will
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Though I use a CSP3 now in my main system, I struggled with the Zstage for optimal "transparency and purity," and I felt like I basically got there. I could hear harmonic benefit from another tube, more body, and my fav, it allowed gain riding, letting me tune for more body/tonal density or less depending on recordings. Finally, this happened without notable loss in fine detail and articulation, but took a just right setup.
Same happened with a lot of experimentation with the juptered CSP3. I got it clean and spacious, and with more tonal density and dynamic potential than the Zstage.
I have tried to pump up volume with a Zstage and CSP3 on a Taboo and Rachel, and they really did not do very much for volume before clipping set in. And gain riding may not be as great an option with a Zen for a lot of material depending on recording loudness, DAC voltage, speaker efficiency and all that, if there are volume issues with the Zen. Then running the Zstage high could potentially be overly dense and dark.
For me, getting the Zstage "alive" and spacious took a neutral and open sounding power cord, neutral silver ICs (I use VHaudio silver "recipe" and Grovers at the moment), good feet, and just the right tubes, most tubes being too dark and "colorful" for my tastes in the context of the voicing. My favorite is a 50s Siemens 12AT7...open, transparent, dynamic...but there were a few others I really liked too, especially from that same period.
I don't know what Steve is using now, but I think I recall mine had an auricap in it and the "capping phrase" was putting in a Jupiter cap. Once burned in, it took the very simple Zstage circuit to notably higher level of musical detail...here anyway....perhaps similar in some ways to your experience seikosha with the UFO, the cap made me realize the fuller potential of the Zstage.
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