Formula S by Eleven Audio - Designed for Endgame Headphones

[@stevesnipes4160]

This is my dream amp. My goal is to have this amp this fall. I love you guys so much. Thank you ABYSS for making the best headphones and gear ever.

[@DocToxicTF2]

Got the full XI-Audio setup (Formula S with Powerman and Sagra dac) with the 1266 and i don`t regret anything.

[@thevashfan12392]

I'm still mulling over going with that setup or going with a hifiman susvara with an yggdrasil and ragnarok (which would certainly be a pared down version for similar prices) if I sub the susvara for the arya it becomes a great budget setup....but I'm not sure if I should. I really enjoy the soundstaging of the arya but I find myself a bit miffed with certain musics sounding a little weak (namely: motorhead sounds like I'm in the back row at a live concert)

[@Julvotart]

Would you recommend getting Powerman? Does make a difference. Struggling if I need it for my Formula S

[@thomasnewsom6084]

Bought this amp and the external supply after talking with Joe a number of times. I'm using this in my big system with PS Audio Directstream DAC and Perfectwave SACD Transport. Of course I am using JPS Labs cables to connect things. This is used with the 1266 TC headphones (also HifiMan HE1000SE and Meze Empyrean) for incredible sound that can not be described by words. You just need to hear it to understand. I am now looking at buying a second Formula S and power supply for my desk setup of Chord M Scaler, Chord Hugo TT2 and PS Audio Perfectwave SACD transport. It's just amazing what Abyss/JPS Labs and XIAudio have brought to the Audiophile table. My thanks to all and especially Joe who has been incredible in sharing his time and knowledge. Also love the videos you and your guys produce.

[@denbofrancisco6958]

Hey Thomas! I also am using the PS Audio DirectStream with an Aurender ASC100. I've blown through quite a few amps over the years and have to say my Cayin HA-300 is true end-game. Haven't heard the Formula, but might have to pull the trigger - if for no other reason than the Cayin heats my room I'm the summer months...;^)

[@thomasnewsom6084]

@@denbofrancisco6958 Yea I worked with Joe directly and he helped get it all set. The Formula S was designed specifically for the Abyss 1266 TC headphones but it works extremely well for everything else I have tried.

[@HiFiInsider]

I would like to see Formula S with Sagra DAC built-in.

[@ABYSSHeadphones]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/eoWWhHykfddsmc0

[@slimtim1970]

Can you guys do a comparison type video on the Sagra DAC. I want to add one to complete my XI Audio stack but there are virtually no reviews on it stateside. I’d love to hear your thoughts on it, thanks!

[@ks_3.14]

finally a video on the formula S; this thing is a beast and I love it !

[@bryancasler]

At Rocky Mountain Audiofest 2019, Zeo's (and DMS?) had a headphone spread my partner and I walked up to. We listened to them all and when I put on the Diana's it felt like I was listening to an entirely different track than the rest. I tracked the cord back to the Formula S and did a double take. All the headphone on the table were supposed to be in the $500 or less range. I had no idea what I picked up or how much the full system would run, once I found out the only thing I could think of is that one day I had to own a pair of Diana's and the Formula S to go with it. No doubt in my mind it's worth every penny.

[@robred123s]

I have no idea why I enjoy watching reviews of things that I would never be able to justify the purchase of or even afford.

[@aceofspades6667]

8:26 - Here's the short list of top tier SS hp amps: Formula S + Powerman, Flux Volot (pending), Wells Headtrip 2, Niimbus US4+ (US5 pending), Mass Kobo 406, Mass Kobo 394 mk2 (run dual monos), luxman p-750u, oji special bdi-dc44b g tuned, Pass Labs HPA-1, Riviera AIC-10 (tube pre/ss amp sections) ... Then there are the diy route specials by Kevin Gilmore - CFA2/dynahi. There are also a few other expensive amps (bakoon amp 13r, LTA Z-10, T+A HA-200 ) but way overpriced for performance. I think the general consensus is Formula S + power man = GOAT for Phi TC only. If you go Phi TC + Susvara + He6 SEv2 then go Niimbus. If you go Utopia and Dynamic driver HPs only then go Pass Labs HPA-1. Many people also report getting better results from speaker amps than any SS hp amps... Moon 600i v2 via speaker taps is reported to be perfection with Phi TC/Sus/HE6.

[@devenmajmudar839]

Hi My Focal Utopias with T+ A HA 200 sounds amazing with upgraded nordost heimdall 2 cable. I listen to Tool Metallica Pink Floyd most of the time.

[@richardswan7392]

Wells Audio came out with a hybrid tube amp called the Dragon. Listened to the 1266's at the SoCal Can Jam last weekend along with the Wells Audio Tube Cyphr DAC and the 1266's sounded amazing

[@grayfox198]

I ordered this amp to pair with my 1266 after saving for a year, I can't wait to get my hands on it!

[@ootz0rz]

Have you guys tried the Bakoon AMP-13r with the 1266?

[@kevin26exe]

Hope you guys try Burson Soloist 3x and make a video of it with 1266, diana phi and diana v2 impressions.

[@Cincy3]

Very informative video. I'm buying in to the whole set up - Amp and your headphones. Great job.

[@TheCangle]

With a 1266 on order, hearing about some of the best amp pairings is a lot of fun for me. I wonder how this would compare to speaker amps in this price range like the chord ttoby or benchmark ahb2. Great video as always!

[@riotz370]

if you exclusively only use 1266 tc go straight for this amp or wa33 jps edition, you will save a lot of money (for not buying and selling stuff on repeat).

[@TheCangle]

@@riotz370 Maybe one day but that's more than I can spend at the moment. However it sounds like the Formula S would be a good starting point before saving for something like the wa33

[@TheCangle]

Well I own the Formula S and powerman now and am very happy. Looking at adding the sagra dac too

[@vancybergoth]

You guys are really pushing me to buy the Formula S, it's already on my wishlist. 😂

[@robertmay8878]

I would love to get your thoughts on how the Pathos InPol Ear you leant to Steve Guttenberg sounds with the 1266.

[@JMAudioEditions]

form and function- looks like a great amp would love to compare it to my amp nice job guys

[@voulkermore]

It would be interesting to get your guys opinion on using the 1266 with the audio gd master 9

[@Hohoho701]

It had enough power to drive them. They are a bit bright lean compared to the formula s

[@aceofspades6667]

Never heard them but audio gd including the Master 9 and HE-9 are crapped on by most of the TOTL HP community. The general consensus is tons of power but terrible technical performance and even worse build quality. I can't comment on either just passing along general feedback. There is also a small pocket fan boys that will back Audio GD to their graves.

[@Hohoho701]

@@aceofspades6667 ive heard them and compared it to around 15 totl amps.(bought and sold a dozen amps just to compare, and hauled it around to different shops) Its not the best but its pretty good especially for the money. Very transparent wire with gain type sound. Although it doesnt have the warmth and tuby goodness amps like the headtrip and formula s, I would say its pure technical abilities match most totl amps above its price. It also does edm pretty well with the abyss as it has very good attack and decay, tight bass. Staging is also very wide. Build quality is very solid, but the aesthetics definetly could be improved. Also the unit is very large and heavy. It doesnt fit on most desks because of its odd long depth. Ended up selling the master 9 after ab comparing to formula s. Not sure what the guy above is talking about. Maybe hes confusing it with a different product. Or he just hasnt heard it but read so many reviews on it that now he knows how it sounds and feels better than i do :/ maybe i should just give up spending thousands comparing audio gear and base my opinions on other people. Itll prob make my life a lot simpler.

[@exodusvelo]

what is dc coupled and what does it offer? heard it many times now

[@johnmarkzimm]

What would be an appropriate way to connect my computer to the XIAudio Formula S? At the moment I go out of the computer via USB to an Oppo HA-1 then RCA out and RCA into the Formula S. Is this a good way to do it?

[@KuroshKhalili]

Could you help me to chose please? Niimbus us 5 pro or Eleven Xiaudio formula s for Susvara lcd-5 and 1266 phi tc?

[@denbofrancisco6958]

and I'm STILL waiting for you gents to try the Cayin HA-300 all tube beasty. With my 1266 TC's, it is totally 'sublime' with a seemingly unlimited amount of power. Would be curious how this compares to the Formula S...

[@SveinOlavGlesaaenNyberg]

Wouldn't that be more to compare to wa33?

[@denbofrancisco6958]

@@SveinOlavGlesaaenNyberg to some degree, but the Cayin is less than both coming in at $4k so I consider it somewhat of a bargain, especially considering it is a true 'end game' pc.

[@tomascampabadal7485]

Having such access to the design of XI audio, why is the personal gear of the boss a WA33? and dac does he use with the WA33?

[@ABYSSHeadphones]

The bossman uses multiple amps depending on mood.

[@SveinOlavGlesaaenNyberg]

It would be great if it was somehow possible to communicate the sound, even though it's is via KZbin. Maybe A/B switching between binaural recording and source sound? It would also be very interesting to get a picture of the sound difference between the top SS amp 11 S, and the top tube amp Wa33. I understand Joe uses both, but that it depends on the music. But which music for which? "Asking for a friend" as they say.

[@ABYSSHeadphones]

We did a review on the WA33, kzbin.info/www/bejne/aWimoaeXf5tspbs , suggest to watch both videos and work out what you seek from our feedback. Using a compressed video to compare sonic virtues won't cut it at this level, we already tried.

[@ABYSSHeadphones]

Also check out our amp tier list video... kzbin.info/www/bejne/hnKYaX19o7unnq8

[@SveinOlavGlesaaenNyberg]

I've seen the tier video a few times, but not the wa33 video. I get the impression that even though 11S+powerman and wa33jps are in S tier, the wa33jps should have had its own tier above that again. But it's that for all music, or is some music preferable on the solid state 11S? As for the detailed tier list, does it go like this? 1. Wa33JPS 2. 11S+powerman 3. Wa33Elite 4 Wa33 5.? 11 S without powerman? .? Or does the wa33 really take all the 3 top spots? One of the key influencers to buy the 1266 is Steve Guttenberg, and it was especially convincing since even when he reviewed the Susvara as a fabulous headphone, he couldn't resist ending on a statement that the 1266 was still better. From his reviews I also get the impression that the wa33 is almost worth starting a religion over. Then it's the issue of normal people wallets, What to do while saving up for Wa33JPS, or if that is unreachable. I noticed Guttenberg in the SS domain also praised Pass Labs, and the Luxman Pu750. Maybe but as highly as Wa33Elite, but at least we're almost down to regular wallet territory. This recommendation is of course on Guttenberg, not you. But anyway, the question remains where a regular guy goes if getting the right headphones (1266) trumped economic sense, but seems better than splitting the money evenly between amp and headphones.

[@chipsnmydip]

@@SveinOlavGlesaaenNyberg I take Steve with a grain of salt. I had the HPA-1 for a while, and with planers with really wasn't that great, but Steve used to promote it as his reference amp.

[@Voolys]

Do you have projects for IEM?

[@JustanStensland]

They do, but it got pushed back into 2022 due to COVID

[@nortonfamily6711]

Wait this is class A and puts out that much power?

[@DJJEZ]

Yes fully class A

[@nelsonpass8457]

6 watts is not m u c h..

[@nortonfamily6711]

@@nelsonpass8457 for this topology it is

[@DJJEZ]

For the 1266tc it's not 6w. Its more like 2.8W but sounds far more. It sounds crazy powerful

[@nortonfamily6711]

@@DJJEZ Yeah, that value is representative of a lower impedance. 2.8W with a 98.4dB/W sensitivity headphone gives you a solid amount of headroom though. Still a very powerful class A amp.

[@wongsiulun2500]

Have you guys tried the viva 845 AMP with the 1266?

[@aceofspades6667]

they mentioned the Viva Egoista 845 on a previous episode about the amount of power (16 watts) and lack of protection frying a bunch of their drivers. I don't think they reviewed it but because they support the Wa 33 they will point people there. General consensus is that WA 33, Egoista, and trafomatic primavera are the top 3 tube amps for Phi TC + Sus + HE6 SE v2.

[@thelastrhino2581]

Wired by JPS Labs: so you're telling me 95% of the cost of the amp are the wires? :)

[@ks_3.14]

why ?

[@riotz370]

this amp built for 1266 tc, yes you can use other headphones but the very purpose of this amp is to bring the best of 1266 tc.

[@st0neageman]

The designer and I share the same last name and our last name is actually a pretty rare one in China... So can I get a discount? HaHa