Upscale Audio’s Kevin Deal has been a big supporter of the Head-Fi revolution and carries a rather interesting mix of products that you can’t find everywhere; their booth in the T.H.E. Headphonium area at T.H.E. Show was one of the busiest for that very reason. Smaller European brands like Pathos and Feliks Audio make some rather exceptional headphone amplifiers and it is a great sign that these types of companies are growing not only in their domestic markets but also internationally.
The Pathos Acoustics Aurium and InPol are great products but I have a soft spot for Feliks Audio; I owned one of the original Echo amplifiers when they first arrived in the the North American market many years ago.
Feliks Audio are part of the Eastern European renaissance in high-end audio; which also includes brands like Meze Audio, Ferrum Audio, and Fezz Audio.
The end of the Cold War and collapse of the Iron Curtain brought more than just political freedom to Eastern Europe and the Balkans; it created an environment for entrepreneurship and design innovation that has had a profound impact on the culture and economic future of the region.
The creation of a new middle class has fueled demand for western consumer goods, but more importantly, led to investment in domestic start-ups who have proven capable of competing with well-established brands from America, Western Europe, and Asia.
Based out of Lubliniec, Poland, Feliks Audio has been manufacturing tube amplifiers for almost 20 years; the current lineup includes the Arioso (300B stereo amplifier) and 4 headphone amplifiers.
Upscale Audio brought the Echo MKII, Euphoria EVO, and Envy to the show and all three were very impressive.
The $995 USD Echo MKII is a great entry-level tube headphone amplifier with excellent build quality.
The Euforia EVO is the second iteration of the product and retails for $3,495 USD which makes it a direct competitor to the superb products offered by Linear Tube Audio.
Orange with Envy?
The $7,995 USD Envy represents the top of the mountain for Feliks Audio and it was hard not to be seduced by the industrial design; one can order the unit in Oak, Walnut, or other hardwoods (at an additional cost). The model on display featured a Light Oak finish that really made the black metal accents pop.
The front panel has a large central volume control with XLR and 6.35mm outputs to the left and an impedance selector and input selector to the right. The top panel of the amplifier is dominated by a pair of 300B tubes and a pair of 6SN7 driver tubes with each channel separated by a depression running along the centerline of the amplifier.
A single transformer cover runs the full width of the unit behind the tubes.
The use of 6SN7 and 300Bs creates a lot of tube rolling options but the stock tubes shipped with the Envy were impressive so it may not require looking for vintage 6SN7 bad boys. Save your money. NOS tube prices are decidedly insane right now.
Internally, it also uses single crystal copper wiring to minimize noise and keep the signal path as clean as possible. The glow in the dark of the 300B output tubes was very seductive.
The Envy was very popular with attendees; Upscale Audio paired it with an Aurender A20 Music Server and pair of Abyss Diana TC Headphones. One could also try a pair of HiFiMAN Susvara and Sennheiser HD800s Headphones with the amplifier and all three options sound excellent.
The Envy can output 8 watts of power (5 volts RMS) and had zero issues with the high impedance HD800s or the demanding planar headphones from Abyss and HiFiMAN.
$8,000 is a lot of money for any headphone amplifier, but the Feliks Audio Envy certainly makes a strong case for itself. We hope to review one of the 3 models this year.
For more information: feliksaudio.pl
Where to buy: $7,995 at Upscale Audio | Headphones.com
Don’t miss more coverage from T.H.E. Show 2023.
ORT
June 13, 2023 at 5:02 am
These need, nay…they cry out for VU Meters. Especially so the models visually and emotionally augmented with wood.
The Echo MkII is the only one I could begin to afford. It is fitting that the name “Echo” comes from Classic Greek Mythology. Echo was a nymph (steady lads!) who was cursed by Hera, Queen of the Gods to be able to only repeat the words of others and never again to utter a word of her own…And so she calls back only that which is said to her.
Truly these beauties do likewise, silently they speak to the soul of true Audio Enthusiasts rather than the sordid eqo of frAudian and in doing so echo what true devotees all cry out for in our equipment: Affordable Quality and Classic styling.
Feliks Audio’s headphone offerings proves that equipment can speak to us in our own voice. There is a kid in all of us, listening in wonder at the sound of our soul echoing back over the years until it fades and we cue up another song from the soundtrack of our youth.
Hopefully that soundtrack continues on the other side of life.
ORT
Ian White
June 15, 2023 at 1:09 am
ORT,
Do you know how badly I want to cover the Warsaw Show now? There are dozens of Eastern European brands now selling some very interesting products.
America is falling behind.
Ian of Radom
ORT
June 15, 2023 at 3:32 am
Ian my friend, I can only imagine what you would find there and not just Audio equipment but people. Good people. People with a work ethic and a humble, honest morality to guide them and their families through the years of memories to come. Beautiful, wonderful people.
People with a history of suffering ofttimes salve their soul (as best they can) by creating objects of simple beauty.
I shall be both happy for and envious of you, should you attend that show.
ORT
Ian White
June 15, 2023 at 11:35 am
ORT,
Having been to Poland (where my grandparents were born) twice, I have mixed views about your comments. I do agree that Polish engineers are creating some great products right now, but we’ll agree to disagree on the past and how certain people behaved. #holocaust
Aharon White of Radom
ORT
June 15, 2023 at 2:38 pm
Ian, I know about the past but not to the extent of your relatives. My words were meant to convey the good memories to come that are born out of the struggles and yes, horrors of the past. Sometimes I have difficulty doing that. It looks like this was one of those times.
ORT
Ian White
June 15, 2023 at 4:26 pm
ORT,
No issue with your comments or the intent. All good man. Poland evokes very strong feelings for me.
Ian
Mark Garton
June 17, 2023 at 2:49 pm
Tubeway days now seem so unreal we are glass
Ian White
June 17, 2023 at 3:24 pm
I definitely love owning some pieces of tube equipment. Not as sold anymore (because of reliability issues) on big tube amps. The price of tubes is getting ugly. Integrated amplifiers with 2 EL34s or EL84s is the way to go.
Ian “Heart of Glass” White