New Schiit Vali 2 Discussion Thread

Good to know! Maybe I can play with caps to see what damage I can do then.

 

That's pretty interesting. Can you expand on why you might keep the Vali 2 over Valhalla 2? Is that Vali 2 can deliver more juice for orthos, or other reasons?

 

For me, it would mostly be a budget/space thing. But the Vali 2's versatility for the money is certainly a draw.

 

I personally find the Vali 2 to be more resolving than the Bottlehead Crack + Speedball with my HD580, and this is based on long auditions of both. Still, it doesn't beat the Valhalla 2 in that department (Valhalla 2 has better staging as well).

Overall, I agree with fraggler. It doesn't sacrifice fidelity for versatility. I happen to also be the only idiot on the planet (probably) that enjoys the Vali 2 with my HE-6...

 

First impression - I'm impressed - pretty musical, maybe not the most resolving ever, but great warm tube sound w/o being muddy. Maybe a bit of bloat in the bass? Stock tube might be a bit fatiguing after 10 min of use? A fun listen either way. I've under rated this amp in my head without any real reason. Why isn't this the go to budget recommendation for everyone getting into the hobby? Maybe not everyone will like to warm sound vs the SS magni, but you don't know until you try. This amp will likely be a keeper as a back up at worst case. I bet with the right tube pairing many would be happy and stop here. Size is awesome, price is awesome, def looks like its a magni with a chubby.

Chain - Mutec 1.2 - Gungnir Multibit - Vali 2 - HD650

Trying out a russian 6H23 (hopefully better detail) and a JAN 6922 (hopefully better tone) this evening. Will try and compare to BH Crack + SB. Hoping that $180 amp doesn't beat all the hard work and tweaks I've done to my crack!

 

I try to make it a point and not to reply to my own threads, but....

WOW. I love many qualities of this amp! Listened to Tame Impala - Currents, Daft Punk - RAM, and M83 - Junk all straight through mostly with HD650's. I think what I am hearing is microdynamics and clarity like I haven't heard before, compared to the Lyr 2 and a BH Crack + SB. Great sound stage, listening to Instant Crush on RAM I heard layered voices like I haven't heard before. I've heard people use the term "holographic sound", is that what I am hearing? Very nice mids, top end isn't too harsh now that I've ditched the stock tube. I feel like the vali can keep up with the level of detail of the Gungnir Multibit w/ converter (even though I've spent almost 10x on the source). Maybe this is why Marv has been recommending source above all else...

Now this is a less expensive amp than many of the other schiits, it has less slam, sub bass and tightness to the bass than the Lyr 2. Doesn't have the same enjoyable tone as my BH Crack (but its closer than I expected). I havn't tried it with the HD800 yet and It doesn't pair with my ZMF Blackwoods as well as the Lyr 2 did. Volume knob isn't that smooth to adjust (had to cut costs somewhere to make a $180 amp). Swapping out tubes was tricky. On the Lyr the sockets were as looser than a Kardashians vee-jay-jay. I was slightly worried that I was pushing to hard with the Vali. Just like my first time.....

Anyway, I swapped in a "Jan Philips 6922 Low Noise" I purchased from thetubestore.com - it says PhilipsECC on it, $40. It was a head fooey recommendation, but it is a warm, fun, but more dynamic and controlled tube than the stock schiit. I would recommend to others. Enjoying myself to much to feel compelled to try out the Russian, but I've owned them before and know approximately what to expect (dryer, cleaner, tighter all around).

As I said before, awesome value (not GUTB approved), and I don't miss the Lyr 2 too much yet. To borrow Bob Katz' catchphrase (cringe) "Well, I wouldn't kick it out of bed for eating crackers"

 

I agree, the stock tube is fatiguing, Amperex 7308 works very well as a replacement but is pricey. Had to literally stalk eBay for months until I was able to get one at a reasonable price.

 

closed a deal on the vali2, hope to get it soon. is the stock tube really that bad for hd800? need some advice for sweet warm and lush tube for hd800 that will not be too pricey.

 

I dunno how it sounds with the HD800, but I felt that the Vali 2 made the HD600 sing.

 

I use the vali 2 / hd800 with the above mentioned Jan Philips 6922. I don't know if it has the sweet and lush tone that you seek, but it leans toward the warm side of the spectrum rather than the lean side. NOS Amprex tubes have been the warmest I've heard when I used them on a Lyr 2, but you sacrifice some clarity.

 

can you give link to buy them? thnx.

 

I bought the Philips from TheTubeStore.com - http://www.thetubestore.com/Tubes/6922-E88CC-Tube-Types/JAN-Philips-6922-Low-Noise
They also have a bunch of other tubes.

As for NOS Amprex - Ebay is full of em - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Amperex-6DJ...856834?hash=item2a65947e02:g:DJMAAOSwPcVVqob5
No idea about the seller, just an example of a bugle boy tube that is reasonable. Others to consider are orange labels, orange globes, etc. Buying single tubes is a bit harder as most are selling matched pairs.

 

thnx!, i had the bh crack+sb didnt like it the highs were twisted, maybe its upside down, but i hope to enjoy the experience. i will also compare it to the LEHMANN BCL clone when it will be ready.

 

I almost want to keep my Vali 2 now that I have seen this: http://www.head-fi.org/t/793982/vali-2-tube-rolling/435#post_12438166

 

I didn't realize they could take 6SN7 tubes!

EDIT: I realize those aren't 6SN7 tubes, but they use the adapter. Very similar to the "FrankenEmber"

 

Z review

 

Made it to where he silently counts to 12 ... couldn't watch/listen anymore.

 

Always good to look at things from a different perspective.
*chuckles*

 

So for the past few months, I've been doing Modi 2 -> Vali 2 -> HD800 (unmodded). In terms of volume/power, the Vali 2's 270mW was more than enough to bring the HD800 to listenable levels on low gain (I never needed to switch to high gain), with the pot at 11/12:00 max. I found the stock Sylvania 6BQ7 to be a bit too fatiguing on the mids, so I replaced it with an Amperex 6DJ8 Orange Globe, and it definitely rolled things off to create a colored, warmer sound.

I acquired a Mjolnir 1 this week though, and now have some better perspective on what the Vali 2's strengths and weaknesses are. After doing some volume-matched testing, I definitely feel that the Mjolnir 1 is a more technically proficient amp than the Vali 2. The soundstage is more expansive, and the response sounds flatter than the Vali 2. Vocals have a much more realistic presentation, dynamics are much tighter, and decay/echos on acoustic tracks sound less "digital."

But the Mjolnir 1 is really unforgiving with that damn 6khz spike with the HD800, and that's when I really miss the Vali 2. The Vali 2 was less fatiguing (with the Amperex tube), and the colored sound was "fun." I say that in the sense that the warmth conferred a different sense of intimacy with the music--it felt like being in a small room, as opposed to the Mjolnir 1, where I feel like I'm hearing the music in a masterfully constructed auditorium. I personally can't give up the resolution and the detail that the latter affords, but I can definitely see some people preferring the smoothed presentation of the Vali 2.

Maybe this goes into the whole tube vs SS thing, but I don't have enough experience to extrapolate.