Heaven Eleven Billie Amp MK 2.

 

Billie Stereo Amplifier

K2 upgrades | Specifications  | Reviews

 

 

When was the last time music gave you goosebumps?

Billie plays a wide range of music formats, be they digital or analog, streamed or physical. Enjoy ALL your music collection instantly, without the need for an external DAC, streamer or phonostage. Everything is already included in this elegant, compact device.

Connect your turntable to our acclaimed phonostage -or pair your phone using aptX Bluetooth. For digital, our Hi-Res DAC ensures that every bit of your music is faithfully decoded.

Analog Heart | Silicon Soul

Billie is made for music enthusiasts by music enthusiasts.

We started this project seeking to unite retro analog warmth and articulation to modern day precision and power. Adopting an “Old School meets New School” approach, we experimented with matching a first-rate tube pre to an audiophile-grade Class D amp.

After many failures and setbacks, the Billie Amp was born. This singular combination delivers a wide, dynamic soundstage, a silky-smooth top-end, and fast, punchy bass.

By merging today’s technology to yesterday’s craft, Billie delivers your music beautifully.

 

About Tubes…

Dating back over a hundred years, there’s a reason why tubes are still around today: their sound.

Tubes in audio applications are simply magical. Their special characteristics, like the articulate midrange, the velvety highs, the rich harmonic overtones, make tubes irresistibly pleasing to the human ear. They bring every nuance in a recording to life.

Power & Grace

While an all-tube amp is a power hungry, maintenance-prone beast, most of the tubes’ sound-magic is gained at the preamplifier stage, not the amplifier. Additionally, preamp tubes require no maintenance, have a lifespan of at least 10,000 hours* and are easy to install -if you can change a lightbulb, you can change a tube.

*10,000 hours = over 5 years, if you listen to your soundsystem for 5 hours a day, every day…

Why the ECC99 tube?

JJ Tubes are renowned for their high quality, durability, and exceptional sound. We selected JJ’s ECC99 specifically for their tonal properties: the airy highs and beefy mid-bass.

Different tubes have different characteristics. Tube-swapping enables further sonic personalization. Unlike EQ settings, tube-swapping change the harmonic profile and gain structure of the sound. For example: changing the ECC99’s for Electro Harmonix’s 12BH7 will produce a  ‘darker’ sound-signature with a more marked roll-off, which may be favorable in brighter systems and environments.

Design Matters

Physically, the Billie Amp adopts an essential, classic design inspired by HiFi’s legacy.

At first glance, Billie’s 2 controls seem utterly simplistic: one sets the volume, the other selects the source. But there’s a great deal of complexity underneath that simplicity.

-To turn on the amp, turn up the volume. To turn off, lower it to zero. The music smoothly fades in and out of your space.

-To Bluetooth pair, push and hold the source selector, or tap it, to mute on the fly.

These actions and reactions, the textures and proportions, are an invitation to touch, to engage.

Beyond the “looks”, design is how a product works. Design creates a connection between people and products. We believe that products that are easy to use and beautiful make our lives better.

Billie MK2 |
The Second Coming

below is a list of upgrades to our current model:

Tube Life-Saver: MK2 automatically shuts-off after 30 minutes of silence.

Volume: volume control has 4 times the resolution of the previous generation, resulting in finer increments. The 30dB increase in attenuation means a lower minimum volume.

Amplifier board: MK1 used ICEpower 125ASX2. MK2 uses ICEpower 200AS2. Output RMS power increased from 120W to 215W@4Ω / 60W to 120W@8Ω.

Tube Preamp: redesigned to operate at double the voltage, the new preamp has a similar sound signature to MK1 while minimizing gain variability from tubes.

Headphone amp: rebuilt around the TI OPA1622 chip, the MK2 headphone amp has better dynamics and higher gain (142mW@32Ω).

Coax input: new this year, a coax input with sample rate of 192k@32bit.

Bluetooth input: featuring AptX HD encoding, the module has better range and is 5.1 BT compliant.

Phonostage: upgraded capacitors. Comes with high gain jumpers for low-output MM cartridges (2-3mV).

Switchable Pre/Line Output: the pre out can be switched to a max output line out. Both signal paths pass through the tube preamp.

240V Volt Models: While 240V stock was problematic in the past, we’ve now solved this issue using new wiring harnesses that can configure any amp as 120V or 240V (These harnesses will be made available for sale, should you choose to move to a country with a different power grid).

Chassis design: MK1 was made using an off-the-shelf T6061 alloy aluminum profile. MK2 is machined using our proprietary profile, made of  T6063 aluminum. The T6063 alloy has better heat dissipation, thermal conductivity, corrosion resistance and surface finish. The profile thickness is consistent all-around. But most importantly, the profile production is subject to our own stricter manufacturing tolerances.

The inner chassis and backpanel are made of stainless steel (same as MK1.5), with the speaker posts spread out horizontally to better accommodate larger speaker cables and spade connectors.

This Amp Goes to Eleven

Hand-assembled using aircraft-grade aluminium, stainless steel, American walnut knobs and premium electronics, Billie is built to last.

Made in Montreal, Canada | 5-year warranty |

 

BILLIE INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER | 215 W, 6 INPUTS

INCLUDING VINYL, APTX BLUETOOTH AND HI‑RES DIGITAL

 

 

 

 

 


Heaven Eleven Billie Amp MK 2.
Brand:

Heaven Eleven