes this big project is still open. We’re going to take extra time with all other priorities now. But we learnt a few good tricks, also how to make an excellent electrostatic amp and surely will hear back about it soon.

Cheers
Lukasz " so it looks like they have discovered some new ways with the electrostatic amp circuit. Interesting.

Thanks for the info cf. Methinks it would be an amp way out of my price league I'm afraid ...but it sure will be interesting to see the animal when it finally sees the light of day (which would appear to be a good long way off yet alas!). And an animal it will undoubtedly be lol!

As for myself, with lots of hours now on my GU50/GEC TT21 duo per power channel, driven by 2x GU50s, each new (old!) piece I go back to confirms this is now as if I have a completely new amp...the difference is that great - much more so than I could ever have anticipated or hoped for. And the fact this is for minimal expenditure (barring the TT21s of course!) confounds me even more.

Fortunately, as improvements are right across the board, all genres respond equally well (but can only guess the same would be true for heavy metal, which isn't my cup of tea I'm afraid). And most noticeable has been complex music that has been well recorded, whether modern/soft rock/electronic or full symphony orchestra...detail retrieval; separation/placement; stage; dynamics are unlike anything I've heard until now.
Deep, solid bass; gorgeous mids and the sweetest, most delicate and detailed treble are all handled with perfect balance...none dominating the overall performance - simply exquiste and effortless. This smooth, masterly control is also evident in the transition from soft to (very) loud...and is particularly impressive in fact (something I never fully appreciated before in years of close scrutiny/analysing, good though previous tube combos in Euforia have performed in this regard as well as others lol ).

I could go on with what else my latest combo is delivering, but I think y'all have got a good idea by now...ie. no new amp for me lol!! ...CHEERS!...CJ

ps. Forgot to mention something that is more like a high end amp feature, ie all these qualities are evident at low volume levels, not just at higher ones...

 

[Yoram Diamand]

Hi, my Euforia is in the mail. The idea was to let the T1.2 shine. I chose the stock tubes gold, and I noticed the 6N13S (NOS) are not that expensive compared to the PsVane CV-181 Mk2. Woo does not sell the rather costly Tung Sol 5998 anymore. I am not that much of a tube roller anyway. In poorer days maybe a 6sn7 from Tung Sol? In China they sell the PsVane CV-181 Mk2 for 158 dollar matched pair. It is not for free but they are famous. If I would like to upgrade from the T1.2 people say the Focal Utopia is the way to go. Not for free either. Much safer choice than planars. Sennheiser HD800S I liked on a Sennheiser amp. The OTL is able, I understood. The planar of choice for me might be the Hifiman Arya, since I am not very rich. But in reviews, it is said, it is not recommended with the Euforia. Would you agree? Meze planars, some say they are lovely with the Euforia, others say maybe better an amp with some more watts. Woo WA5? Too expensive. Now I use the Ayre QB-9 24/96 and I will upgrade to the DSD QB-9. I have a Schiit Gumby too. The T1 headphones better be good, now they get this lovely amp. Best wishes Yoram

 

[barontan2418]

Started the GU50 journey, thanks H1.
Looking forward to dual power adapters becoming available hopefully mid Feb.

 

[teknorob23]

Hi, my Euforia is in the mail. The idea was to let the T1.2 shine. I chose the stock tubes gold, and I noticed the 6N13S (NOS) are not that expensive compared to the PsVane CV-181 Mk2. Woo does not sell the rather costly Tung Sol 5998 anymore. I am not that much of a tube roller anyway. In poorer days maybe a 6sn7 from Tung Sol? In China they sell the PsVane CV-181 Mk2 for 158 dollar matched pair. It is not for free but they are famous. If I would like to upgrade from the T1.2 people say the Focal Utopia is the way to go. Not for free either. Much safer choice than planars. Sennheiser HD800S I liked on a Sennheiser amp. The OTL is able, I understood. The planar of choice for me might be the Hifiman Arya, since I am not very rich. But in reviews, it is said, it is not recommended with the Euforia. Would you agree? Meze planars, some say they are lovely with the Euforia, others say maybe better an amp with some more watts. Woo WA5? Too expensive. Now I use the Ayre QB-9 24/96 and I will upgrade to the DSD QB-9. I have a Schiit Gumby too. The T1 headphones better be good, now they get this lovely amp. Best wishes Yoram

congrats on the euforia and your in the right place to get the most out of it. I’ve run both utopia and now stellias from it. Both sound amazing and the utopia are in similar vein to the t1’s but on a totally different level as you’d hope for the money. They are without doubt the most detailed headphones
I’ve ever heard and they’ll dig things out of your music that you’ll not hear with anything else.. for better or worse. They are fast and super dynamic and the euforia bolsters their very few weak spots, with some extra body weight and texturing especially in the mids and bass, they also temper the sometimes borderline treble but with no real loss of clarity. For me though they’re just a bit too much of a good thing and can get a little
Exhausting for longer (2hrs+) listening sessions. And they’re brutal resolution can tear apart poorer source material. In summary they are the best headphone I’ve heard but I’d only keep them if I could afford another pair or Totl headphones that are easier to live with. Like owning a race car you need something else when it’s not sunday. That said at the risk of over stretching the analogy some people like to drive a Ferrari to the shops so I can’t speak for everyone’s taste just mine.

the stellias on the ofher hand give you a large proportion of the utopias good bits, not quite the last nth of detail, but they the pace and more detail then most other HPs if that’s your thing. They also have better slightly bigger bass, going deep and retaining a more or less neutral presentation. They are a little forward but this makes the mids in my book outstanding and overall I can listen to them all day (lighter on the head too). For me they’re the perfect match with the euforia. The latter brings a greater depth and some tubey 3d max headroom without losing any of the good stuff and never overly coloured just slight harmonic improvement like a nigh end turntable. I should caveat that I listen mainly to complicated electronica and techno, some jazz, a little classical and 90s alt rock, but i look for accuracy but energy but in as an organic analogue presentation possible. And this pairing provide me with that, supported by a great dac and other components.

All of this said i wouldn’t discount planners with the euforia. It’s not like other otl’s!!

@hypnos1 is the man to give you the full lowdown, but the empyreans are fantastic match for the euforia, the two compliment each other perfectly and are a must listen if you’re considering an open back. They would be my choice in a heartbeat if I had to choose against the utopia.

I guess my advice in matching the euforia with HPs, would be to ignore preconceptions and try everything you can, ive not heard a headphone sound bad when hooked up to it.

congrats again

 

[Yoram Diamand]

congrats on the euforia and your in the right place to get the most out of it. I’ve run both utopia and now stellias from it. Both sound amazing and the utopia are in similar vein to the t1’s but on a totally different level as you’d hope for the money. They are without doubt the most detailed headphones
I’ve ever heard and they’ll dig things out of your music that you’ll not hear with anything else.. for better or worse. They are fast and super dynamic and the euforia bolsters their very few weak spots, with some extra body weight and texturing especially in the mids and bass, they also temper the sometimes borderline treble but with no real loss of clarity. For me though they’re just a bit too much of a good thing and can get a little
Exhausting for longer (2hrs+) listening sessions. And they’re brutal resolution can tear apart poorer source material. In summary they are the best headphone I’ve heard but I’d only keep them if I could afford another pair or Totl headphones that are easier to live with. Like owning a race car you need something else when it’s not sunday. That said at the risk of over stretching the analogy some people like to drive a Ferrari to the shops so I can’t speak for everyone’s taste just mine.

the stellias on the ofher hand give you a large proportion of the utopias good bits, not quite the last nth of detail, but they the pace and more detail then most other HPs if that’s your thing. They also have better slightly bigger bass, going deep and retaining a more or less neutral presentation. They are a little forward but this makes the mids in my book outstanding and overall I can listen to them all day (lighter on the head too). For me they’re the perfect match with the euforia. The latter brings a greater depth and some tubey 3d max headroom without losing any of the good stuff and never overly coloured just slight harmonic improvement like a nigh end turntable. I should caveat that I listen mainly to complicated electronica and techno, some jazz, a little classical and 90s alt rock, but i look for accuracy but energy but in as an organic analogue presentation possible. And this pairing provide me with that, supported by a great dac and other components.

All of this said i wouldn’t discount planners with the euforia. It’s not like other otl’s!!

@hypnos1 is the man to give you the full lowdown, but the empyreans are fantastic match for the euforia, the two compliment each other perfectly and are a must listen if you’re considering an open back. They would be my choice in a heartbeat if I had to choose against the utopia.

I guess my advice in matching the euforia with HPs, would be to ignore preconceptions and try everything you can, ive not heard a headphone sound bad when hooked up to it.

congrats again

Thank you. I will give the Hifiman Arya a listen too. I know a headphone shop with the Euforia and all nice headphones. They won't mind me spending some time. Best wishes Y

 

[teknorob23]

Thank you. I will give the Hifiman Arya a listen too. I know a headphone shop with the Euforia and all nice headphones. They won't mind me spending some time. Best wishes Y

I haven’t heard the ayra so it’ll interesting to hear how you find them

 

[LoryWiv]

Although my OTL is Feliks-Audio Elise not Euforia, I am VERY happy with it's pairing into ZMF Auteur 300 ohm bio-cellulose driver. It's cost is just a bit higher than Arya and certainly much less than Stellia. As @teknorob23 said, many great optrions for headphones that shine with this amp. Good luck!

 

[DecentLevi]

Hey has anybody over here latched onto the idea I hinted at a few weeks ago to try Quad GU50 as powers? From my deep experience with 4-6x externally heated powers on the Euforia, I have a hunch these should perform exemplary. More power tubes on the Euforia for me has never failed to only heighten the experience on all levels... soundstage, dynamics, realism, detail, you name it. At least 4 if not 6x. The only minor drawback I have found is that (maybe) there is a minor sense of it sounding slightly less 'front row' if that means anything, and probably was only a result of the conductors in my Chinese made multi-adapter. But with a fine quality multi-adapter you should probably have some fine results! And at only 0.8 AH per tube, I would recon most power supplies would be able to handle the current demand easily.

This one (if done) would be all for you guys however, as I for one am progressing onto entirely different amps - SET OT (single ended triode output transformer) amps, the opposite of OTL which I now have a preference for, conformed by extensive testing sessions on quite a few such OT vs. OTL amps

 

[Yoram Diamand]

Although my OTL is Feliks-Audio Elise not Euforia, I am VERY happy with it's pairing into ZMF Auteur 300 ohm bio-cellulose driver. It's cost is just a bit higher than Arya and certainly much less than Stellia. As @teknorob23 said, many great optrions for headphones that shine with this amp. Good luck!

Hi I have been reading and it said, the ZMF Auteur is a lovely match with the Euforia. But you cannot buy it new in Holland, where I live, and second hand for 2000 euro. Which is quite costly for second hand. I will try the Arya and I have not the spare 2000 euro now. Thanks though. Kind regards Yoram

 

[Yoram Diamand]

Hi I have been reading and it said, the ZMF Auteur is a lovely match with the Euforia. But you cannot buy it new in Holland, where I live, and second hand for 2000 euro. Which is quite costly for second hand. I will try the Arya and I have not the spare 2000 euro now. Thanks though. Kind regards Yoram

https://headphonecompany.com/shop/?filter_010-marke=zmf I found a place in Germany. It is still for sale.

 

[hypnos1]

Hi, my Euforia is in the mail. The idea was to let the T1.2 shine. I chose the stock tubes gold, and I noticed the 6N13S (NOS) are not that expensive compared to the PsVane CV-181 Mk2. Woo does not sell the rather costly Tung Sol 5998 anymore. I am not that much of a tube roller anyway. In poorer days maybe a 6sn7 from Tung Sol? In China they sell the PsVane CV-181 Mk2 for 158 dollar matched pair. It is not for free but they are famous. If I would like to upgrade from the T1.2 people say the Focal Utopia is the way to go. Not for free either. Much safer choice than planars. Sennheiser HD800S I liked on a Sennheiser amp. The OTL is able, I understood. The planar of choice for me might be the Hifiman Arya, since I am not very rich. But in reviews, it is said, it is not recommended with the Euforia. Would you agree? Meze planars, some say they are lovely with the Euforia, others say maybe better an amp with some more watts. Woo WA5? Too expensive. Now I use the Ayre QB-9 24/96 and I will upgrade to the DSD QB-9. I have a Schiit Gumby too. The T1 headphones better be good, now they get this lovely amp. Best wishes Yoram

Hi Yoram...and belated congrats on joining the Euforia club - good choice!

Re. headphones, all I can say is that much as I loved my T1s (v1) with DIY upgraded UP-OCC silver and copper-wired cable, the Empyreans are - as they should be at the price lol! - in another league entirely. Being a 'Hybrid Array' design, their low (32 Ohm) impedance is no problem at all being driven by Euforia, even though needing the vol knob turned up a fair bit more than with high-Ohm dynamics. And F-A did in fact go out of their way to make sure Elise and Euforia would be able to drive low-impedance cans better than most other OTL amps.

I would say however that these Mezes might just seem a little too 'polite'/mellow with gear that is well on the warm/dark side, especially with the stock cable. But this would be much modified with an upgraded cable, preferably one using really good silver (preferably OCC) and OCC copper, as is my own. Otherwise, a DAC such as a Schiit, which generally are on the brighter side than my Chord Hugo2 for example, would probably give that extra bit of 'bite'.

But as always, you really do need to see how different cans perform in your own system if at all possible - especially when talking big $$$$$!!

Whatever, GOOD LUCK in your choice...CJ