[soundofsingle]

So today I tried several converters that I own with the Cen Grand amplifier. In my opinion the most suitable one is Audiobyte Hydra Vox+Zap.

 

[soundofsingle]

Some more owners in Europe?

From Italy two Silver Fox one mine (Milan) and one of my wife (Rome)

 

[Slim1970]

From Italy two Silver Fox one mine (Milan) and one of my wife (Rome)

Wow, nice! They are amazing amps. I'm enjoying mine immensely.

 

[ckhirnigs113]

I’m a little bit confused by the “Low Impedance” modes that add 50 ohm, 100 ohm, and 150 ohm resistors in line to quiet the output for very sensitive headphones. Is this the same thing as having an amp with different output impedances on different headphone jacks?

My Cayin iHA-6 as an example has a 10 ohm 6.3mm jack, 120 ohm 6.3mm jack and 0.3 ohm XLR jacks (4-pin and dual 3-pin). I’m wondering if the Silver Fox effectively has 4 different output impedances depending on if you’re in “High Impedance” or “Low Impedance 1, 2, or 3” mode.

In my past experience with 300 ohm ZMF headphones, I have preferred amps that don’t have a near-zero output impedance. Tube amps usually work best, but I also like the 10 ohm and 120 ohm outputs of my Cayin iHA-6 better than the balanced out. I’m mainly wondering if my ZMF Auteur will sound best with one of the “Low Impedance” modes of the Silver Fox because of the added resistors in line or if I have a fundamental misunderstanding of how different output impedances are achieved in amplifiers.

P.S. I bought the Little Silver Fox tonight! According to @ArthurPower I’m the first retail purchaser of the amp in the US. @project86 got the black model for his review sample, and I went for the silver. I couldn’t personally justify having an amp called the “Little Silver Fox” in any color other than silver, haha. I’m hoping it’s good enough to justify selling off the 3-4 amps I currently have in rotation.

 

[Yifang]

Really want to pick one up but lack of dealers in Singapore make it pretty hard. The closest dealer is in Australia but they don't deliver internationally.

Curious if the power supply is switching? As in, if I buy in the States will I be able to use it here at 230v.

Hi there,

Just wondering which Australian dealer this is? Seeing how much the Elite is talked about throughout this thread is starting to give me that itch...

 

[TheMiddleSky]

Ferrum looks very good on photos indeed, but upon seeing that stack in Munich in late May I must say that I wasn't disappointed. Were your goods damaged during transportation or something of the sort?

Nope, all good. It's just the build is "not in the level" of $3K products. Feels cheap on hand. It still sound ok though, one hella performer for the price (as SS amp).

 

[crazyhank]

Amp is super interesting..has anyone compares to Holo Bliss, Zahl HM1? Would love your thoughts Thank you!!

 

[project86]

Amp is super interesting..has anyone compares to Holo Bliss, Zahl HM1? Would love your thoughts Thank you!!

I don't think we've heard from anyone trying all those models yet. I know of a few people who prefer the Cen.Grand to the new(ish) Enleum (which uses the same Exicon MOSFET design but with half as many in total), but no comparisons out there yet with those other two you mentioned.

The Holo Bliss seems like a natural competitor. I'm not sure about the Zahl due to it costing roughly twice the price and being very difficult to obtain in a timely fashion.

 

[yellowblue]

I got my Silver Fox from KVS audio and everything went fine. It has 30 hours on it and sounds already much better than the headphone out of the Mola Mola Tambaqui which I have as a loaner. I didn´t expect such a huge difference. Because the Lavrycables Grand XLR I ordered are stuck somewhere between Latvia and Sweden I am forced to use some cheap 5 meter microphone xlr-cables. And I also yet have to reterminate my Grand headphone cable. So there is more to come. But I already got tons of more details, a much wider soundstage (depth is the same) and of course more impactfull, firmer bass and more dynamics. The headphone out of the Tambaqui sounded compressed compared to the Silver Fox. The only thing I hope will change with new cables and burn in is that the Silver Fox will sound more neutral. Just now it sounds a little to much on the warm side to my taste. Now I just want to enjoy the new amp for some days before I do some more critical listening and will compare the DAVE with the Tambaqui. Only one of them will stay.

 

[fabiocrest]

Some more owners in Europe? A Silver Fox is on its way to me from KVS Audio in Bulgaria (which even is distributor for Denafrips in Europe). They give me 2 years warranty for the unit. I will test it in my chain with a Grimm MU1 and a Chord Dave (and I hope so even with a Mola Mola Tambaqui which I have as a loaner just now).

One in Milano- Italy

 

[yellowblue]

After more than 100 hours on my Silver Fox I just can say that it transformed the Meze Elite (with angled pads) in a way that I didn´t think was possible. Bass, dynamics, control, silky treble - everything is top notch now. Much much better than the headphone out of Chord Dave or Mola Mola Tambaqui. Fantastic pairing.

 

[yellowblue]

BTW - the Chord Dave headphone out was slightly better than the Tambaqui headphone out. But I liked the Tambaqui more with the Silver Fox. I was really close but the Tambaqui had more control and was more organic. It had more fluid and authentic mids, especielly with voices. As if Bill Callahan was sitting in the same room with me. And the strings in Johann Johannssons Orphée had so much more texture and depth than I ever heard from any hifi-system. I couldn´t hear so much difference when it comes to details but my son who has better ears than me says that the Tambaqui was slightly better even with that.

Take in regard though that the Tambaqui has a special synergy with the Grimm MU1 server. And I must say that the Tambaqui matches the Silver Fox really well (as they have the same strenghts - details and "soul"). And as you can add that the Silver Fox has an extraordinary synergy with the Meze Elite - you can imagine how happy I am.

 

[yellowblue]

@cengrand , the Tambaqui can be set on different output voltages - 0,5V, 2V or 6V. Which output voltage works best with the Silver Fox?

 

[DMITRIY R]

@cengrand , the Tambaqui can be set on different output voltages - 0,5V, 2V or 6V. Which output voltage works best with the Silver Fox?

You will help us a lot if you share your impressions of listening to different DAC voltages.
I would conduct an experiment in BTL mode.
There is a suspicion that using 0.5 volts in BTL mode will give the best result. This will be due to the fact that the volume control will have to be set to higher values, thereby eliminating more of the resistive load of the amplifier itself from the circuit.
In theory, the sound should be more dynamic, more explosive, more emotional. The background noise level should be low or non-existent.
Share your impressions of the practice.

ps
Try to write down and publish here the position of the volume control, which gives a comfortable listening level at different voltage levels of the DAC in BTL mode.

 

[ckhirnigs113]

After more than 100 hours on my Silver Fox I just can say that it transformed the Meze Elite (with angled pads) in a way that I didn´t think was possible. Bass, dynamics, control, silky treble - everything is top notch now. Much much better than the headphone out of Chord Dave or Mola Mola Tambaqui. Fantastic pairing.

I hope my Little Silver Fox has a similar synergy with my Meze Elite! I should be getting it in this week. The holiday has delayed the shipment a few days it seems.