Feliks Audio Euforia evo Review

Feliks Audio Euforia evo

Box, Packaging & Accessories

 

The Feliks Audio Envy comes in a big box in which the amplifier and the tubes are perfectly protected. As usual, Feliks Audio is using cut-out foam, specifically cut out for the Euforia evo and the tubes. That means your unit and the tubes will arrive perfectly safe at their destination. Top marks for Feliks Audio regarding their shipping, many companies can learn from this.

On the inside of the box, you will find your evo amp, a matched pair of driver PsVane CV-181 Mk2 “Gold” (6SN7) input tubes, a matched pair of NOS Russian 6N13S (6AS7G) power tubes, an AC cord, a user manual, and a warranty card.

Simple but effective and complete. Just make sure to carefully clean the insert residue from your amp and tube sockets if there is any.

Feliks Audio Euforia evo

Design & Lay-out

It’s obvious that the evo shares the design characteristics of the regular and AE versions, but there are some differences as well. There are mainly on the front panel, the top and the case finish.

The Euforia evo weighs 7kg which is ok for a desktop amp. When plugging headphones or interconnects in and out of the amplifier, it will not move at all. Size-wise the new evo shares the same footprint as his brothers: 31,3 x 20,3 x 19,3 cm. It’s a compact desktop amp, which doesn’t require a lot of space/place.

Where the original Euforia and the AE versions respectively have a matte and glossy black finish, the evo version now is greyer and more brownish. I’m not great with colours though, and my wife would probably describe evo’s colour in a whole different way. The biggest change can be found on the front of the amplifier where you now have a 6.3mm as well as 4-pin XLR headphone output. The volume dial also moved to the right and it now quite a bit larger in size. To me that’s a positive change as it it’s easy to grip, smooth to turn and precise to set.

The top panel shares the same design as before. The tubes are in the exact same place, as well as the Feliks Audio logo. The big difference here is that you now have 4 screws on the top panel which you need to use the install the optional tube protection.

Feliks Audio Euforia evo

The back of the unit is still the same with the gold-plated RCA outputs, RCA inputs, power connecter, power button and cross-feed switch.

All-in-all the design is nice, classy, and easy to work with. There’s no need to change a winning design, and Feliks Audio probably feels the same. The amps are still hand-built in Poland and come with an extended 3-year warranty.

Full Specifications

  • Handcrafted in Poland
  • Impedance: 100 k ohm
  • Frequency response: 7 Hz – 80 Khz +/- 3 dB (300 ohm)
  • Power output: 280mW
  • Amplification level: 20dB
  • THD: 0.4 % (300Ohm, 20 mW)
  • Optimal headphones impedance: 32 – 600 ohm including planar magnetics
  • Headphones output: Jack 6.3mm + 4-pin XLR
  • Weight: 7kg
  • Dimensions: 31,3 x 20,3 x 19,3 cm
  • AC Voltage: 230V, 120V
  • Accessories: none if not previously mentioned

Feliks Audio Euforia evo

Sound Intro

If you’ve read our previous Euforia reviews, you already know that we liked both the Euforia amplifiers, and that the AE version was the technical better one.

Usually, we see the marketing departments giving extended descriptions of how their new units sound, but the only things we found here was that that the evo is supposed to sound smooth, neutral, detailed, and dynamic. That the sound stage – according to the evo manual – is unrivalled and that the background noise is virtually non-existent. As with the previous Euforia amps, there is an improved noise reduction circuit.

Let’s dive in further.

Sound General

I have been using the Euforia evo in my office setup, in combination with the Musician Audio Aquarius DAC, and with the Soundaware A1 streamer setup as a ROON endpoint via my laptop. I used a whole series of headphones of all driver types for the assessment. Music streaming was via Tidal or using my local library. Later in this article we will come back to some specific headphone matching.

We have a long section on headphone synergy and comparisons ahead, so I’ll try to keep it to the point in this +5K word review.

Keywords when listening to the Feliks Audio Euforia evo are: Livelyness, dynamics, precision, extension, control.

The evo is just a bit more bodied than neutral, and that from top to bottom. Everything is civilized though, and it’s quality over quantity what you get here. The evo is always dead silent, no matter hat headphone you connect to it. The presentation is very natural and because of that that is no listening fatigue whatsoever. The tube warmth that is present, is there in a limited amount. It’s not the warmest sounded amplifier, but it does make it extra musical. For an OTL tube amp, the PRaT is excellent. In fact, the technical level is very high in general.

Feliks Audio Euforia evo

You get a nice spacious sound, with a realistic amount of air and excellent separation. The sound stage extends well in both directions, as well as the layering. The 3-Dimensionality and stereo imaging are also a please to listen to. The evo is dynamic and revealing, and the best part is that the evo does that effortlessly. It’s relaxed, yet dynamic and lively, without ever sourcing weird or forced in any way. Good note extension and decay is something I always appreciate and the Euforia evo satisfies me to the fullest in this regard.  

Bass has a good amount of body, but it isn’t too far away from neutral. Bass is tight and detailed (good layering) and it reaches down low when needed. It’s not the most sub-bass amplifier though. Bass is fast and engaging, and perfectly controlled. The mids perfectly connect from the bass, with the same weighty presentation. The spaciousness, extension and vocals are what make the mids shine most. The mids sound super dynamic and natural and with the typical vocal presentation, it becomes engaging, focused, and musical. The treble section is soft but energetic and extended at the same time. There’s a good amount of energy and spaciousness in the treble but it’s never harsh to the ears. Treble is musically exciting, but easy to listen to.

All-in-all a great amplifier to listen to. Mixing a high technical detail, with good musicality, excellent speed, liveliness, and superb dynamics.

The review continues on the third page with headphone synergy. Click here or use the simple jumps below.

Page 1: Feliks Audio, Euforia evo, Tubes

Page 2: Box, Packaging & accessories, Design Lay-Out, Specifications, Sound Pt. 1

Page 3: Sound Headphone Synergy

Page 4: Comparisons, Conclusion

4.4/5 - (97 votes)
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Lieven is living in Europe and he's the leader of the gang. He's running Headfonia as a side project next to his full time day job in Digital Marketing & Consultancy. He's a big fan of tube amps and custom inear monitors and has published hundreds of product reviews over the years.

2 Comments

  • Reply April 28, 2023

    Mike I

    Hello Lieven,
    Nice review, again.
    In Belgium and France, the Cayin HA-6A is selling at the same price as the Evo (2.500 Euro) and I think it is a better amp: could you give us a comparison?
    The Cayin HA-3A is less expensive but indeed also a very nice amp.
    Nice regards

    • Reply April 28, 2023

      Lieven

      Thank you. Sorry but hat amp is not in my possession.

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