First Tube Amp Problem. Please Help.

[LasherV]

I recieved my first Tube Amp today. A Darkvoice 336se. I've read quite a bit about this Amp and one thing was clear. It had plenty of power to drive even difficult Headphones. Well this one for some reason doesn't. I've tried this amp now with multiple sources, my iMac, Fiio x1, iPhone, iPod 5.5gen and all the sources were at full gain, the volume is still no more than 75-80db with it cranked wide open. What could be wrong? The power Tube is lit. It does play very well. In fact it sounds really sweet. Just not loud enough. This is using my M1060's that are not hard to drive. My little Fiio A3 drives them to ear bleeding levels with no problem. Any advice would be of great help to me. As I said this is my first tube amp and I'm really loving the sound. I just want more of it. If I do need to replace the tube/tubes please point me to where to buy good ones. Thank You in Advance.

 

[Thenewguy007]

Planar headphones are generally harder to drive with tube amps than with solid state amps.

Do you have any dynamic headphones or any IEM to test with the amp?

 

[redrich2000]

Those are all low voltage output sources. I've had similar problems when using old ipods as sources. But it still sounds suspicious. Double check all your interconnect cables are pushed all the way in.

 

[Oscar-HiFi]

I recieved my first Tube Amp today. A Darkvoice 336se. I've read quite a bit about this Amp and one thing was clear. It had plenty of power to drive even difficult Headphones. Well this one for some reason doesn't. I've tried this amp now with multiple sources, my iMac, Fiio x1, iPhone, iPod 5.5gen and all the sources were at full gain, the volume is still no more than 75-80db with it cranked wide open. What could be wrong? The power Tube is lit. It does play very well. In fact it sounds really sweet. Just not loud enough. This is using my M1060's that are not hard to drive. My little Fiio A3 drives them to ear bleeding levels with no problem. Any advice would be of great help to me. As I said this is my first tube amp and I'm really loving the sound. I just want more of it. If I do need to replace the tube/tubes please point me to where to buy good ones. Thank You in Advance.

You need a proper DAC that feeds the amp a proper line-level signal of at least 2v...

 

[LasherV]

I’ve double checked the cable connections. They are fine. I also thought about the output voltage, but my Fiio X1 when set to line out is rated to output 2v. The cans play just as loud when played directly from the source as they do when I add the Darkvoice in the chain. That can’t be right. Can it?

 

[Oscar-HiFi]

I’ve double checked the cable connections. They are fine. I also thought about the output voltage, but my Fiio X1 when set to line out is rated to output 2v. The cans play just as loud when played directly from the source as they do when I add the Darkvoice in the chain. That can’t be right. Can it?

That doesn't sound right. And definitely going into the RCA Input sockets?

You really need to try and test it with a proper source at some point to see if that really is the issue. Also test with other headphones

 

[LasherV]

Update: Just got home from work tonight. I have tried the Darkvoice with my Sennheiser Game 1 gaming headset, this headset is based on HD598's and takes about as much to drive. They are slightly louder but not mind blowing by any means. I then plugged in an old set of Koss KTX Pro headphones. Same driver as the much loved Porta-Pro. That was a good bit louder but they are super easy to drive so I expected as much. I also plugged in my KZ ZS6 In-Ear Monitors. Also quite loud but again super easy to drive. I'm still amazed how good these sound for the $28 I paid for them on Wish. If you have never tried them, treat yourself. They are well worth the price. Strange thing is that now after about an hour the amp seems to be getting a bit louder. Could this be a Burn in or Break in issue? How many hours does it normally take to get your full performance from a Tube Amp? Like I said this is my first one so I'm just posting Impressions here. Still with the same source: Fiio X1 set to line out 2v. My Fiio A3 portable is louder than the Darkvoice by a considerable amount. I just can't get my head around that. The Darkvoice is a Boat Anchor compared to the tiny little A3. I could stuff 30 of the A3's into the housing of the Darkvoice. It just doesn't make sense to me. I'm just worried that the Darkvoice will not be up to the task of driving the 6xx headphones that I'm getting with the next MassDrop. That was my main reason for getting the Tube Amp. Everyone says if you get 650's/6xx you really want tubes to make them sing. Are all tube amps just that underpowered? I will be ordering a new USB DAC. Leaning towards the OL DAC from JDS. Any more thoughts guys? I really do appreciate all your help.

 

[Thenewguy007]

Not really any expert on the Darkvoice, but I do believe there is a dedicated & large Darkvoice thread that is still active in the amp forums.
They migth know more about this.

 

[LasherV]

Things are getting Stranger. Last night after my last post I just let my music play while I read up on Tube Rolling here on Head-Fi. In 4 hours the Volume level of the Darkvoice has tripled. Amazing burn in behavior. As I said this is my first tube amp but I had never heard of one gaining so much volume over time. Not only did it gain in over all loudness level but the sound quality has increased as well. Wider Sound Stage, Cleaner Highs, Much more Bass response, overall width, depth, and clarity have really improved. Im very pleased I purchased this in Used/Like New condition and was worried that it may have been returned because of an issue but it is really performing very well now. I did notice that the tubes are not the same as what is listed on the housing. The Housing says 6SN7 for the small front tube and 6AS7 for the larger of the 2. I'm wondering if they may have been changed previously. The only markings on the large power tube are on the glass and the plastic base. 81.8 J on the glass and 8N5PJ on the plastic base. the smaller tube has these markings: 6N8P and 80.4 J both on the glass. Does anyone know if these are what came with the Darkvoice originally? They are dead quiet and have really opened up to sound very pleasing to my ears so far. I want to experiment with Tube Rolling but not because of any sound quality issue that I'm hearing with the tubes that are in it now. I've read quite a bit about Tube Rolling here but Im still not sure where to buy them to make sure Im getting a quality tube and not junk. If someone could direct me to a reputable dealer or even a trusted Head-Fi'er who is willing to sell some decent tubes I would appreciate it greatly. Thanks Again

 

[cardeli22]

Things are getting Stranger. Last night after my last post I just let my music play while I read up on Tube Rolling here on Head-Fi. In 4 hours the Volume level of the Darkvoice has tripled. Amazing burn in behavior. As I said this is my first tube amp but I had never heard of one gaining so much volume over time. Not only did it gain in over all loudness level but the sound quality has increased as well. Wider Sound Stage, Cleaner Highs, Much more Bass response, overall width, depth, and clarity have really improved. Im very pleased I purchased this in Used/Like New condition and was worried that it may have been returned because of an issue but it is really performing very well now. I did notice that the tubes are not the same as what is listed on the housing. The Housing says 6SN7 for the small front tube and 6AS7 for the larger of the 2. I'm wondering if they may have been changed previously. The only markings on the large power tube are on the glass and the plastic base. 81.8 J on the glass and 8N5PJ on the plastic base. the smaller tube has these markings: 6N8P and 80.4 J both on the glass. Does anyone know if these are what came with the Darkvoice originally? They are dead quiet and have really opened up to sound very pleasing to my ears so far. I want to experiment with Tube Rolling but not because of any sound quality issue that I'm hearing with the tubes that are in it now. I've read quite a bit about Tube Rolling here but Im still not sure where to buy them to make sure Im getting a quality tube and not junk. If someone could direct me to a reputable dealer or even a trusted Head-Fi'er who is willing to sell some decent tubes I would appreciate it greatly. Thanks Again

In regards to the volume, I have read that tubes take a while to warm up. Again from what I have read (haven't got a tube amp...yet lol) a lot of people leave their tube amps on because of the long wait for them to heat up.

 

[ostewart]

Tube amps do require around 100hrs of burn in to fully stabilise, and about 15-20 mins to warm up after turning them on.

You can't really get better than the JDS Labs OL DAC for the price, great choice.

 

[TYATYA]

Its so strange bcs dv336se is a power monster which most of user never turn it to over a half vol level even on 300 Omh hp.
Check if your analog cable if near shorten happened or other reason makes in put level is too low.
Dont try hp that low impedance as low as 100 Omh. 60 Omh still sound bad. Dont base on x8 rule for impedance on tube amp.
Do you have a multifunction measurement tool for checking out put and input? (Use a diot to test if the unit measures only DC).

 

[TYATYA]

In regards to the volume, I have read that tubes take a while to warm up. Again from what I have read (haven't got a tube amp...yet lol) a lot of people leave their tube amps on because of the long wait for them to heat up.

It just less than 60 seconds. I belive problem of output level as topic OP said, is not warming up relate

 

[TYATYA]

Things are getting Stranger. Last night after my last post I just let my music play while I read up on Tube Rolling here on Head-Fi. In 4 hours the Volume level of the Darkvoice has tripled. Amazing burn in behavior. As I said this is my first tube amp but I had never heard of one gaining so much volume over time. Not only did it gain in over all loudness level but the sound quality has increased as well. Wider Sound Stage, Cleaner Highs, Much more Bass response, overall width, depth, and clarity have really improved. Im very pleased I purchased this in Used/Like New condition and was worried that it may have been returned because of an issue but it is really performing very well now. I did notice that the tubes are not the same as what is listed on the housing. The Housing says 6SN7 for the small front tube and 6AS7 for the larger of the 2. I'm wondering if they may have been changed previously. The only markings on the large power tube are on the glass and the plastic base. 81.8 J on the glass and 8N5PJ on the plastic base. the smaller tube has these markings: 6N8P and 80.4 J both on the glass. Does anyone know if these are what came with the Darkvoice originally? They are dead quiet and have really opened up to sound very pleasing to my ears so far. I want to experiment with Tube Rolling but not because of any sound quality issue that I'm hearing with the tubes that are in it now. I've read quite a bit about Tube Rolling here but Im still not sure where to buy them to make sure Im getting a quality tube and not junk. If someone could direct me to a reputable dealer or even a trusted Head-Fi'er who is willing to sell some decent tubes I would appreciate it greatly. Thanks Again

OMG did the shiper packing w/o tubes and YOU assemble those tubes yourself and mistake was happend ? You swap input and output tube position ? Hahaha I wonder if any smoke or flash ?
Original tube as you wrote, 8N5PJ is output and 6N8P input tube.

 

[LasherV]

Thank you for the reply’s gentlemen, the tubes are in the correct position LOL. I may be new to tubes, but I’ve been into high end audio for years I do know the difference. The amp is working perfectly now that it has had time to burn in. I am still curious about tube rolling and where to buy them. If anyone can point me in the right direction where I won’t get ripped off I would really appreciate it. Thanks again guys