Added a disclaimer regarding the use of non-standard tubes via 3rd party adapters, which as @perogie pointed out does require extra caution. Even though this particular case has shown to be effective, safe and worthwhile for a number of people, it’s still advisable to do your own research before trying.
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I’m a public service announcement!
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Here’s some info on tubes and tube amplifiers.
SE vs. Push Pull, Part 1
SE vs. Push Pull, Part 2
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I’m using the Euforia Anniversary Special Edition with Empyreans and run the volume at 9 o’clock. That’s plenty loud enough for me.
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Same here… for me that measures around 70 - 75DB with a Bifrost 2 as a source.
Thanks for the db measurement. I use the Gungnir multi-bit so it is probably close to the same.
Has anyone compared the Euforia to Decware Taboo mk4?
I recently found this book, it’s a fantastic read for anyone interested in how tubes work. Volume II goes into different tube types and how they are used in audio amplifiers.
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Having the Euforia and Espressivo mk II side by side and doing some A/B comparison it’s obvious that the Euforia has better separation and micro detail. I also found the Espressivo mk II to be better than the Echo mk I in that regard. But the Euforia is a clear step up above it’s smaller siblings.
Random observations updates:
- The soundstage is larger with the Euforia and more 3D.
- The Espressivo packs a good punch.
The chain:
PC → usb → RME ADI-2 DAC fs → Supra EFF-ISL → Espressivo mk II / Euforia mk II 2019 → FAW Noir Hybrid → ZMF VC Ironwood
Tubes:
Espressivo: Telefunken PCC88 + Reflektor 6N30P
Euforia: Ken-Rad VT-231 + Raytheon 6080W
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Interesting there is VERY little discussed about the Espressivo. I keep hearing it’s a junior Euphoria.
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That’s quite true IMO. First I had the Echo mkI and the Espressivo mkII and the Espressivo had the more balanced tonality of the two and in that regard I would say that it has a sound signature that is more reminiscent of the Euforia. Like a baby Euforia. The Espressivo is really good and I would definitely recommend it for high Ohm dynamic headphones.
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Buyers often fall into one of two camps: (1) price sensitive people who want bang-for-the-buck and stay nearer the quality entry point versus (2) price is no object I-want-the-best. Mid grade products can be easily overlooked in a pure luxury and entertainment hobby.
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New member Hello to the community!
I’m struggling with what to purchase and swaying between a Forge or Euforia or starting out less ambitious with an Espressivo or Echo. ZMF Pendant is not off the table.
Current equipment:
- PS Audio DirectStream DAC and Holo Audio Spring 3 KTE DAC
- PS Audio Power Regenerator
- Pass Labs Aleph30 Power amp
- Magnepan 1.6QR speakers
- Mogami bi-wire for speaker with Mogami balanced interconnects
- HD650 headphones
- no Headphone amp
I’ll probably upgrade the headphones later yet remain with a similar driver based product.
Listening: Music library is 6TB of hi-def rock, classical, and jazz. Probably have over 100 SACD’s ripped bit perfect to DSF files, lots of hi-def Flac and remainder rebook. Listening 60% rock, 20% Jazz, 20% Classical.
This is my first real foray into serious headphones.
OTL or transformer coupled… don’t care. Looking for nice class A quality with accurate and non-sterile or harsh presentation.
Appreciate and thoughts from the team of headphone Sherpas in the forum!
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Can you tell us a bit about your sound signature preferences? I’ve owned both the Pendant and Euforia, so hopefully can provide some perspective.
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Welcome!
I would personally base my purchase on the headphone you aim to get so that you can have great synergy off the bat. With the DACs you have in their respective price points, it might be good to have an idea of what you want sonically first then build around that.
I stumbled on this post comparing a bunch of tube amps against the quicksilver. It should provide you with nice comparisons and source of information. Worth a read imo.
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The Quicksilver headphone amp looks very intriguing! In general the Sonus Apparatus write-up is one of the better comprehensive and concise reviews read in a while. Hope they do many more!
Magazines seems reluctant to offend anyone, and YouTube reviews just talk too much and can’t focus on point. I REALLY like @MRHifiReviews, but his 2 hour Pendant vs. Elise had ~15 mins of actual comparison. I’d absolutely like to see him do a recap of the substance. Not sure streaming events translate well into a review of something.
Back on point myself 
… Wow Quicksilver Audio really flies under the radar.
Nothing on YouTube for reviews, however found a couple of forums with discussion threads: Super Best Audio Friends and Head-Fi
This might be a good “first HPA in a very long time” option.
Appreciate the pointer!
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I like an accurate, detailed sound with great soundstage. Perhaps tilted towards the warm.
Curious how you thought the Euforia’s cross-feed feature worked in real life. It is the cross-feed feature in Roon which attracted me back to headphones puttering around recently. I’d continue to use Roon to render my audio files, so perhaps not critical the amp to have this feature. Something seems appropriate about processing the cross-feed in analog domain… just a guess.
Definitely sticking with the HD650’s for a while. New headphones would likely be the next step following the amp. I’d likely buy the best I could for about $1000-$1500 price range. My 2 channel system would still be the primary listening environment.
Thanks @NordicDave. I might be misinterpreting, but I feel like the former and the latter are slightly at odds. I usually associate a “warm” tube sound with a slight blurring / fuzzing up of microdetail, which “warms up” the sound and makes it a bit more relaxed while giving it a bit more body. I totally may be misunderstanding, so by all means, set me straight.
One massive caveat I want to give to my impressions of the Euforia (I had the AE) are that I never got to tube roll much, which I personally consider an absolute must in tube amps. To be clear, many on this very forum will disagree with me on that, but I’ve personally never met a tube amp I like with stock tubes. I’ve found stock-tubed amps to range from tolerable to terrible. Sometimes those lowest on my stock-tubed list shoot to the top with better tubes. My current amp, a Woo WA5-LE is a bloated mess with its stock tubes. If you’re willing to put at least $700 (but can easily go to $3,000) of tube upgrades into it, it becomes awesome.
But I digress.
So, the Euforia, with stock tubes, I found to be fast, controlled, and a bit warm/fuzzy - but not in a bloaty way, which some tube amps do. It’s very controlled, but just wraps those musical strands in a tight-knit sweater. I don’t remember it doing too much one way or another for sound stage vs solid state.
I let the amp go because that’s not the sound signature I personally am looking for, but many people absolutely adore the Euforia. Again, I didn’t experiment with many tube either, so that can make a real difference in tweaking the amp to your liking.
You also mentioned the Ampsandsound / ZMF Pendant, which I liked a lot. I found it to be a cleaner and more detailed than the Euforia, and had a bit more depth to the sound stage.
Here are some of my past writeups of those amps:
Euforia: Woo WA5-LE vs Feliks Euforia Anniversary Edition - FIGHT
Pendant: Woo WA5-LE vs ZMF Pendant (OG) Deathmatch
You might also want to consider something like the DNA Starlett once you’re in the Pendant’s price range: DNA Starlett single ended triode SET vacuum tube headphone amplifier
As with all things audio, my ears/preferences are not the same as yours, and my headphones and upstream chain are likely different, so please treat all of my notes as only a single data point, and directionally.
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Thanks @andris !
Fantastic help and insight. There is an appearance Pendant & Forge owners have more passion of ownership for their amps than Feliks’. Perhaps its because transformers offer so much flexibility with regards to isolation from the amp circuitry, that specific headphones and cables are not so critical?
Need to do a little more reading and appreciate pointing out the additional links.
Headphones matter a ton. Even within a similar price range, the type of driver, impedance, and other factors mean that some headphones will pair beautifully with a given amp while others may not. It doesn’t mean the headphone or the amp are “bad” - just some don’t match. For example, I have a Focal Utopia - a dynamic driver with relatively low (~85 ohms) impedance, so they’re easy to drive. As a result, finding a matching tube amp can be difficult, as the Utopias are super sensitive, and will transmit even low amounts of noise. A higher impedance headphone (say, a ZMF Verite at about 300 ohms) may pair fantastically well with an amp that is not so great for the Utopia.
Cables do matter, but are more of a tweak, and that’s a different conversation for a different thread.
In any case, depending on how much you plan on spending on your next headphone, and how committed you plan on being to it, you probably want to make that decision before you choose an amp (or, I guess you could do it the other way around, too).
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