I had the fi 421a amp a few years back. I would describe the 421a tube as one of the more linear tubes (meaning no emphasis in any part of the frequency range). I definitely prefer the VT52 or 50 in the 4 watt range.
Don was a really nice guy, and his amps were visually beautiful, but I didn’t...
Weiss is an interesting character. Rightfully extols the virtues of tube amplifications and horns, but acts like he’s the only person on earth who can do either correctly. Don’t even get me started on the pricing.
There is a new dac positioned & priced in between the Ayazi and the Absolute being released in about a month, called the Ion.
I’ve had the Ayazi for a few months, and it is excellent. An absolute bargain, prob the best dac under $10K that I’ve heard.
+1 for the Lumin X1. The optical connection is state of the art, and costs about $200 to implement. You can’t even get a middle of the road usb cable for that much. A lot of people have ditched dcs dacs for Lumin’s. You should definitely audition one.
they were used in radios in military aircraft. When the aircraft was on the ground with its engines idling the generators produced 6.3V, as It become airborne and the RPMs increased the voltage from the generators increased to 7V. The output from the VT52 stays constant so the radio will work...
there are not "high voltage" and "low voltage" VT52 tubes, the tube was designed to give the same output with a filament voltage anywhere between 6-8 volts. so they can be run at 6.3, 7.0, 7.5 or anywhere between 6 and 8 volts.
Just ordered and received a Callisto based on everyone’s recommendations. Just a few hours in but the nuance I am hearing in voices is scary good!!! Would love to hear more thoughts on the interconnects.