Pendant has more power, EL84s being driven ultra linearly equals power from what I gather. However, just keep in mind that power doesnt not always equal sound quality otherwise we’d all have THX amps and be deliriously happy. Zach would have most likely voiced the Pendant with his headphones in mind and they have a house sound, this may not translate to other headphones. This isnt a knock on the Pendant in any way just, a reference point.
3 Likes
True and good points. More power doesn’t necessarily mean better sound quality. That’s funny about THX. I believe the amps’ output impedance and matching with the respective cans is part of the evaluation. In my experience for most things not just audio, jacks of all trades in all categories are rare and specialization of labor is a thing.
I do favor some headroom, with the other factors being more important
I’m reminded of First Watt amplifiers from Nelson Pass - the first watt is the most important watt.
2 Likes
The hard part of all of this is there is no way to directly compare between the different amps. To be honest, had I not had the opportunity to listen to the Starlett I would have gone with the Pendant based. Now that I was lucky enough to listen to the Starlett, there is no doubt if there is a choice between a known factor (Starlett), and unknown factor (Pendant), I will tend to go with the known factor.
Maybe once you have a listen you will re-approach your deliberations as I have. I am still interested in the Pendant, but less so than before, I had even thought about buying a Pendant as I wait for the Starlett/Stratus to have a proper evaluation. I may still do that, have not decided yet as it would probably be worth upgrading my DAC with the money spent.
Also, don’t discount the Starlett with planar headphones. It was very good with my AFC and I did not have any concerns on the volume. I know there are other planars that are inefficient and require more power but that is not the reason I am considering the Stratus. Initially I thought all of Donald’s amps were $5k and up, then stumbled on the Starlett from @perogie review and it was then when I also realized the Stratus was within reach too.
I am rambling a bit, but in summary once I heard the Starlett it was near impossible for me to remove the bias as it is such an amazing tube amp. The only noise I hear is from the music recordings, it is that clear. No transformer hum, tube buzz, etc from the unit. it is a work of art.
5 Likes
I took the extra I saved from going with the Starlett and got the BF2 as a DAC upgrade. I am appreciating both the Starlett and the BF2 more and more as a combo unit. So that is a serious consideration IMO.
What DAC do you running now?
4 Likes
I wanted to listen to the BF2 over the Schiitr, they only had the previous generation set up connected to a Valhalla amp. Very curious about it given the value.
My current DAC is the Mojo, and as a back up I have a Musical Fidelity V-DAC II that is still solid despite its age. I enjoy the Chord sound and consider the Qutest or Hugo2 as the next in line. However, I am looking into the BF2, Benchmark DAC 3B, or hold off for now.
I am going to visit the Schiitr one more time and hope they have the BF2 available to demo. I also wanted to listen to the Yiggy since it receives so much praise, even that was not on demo last week.
4 Likes
My only real complaint I have about the BF2 is its a touch decreased (just a touch) in treble energy/clarity. Once I got a tube set in that remedied that it’s been gold. Even with tubes that are warmer its not actually that bad in the treble.
@tommytakis found it to be a bit overly rounded for himself with the Starlett IIRC, I have no issue with that personally.
If I had the funds I’d be looking at something Rockna.
2 Likes
Very true about the difficulty of direct comparisons and the value of known vs unknown factors. I’m similar and somewhat risk averse. We’ll see how I feel after hearing the Starlett.
Good point about not discounting the Starlett with planars, I haven’t concluded. It would be one with thing if these were OTL amps, but DNAs and the Pendant are all transformer based.
I like the aesthetic/design of DNA over the Pendant. However, I have a use for the Pendant preamp output in my speaker setup. I tend to view purchases as starting a relationship with a certain company/brand/its founders, with my purchase as my vote/investment/endorsement. I sometimes choose the product with marginally less quality if I am on board otherwise with the company’s/founders’ story/ethos. Outside of audio equipment, I’ve generally preferred solo acts/artists/producers over collaborations. If I were to predict, I see myself entrusting my tube amplification duties with Donald. I guess the emotional aspect appeals to me and not just the science/engineering (granted, you gotta deliver the goods).
Now I hope I can be objective during the demo, which is why I advocate for blind testings/tastings.
I would pay money to audition the Pendant.
Your description of the Starlett as a work of art is music to my ears.
3 Likes
Yeah just to add on to this point, I’ve heard the Rosson Audio Rad-0 through Starlett and it was really freaking good and I generally don’t like planars except a few (HE6, etc). Apparently Verum 1 works well too. (though the Verum creator turned out to be a huge racist and bigot so I don’t recommend buying his products anymore)
I owned the Bifrost 2 and Yggy A1 before and they’re both fantastic DACs for the price. I would personally pair the Starlett with Yggy A1/GS or Gumby A2 for better tonal balance, but YMMV as @perogie mentioned.
A kind friend recently sold me his HD800SDR for a great price so I’m going to see how it pairs with Starlett. Another friend also provided me with the official SBAF rugliner material so this will be a fun little experiment. Apparently DNA amps have killer synergy with HD800 so I had to try it at least once.
6 Likes
@perogie interesting tidbit on the treble energy/clarity. I really hope they have it set up when I go back again. I may try to sneak away tomorrow as they are only open Thursday-Sunday.
@tommytakis Thanks for your input re: planars such as the Rosson, that is on the wishlist for sure. I was able to demo the Gungnir connected to a Mjolinir, not sure which version it was. There are so many different short names for the Schiit products it is hard to make sense of what is what. Hell I can’t even spell their names right!
@bpcarb I am 100% with you on investment/endorsement as a start of a relationship be it with ZMF, or Donald North. That is why the Pendant is still of interest to me, and after meeting Donald in person and chatting for a bit I am equally sold on any of his creations.
I am a novice in this world of headphones, but from a customer stand point I have never had the experience in any other hobby where I am chatting with the owners and it is speaking with a friend rather than a sales transaction. If this is the exception, I am lucky I stumbled upon them, if it is the norm then that is awesome.
7 Likes
Was that with the bass mod or stock? That one I am curious about.
I was aware of that, f%^k that guy.
I would be very curious as to how you find it. It’s definitely on the radar. That could pair well with the BF2: might bring out the bass (is that possible) a bit more and tame the treble, this is in reference to the non SDR version.
3 Likes
Hmm I’m not sure, I heard it briefly at a meet because one of the friends there was a consultant for Rosson Audio and was tweaking the headphones for them
Not only that, but he frequently bashes other headphone companies like ZMF and Aurorus Audio. Like how do you hate on Zach 
he’s one of the nicest guys I’ve interacted with in this hobby. Sad to learn about this as I was pretty curious about his upcoming Verum 2. I hope he learns his lesson and change for the better.
I’ll post about it once I get my hands on them. I think I owned a HD800/S at 3 different points in my life, but I always ended up selling for some reason. Hopefully this time will be different. 
4 Likes
Good stuff. I’m pretty sure the DNA amps and Pendant amps are both excellent, and it’s a matter of splitting hairs and particular intangibles ultimately affecting the decision.
I’m also more of a novice for headphones. In my view, there’s a range and broad spectrum between the smaller, independently-owned artisan-type producers (ZMF, DNA, Eddie Current, etc.) and larger, more widely distributed global companies (Sennheiser, Beyerdynamic, etc.). Having access to the owners who are willing to engage is a cool thing.
2 Likes
I just realized you there’s another option (which is what I have in my rig currently):
- DNA Starlett for Dynamics, IEMs, and efficient planars
- a good solid state amp like Bryston BHA-1, Eddie Current Black Widow, or Schiit Ragnarok 1 for power hungry planars (also works well with dynamics too!) Bryston BHA-1 is the one I’ve been rocking and really love this amp. I owned the Black Widow as well before but it was getting too warm for my chain so I swapped it for a more “neutral” sounding amp, the Bryston. What I love about the BHA-1 is that it can basically power most, if not all, things you throw at with excellent macro and micro dynamics (THIS THING SLAMS HARD like a truck) and stages pretty darn well for a solid state amp. I’m a bit of a slam head so as much as I love my Starlett, sometimes I want to be blown out to another dimension
I just commissioned my friend to mod a TH900 for me so I’ll mainly be using that for my daily dose of slap/slam/blam
Don’t bother with THX meme amps, I’ve tried them and found them quite lifeless and boring. Also stages pretty flat in comparison to the Black Widow and BHA-1. If something were to happen and I needed to cut down my rig, I would be more than happy just owning a decent DAC and a BHA-1 for best all rounder.
I heard from a friend that Pendant doesn’t stage as wide and deep as DNA amps (he owned the Sonett 2 and now owns a Pendant) but still very great sounding amp so you can’t go either way. I doubt Zach would put his branding on an amp that sounds like poo-poo.
7 Likes
This is why I wonder if the Stratus would reach this kind of dimension due to the extra power output. Or, do I completely misunderstand?
1 Like
Extra power doesn’t necessarily mean better slam/macrodynamics. There can be powerful amps that sound wimpy in dynamics.
I haven’t heard the stratus, but I did hear all of his other line ups: stellaris, starlett, sonett1 and sonett 2, and they’re not really known for crazy slam. Eddie Current stuff might be better for that if you want to stay with tubes.
Solid state amps generally have better control and grip in the bass and macrodynamics which is why I keep one solid state and one tube amp
2 Likes
Where you get your tubes from? Wanna start grabbing some tubes for my Starlett before its in so I can do some rolling. I see you have a decent amount. Also notices you like to roll the preamp tube, any reason why over the others?
3 Likes
Ah, I gotcha. Thanks @tommytakis, I have always liked the Bryston gear. The BHA-1 has been on my radar, maybe the next amp, for now I need a capable tube such as Starlett/Stratus.
3 Likes
Fleabay lol I wouldn’t recommend this route if you don’t have your Starlett yet since you can’t test/verify the tubes you buy, but I haven’t received any bad tubes so far.
Oh I don’t think I have a preference for preamp tubes, I was just trying to nail tonality to my preference. Also doesn’t help my friend who also has a Starlett lives in LA and often ships me toobs for me to try loool
For purely aesthetic reasons, I REALLY like the way the coke bottles look (5U4G). Also happen to sound great as well.
4 Likes
np! always happy to help. I did do a write up on SBAF if you want to read about how it sounds. They’re one of my favorite solid state amps for the price. Also nice that it comes with 20 years of transferable warranty
3 Likes
Agreed, I love the bigger tubes. So you can use a 5U4G in the preamp tube section I assume? I haven’t tube rolled before, but I might be moving overseas within the next year and don’t know how accessible getting tubes is so wanted to stock up that way I didn’t have to worry about it for awhile!
2 Likes