spritzer

We can just write the A-10 off right away as SRPP circuits simply aren't suitable for driving electrostatics properly, even if people with zero experience claim they can. We all know what effect the HE90 has on people that have no experience with 'stats and the He90 is also one of the easiest headphones to drive. I've always preferred the HE90 with AC coupled amps or some that aren't as brutally revealing as the BH. With that in mind then I'd stick with the Aristaeus or try out the Woo. You could even ask Justin to build you a bling Aristaeus with some Mundorf caps.

They were really ahead of their time with that gas idea. Soundlab is just catching up with their teflon coated diaphragms. So.... if we used those chips then the amp would be mil-spec? Sounds like a plan!!

Has it something to do with the penguins?

There is a reason why we always see the same tubes used over and over and over and... , designers usually don't like to venture outside of the beaten path.

I just realized something, this amp looks a lot like the first Stax SRM-T2 prototype: That's simply brilliant! Perhaps the Stax mafia should change it's name to the Arcy Sparky brigade. Ps. This brings back ford memories of yesterday afternoon when I watched 2000uf@350v explode a few inches in front of my face, messing up my vision a bit and burning a hole in my table. Blah, wimps!! Just replace the air inside the drivers with some of the stuff Dayton-Wright used and we'll be fine.

Congrats and as for the Bose, I spent the day trying to get something acceptable out of the Bose system in the Cadillac Escalade my dad is trying out. It simply can't be done...

You might be onto something there. That's why the SR-Sigma 404's sound so great compared to the stock SR-404, I had to reverse the drivers. Same goes for the old Sigma drivers in the Lambda housing. Now why didn't I think of that...

I'd recommend licking them instead... the wires that is.

But, but... you are a company?!?! Marc-E-marc Audio and don't you forget it!!

Sometimes and I'm crazy enough to D/L the same crap twice without noticing.

What makes this even worse is that I'm limited to 80gb a month. That's just 70+ 720p shows...

I can't see any drawbacks here. Moar powahhh is king.

It's a good circuit for sure and it will be interesting so see how it behaves with the SR-007.

Your probably right. We need some internal pics though...

It looks good but I'm not sure about those "glass" shields to be honest. I do wonder what circuit they are using for the fully balanced operation. The GES circuit would need more tubes so is this a Stax SRX? Do you want to see some flames?

The 727 but I don't like how it sounds. It has the ability to push the SR-007 adds too much of it's own onto the music. They do show up from time to time in Japan but often bundled with an Omega.

We need a video to go with the unpacking. Doug, the trend setter, has spoiled us.

From your pics it uses a Neutrik PowerCon which is a very nice, 3 pole connector.

I could use a T1 (or any of the variants) in a pinch but the 717 is as low as you should go.

Simply laughing at somebodies inferior dynamic phones is most often enough to earn some "cred".

Safety would be my main concern and IEC's are a pain to work with. There are plenty of cheap 3 pin connectors out there that won't risk burning up the amp. If you need wire for the umbilical then you can just raid some old computer PSU for 16AWG/300v copper wire. I would also shield it with some copper mesh but it's not really needed.

Like others have said, the DAC chip is only a small part of the puzzle. With the APL players, the choice of output tubes/transformers probably had a bigger impact on the over all sound then the chips. I for one didn't buy an APL player due to the 32bit crap but rather the features. There aren't many players that will play all the audio formats, have a built in volume control and a digital input. I must say I liked the ECC99 tube too since even the premium version is dirt cheap.

You should have received a piece of paper with the transformer to note which wire is which. If you didn't get one then the datasheet should be online.

Win!!! Smeggy needs some Molex connectors then to make the build ultra clean and easy troubleshooting.

I like the whole "minimal lighting for dramatic effect" thing you've got going on.