[audioisemotion]

Hi Researcher
Will the ether C work with this amp well? Probably? It works with 300 Ohm stuff as people have said, it works with my Anandas which dip down lower than the Ether C. However a 300 ohm headphone is a more stable load for a tube amp so pushing up the volume knob is ok, which the Anandas I don't go above 10am and it sounds wonderful. But each load is different and looking at the Ether C at 92-96db and 23 Ohms.. Probably. You will have to turn the volume above 10am to reach moderate listening levels, levels which don't aggravate my tinnitus. Unfortunately this amp is so rare and relatively slow to acquire that its difficult to for you to test it with your phones, so unless someone has a set already??
Further on my journey, I had bought the Raspberry pi and was very impressed with the sound via usb to the Gustard A22, impressed in that it was pop and click free, which my big pc was not and with moode loaded and running from an ssd on usb and not the SD card, it ran fast and not a single hiccup. The Pi2aes arrived last Thursday and since I too am a researcher and work in IT I had prepared for this arrival and I had it running in 15 minutes via I2S and hdmi into the Gustard. Well, there is definitely something to be said about giving a good processor all the data in a well timed form. Its better. When I upgraded to the tor amp the first thing I noticed was the perception that the rhythm sounded slower. Very quickly your brain adapts to this so now it sounds normal again, but it was their.
Better how, sound stage placement, detail and the solidity of the image and a slowing of the rhythm. My digital journey in the last two years has ultimately revolved around getting the digital signal to the dac processor and out again in the most coherent way possible and at reasonable cost.
So current system, HP nas running truenas, zyxcel managed switches with music on its own vlan and given priority. cat 7 double shielded cable in the house to the Raspberry PI, 50 cm High speed HDMI to Gustard dac and balanced to the tor amp. Zyxcel switch, PI, Gustard run directly from rear of large APC UPS.
PI has 8Gb ram and all caching is turned up to maximum levels.
So I have reached my planned goal and am currently feeding the best signal I can the the dac and to the tor-audio and the tor is still scaling and letting me hear the improvements.

Now I'm going to be perhaps unpopular and bow out of the forum on this. The reason being I'm not in a position to compare A with B. I'm not setup that way. Hifi is hidden away and not visible as its in the living room an wife friendly, IE invisible. I find my brain adapts within a few hours to any upgrade or downgrade and I applaud Zeos and the other reviewer (I forget who sorry) who use similar three way switching units to compare the sound through different equipment. I find I just don't have the "sound" memory to compare even my valves/tubes.

Speaking of tubes, I previously had raved about the psvane 181 and another reviewer didn't like them. I took mine out and went back to the stock and couldn't honestly tell you what the difference is, same with the shuguang, they are all good. It is impossible to easily compare these and I don't like swapping tubes in and out all the time. If I were pushed for a preference I would say the newer two are an improvement over the original. The shuguang sounding less precise but nice with the anandas.

I wish you all good listening and I have reached my current goal in Hifi. The tor has scaled well with each upgrade and I have never felt it is the limiting factor in my system. At the low levels I listen to, well recorded voice sounds like it in the room with me. Old recordings reveal new things and textures and I'm enjoying this a lot. The pi2aes has added a solidity to the sound which makes music easier to follow and less fatiguing with no disturbance to the music which breaks the illusion.

I fully admit that sound is a subjective experience and the brain is easily fooled, it is an illusion of reality after all. I did the foobar a-b thing and boy that was difficult and my old ears couldn't reliably tell one from the other. I can put my hand on a holy book and swear that I believe my current system is the best it has ever been, but belief is not proof, but if it makes you happier with your current point in life? My belief however does convince me to stop spending money for a while and enjoy the music.

Good listening to you all.
signing out.

P.S
If you have a question like does the ether c work on the tor, and no one hear can answer, contact Zeos on his forum and ask what he thinks in a pm. He has a lot of headphones and I see he has now got the tor balanced in the amp stack to the left of his review table just below the table height. I have not tried this so I have no idea if he would answer, but his output is prolific.

 

[carboncopy]

I have the C Flow 1.1. The Tor can drive it. But I just tried it quickly.

 

[ardbeg1975]

Hello, new to this forum. I recently acquired a Tor Balanced and to my ears it best pairs with the ZMF VCs and the HD6XX which is no surprise. Regarding Planars, Arya's sound good on the Tor but they lack a bit of what I’d best describe as urgency. (The earlier comment about the Tor subtly slowing the rhythm rings true to me). The Arya’s work better on a Lyr3 for example perhaps due to hybrid design and/or much higher power output headroom.

I also have some Drop/DCA Aeon Closed Xs but haven’t tested them on the Tor yet. The Aeon Closed X's sound better than the Arya's on the Tor but I still prefer the Lyr3 for this planar as well. Perhaps it is the tubes (CV181-Z on the Lyr versus stock tubes on the Tor), but the Lyr3 certainly drives more base response and presence due to increased power however I will say the Tor imparts a subjectively pleasing organic aspect to the Aeon's sound. I can best describe it as the Tor sounds like you are listening to the music reverberate off the interior walls of a small, wood frame country church while the Lyr3 add less color but more clean power. The mids / vocals sound a bit more forward on Tor compared to the Lyr3 which may or may not appeal to some.

 

[Knee Deep In Epoxy]

My Tor Balanced just arrived... She's so beautiful I think I just want to sit and stare at her for eternity.

 

[Researcher]

I have the C Flow 1.1. The Tor can drive it. But I just tried it quickly.

Great news! If you can share your thoughts ECF and Tor, I would be grateful

 

[ardbeg1975]

A bit of a niche combo, but for future reference, the Tor works very well with Kennerton Gjallarhorn JMs. They are 33 Ohm and easy to drive at 116db sensitivity. The Tor brings out the bass (for which the “horns” excel).

 

[Deleeh]

Hello,
Does anyone know how the Tor Roger behaves with planar headphones?
I own Lcd 2c and DC R/T closed.

 

[ardbeg1975]

Hello,
Does anyone know how the Tor Roger behaves with planar headphones?
I own Lcd 2c and DC R/T closed.

I cannot speak to the Roger but the Balanced is described as “two Rogers” combined from a high level design standpoint so I assume similar response from both Tor amps. But it depends on the particular planar. Aryas lose too much “urgency” of attack with the Tor. DCA Aeon Closed Xs are good but still better on hybrid tube. Kennerton Wodan which is very easy to drive (~116db sensitivity) sound very nice on the Tor (more bass, more smoothing of highs”) but do again lose a bit of attack compared to a hybrid tube or a SS amp. I recommend the Tor without hesitation for dynamics but it is more picky when it comes to planars. I’ll summarize by saying the planars never sound bad by any means on the Tor but some models definitely sound better on SS or hybrid.

 

[Deleeh]

I cannot speak to the Roger but the Balanced is described as “two Rogers” combined from a high level design standpoint so I assume similar response from both Tor amps. But it depends on the particular planar. Aryas lose too much “urgency” of attack with the Tor. DCA Aeon Closed Xs are good but still better on hybrid tube. Kennerton Wodan which is very easy to drive (~116db sensitivity) sound very nice on the Tor (more bass, more smoothing of highs”) but do again lose a bit of attack compared to a hybrid tube or a SS amp. I recommend the Tor without hesitation for dynamics but it is more picky when it comes to planars. I’ll summarize by saying the planars never sound bad by any means on the Tor but some models definitely sound better on SS or hybrid.

Hello,
Thank you for your reply.
I see, I don't need anything like that.
I already have the Feliks Euforia, even there it has a hard time with the Dc R/T. Listening to music quietly is still possible, but not more.
It accepts the Lcd 2c much better.
I agree with you that planars run better with a hybrid amplifier, much more power, puch and power behind it.
Unfortunately, the market is a bit overcrowded with Chinese products that are only marginally enjoyable before they fail.
So it's really hard to find a decent hybrid amp without it costing you your whole arm.
Thank you very much for your assessment, it helped me a lot.

 

[ardbeg1975]

So it's really hard to find a decent hybrid amp without it costing you your whole arm.
Thank you very much for your assessment, it helped me a lot.

Off thread topic, but the Schiit Lyr 3 is a nice hybrid at a tolerable price point (at least in the US). The stock tube is ok but I’ve gotten a lot of enjoyment from rolling both newer Chinese/Russian or vintage tubes to tweak the sound.

 

[ardbeg1975]

Hello,
Thank you for your reply.
I see, I don't need anything like that.
I already have the Feliks Euforia, even there it has a hard time with the Dc R/T. Listening to music quietly is still possible, but not more.
It accepts the Lcd 2c much better.

I’ll add one more counterbalancing argument; as an OPT amp, the Tor can drive the DC to higher volume while maintaining clarity than I’d suspect the OTL Euforia can. The DCs are fairly low sensitivity as I recall and I believe the Euforia is outputting 230mW while the Tor can supposedly push ~400mW. The impact of the Tor with planars is less about volume control and more about speed. The Tor doesn’t sound syrupy but it is definitely an easy listening amp which may not be what you want if you wish to accentuate that very tight pluck that some planars can bring to the sound. As an example, I play fast jazz on the hybrid or SS but acoustic, blues, and vocal centric music more on the Tor.

 

[Deleeh]

I’ll add one more counterbalancing argument; as an OPT amp, the Tor can drive the DC to higher volume while maintaining clarity than I’d suspect the OTL Euforia can. The DCs are fairly low sensitivity as I recall and I believe the Euforia is outputting 230mW while the Tor can supposedly push ~400mW. The impact of the Tor with planars is less about volume control and more about speed. The Tor doesn’t sound syrupy but it is definitely an easy listening amp which may not be what you want if you wish to accentuate that very tight pluck that some planars can bring to the sound. As an example, I play fast jazz on the hybrid or SS but acoustic, blues, and vocal centric music more on the Tor.

Thank you for your assessment.
From a personal point of view, I am perhaps too spoilt in terms of demands.
It should either be a linked tube amp that can drive and implement this, even if it would mean custom-made, or a decent hybrid amp that is also cleanly built.
I don't necessarily want to spend money because it can only drive the headphones to a limited extent.
I also have to say that the R/T and all Dan Clark headphones simply need power to shine.
That's why I have deliberately avoided the headphones, but with the R/T it's almost too good to say no, you have to acknowledge that.
In a way it's sad that the industry with so much technology doesn't manage to build something sensible without costing your arm.
Certainly Tor offers very acceptable performance, no question, but for me it is too little.
I have the Deliks Euforia at home, which really shines with the Lcd 2c after the tube has been replaced, but that's also because it can still do it.
It was clear to me from the start that it can hardly drive the R/T and that it is highly inefficient.
I would also like to get away from Chifi, even though it's not bad, but I don't want to spend money again on something that only lasts 300 hours, like the Little Dot 1+, for example, even though that would have been enough for me.
I looked at the Schiit Lyr 3, unfortunately it will only be available in 6-8 weeks for the Eu side.

I thought maybe the Tor Rogers would be more generous on planar headphones and more capable, but it doesn't seem to be the case.
The search will probably go on,where I think it might end up in a custom made when the door is open.

 

[ardbeg1975]

Thank you for your assessment.
From a personal point of view, I am perhaps too spoilt in terms of demands.
It should either be a linked tube amp that can drive and implement this, even if it would mean custom-made, or a decent hybrid amp that is also cleanly built.
I don't necessarily want to spend money because it can only drive the headphones to a limited extent.
I also have to say that the R/T and all Dan Clark headphones simply need power to shine.
That's why I have deliberately avoided the headphones, but with the R/T it's almost too good to say no, you have to acknowledge that.
In a way it's sad that the industry with so much technology doesn't manage to build something sensible without costing your arm.
Certainly Tor offers very acceptable performance, no question, but for me it is too little.
I have the Deliks Euforia at home, which really shines with the Lcd 2c after the tube has been replaced, but that's also because it can still do it.
It was clear to me from the start that it can hardly drive the R/T and that it is highly inefficient.
I would also like to get away from Chifi, even though it's not bad, but I don't want to spend money again on something that only lasts 300 hours, like the Little Dot 1+, for example, even though that would have been enough for me.
I looked at the Schiit Lyr 3, unfortunately it will only be available in 6-8 weeks for the Eu side.

I thought maybe the Tor Rogers would be more generous on planar headphones and more capable, but it doesn't seem to be the case.
The search will probably go on,where I think it might end up in a custom made when the door is open.

Yes, the Drop equivalent of the R/T (Aeon Closed X) is my primary travel headphone and I like it very much. Not tube-based but have you looked at Flux Labs (like Tor, based out of Ukraine)? I have one on order myself.

 

[Knee Deep In Epoxy]

Has anyone here tried using the Tor Balanced or other Tor headphone amp as pre-amp behind a clean powerful solid state like the THX 789 or Topping A90?

I'm theorising that it could be done as long as the TOR output is controlled from the the volume knob so it doesn't damage the solid state.

Why do this? To try and get the TOR sound into my forthcoming Aryas (as TOR to ARYA won't cut it)

 

[Deleeh]

Has anyone here tried using the Tor Balanced or other Tor headphone amp as pre-amp behind a clean powerful solid state like the THX 789 or Topping A90?

I'm theorising that it could be done as long as the TOR output is controlled from the the volume knob so it doesn't damage the solid state.

Why do this? To try and get the TOR sound into my forthcoming Aryas (as TOR to ARYA won't cut it)

In my opinion, this does not work.
What comes out is a mix that you can't tell beforehand, that will sound good or not good.

Actually, preamp only makes sense when it goes directly through the speakers.
Not through another amp that "pretties up" the signal and then goes to speakers or headphones.

The Ayra is also not ideal for the Tor amplifier.
I would try a hybrid amp if you like a warm sweet sound.