DNA Starlett - An Attempted Review

FWIW i confirmed with Donald what the various switches did on a Stratus.

High/low gain switch, selects 2 different transformer taps for the SE out
High is 8Ohms, low is 3Ohms if you are using the low impedance out
For the balanced connection (Bal/SE) it just dictates whether L- is ground or the center output tap is ground, so there should be no audible difference.
The Balanced out is always 8 Ohms
So high gain low impedance SE is electrically directly connected to the same output as the balanced out, so any difference you hear is in the connector or headphone cable.
FWIW I preferred balanced out over the SE as well, but I also recently tried a dual 3pin XLR, and I felt that sounded better still. Again can only be the connectors or the cable.

I’ve preferred low impedance out/balanced on the stratus across the board with headphones, it sounds less sluggish and controls the drivers better, I also thought rolling the rectifier to an NOS RCA improved the dynamics.
The only headphone I run through the SE out is the D8KPro, where I run low gain, to get the lower output impedance.

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Helpful input.

Nice, I didn’t try this.

This was my experience also, XLR out in my case (likely due to my cables/connectors).

The website shows low impedance, high gain as 9 ohms (immaterial):

• 1/4" stereo TRS output on full gain, 0dB attenuation setting has selectable output impedance between 9 ohm (Low setting) and 120 ohm (IEC setting)

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Yes it’s not on the website on the Stratus on the Single ended out using the low impedance out only low gain is 3 Ohms, and high gain is 8 Ohms.

I specifically asked Donald about this, since I had assumed it would be a separate tap (it is on the stratus at least, it’s using 1/2 the balanced signal for low gain) and hence the impedance could not be the same.

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I had pasted information on the Starlett, assuming that the output impedance of the Stratus and Starlett were equal.

It appears that the output impedance for the Stratus and Starlett differ here (8 vs 9). Starlett was pasted above, Stratus pasted below (consistent with your correspondence with Donald, and on the website):

• 1/4" stereo TRS output on full gain, 0dB attenuation setting has selectable output impedance between 8 ohm (Low setting) and 120 ohm (IEC setting)

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Here to add further confusion or cross-pollination, regardless of SE or Balanced, power is the same per Website:

• All XLR and 1/4" TRS outputs provide the same power: 1.8W into 50 ohms, 900mW into 100 ohms

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Interested in your brief thoughts and comparison to the T4, Tuba, and Phonitor in particular, as well as pairing with the Yggy when you’re done.

We don’t have a dedicated Stratus thread. Thanks.

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Also wondered if anyone had had the opportunity to compare the Starlett with the ZMF Pendant, or to compare a Verite with an Auteur on the Starlett?

I have a Pendant and think I generally prefer the Auteur on it, although I can appreciate the Verite is technically better on at least some songs. Wondered if this would be likely to change with the Starlett.

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I had a Pendant for a few years and switched to a Starlett a few months ago. Both are excellent amps, very similar in quality but with different approaches. I found the Pendant to be energetic, extremely fast and dynamic. Tons of slam, great detail without causing fatigue. The Starlett is more of a refined presentation that emphasizes midrange bloom and decay. It trades the lightning fast transients for a more liquid sound.

My current headphones are VO, VC and Auteur. While my favorite of the three is the VC, I go back and forth on my preference between the other two. I agree that the VO has better technicalities, but some music just sounds perfect on the Auteur. I don’t think that opinion changed a ton when I went to the Starlett, although I suppose I’ve been listening to the Auteur more in the last few months so maybe it’s related. At the end of the day, all three offer something different and I’m happy to have the options available.

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That’s really helpful, thanks. Think I will place an order for the Starlett and then get an Auteur in the meantime to compare on the Pendant. Hopefully might suit my preferences better than VO + Pendant.

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With the right tubes and DAC the Starlett can be quite fast. It is initially voiced to be more laid back but put a good rectifier in and it’ll keep up well even with the busiest of passages.

Between the Auteur and VO, well my auteur was sold off a while ago. Too boring for me but that’s preference vs anything wrong with the Autuer as I also find the VO to be markedly inferior to the Utopia, again, preference based.

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Is there anything in particular that you find VO lacking when compared to the Auteur? The starlett will not change the tonality of the VO and from the way you phrase your initial question I have a feeling that this is more a tonality preference.

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I was shortlisting between 2 amps this time last year before ultimately deciding on the starlett. Boils down to Ultralinear vs SET sound. Would love to hear the pendant someday.

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Yeah, that’s a good point. I certainly didn’t mean to imply that the Starlett lacks speed or resolution at all. The comparison with the Pendant is a close one, and I was just referring to my impressions on the differences between the two. I have a 50’s Mullard fat base rectifier in the Starlett and agree that it’s an improvement. NOS tube upgrades made a bigger difference in the Pendant than on the Starlett in my experience.

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Yeah, the Pendant isn’t something I’ve heard so I can’t attest to its capabilities or tube sensitivity.

It’s always hard to classify tube amps ultimate capabilities because, you know, bloody tubes!! I’ve just been really impressed with what I’ve been able to get out of the Starlett. Responds very well to throwing better gear in the chain and “better” tubes.

Can it reach the levels of something like the new Stratus or Stellaris? No, probably not, but it’s not an obvious bottleneck either. It’s probably the best value proposition for higher end headphone tube amps, IMO.

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I agree 100% on the value of the Starlett… It seems to be the sweet spot of the DNA line from that perspective. It’s also really nice that you don’t have to put a ton of cash into nice tubes. I’d love to get into a Stellaris some day, but it’s a pretty significant cost increase and I’m very happy with the Starlett.

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That’s a big advantage. The power and driver tubes are inexpensive. Generally around $5-20, rectifiers can get pricey. But even if you spent on a nice NOS rectifier you can still outfit it with excellent sounding glass for under 200 depending on rectifier.

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The only Starlett downside is its relatively reduced power output vs something like the Pendant which may limit your can options.

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Interestingly this would’ve been a non-issue 10-15 years back when dynamic drivers occupy most of the flagship space. Still a non issue for me but the market is trending towards more planar and will be for the foreseeable future. The fact that this is still considered one of the best value high end option in today’s market is testament to how well it is voiced.

P.S Found an interesting market research on Planar market presence (Planar Magnetic Headphones Market Report | Global Forecast To 2028). Will be interesting to see the figures but the paper is over 4 grand…

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It’s sure to be an excellent analysis - they manage to call Dan Clark Audio “Mr. Speakers” a year after the name change :upside_down_face:

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These kinds of reports are often created by a single person or a small team. It’s published by a syndicated research firm (i.e., a business that dresses up a lot of reports and markets them improve credibility). I’ve never heard of this firm, and they could be tiny. Google News turns up a lot of Korean language citations…hmm…

Research vendors jack up the price because the only serious buyers are (1) headphone makers, or (2) investment firms/hedge funds. Purchases probably cover the labor hours to create the report (e.g., $50K to $100K), but maybe not much more. Land a whale for dinner or go home hungry.

Using old names like Mr. Speakers may be needed for historical comparisons to prior reports (i.e., continuity). Or just sloppy. Either one could be true.

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