Massdrop Cavalli Tube Hybrid Amp

Inserting the tube into the MCTH socket definitely requires a little more force than Vali 2. On my unit there is a definite feedback sensation as it clunks into place, you will know if it has seated correctly. The tube is quite hard to remove, the socket is quite stiff.

 

Do I? I wouldn't call the Eikon or Black Widow aggressive.

 

The ZMF Atticus powered by the Cavalli Tube Hybrid is a match made in heaven!

 

From what I was reading, they had to widen the opening (I am avoiding using "hole" here) in the chassis for the tube because it was difficult to get tubes in and especially out. I like to kind of "roll" the tube in a vertical circular motion lightly to remove the tube.

 

The socket on my MCTH is also pretty tight - maybe a socket saver like the one @YtseJammer uses makes sense for tube rolling?

 

Your post is edited now but at the time that's how I read it -- apologies if that's not the case.

 

It's all good. I edit posts a lot. When I type it up and post it, I reread it a bunch and correct little things. I don't often get my thoughts expressed correctly the first go.

 

I logged in to post about the tube socket, and, lo and behold, I ain't the only one. I just inserted an NOS 7308. No output on the right channel. Same problem that lead me to believe that a NOS 6dj8 was bad. It cost me $8 shipping to get back to the vendor, and it may have been ok. I repeatedly tried to get sound from the 7308. I was about to pull it, but tried one more time and music magically appeared. Some of you might have tight sockets, but mine is pretty damn loose. On the bright side, a partially seated tube apparently doesn't damage the amp. Maybe cleaning with 91% rubbing alcohol would tighten the grip?

The 7308 is a good match to my modded Fostex RP50, which have a somewhat reticent high end.

 

Just got this in earlier this week. Purchased it right before the Lyr 3 was announced and almost regretted the timing of the whole thing, until I started listening. Using the Grace m900 as the source, I've been very impressed in how it drives the HE-560, the TH-X00 PH, and the HD650. Even the HE-500 sounded really great. I typically listen at lower levels, but turned it up pretty high with the 560's and did not feel things fell apart with higher volume. I've really been looking for a great amp for the 560's, which I thought might be the Lyr 3, but the CTH is more than capable of driving them with no sense of harshness. Using the Focus-A Pads, the 560's really have a nice warmth to them without losing the clarity they are known for. Lyr 3 may be better, but for now it is in the rearview mirror, as the CTH seems to tick a lot of boxes all at once.

 

Really enjoying the MCTH out of Eitr>Modi Multibit>SYS(for attenuation). Modi Multibit>Magni 3 has really tight and punchy bass, and the MCTH softens this a bit, but I think the Modi Multibit makes up for the MCTH's low end shortcomings.

Loving the open sound, details, and macro/micro-dynamics. Certain parts of songs jump out with more "feeling" than I'd heard before, such as inflections in vocals. Very engaging and I totally agree with people saying it makes them just want to keep listening to the whole album. Most listening has been with my modded HD650. My newly acquired EX1000s also benefit from the MCTH. Bass is already very punchy so the slight softening of low-end impact doesn't detract too much and the EX1000's inherently open sound is expanded even more.

Someone mentioned Andros sounding good out of Lyr 3, presumably on low gain. So I plugged them into MCTH for the hell of it. Lot of hiss with no signal and volume all the way down. Hiss gradually decreases to none at 12 o'clock, comes back at 2 o'clock and increases until full volume, but not as loud as at zero volume. Is this "tube rush"?

Bass is boomy/bloomy as expected from near zero Zout source. Same nice sounds as described above from mids through highs. With iFi prototype pigtail (equivalent to iEMatch on "High"), sound is comparable to ZX2 but with more detail/clarity and openness.

 

With HD650 plugged in, the thud you hear when turning the amp off seems a bit louder than I've heard on other amps. Should I be concerned about damaging the phones? I'd definitely unplug IEMs before powering down, but it'd be more convenient to just leave the Senns plugged in all the time.

 

I was wondering the same.
In the guide, it recommends plugging in headphones while the amp is off, but it says nothing about unplugging them.

 

The offset detector takes a fraction of a second to kick in before all the power drains. This voltage will generally not damage your headphones, similarly with power up. I habitually unplug headphones before power cycling, stems from DIY and a time that predates offset detectors as standard.
.. dB

 

Has anyone else noticed, with very sensitive headphones in particular, that you can still hear music even if the CTH volume is completely turned down? Happens with the TH-X00, for example, where I can still hear what is playing. I have the Grace m900 volume set at 90, which is what I believe is the correct volume setting to use when utilizing it as a DAC. It doesn't really seem like it is an major issue or a malfunction, and it certainly doesn't impact how good the amp sounds overall, but I also haven't seen anyone else post about this, so thought it would be interesting to know if others have experienced this.

 

Mine does that too. Also with a TH-X00. Most likely the gain is too high for them. Only a few mm of usable volume control isn't great either.

 

You are likely correct. Gain is automatically set at +8. It would have been nice to have a switch to lower it to +2 or something.

I am sure there is a mod to do this.

 

I find most amps have too much gain for me and have a SYS between Modi Multibit and the MCTH set at between 9-11 o'clock depending on how loud the recording is. With the volume turned all the way down, there is no sound coming from any phones (even Andros).

Less (or switchable) gain would have been nice, but I was prepared for it. Magni 3 sounds like ass on low gain, so the SYS does the job there too.

 

Volume knob set for 1:30 (analog clock notation) is unity gain on the MCTH in my lab. I too use either a Saga for fixed level output DACs or the Digital Gain knob found on RME ADI-2 Pro or Soekris dac1421 while leaving the MCTH at unity gain.

 

Was almost ready to give up on this one: it sounds pretty much like ass with the Genalex Gold Lion (my favorite with the Vali 2).
That was until I tried the EH... What a pleasant surprise!

 

So mine arrived. What can I say that hasn't already been said? Hmmm...

Well, first off, I was not prepared for how laid back the sound really is. It really feels like a back seat and then you are just immersed with all the instruments around you. And it does this with still having great detail and not a bloated low end sound. It really is enveloping and draws you in. It is like you are listening to a recording for the first time.

I will say it is somewhat bass light at times and not really full on the low end. It is not overly bright either. It has a rather smooth sounds, but amazingly sharp details. Very non-fatiguing amp with tons of space and clarity.

It really did well with all three of my headphones (HD650, D2000, T20 v2), and it was able to bring out the personality of each without really bringing any personality of it. But because they did each sound different, I will try to break it down.

T20: This is the V2 - the circular planars. These are pretty hard to drive and can sound downright dull unless you have some meaty power. The MTCH does not dissapoint. I had to turn the volume knob a bit more than I would thought, but it still gets plenty clean loud. It was able to really envolop me and give me that "open cans" feel from closed headphones. Really a dream. Slightly light in the bass as I would say some might miss the impact that other amps might have in pure raw hitting power. Definatly more dreamy, but still with some amazing (and I mean amazing) microdetail. Still, effortless and does not sound strident at all. Even the most demanding busy and compressed tracks sound open and airy. Four out of five stars, only because it is lacking a bit in power. I had to be past 12 o'clock for most tracks.

D2000: This is where things get interesting for this amp. The D2000's are easy to drive, but because of this can reveal details about the source. Due to how the T20's sound, I was expecting a lack of power and impact. Boy was I wrong. All of the D2000 impact from the easy to drive microfiber drivers was there. It still had all the amazing detail and was able to actually provide some amazing clarity of the mids that is missing in some amps or sources with the D2000. Male vocals still seemed kind of hot in the highs/upper mids and kind of drier in presentation, but it is still settling in. This was only after on for an hour or so. Fantastic depth and clarity and reminds me of similar to what I heard out of Vali 2 with these headphones, but just pushing the walls a bit back more and maybe a touch wider. 5 of 5. Best amp I have ever tried with this headphone.

HD650: I would say many would be happy with this amp. It brought out all the signature characteristics of the HD650's - the warmth, the depth, etc. It even had some very very clean mids. Very smooth presentation. I compared to my Vahalla 2, but I will preface that I doubt that there is any amp in the sub $1000 range that can top the Valhalla 2 with the HD650's. Others may give you this or that, but the Valhalla 2 is the whole package and I say to anyone that you are unaware what the HD650's are fully capable of until you try them. Truly one of the best amp/can matches if there ever is one. So did the MCTH sound better than Valh 2? Sadly, no. The Valhalla 2 still bested the MTCH in raw power, details, spaciousness, and overall enjoyment - probably by a notch. The MTCH was clean enough and powerful enough, but to me, made the mids almost too hot and have rolled off highs and rolled off extreme lows. What was there was very clean and detailed and enjoyable enough, but damn if the Valhalla 2 is just so dang sweet sounding. So, if you only have HD650's and that is all you care about, the Vahalla 2 would be an upgrade.

Side notes:

My HD650's are the older more dreamy sounding and some may call "veiled" ones. Newer ones can sound a bit brighter. YMMV.

Still breaking in the tube. Even the instructions with the amp say it needs to break in 50 to 100 hours. It also says you don't have to break it in quickly, but if you desire can run continuous music through with no headphones on with the volume knob at 10 o'clock. I set this up this morning before I left for work. But still, that is still only about 20 hours since I got home. Things may still change slightly.

As far as build quality, I was afraid the plastic case might be kind of flimsy. It is not. Very sturdy. The tube socket is one of the tightest fit socket I have ever seen. My goodness you have to push that tube in, and you can't push down on the pointy tube part. So push until it seats. The top of the plate inside the tube should be about even with the top of the case.

And whoever said they liked the volume knob? That would be about the first things I would replace if I could and likely will be replaced once the warranty runs out. There is very little physical resistance, so brushing by it can turn it up or down rather quickly. It does not wobble and feels solid, but a little too buttery smooth. It is also kind of hard to see that little indented indicator (we keep our living room kind of dim). I might dab it with a spot of White Out later.

Overall, highly recommended amp. It still has it's limitations on overall impact and power, especially with harder to drive headphones to get the most out of them. An amazing value for the sub $300 range to get an amp that does work so wonderfully well with so many and sound so great. I agree that if searching for amps, it kind of goes:

Magni 3 -> Vali 2 -> MTCH

I will not comment on further as I have not heard the Lyr 3 (yet). I am sure it is also how awesome you guys say it is.

PS - sorry for so long, but just trying to add deeper insight.