Linear Tube Audio licensed David Berning’s ZOTL tech — and then, began the process of tweaking and adjusting and fine tuning. The result is — at least here at CanJam — the $1,100 headphone amplifier, the MicroZOTL 2.0.
As you’ve probably guessed, the MicroZOTL is an “output transformer-less” (OTL) amp, which means (well, many things, but perhaps chief among them) speed, air, space, delicacy with a side of awesomesausage.
Output is about 1/2 watt into a 14Ω load, Class A push-pull amp with an output impedance of about 2Ω. In my experience, the HiFiMAN HE-1000 is a marvelous match.
But that’s not the new bit. What’s new is the external linear power supply ($595). I wasn’t doing an a/b comparo here at CanJam, but my experience was very positive — with the new PSU, the MicroZOTL seemed much more authoritative, especially at the lowest end of the power band. This combo is very definitely on my list of Things To Explore.
By the way, the MicroZOTL does have speaker outputs (power at 4Ω is about 1w, so expect either “close” or “sensitive” speakers), for those looking to double-up feature/function (I’m thinking “desktop king”), but for those looking to go bananas for their 2-channel needs (no headphone-love, though), there’s also a ZOTL10 (10 watts per channel at $2,400) and a ZOTL40 (40 watts per channel at $5,800). Want more? Check out LTA.
An upgraded PSU keeps the Microzotl 2.0 clean and pure at higher power output. The 100W HDPlex does a good job also for powering the Microzotl 2.0
I love my MicrozotI amp!
Thank you; Berning is a Genius. The other Bernie, too (!)