Tuba, (Probably SW51+), ZDT Jr (if you can find one), The Tor (Roger and balanced), Bottle Head Crack.
I think you can get an entry level Glenn OTL for under 1K, but that really is about messing around with tubes, and last I checked a 6 month+ waiting list.
I have an SW51+ on order (not a fast process), but I haven’t actually heard one, so the placement above is anecdotal waiting time on that is Months, depending where he is in the cycle of making them.
I honestly wouldn’t bother with a Dark Voice, it’s entirely OK, but I think there are better options.
Didn’t know about the SW51+ till you mentioned it, seems like a pretty awesome Tube design for not a lot of money. I’m definitely interested in what you think about it compared to the Tuba and Pendant once you get it in your hands.
Last I exchanged email with him he was waiting on the transformers, which apparently his friend manufactures, so I’m hoping it won’t be long now.
He makes them in batches, you sit on the waiting list until he has enough orders and starts the batch, then he charges you prior to ordering parts, and I assume eventually ships the amps.
The price is very good, I doubt he’s making very much on them.
I’ll certainly post impressions here when I get the amp.
Since the Tuba is readily available, that seems to be my best option so far. But I’ll do some more research before committing. I wish Zeos would get around to reviewing it.
I’m not a huge fan of Zeos’ Tube amp reviews, I think hes stuck on tubes sounding like a Dark Voice and tends to Poo Poo cleaner sounding tube amps as not tubey enough.
To be honest I’d go off the people here or other forums who have listened to or own the tuba over a review on YouTube. Just my opinion. Not bashing any particular reviewer but it’s not like you have to have a certain set of credentials to post a review to YouTube.
I haven’t listened to the tuba but I’d trust most of the people here. I’ve received a lot of good information. More so here than any YouTube review. Again just my opinion.
I’m all for people venturing out with new endeavors, but not everyone is good at it. I also agree with your comments on community. I’ve gotten better advice through community forums than any YouTube review.
I believe there are 4 base models with options.
Basic OTL
Super OTL
EL34 SET
300B SET amp
Prices start at about $750 last I checked and I think the 300B is closer to $3K, it might be significantly more than that.
There are a ton of options on all the amps, what’s usually called a Glenn OTL is either the Basic OTL or the Super OTL.
So I got Empyreans yesterday and here are my first impressions after ~8h of listening:
The quality and comfort are amazing. The 3k kind of amazing. This is the main reason I picked these over something else.
After watching and reading a good amount reviews I fully expected to like the leather pads more and in the first day of listening I didn’t even consider changing the pads. With leather pads they sounded good but not the 3k kind of good. Lower bass was a little bit too much and covered the upper bass making it less impactful and really dark. There was also this weird muddiness in lower mids that was most likely caused by a dip in a some very specific frequency. Certain higher sounds were also very tiring like they were left bouncing inside the pads.
In the second day I tried a different amp but the experience was much the same. After some time listening I finally decided to try the other pads and oh my god…The lower bass was now tuned down making the bass range very tight and impactful, muddiness in lower mids was gone and the tiring higher sound where gone. I was left with something that is just… perfect. Just perfect. The 3k and beyond kind of perfect.
With the alcantara pads these are almost like made for me. The sound signature is exactly to my preference and the comfort is amazing. So thank you Meze for making the perfect headphones for me!
(Note that I’m mainly focusing on negatives in this and not the many positives that I experienced with both pads)
