[Monsterzero]

But are tubes cheaper ($ per audible change) than switching entire headphone amplifier, headphone cables, interconnects, power cable, or dacs?

Depends, sometimes yes, sometimes no.

 

[goldwerger]

Anyone using their Atrium with Feliks Elise/Euforia amp? If so, then what pads are you guys using?

Thank you

I think @Sajid Amit does and loves the Euforia AE synergy (haven’t tried yet myself)

 

[Sajid Amit]

I think @Sajid Amit does and loves the Euforia AE synergy (haven’t tried yet myself)

Yup. Loving the combo. The Euforia AE makes all my high impedance headphones "bigger" sounding with more punch and slam, larger images, greater staging and layering, and an enhanced perception of details. Works superbly with the Atrium, VC and the 6XX.

 

[Shinsengumi]

I have ZMF Atrium and Atticus home for loan and I must say that Atrium are really beautiful headphones.

 

[SkylineNZ]

Has anyone tried their Atrium (or other ZMFs) with a Violectric amp? I'm thinking of upgrading from my Burson Soloist 3XP, and these Violectric amps seem like they could be a great match for the Atrium with their high output voltage. I'm looking into the HPA V340 or V550. I'm not quite ready to go down the tube rabbit hole, but this seems like a worthy solid state upgrade until that time comes.

I have a Violectric V280 with V850 DAC. I’ve only had a couple hours listening time on my Atriums but I like they way they sound on my Violectric gear. To be fair though, my only comparisons are a JDS Atom and an old Musical Fidelity X-CANs (mark 1) headphone amp. And every other headphone that I’ve used (HD580, LCD-2C, Elegia, Clear, HE6SEv2) sounds better on the Violectric.

 

[LCMusicLover]

My Atrium loaner has moved on to the next participant. I love them -- will definitely end up purchasing a set, although I'll have to sell something else first

 

[yolosauce]

BE2 Perforated Suede pads arrived this week. Less bass quantity compared to the stock pads but the bass is tighter with a more defined sub-bass.. The sound is smooth and inoffensive. Brighter but without any added harshness. However I feel the BE2 Suede pads take away the grungy/untamed nature of Atrium which is why I prefer stock pads.

 

[LCMusicLover]

BE2 Perforated Suede pads arrived this week. Less bass quantity compared to the stock pads but the bass is tighter with a more defined sub-bass.. The sound is smooth and inoffensive. Brighter but without any added harshness. However I feel the BE2 Suede pads take away the grungy/untamed nature of Atrium which is why I prefer stock pads.

Dumb question, but when you say 'stock pads' are you referring to Universe perf lambskin or Auteur perf lamb? Or perhaps the BE2 lamb?

Thanks

 

[Monsterzero]

Universe perf leather are stock

 

[goldwerger]

Dumb question, but when you say 'stock pads' are you referring to Universe perf lambskin or Auteur perf lamb? Or perhaps the BE2 lamb?

Thanks

The stock pads are the Universe perforate

BE2 Perforated Suede pads arrived this week. Less bass quantity compared to the stock pads but the bass is tighter with a more defined sub-bass.. The sound is smooth and inoffensive. Brighter but without any added harshness. However I feel the BE2 Suede pads take away the grungy/untamed nature of Atrium which is why I prefer stock pads.

I got the BE2 Hybrid perorated as second pair of pads and, similary, I preer the stock Universe perorated which has more texture to the bass and a more "organic" or analog feel to these headphones. The BE2 lose some of that magic to me. (I also find the Universe a tad bit deeper and more comfortable, but that's a minor thing as they are both find)

 

[yolosauce]

Dumb question, but when you say 'stock pads' are you referring to Universe perf lambskin or Auteur perf lamb? Or perhaps the BE2 lamb?

Thanks

Universe perforated lambskin. I also have the the auteur perforated lambskin pads and my preferences are universal>be2 suede>auteur

 

[Coran]

When I bought my wa22 was the moment to where I stopped focusing on this and that and started enjoying the music more. The stock tubes were great in tha wa22 but I upgraded them once and have been fine ever since. To me a tube amp brought out more emotion and soul into my music and made me stop over analyzing the sound. I can just sit back and melt into the music. Tubes have brought me more enjoyment than solid state ever did. I have both and I enjoy both but for me when I want to just sit back and enjoy the music I fire up the wa22 and VC. Ppl can do the same thing with solid state amps as they can with tubes by changing Amps to get a certain sound. For me tubes were the best decision I made. I was nervous about my purchase because I had never heard tubes but it turned out to be a great buy!

Thanks for this. the WA22 has been on my radar for a while. How would you describe the sound signature of the stock tubes? What were the changes you heard when you swapped them out? Maybe it is time to just dive in...

I get it. I not only have an OTL, but a DAC that uses tubes as well, so I can obsess 2 times.

My advice to you is find a few amps that interest you that use the same tube types. Buy one amp and do your research on the God tier tubes for the tube types your amp takes and grab those. If after getting a nice selection of tubes and trying various combos of tubes, if you're unhappy with the sound, it might be time to get a different amp. Get a new amp that hopefully takes the same tube types as your previous amp and begin again.

My current amp uses the same tube types as my previous amp did, so it was literally a plug and play situation. Having to re-learn a tube type and re-purchase a collection of tubes can be daunting and expensive as hell.

One thing I have learned is that there are very few bad sounding tubes. Only bad tube combos for your gears and ears.

You'll know when its time to climb down this rabbit hole.

This is very sensible advice, I appreciate it. I have been looking into tube amps for a while now, just never wanting to pull the trigger. I have been strongly considering both the WA22 and Feliks Euphoria for sometime. Those both seem to provide lots of options when it comes to tubes. Right now I feel like the WA22 would better suit my setup. I was looking at some of the Ampsandsound offerings, but I didn't care for their layout/footprint. Always open to other suggestions, but there sure seem to be a lot to choose from!

 

[LCMusicLover]

..., I preer the stock Universe perorated which has more texture to the bass and a more "organic" or analog feel to these headphones. The BE2 lose some of that magic to me. (I also find the Universe a tad bit deeper and more comfortable, but that's a minor thing as they are both find)

Universe perforated lambskin. I also have the the auteur perforated lambskin pads and my preferences are universal>be2 suede>auteur

Funny, I had a loaner Atrium for 5 days. I listened to all three pads (plus a few I had laying around for use w/ my Auteur and other cans). I slightly preferred the Auteur lamb to the Universe lamb, with the BE2 lamb well behind.

Clearly a case of My ears / Your ears

 

[Monsterzero]

Always open to other suggestions, but there sure seem to be a lot to choose from!

Indeed there are many amps to choose from. Ive always preferred the sound of OTL amps with high impedance headphones. They seem to offer the full "tube experience" and sound. On the downside of owning an OTL amp, you're pretty much limited to high impedance headphones as low impedance dynamic and planars don't do well on OTLs, generally speaking.

There are a few amp builders here on Head Fi tht can offer you more personal attention and custom designs than what you can get from the bigger companies. Personally speaking, I prefer to support small businesses who create bespoke gear made by talented individuals and craftsmen or a small team. My entire chain consists of hand made gear, except for my power conditioner.

 

[Pharmaboy]

Has anyone tried their Atrium (or other ZMFs) with a Violectric amp? I'm thinking of upgrading from my Burson Soloist 3XP, and these Violectric amps seem like they could be a great match for the Atrium with their high output voltage. I'm looking into the HPA V340 or V550. I'm not quite ready to go down the tube rabbit hole, but this seems like a worthy solid state upgrade until that time comes.

I have the V281. It's my favorite HP amp and main system preamp. All my headphones sound terrific on it. High impedance headphones, including the Atrium, love the V281.

I haven't heard any of the newer Violectrics. No matter--I'm a huge Violectric/Lake People fan. This is solid state done exactly right IMO.

But no, it's not quite the same as an endgame tube amp. Nothing else is, unfortunately.