Good to know about the EML. I’ve heard some other positive impressions of those tubes when it comes to stratus and stellaris. For the 2A3, the EML solid plate (edit: and mesh) ones seem popular. And in the past I had used a EML 274b mesh in the WA33 which I liked. Apart from the sound they also look really impressive.
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The EML rectifier has a tendency to be a bloomy and less defined with the nicer power tube sets such as Acme or Linlai Globes and a set of NOS spring tops I have. One exception was the LCD-4, that headphone thrived on the EML.
I would give the RCA a bit more time, they typically have a lot more meat on the bones than the stock rectifier.
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That’s interesting because I had the Linlai global elites in the DNA stratus alongside the EML mesh 5u4g and didn’t feel it added more bloom vs the rca. To me it took the amp up a notch. Guess we all can hear things differently.
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Definitely, wait until you hear the Elrog, then let’s compare notes again.
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Yeah, I’m sure the EML has more bloom than the Elrog but when I had two rca 5u4g in house, both had more bloom and thickness than the EML.
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Ok, I’ll report back if the sound changes anymore with this RCA rectifier.
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Now that is very interesting, even some of the other NOS rectifiers similar to the RCA like a Ken-Rad or Sylvania did not have the bloom of the EML. All were more refined versions of the RCA.
I went through a shit ton of rectifiers to find 2-3 I enjoy in my Stratus while the EML has been sitting in its box for the last two years 
Not really sitting in the box, would bring it out when a new rectifier came in to compare against, or a new headphone as I mentioned it meshed well with the LCD-4.
What headphones were you using at the time?
Like you said earlier we hear things differently, so it could be as simple as that. Which is why it is great for all of us to weigh in on the subtleties of rectifier rolling 
Utopia, HD800S, 650, 580.
I find it takes a tube some time to warm back up/burn back in a bit after sitting some time.
The EML I had definitely had tighter faster bass, and was bringing out some more micro details much easier.
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I’ve been working my way through the SBAF DNA thread: Donald North Audio — Owners Thread | Super Best Audio Friends and I keep seeing mention of a “Ruby Tiger” input tube. Does anyone know what that is? Sounds like it might be a tube supplier that hand picks tubes but I can’t find anything online except a retailer called “Ruby tubes” but I’m not sure if that’s related or not.
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No longer in business, you may find a cryogenic 6N1P here or there. I have one and it’s nothing special. There are some input tube alternatives to play with such as 6BQ7A.
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I returned the Stratus to it’s owner last weekend but I really enjoyed my time with it. @Camus I think the sound of the amp changed a bit more as I put more time on the RCA rectifier. I was comparing to the Tyrs before returning it and the Stratus sounded a lot more punchy and dynamic then I remembered it.
It’s a great amp and I’ll definitely miss it. The Firstwatt SIT-3 actually sounded very similar but was missing a bit of the magic of how the Stratus presents sounds within the soundstage. However the SIT-3 sounded even thicker but not in a muddy way, it’s just a very rich sounding amp.
I’ve been waiting to make the final payment on my T2 and once that’s done I’m planning on putting a deposit down for a Stellaris just to get in line. But will probably jump on a used DNA if I see one in the near future. I’m also looking at other tube amps to try that will synergize with my dynamic driver headphones, specifically the utopia, any zmf, and the 600/650
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At the Stellaris level your into the custom built amp price points, if you know what you want, and can find a builder you trust, it might be worth having a conversation or two.
Your running out of amp options in the headphone space much above the Stellaris, Eddie Current no longer has a competitor.
The Viva 845 sounds really good on the Utopia, but it’s list price is getting silly at this point.
The AC Genus is similarly priced.
You can’t really do the speaker amp thing in the same way with tube amps, because they tend to be sensitive to loads.
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I tried this at Canjam Chicago with my Utopia and it was quite nice but yeah the price is crazy and not sure I can deal with all the heat from that amp or just find a place to put it since it’s so much bigger then most other amps I’ve used.
I know some people who do this but not sure I would be comfortable with that setup. Or I would have to use an adapter box like one from Zynsonix but that has been a bit of a bottle neck sound wise depending on the cables I use.
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The AIC-10 seems to be quite popular these days in Sonvs and Headfi. Did you audition that?
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I haven’t no. I’m a little skeptical of it because of some comparisons I’ve read versus the hm1 but am hoping to demo it at some point just so I can hear it for myself and see how it synergizes with headphones I enjoy
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There’s the destroying the amp issue (though that’s rare), for most amps the primary issue is the sound of the changes for higher loads.
In a tube amp the the load is a part of the amplification circuit.
If you have a transformer designed for an 8 Ohm load, that puts say a 3000 Ohm load in the anode of the output tube a 32 Ohm load puts a 24000 Ohm load on it. a 300 Ohm load puts a 112500 Ohm load on it.
That results in the load line (the line that dictates the linearity/richness of the amp) that becomes significantly more horizontal, that tends to result in lower 2nd harmonic distortion, and a cleaner (sometimes less engaging) sounding output.
It’s why headphone amps often have multiple output taps on the transformer do the anode loads are reasonably consistent for differing loads.
You can just stick a resistor in parallel on the output to keep the load closer to the design point, but there are reasons this isn’t generally the first choice solution.
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I think @orrman has both at the moment.
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That’s great, yet sad you have to give it back to the friend. Definitely put a deposit down, it’s fully refundable.
Separate yet related, don’t discount the V4 Stratus with AN transformer as it closes the gap with the Stellaris more than you would think. It’s the same power specs, same headphone output ohms. I have heard both side by side and the advantage I found worthwhile was the ability to order the Stellaris with a balanced input. Donald uses AN input transformers and without coloring the sound signature too much, it’s the closest he has found to matching the single-ended input. Of course this is a $2k premium over the regular Stellaris.
I can share more over PM, this is not to take away from any Stellaris owner, or future owner. More to dispel a common misconception that the Stratus shares more in common with the Starlett than the Stellaris.
Hope you can hear some other great tube amps for dynamic driver headphones, the AIC as @archer mentioned is a hybrid so it will likely have the thickness you get from your First Watt.
Excited to find out what other tube amps you try out, and if you end up with a DNA 
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I heard the stepped attenuator makes a noticeable difference. If you decided to go DNA Stellaris. Never heard it compared to the balanced tho.
Could always look to Decware too.
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I reached out to Donald a few weeks backs and it does sound like the stepped attenuator is an option I want. It ramps up the volume more slowly then the normal pot does. Here’s some info regarding the different volume options that I found helpful:
The stepped attenuator is ideal for the Utopia because it doesn’t get as loud as quickly compared to the potentiometer. Here’s a comparison I did earlier this year:
Potentiometer
Vol 1 setting = -44dB
Vol 1.5 setting = -39dB
Vol 2 setting = -36dBStepped attenuator
Vol 1 setting = 4 steps up = -48.5dB
Vol 1.5 setting = 6 steps up = -42dB
Vol 2 setting = 8 steps up = -37.5dBSo the potentiometer is 4.5dB louder at vol 1 and 1.5dB louder at vol 2 on the dial.
As for the balanced inputs I’m not sure. It seems like a nice to have especially if whatever dac I have at the time sounds better out of balanced then single ended but like you said it also seems like it won’t be as good as the single ended inputs and is another expensive option to add. At 4k over the stellaris price I might as well consider the Stellaris Special but that’s way more then I need
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