TonyTripleA
500+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Feb 24, 2004
- Posts
- 753
- Likes
- 138
Well, you'll have guessed what I have to say is good.
I don't start a lot of threads, but when I'm blown away like today... why not share the euphorium!
Let me start by saying I've listened seriously to headphones for a decade. After experimenting with Alessandro Pros, I finally fell in love with my Sony SA5000 headphones some time back and they paired well with my Benchmark DAC1/amp. It was resolution heaven. When the SA5000 had their right side driver stop I was devastated - even more so when my own exploratory surgery finished them off.
Sadly, no replacement pair to be had as they stopped making them two years ago. I've never heard a headphone that could compare to the SA5000 so I was ready to give up after I ordered Sony's more recent offerings and found I really wasn't impressed. They were "ok" but not near SA5000 level.
But, having a bit of time recently I was reading on Head-Fi a few respected views saying the Beyerdynamic T1 was a detailed enjoyable listen.
I ordered a pair. They arrived about three weeks ago.
Liked them. Wasn't taken to the moon and back mind you, but I got the detail, enjoyed the bass to mids and perhaps found a sibilance with the treble which was a little fatiguing. Not to be daunted I dusted of a 7 year old "Fatman" valve amp. Everyone says valves tackle sibilant issues, right? So I plugged in and found some recordings were "better" despite the obvious lack of design for headphones with this amp (way too much power and quite a treble drop off). In fact, I was generally enjoying the DAC1 amp more on good recordings despite the sibilance. But when those fatman tubes worked, they really did a good job. Dire Straits, The Doors, Santana... the list was growing.
That is when I decided to bite the bullet and try a tube amp designed for headphones. I settled on the Schiit Valhalla 2 mainly because the reviews here emphasized the detail and value in this little amp.
And they were not wrong.
When just out of the box and plugged in "WOW"... suddenly every album I tried sounded better. I've been sitting here for five hours now. Yes its not burned in, but nevertheless I can offer an opinion - that wow factor is real and growing. Analysing why is easy. Plug back into my beloved DAC1 everything sounds thinner. Slam is less emotional. Treble is less enjoyable, probably because the sibilant qualities can get in the way with the T1s. The Valhalla 2 plays with my emotions in a way beyond expectation. Its like the T1s just gained in PRAT (pace, rhythm and timing) with the result of more obvious emotion in the music.
I was a solid state tragic up to now. But no longer, valves have now carved a place in my audio experience that I may not easily move from.
Deciding which music is best improved on the Valhalla 2 is a tough task. I've been listening to 24 bit recordings and they are certainly specially improved to my ears. Vocals such as in Jackson Brown's late for the sky are wonderful. The Doors and The Cars are superb. Classical is also especially pleasing. I'm a fan of violin and the 24 bit recording by Jascha Heifetz & Walter Hendl of Sielius, Prokofiev and Glazunov's violin concertos is way up there - brilliant! So what about some average recordings, in 16 bit, say Hotel Costes or AC/DC's Highway to Hell... well it has an improved visceral feel, so these too get the nod but I'm not hanging around on these lesser "recorded quality" albums.
Any failures: yep, I have a binaural recording in 16 bit of Pearl Jam. Nothing can save the dull congested sound of Breakerfall, the first track. This disappointment continues as I listen on, but then track 4 "light years" lifts from the dull, lifeless sounds before it... it doesn't shine but it gets my attention. Not too bad. The bass impact in "of the girl" is awesome. The T1/V2 combo seems to be pushing through after all - even with this album. But I'm not very content with the recordings lack of detail, so back to some clearer sounds... Tommy by the Who, very nice. Then back to 24 bit Graceland by Paul Simon and I'm back in valve heaven.
So how does the V2/T1 combo compare to my beloved SA5000/DAC1 combo. Probably not as much raw resolution, but certainly more musicality and to my ears superior enjoyment with plenty of detail, just the right treble and enough bass punch! If the choice was there I'd stick with the Valhalla 2, with the T1's - they make an awesome combo. Detail ability is phenomenal, and demand great recordings while putting up with average ones. I do think that my poorer recorded albums will be relegated to the speakers in the lounge room though as I'm just enjoying the top end sound that is possible with the better, HiRes recordings.
Final words: I cannot believe that an amp can add so much!
Just my two cents!
TonyAAA
I don't start a lot of threads, but when I'm blown away like today... why not share the euphorium!
Let me start by saying I've listened seriously to headphones for a decade. After experimenting with Alessandro Pros, I finally fell in love with my Sony SA5000 headphones some time back and they paired well with my Benchmark DAC1/amp. It was resolution heaven. When the SA5000 had their right side driver stop I was devastated - even more so when my own exploratory surgery finished them off.
Sadly, no replacement pair to be had as they stopped making them two years ago. I've never heard a headphone that could compare to the SA5000 so I was ready to give up after I ordered Sony's more recent offerings and found I really wasn't impressed. They were "ok" but not near SA5000 level.
But, having a bit of time recently I was reading on Head-Fi a few respected views saying the Beyerdynamic T1 was a detailed enjoyable listen.
I ordered a pair. They arrived about three weeks ago.
Liked them. Wasn't taken to the moon and back mind you, but I got the detail, enjoyed the bass to mids and perhaps found a sibilance with the treble which was a little fatiguing. Not to be daunted I dusted of a 7 year old "Fatman" valve amp. Everyone says valves tackle sibilant issues, right? So I plugged in and found some recordings were "better" despite the obvious lack of design for headphones with this amp (way too much power and quite a treble drop off). In fact, I was generally enjoying the DAC1 amp more on good recordings despite the sibilance. But when those fatman tubes worked, they really did a good job. Dire Straits, The Doors, Santana... the list was growing.
That is when I decided to bite the bullet and try a tube amp designed for headphones. I settled on the Schiit Valhalla 2 mainly because the reviews here emphasized the detail and value in this little amp.
And they were not wrong.
When just out of the box and plugged in "WOW"... suddenly every album I tried sounded better. I've been sitting here for five hours now. Yes its not burned in, but nevertheless I can offer an opinion - that wow factor is real and growing. Analysing why is easy. Plug back into my beloved DAC1 everything sounds thinner. Slam is less emotional. Treble is less enjoyable, probably because the sibilant qualities can get in the way with the T1s. The Valhalla 2 plays with my emotions in a way beyond expectation. Its like the T1s just gained in PRAT (pace, rhythm and timing) with the result of more obvious emotion in the music.
I was a solid state tragic up to now. But no longer, valves have now carved a place in my audio experience that I may not easily move from.
Deciding which music is best improved on the Valhalla 2 is a tough task. I've been listening to 24 bit recordings and they are certainly specially improved to my ears. Vocals such as in Jackson Brown's late for the sky are wonderful. The Doors and The Cars are superb. Classical is also especially pleasing. I'm a fan of violin and the 24 bit recording by Jascha Heifetz & Walter Hendl of Sielius, Prokofiev and Glazunov's violin concertos is way up there - brilliant! So what about some average recordings, in 16 bit, say Hotel Costes or AC/DC's Highway to Hell... well it has an improved visceral feel, so these too get the nod but I'm not hanging around on these lesser "recorded quality" albums.
Any failures: yep, I have a binaural recording in 16 bit of Pearl Jam. Nothing can save the dull congested sound of Breakerfall, the first track. This disappointment continues as I listen on, but then track 4 "light years" lifts from the dull, lifeless sounds before it... it doesn't shine but it gets my attention. Not too bad. The bass impact in "of the girl" is awesome. The T1/V2 combo seems to be pushing through after all - even with this album. But I'm not very content with the recordings lack of detail, so back to some clearer sounds... Tommy by the Who, very nice. Then back to 24 bit Graceland by Paul Simon and I'm back in valve heaven.
So how does the V2/T1 combo compare to my beloved SA5000/DAC1 combo. Probably not as much raw resolution, but certainly more musicality and to my ears superior enjoyment with plenty of detail, just the right treble and enough bass punch! If the choice was there I'd stick with the Valhalla 2, with the T1's - they make an awesome combo. Detail ability is phenomenal, and demand great recordings while putting up with average ones. I do think that my poorer recorded albums will be relegated to the speakers in the lounge room though as I'm just enjoying the top end sound that is possible with the better, HiRes recordings.
Final words: I cannot believe that an amp can add so much!
Just my two cents!
TonyAAA
