Schelp san
100+ Head-Fier
Some more amplifier comparison (KGSSHV Carbon, Megatron and the upcoming Soren Brix Ki)
Typical listening sessions were 2 hours or longer, having always 2 or 3 amplifier in line, so level matching was easy. Mostly in use was the initially mentioned source setup (Singxer SU6 => Musetec MH DA005), sometimes I changed the Musetec to Teac UD701n or Questyle CMA600i.
Carbon
I had the KGSSHV Carbon for about 5 weeks. This Carbon is the (typical) full size version, running on 400 V rails and with GR power supply for LV and HV, build by Soren (Vishay/Dale resistors and silver wiring applied).
I perceived its tonality as neutral/straight, offering very good resolution all across the board with good clarity/transparency. The bass is deep and tight with very good “speed” and precision. Treble is precise, not too incisive or “sharp”. Overall tonality in this comparison is on the leaner side, in general I would call it neutral. Presentation of the stage is good, maybe more wide than deep. For me I could confirm what many stated before, that it is a very good amplifier.
During my various listening sessions I was of course not always “actively” comparing the amps, after some point I tend to just plug the headphone into what I like best and stick with it. Rarely I finished listening with the Carbon, but why?
Synergy: One point seems to be its tonality. I little leaner (lets say “neutral”) on the amp side plus a little leaner on most of my HP (307, 009, 009S, X9000) results in something what I seem to prefer less. A certain amount of richness/warmth in the sound is what makes these estats so enjoyable for me and with Carbon this synergy is missing to some extend (certainly not to the extend as e.g. with my trusty SRM323S though). Headphones with already warm timbre like 007MK1 or Sigma/404 (where treble is somehow subdued) suit IMO much better with Carbon.
Another aspect is more difficult to describe for me. With Carbon there is in comparison a certain “dryness” in the sound which I think cannot be explained just with it being leaner sounding than certain other amps. Especially the mids and treble I do not enjoy as on the other amps. The mids seem to be not as engaging, treble is precise, but does not shine. The hole musical presentation does not involve me as e.g. on a Megatron, T2 – or on the mockup of Soren´s Ki. This impression remained when I changed the source to e.g. the Teac or Questyle DAC.
Megatron (with Telefunkens in 1st and 2nd stage) in comparison has a little less tight bass, a bit softer overall nature, and the treble is very slightly subdued in comparison. But the treble sounds very airy, refined, offering about the same resolution as Carbon. The mids are very rich and are overall more full and “colourful”, in the end natural sounding. The bass, it is just bigger as the lower frequencies in general are slightly enforced. It easily makes me toe-tapping. Finally the stage, it is bigger in all directions than on Carbon.
Megatron matches very well with 307/009/009S/X9000. Borderline for best synergy are IMO the 007s. My 007A I still prefer with Megatron and I say it’s a good match, while Carbon and 007MK1 might have better synergy.
And now there will be the so called Ki. Soren asked me whether I would be interested in trying an amplifier, as I would have Carbon, Megatron and T2 for comparison. He said listening to this new amplifier would remind him of the T2, but it would be much easier to build. Well, really?! Of course I was interested!
It is about an all solid state amplifier, HV running on 400 V, in a housing that is not yet but will be smaller than his full size Carbon (450x400x100). Technical questions about the circuit should be addressed directly to @soren_brix , I do not like to run the risk giving BS answers based on my half knowledge. Same about the release date and the price. At this point I do not know how much it will be.
Since 6 weeks the Soren Ki is now playing here. Although some finetuning of the circuit is ongoing I can already state that IMO this is a killer amp!
Overall timbre is very clean and balanced, almost as warm as on Megatron, including the “reinforcing” effect of the lower frequencies. Bass is deep, precision similar to Carbon and almost as “full” sounding as on Megatron. The mids and treble are slightly more transparent then Megatron´s, very lifelike and open, missing exactly this “dryness”, what I noticed on Carbon. Treble is a little more pronounced compared to Megatron and very natural sounding. There is even a little tube like sparkle. Overall resolution is outstanding. Stage size is between Carbon and Megatron I would say, the ability of locating instruments and voices is very convincing.
Power/headroom is definitely enough, a 007 can be driven to unhealthy levels, my ears distort earlier than reaching a limit of the hardware.
Talking about synergy is easy, IMO it fits great to all the mentioned headphones, including 007MK1 and MK2. What can I say, I do not find any drawbacks. Well, there is one, you cannot stare on tubes when listening
I think Ki exceeds Megatron in partial aspects like transparency and bass precision, without really sacrificing something else. Megatron might have slightly the edge when talking about effortless music “flow”, how a complete image of the music is presented (stage is bigger). It is still all tube vs all SS, and that might be more of a personal preference. For me, Ki covers the good aspects of Carbon and betters it overall by quite a margin. I think it indeed is close to my T2 in overall performance. Depending on the tube choice T2 brings still some more to the table (energetic with superb dynamics, exciting mids, stage with Reflektor tubes), but yah, we are in territory of diminishing returns.
Well done, Soren! I hope that Ki can be offered affordable so that nothing stands in the way of its widespread use.
Typical listening sessions were 2 hours or longer, having always 2 or 3 amplifier in line, so level matching was easy. Mostly in use was the initially mentioned source setup (Singxer SU6 => Musetec MH DA005), sometimes I changed the Musetec to Teac UD701n or Questyle CMA600i.
Carbon
I had the KGSSHV Carbon for about 5 weeks. This Carbon is the (typical) full size version, running on 400 V rails and with GR power supply for LV and HV, build by Soren (Vishay/Dale resistors and silver wiring applied).
I perceived its tonality as neutral/straight, offering very good resolution all across the board with good clarity/transparency. The bass is deep and tight with very good “speed” and precision. Treble is precise, not too incisive or “sharp”. Overall tonality in this comparison is on the leaner side, in general I would call it neutral. Presentation of the stage is good, maybe more wide than deep. For me I could confirm what many stated before, that it is a very good amplifier.
During my various listening sessions I was of course not always “actively” comparing the amps, after some point I tend to just plug the headphone into what I like best and stick with it. Rarely I finished listening with the Carbon, but why?
Synergy: One point seems to be its tonality. I little leaner (lets say “neutral”) on the amp side plus a little leaner on most of my HP (307, 009, 009S, X9000) results in something what I seem to prefer less. A certain amount of richness/warmth in the sound is what makes these estats so enjoyable for me and with Carbon this synergy is missing to some extend (certainly not to the extend as e.g. with my trusty SRM323S though). Headphones with already warm timbre like 007MK1 or Sigma/404 (where treble is somehow subdued) suit IMO much better with Carbon.
Another aspect is more difficult to describe for me. With Carbon there is in comparison a certain “dryness” in the sound which I think cannot be explained just with it being leaner sounding than certain other amps. Especially the mids and treble I do not enjoy as on the other amps. The mids seem to be not as engaging, treble is precise, but does not shine. The hole musical presentation does not involve me as e.g. on a Megatron, T2 – or on the mockup of Soren´s Ki. This impression remained when I changed the source to e.g. the Teac or Questyle DAC.
Megatron (with Telefunkens in 1st and 2nd stage) in comparison has a little less tight bass, a bit softer overall nature, and the treble is very slightly subdued in comparison. But the treble sounds very airy, refined, offering about the same resolution as Carbon. The mids are very rich and are overall more full and “colourful”, in the end natural sounding. The bass, it is just bigger as the lower frequencies in general are slightly enforced. It easily makes me toe-tapping. Finally the stage, it is bigger in all directions than on Carbon.
Megatron matches very well with 307/009/009S/X9000. Borderline for best synergy are IMO the 007s. My 007A I still prefer with Megatron and I say it’s a good match, while Carbon and 007MK1 might have better synergy.
And now there will be the so called Ki. Soren asked me whether I would be interested in trying an amplifier, as I would have Carbon, Megatron and T2 for comparison. He said listening to this new amplifier would remind him of the T2, but it would be much easier to build. Well, really?! Of course I was interested!
It is about an all solid state amplifier, HV running on 400 V, in a housing that is not yet but will be smaller than his full size Carbon (450x400x100). Technical questions about the circuit should be addressed directly to @soren_brix , I do not like to run the risk giving BS answers based on my half knowledge. Same about the release date and the price. At this point I do not know how much it will be.
Since 6 weeks the Soren Ki is now playing here. Although some finetuning of the circuit is ongoing I can already state that IMO this is a killer amp!
Overall timbre is very clean and balanced, almost as warm as on Megatron, including the “reinforcing” effect of the lower frequencies. Bass is deep, precision similar to Carbon and almost as “full” sounding as on Megatron. The mids and treble are slightly more transparent then Megatron´s, very lifelike and open, missing exactly this “dryness”, what I noticed on Carbon. Treble is a little more pronounced compared to Megatron and very natural sounding. There is even a little tube like sparkle. Overall resolution is outstanding. Stage size is between Carbon and Megatron I would say, the ability of locating instruments and voices is very convincing.
Power/headroom is definitely enough, a 007 can be driven to unhealthy levels, my ears distort earlier than reaching a limit of the hardware.
Talking about synergy is easy, IMO it fits great to all the mentioned headphones, including 007MK1 and MK2. What can I say, I do not find any drawbacks. Well, there is one, you cannot stare on tubes when listening
I think Ki exceeds Megatron in partial aspects like transparency and bass precision, without really sacrificing something else. Megatron might have slightly the edge when talking about effortless music “flow”, how a complete image of the music is presented (stage is bigger). It is still all tube vs all SS, and that might be more of a personal preference. For me, Ki covers the good aspects of Carbon and betters it overall by quite a margin. I think it indeed is close to my T2 in overall performance. Depending on the tube choice T2 brings still some more to the table (energetic with superb dynamics, exciting mids, stage with Reflektor tubes), but yah, we are in territory of diminishing returns. Well done, Soren! I hope that Ki can be offered affordable so that nothing stands in the way of its widespread use.
