Quick Take: LTA Z10e - Swiss-army ZOTL headphone, estat, speaker amp

A not so short take on the 3-in-1 Linear Tube Audio's Z10e unit that supports conventional and electrostatic headphones, plus speakers!
-- Timestamps --
Overview: • Quick Take: LTA Z10e -...
Inside: • Quick Take: LTA Z10e -...
Features: • Quick Take: LTA Z10e -...
Estats: • Quick Take: LTA Z10e -...
Headphones: • Quick Take: LTA Z10e -...
Speakers: • Quick Take: LTA Z10e -...

[@LinearTubeAudio]

Thanks for taking the time to review the Z10e! ~Nicholas

[@SineCraftAudio]

Technical note from the folks at LTA:
Those two silver horizontal cylinders on the right are the two 12AU7 preamp tubes, and that preamp circuit (the vertically-mounted board those tubes are connected to) is a Berning-designed tube-based balanced-to-single-ended conversion circuit (that's a lot of hyphens!), which handles that part of the equation. Figured you'd want to know.

[@nick_g]

Heard this at canjam SoCal 2022 and it was one of my fav amps at the show

[@frederf69]

I like your reviews; get to see the product clear & close up 👍

[@wachinstuf]

Considered this before an an all in one solution with efficient speakers. Had a hard time with pricing given how little there is inside; without transformers (expensive) I’m not sure why it still costs this much.
Also, should have two taps for e stats imo.

[@astralboy]

would have been good to know what you compared these against, and also the DAC used.

[@23darksoulshunterroad9]

Would it be also possible to use iems with this - e.g. the Elysian Annihilator or the Empire Ears Odin? I'm more of an iem guy than a headphone guy - looking for a decent tube amp, came across this and just curious.

[@SineCraftAudio]

I'm not an IEM guy so I can't say with any certainty but this amp has very dark background and a low level output, so... maybe?

[@hubertpoint10]

Thanks for the review! What are some of the better amps you've paired with the Susvara?

[@SineCraftAudio]

I should really do a video about living with the Susvara for a few years now and what I've tried and liked. But to quickly answer your question...
Enlum AMP-23R and Ampsandsound Agratha are my favorites to date.

[@hubertpoint10]

@@SineCraftAudio Oh awesome, good to know! Thanks for the response, I'm a big fan of your reviews!

[@x32i77]

I really recommend Mytek Empire for the Susvara

[@Jingyih]

Could you recommend a DAC which pairs well with the LTA Z10e?

[@johnratcliffe6438]

Yes, the LTA Aero DAC!

[@x32i77]

For everyone who is reading :this is the amp to go with the x9000

[@SineCraftAudio]

I'm planning to sample that combination in the not too distant future :)

[@x32i77]

@@SineCraftAudio me too 🙂
It's very hard to get the x9k though since it's sold out everywhere