The 300 ohm out is more euphonic, with less bass definition and more “nimble” mids so to speak. The 100 ohm out keeps much of that euphony but has a more defined/tighter sound, the mids aren’t quite as lush.
I would add that the review unit I have from @zach915m has no major noise issues and is substantially quieter than the Feliks Audio Elise I am Also reviewing to give you guys another amp to compare too.
I for one think the savings at the current price is a huge value and adding this amp to my collection is a no brainer, the pendant has become my reference tube amp which I will discuss in my full YouTube review.
Edit: I should add, I prefer the Verite Open on the low Z.
I prefer the eikon on the 300 ohm/high Z pendant out.
And if the postal gods are favorable, I’ll be recieving a verite closed tomorrow. Maybe the low Z out will be my preferred with it.
Hi Everybody,
I know this is not a Kenzie thread but I do not see a dedicated ampsandsound thread and want to share some comments about them as I think it is pertinent to everyone’s consideration of the Pendant.
I bought @Earmuffs Kenzie recently to better drive my ZMF VCs. Oh boy does it. I cannot give a more resounding endorsement of this amp for ZMF. No doubt it is great with other headphones as well, but I only own one…
I did have one concern which I wrote Justin about this morning, a noticeable noise floor. Justin actually called me and spent a half hour troubleshooting with me and discussing the amp and best practices! We diagnosed the issue I was having as a dying input tube which I was able to replace with a recently purchased 2C52. Noise floor dropped by 70% (subjective estimate). Justin had a lot of explanation for why that happened (and also some comments on why the 2C52 may not be the best tube for that position in the Kenzie as it relates to noise floor). I can post on that in another thread, but for me it made the amp sound more SS. I’ve ordered some NOS 12SL7s and even some 12SN7s to go back in the amp. Short story is that the 2C52 is not at all a quieter tube by its physics, just that my 12SL7 was not a perfectly good one. Obviously I base this on limited experience, but I don’t think the 2C52 necessarily makes the amp sound better than a perfectly sound 12SL7 does. I will know more when I get my batch of tubes in.
My points for the relevance of this thread:
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The designer and owner of ampsandsound called me up and solved my problem with me. Even as a second hand owner.
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His designs (if that is the correct word) work brilliantly IMO with ZMF.
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His work appears to be always evolving
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He just #$%^& gets it. As our generous chat came to an end, I was left with the impression that Justin is very philosophical about his work. I think he makes amps for people who love music and tone.
I volunteer this impression both in general and also as it relates to the projected price increase for the Pendant. I’ve little doubt it will be worth double.
Thanks to @Earmuffs for the great deal on my Kenzie.
Happy listening!
I’m wondering if anyone has suggestions on how to keep this amp from picking up noise from my DSL Moderm/Router.
Yes, the obvious answer is to separate them, but that’s it’s not really possible to separate them much further than the 3.5 ft distance I have now. I’ve unplugged/shut off things one by one and this modem/router is the culprit.
Sometimes you can mitigate the worst of WiFi RF noise by reorienting the antennas on the router.
How about that?
Rotating it 90 degrees seemed to help.
Build a faraday cage.
I bet one of those guys is named Ronnie Faraday
To make this more relevant to the forum I hope at least one of them is wearing headphones.
A more expensive option is to use a G73R tube which has a black coating which blocks signals. At least it does in my situation. Mine is the amperex version. Telefunken also made them.
Though may also be hard to find.
Good lord, the price!
A couple of Pendant images for extra thread flavour.
Pendant in burl with Auteur (teak) and Aeolus (sapele). I’d lusted after the Pendant for about a year and finally commited to one in Nov 2020. This collection of things is the conclusion of 3 years pursuing audio nirvana - to reach a point of genuine audio contentment. In the longer term the DAC needs to be complimented by something with a different presentation, I’ll retain the Naim for eletronic music, pop and some types of rock, though.
I really can’t pick which combo/presentation I like better; Pendant + Auteur or Pendant + Aeolus, neither do I feel a need to pick a favourite. Both headphones do incredible things, have a unique place and both sound absolutely wonderful on the Pendant, even with the stock tubes.
Beautiful setup. ZMF make great looking gear. Truly collectors items.
Pendant SE naming convention…in the works.
Is the SE going to have the price increase? Noted it still listed at 2k.
I believe so. Good eye. They probably neglected to update the price for this “coming soon” page.
Once we get the first production unit in (3 weeks or so?) we will list all the new price stuff and features on the site along with pictures.
For now we have a few units left of the Pendant non SE version still available for immediate shipment! 110V only though.
I was having a little bit of an issue with transmitted noise. My amp sits on my computer desk where I am doing my work. vibrations from typing, moving cables, etc along with tubes that are bit microphonic were making noticeable noise. Tubes would continue to ring and sing along to the noise.
I did 3 things:
O-ring tube dampers (for now. Herbie’s tube dampers are on the way).
Removed the stock feet and installed soft isolation feet from Hudson Hi-Fi. Very reasonably priced stereo goodies.
A couple strips of Dynamat dampening material on on the floor of the base.
Much better now