[connieflyer]

Ever wonder where the names of headphones stem from? Empyrean In ancient cosmologies, the Empyrean Heaven, or simply the Empyrean, was the place in the highest heaven, which was supposed to be occupied by the element of fire (or aether in Aristotle's natural philosophy). The word derives from the Medieval Latin empyreus, an adaptation of the Ancient Greek empyrus (ἔμπυρος), meaning "in or on the fire (pyr)".

The Empyrean was thus used as a name for the firmament, and in Christian literature for the dwelling-place of God, the blessed, celestial beings so divine they are made of pure light, and the source of light and creation. Notably, at the very end of Dante's Paradiso, Dante visits God in the Empyrean.
Now does that makes sense CJ?

 

[hypnos1]

Ever wonder where the names of headphones stem from? Empyrean In ancient cosmologies, the Empyrean Heaven, or simply the Empyrean, was the place in the highest heaven, which was supposed to be occupied by the element of fire (or aether in Aristotle's natural philosophy). The word derives from the Medieval Latin empyreus, an adaptation of the Ancient Greek empyrus (ἔμπυρος), meaning "in or on the fire (pyr)".

The Empyrean was thus used as a name for the firmament, and in Christian literature for the dwelling-place of God, the blessed, celestial beings so divine they are made of pure light, and the source of light and creation. Notably, at the very end of Dante's Paradiso, Dante visits God in the Empyrean.
Now does that makes sense CJ?

Er...no, cf!! Except that I do indeed sometimes feel like I'm in Heaven when listening to my current system via the Meze Empyreans lol!

It would be interesting to find out just why/how Meze chose the name, though......

ps. You're stopping me from my work, mon ami...doesn't take much at the moment lol (matters EL39 seem to be hot at the moment!!...7 left... )....BFN...CJ

 

[connieflyer]

Sorry about that, I am gone!

 

[Johnnysound]

I trust H1 ears, lol, and lately he discovered some tremendous power tubes. I do not care about divided opinions about the EL38s...My power amp do not lie about power tubes...and I have tried some of the best classics around.

Mullards EL34s are a thing of beauty on the whole, (specially in the midrange), and their bass was deep but a bit loose. Siemens EL34s are another classic, more neutral than Mullards, and among current production, the Genalex Gold Lion KT77s were by far the best sounding...a breadth of fresh air compared to anything...before the EL38s.

I understand the delicacies of triode output to Cans, in which the 38s might be a little wild. In my setup, 4xEL38s in Euforia as a preamp driving another four in my power amp was simply astounding: dynamics were so great as to push my speakers near their limits. In my opinion the EL38s as power output pentodes have no equal for the price: extension, power, dynamics, transparency, imaging, personality, deep musical expression in a big, classic way.

By far the very best powers ever in my power amp. And equally impressive as triodes in Euforia. I feel I am just beginning to experience the possibilities of this setup. The clear glass ones are, come on, top notch vintage Mullard tubes at a reasonable price !

 

[teknorob23]

Intrigued with the EL11's. Where does one find these for sale?

I replaced the Sylvania 6SN7's with Tungsol 6SN7GTB's and I instantly enjoy the sound more. More coherent with increased clarity throughout the range without that obvious distortion that I heard with the Sylvania's.

I picked up a pair for NOS EL11's last week from these guys in Germany. They didnt have them advertised but i asked and they had them and at 35 euros each which is fairly reasonable compared whats about on ebay at the moment. https://www.m-ware.de I'm fairly new to this amp too but these really do live up to the hype and are serious upgrade over stock tubes and anything else i've tried

 

[hypnos1]

I trust H1 ears, lol, and lately he discovered some tremendous power tubes. I do not care about divided opinions about the EL38s...I have a great power amp in the sense that it do not lie about power tubes...and I have tried some of the best classics around.

Mullards EL34s are a thing of beauty on the whole, (specially in the midrange), and their bass was deep but a bit loose. Siemens EL34s are another classic, more neutral than Mullards, and among current production, the Genalex Gold Lion KT77s were by far the best sounding...a breadth of fresh air compared to anything...before the EL38s.

I understand the delicacies of triode output to Cans, in which the 38s might be a little wild. In my setup, 4xEL38s in Euforia as a preamp driving another four in my power amp was simply astounding: dynamics were so great as to push my speakers near their limits. In my opinion the EL38s as power output pentodes have no equal for the price: extension, power, dynamics, transparency, imaging, personality, deep musical expression in a big, classic way.

By far the very best powers ever in my power amp. And equally impressive as triodes in Euforia. I feel I am just beginning to experience the possibilities of this setup. With all due respect, the clear glass ones are, come on, top notch vintage Mullard tubes at a reasonable price !
However, the EL39s are absolutely worth the effort, and I went for them, primarily to see if they can beat the EL38s in a full power config...

Hi J.

Agreed...when bought at the (especially previously) extremely good price, the clear glass Mullard EL38s certainly have no equal, and are tremendous value for money. I never thought anything would/could pip them at the post, so you can imagine my surprise when first the silver-banded Philips (France) EL38s got their heads in front at the line, and my utter disbelief at the EL39 winning by a neck (and a long one at that lol!! ). So I can't wait to see how you find them as powers in your speaker amp...(perhaps a mild sedative beforehand might just be advisable!! Especially given the number of folks who've gone for an EL39 to EL34 adapter). I think I'm on pretty safe ground as far as their performance in Euforia is concerned lol! ...CHEERS!...CJ

 

[hypnos1]

Now then guys, after a rather hectic day yesterday that saw all but 1 of ampliatubes.fr stock of 17 EL39s fly out (I wonder what they made of that lol!), just a quick reminder when these tubes arrive in the hands of those lucky few :

1. Like most old tubes, they will probably need a bit of a clean. I myself like to use a little white spirit on the glass, top cap and pins (my RT logos didn't come off, but just skirt any if so desired). The silver painted band will probably also benefit, and isn't affected by white spirit. (Watch out for the wire between the glass bottle and base - sometimes its twisted end can stick out very slightly).

2. The pins and top cap may also need a slight clean...I find fine emery paper the best to use (anything more abrasive probably won't be needed...I personally like to keep pins as smooth as possible).

3. Even if already tight, it always pays to reinforce where the top cap and base meet the glass with superglue of some kind, just to be sure...old glue failing can wreck an otherwise good tube!

Needless to say, as with all old tubes especially...please treat them gently ....CHEERS!...CJ

ps. Re. the short piece of stranded wire needed for the EL38 adapter mod I posted recently, it doesn't need to be too fancy a wire, but at least of copper - preferably OFC so as to minimise any corrosion...any problems/questions just give me (or here) a buzz.

 

[connieflyer]

Great work CJ, that should give the folks all information they need to set them on a course of Bliss and understanding just how clever you are to run down these ancient tubes find them convert them make them shine for yourself and others and then just when we think utopia has been found you find another one! Thanks for all your hard work CJ

 

[Scutey]

Great work CJ, that should give the folks all information they need to set them on a course of Bliss and understanding just how clever you are to run down these ancient tubes find them convert them make them shine for yourself and others and then just when we think utopia has been found you find another one! Thanks for all your hard work CJ

Well said c.f., can't add anything to what you've said other than to wholeheartedly agree.

 

[teknorob23]

Well said c.f., can't add anything to what you've said other than to wholeheartedly agree.

Great work CJ, that should give the folks all information they need to set them on a course of Bliss and understanding just how clever you are to run down these ancient tubes find them convert them make them shine for yourself and others and then just when we think utopia has been found you find another one! Thanks for all your hard work CJ

+1 on that from me on both these posts, although my wife hold a slightly different view thanks to your introducing me to cable DIY'ing. Upside is i have a little bit of neotech silver/gold left over from my latest creation, so i can really indulge the 39's when they arrive... that and i really appreciate your generosity with in sharing your time and knowledge

 

[hypnos1]

Thanks for your kind words guys...it makes the effort all the more worthwhile when others can benefit from it also.

And what can I say @connieflyer ?...except...no more tube hunting!! (how many times have I said that lol?! ). But this time - especially for the sake of everyone's burgeoning collection of tubes, as well as my own (not to mention wallets!), I sincerely hope this is indeed now 'Utopia' time......

And @teknorob23 , that sure is a lovely bit of wire you'll be able to mod the adapter with lol! I should imagine your headphones will be singing real sweetly, being treated to that Neotech UP-OCC silver with gold wire!!

Cheers for now...better get back to some tube testing!

 

[Tunkejazz]

BTW, does the EL39 require special adapters or the adapter for EL38 works?

 

[hypnos1]

BTW, does the EL39 require special adapters or the adapter for EL38 works?

Hi Tj. ..post edited later, re. the mod I thought would work using the EL38 adapter now turns out not to be the case alas, due to Mrsx's adapters being configured differently to my own, despite my precise instructions lol!

 

[Scutey]

I picked up a pair for NOS EL11's last week from these guys in Germany. They didnt have them advertised but i asked and they had them and at 35 euros each which is fairly reasonable compared whats about on ebay at the moment. https://www.m-ware.de I'm fairly new to this amp too but these really do live up to the hype and are serious upgrade over stock tubes and anything else i've tried

That's a great find rob, those EL11's seem to have become as rare as hens teeth, I managed to pick up a pair of NOS RFT a few months ago but seen very little since, so it's always good to know of other possible sources!. Also, if you're interested!, yesterday I tried EL12N with the 38's as powers and the sound was very good too, perhaps a bit more towards neutral, but lively with good dynamics, and fairly plentiful at a reasonable price.

 

[Scutey]

Btw finally got me sticky mits on the fabled Mullard balloon 38's, see pic above, every bit as good as I'd hoped they'd be, bass has a wonderful weight to it, I can only imagine how good those 39's are going to be compared to these, congrats again h1, on your discovery of both 38/39's, where would we be with out you! .