Feliks-Audio EUFORIA - A Wolf in "Sheep's" Clothing...

[Deleeh]

Question for other users running low impedance HP out of Euforia: My only experience with Elise thus far is with my beloved ZMF Auteur at 300 ohm impedance. Iam very interested in the Clear Mg as a complimentary set but in general it's stated that Elise / Euforia with their high output impedance around 50 ohms are better suited for high impedance headphones. However, Feliks specs state compatibility at 32-600 ohms. T

hus the question, can one get good synergy with Elise / Eforia out to relatively low impedance headphones like Clear, Stellia, Empyrean or does it alter the sound signature and tonality in potentially undesirable ways?

Thoughts from other users appreciated. Thanks!

Hello,
I occasionally use the Fostex tr x00 and the Denon D2000 with 25 ohm and it's still OK.
No problems, but it's different with the Aeon R/T.
If you listen with it quietly it still works but as soon as you increase the volume it starts to distort.
That's where the Euforia reaches its limits.
Nevertheless, it has to be said that it was not built for this.
So with the Focal series, neither will have any problems.
I hope that helps you.

 

[Ichos]

Question for other users running low impedance HP out of Euforia: My only experience with Elise thus far is with my beloved ZMF Auteur at 300 ohm impedance. Iam very interested in the Clear Mg as a complimentary set but in general it's stated that Elise / Euforia with their high output impedance around 50 ohms are better suited for high impedance headphones. However, Feliks specs state compatibility at 32-600 ohms. T

hus the question, can one get good synergy with Elise / Eforia out to relatively low impedance headphones like Clear, Stellia, Empyrean or does it alter the sound signature and tonality in potentially undesirable ways?

Thoughts from other users appreciated. Thanks!

The Elise no but the Euforia yes.
It has good current delivery so it is suitable for easy to drive lowish Z headphones. (50-100Ω).
I use it with the Empyrean and Focal Clear Mg/OG with great results.

 

[ThanatosVI]

Question for other users running low impedance HP out of Euforia: My only experience with Elise thus far is with my beloved ZMF Auteur at 300 ohm impedance. Iam very interested in the Clear Mg as a complimentary set but in general it's stated that Elise / Euforia with their high output impedance around 50 ohms are better suited for high impedance headphones. However, Feliks specs state compatibility at 32-600 ohms. T

hus the question, can one get good synergy with Elise / Eforia out to relatively low impedance headphones like Clear, Stellia, Empyrean or does it alter the sound signature and tonality in potentially undesirable ways?

Thoughts from other users appreciated. Thanks!

The Euforia AE is said to be an excellent pairing for the Meze Empyrean, despite its 32 Ohm impedance.

This could be due to the insane sensitivity, meaning the Empyrean doesn't need thaat much current even though it has low impedance.

Other low impedance headphones could struggle more if the sensitivity is lower

 

[hypnos1]

I can confirm the flawless matching with the Empyreans...and as I quoted a Meze guy many moons ago : "A match (with Euforia) made in Heaven"......CJ

 

[Yoram Diamand]

I can confirm the flawless matching with the Empyreans...and as I quoted a Meze guy many moons ago : "A match (with Euforia) made in Heaven"......CJ

Hi, I am in that heaven. I live exclusively with the Empyrean. I do say the stock cable should be silver. (Norne/ Lavricables or something) And still it is now quite common to say the Empyrean is not a technical masterpiece. It is considered comfortable. I have no idea if I would like the Hifiman HE1000SE more on the Euforia. It drives it well too I heard. But I would not give thousands of euros to crappy materials. I enjoy my music to the best of my cash/ ears abilities.

 

[connieflyer]

:My Oppo PM-1 are 30 ohm and have no problem driving them.

 

[Quince]

Campfire Cascades (38 ohms/100 db) are unusable on my AE. Final D8000 pros (60 ohms/98 db) are great, even better than ZMFs Verité closed (300 ohms/99 db).

 

[hypnos1]

The Elise no but the Euforia yes.
It has good current delivery so it is suitable for easy to drive lowish Z headphones. (50-100Ω).
I use it with the Empyrean and Focal Clear Mg/OG with great results.

The Euforia AE is said to be an excellent pairing for the Meze Empyrean, despite its 32 Ohm impedance.

This could be due to the insane sensitivity, meaning the Empyrean doesn't need thaat much current even though it has low impedance.

Other low impedance headphones could struggle more if the sensitivity is lower

Hi, I am in that heaven. I live exclusively with the Empyrean. I do say the stock cable should be silver. (Norne/ Lavricables or something) And still it is now quite common to say the Empyrean is not a technical masterpiece. It is considered comfortable. I have no idea if I would like the Hifiman HE1000SE more on the Euforia. It drives it well too I heard. But I would not give thousands of euros to crappy materials. I enjoy my music to the best of my cash/ ears abilities.

Hi YD. And yes, the Empyreans do need (good quality, preferably mono crystal OCC) silver to really shine. It gives that extra sparkle to accompany the Mezes' 'mellow' sound. But then, this latter quality could well be a life saver if the rest of the system is overly bright lol! DAC quality will (as usual) also impact their performance of course...

 

[LoryWiv]

The Elise no but the Euforia yes.
It has good current delivery so it is suitable for easy to drive lowish Z headphones. (50-100Ω).
I use it with the Empyrean and Focal Clear Mg/OG with great results.

Thank you @Ichos. Elise and Euforia have very similar specs so that is quite encouraging!!!

 

[jonathan c]

Hi YD. And yes, the Empyreans do need (good quality, preferably mono crystal OCC) silver to really shine. It gives that extra sparkle to accompany the Mezes' 'mellow' sound. But then, this latter quality could well be a life saver if the rest of the system is overly bright lol! DAC quality will (as usual) also impact their performance of course...

Agreed! With the Empyrean, the best results for me came about when using Arctic Cables Palladium Series (predecessor to Opera Series): transients ‘seemed’ to be accelerated and the high frequency response ‘seemed’ to be extended (not elevated).

 

[Arcayne]

So after having gone back and forth between a 6sn7/6080 combo and quad KT88 for the last couple of months, today I finally tried KT88 powers with 6sn7 drivers. Since I wasn't able to get my Empyrean to really work with the quad KT88s due to the loss of gain, I didn't expect a whole lot. But my god was I not expecting this result.... I never realized that the 6sn7s are the tubes that increase the gain the most (rather than the 6080s). So with the 6sn7/KT88 combo, I'm actually even getting quite a bit more gain than with the 6ns7/6080 combo.

And my god, this is almost certainly the best tube config I've heard with my Empyreans so far. In one word, that best describes this pairing as I'm hearing it; Thunderous. This makes Empy slam harder than even my Jot 2 does. This certainly wasn't the case with the 6080 powers, they made for a much more nuanced and relaxed sound which I absolutely love in its own way. The KT88s sure don't have the level of nuance, but in return brings in the fireworks. And it sounds clean. It slams without the fuzz, transients are pleasantly incisive without any grain or edge. Aggression without violence. While I'll surely continue to reach for the 6080s when the mood calls for it, the 6sn7/KT88 combo might be my new favorite.

 

[Galapac]

So after having gone back and forth between a 6sn7/6080 combo and quad KT88 for the last couple of months, today I finally tried KT88 powers with 6sn7 drivers. Since I wasn't able to get my Empyrean to really work with the quad KT88s due to the loss of gain, I didn't expect a whole lot. But my god was I not expecting this result.... I never realized that the 6sn7s are the tubes that increase the gain the most (rather than the 6080s). So with the 6sn7/KT88 combo, I'm actually even getting quite a bit more gain than with the 6ns7/6080 combo.

And my god, this is almost certainly the best tube config I've heard with my Empyreans so far. In one word, that best describes this pairing as I'm hearing it; Thunderous. This makes Empy slam harder than even my Jot 2 does. This certainly wasn't the case with the 6080 powers, they made for a much more nuanced and relaxed sound which I absolutely love in its own way. The KT88s sure don't have the level of nuance, but in return brings in the fireworks. And it sounds clean. It slams without the fuzz, transients are pleasantly incisive without any grain or edge. Aggression without violence. While I'll surely continue to reach for the 6080s when the mood calls for it, the 6sn7/KT88 combo might be my new favorite.

I tend to agree with you. I am having luck with KT88s as power and CBS 6SN7s as drivers for the punch.

 

[Ichos]

Thank you @Ichos. Elise and Euforia have very similar specs so that is quite encouraging!!!

You are welcome.
I am not very sure about the Elise.
Specs might seem the same but it may not be able to provide sufficient current.
Lukasz definitely recommended the Euforia for the Empyrean, I don't know about the Clear.

 

[connieflyer]

Have tried a few 6sn7 tubes with the KT88's, liked the KR 231's best so far, until this morning. Tried the stock PsVane CV-181 Mk2 “Gold” 6SN7 with the GL KT88's and I think these cover it all. A very little less bass, not much at all, but the mid's and highs are beautiful and plentiful. Still have to remember to turn volume down, much more gain the the all KT tubes. My Sennheiser 800 have never sounded better.

 

[Galapac]

Have tried a few 6sn7 tubes with the KT88's, liked the KR 231's best so far, until this morning. Tried the stock PsVane CV-181 Mk2 “Gold” 6SN7 with the GL KT88's and I think these cover it all. A very little less bass, not much at all, but the mid's and highs are beautiful and plentiful. Still have to remember to turn volume down, much more gain the the all KT tubes. My Sennheiser 800 have never sounded better.

YES! When using my stock CV-181 or my other PsVane Clear CV-181 I get the same impression so what I do is if I listen to classic, soft rock, jazz that I will use those tubes.
When I want more deep end and slam, I use my 6SN7 and equivalents.