Lyr 3 Discussion Thread

I just picked mine up from the Newhall store on Sunday. I've been burning in the stock 6H8C tube for 3 days. I ordered a Westinghouse 6SN7 412 bucks on eBay. I'll be checking that out next week.

My regular amp for the past few months has been the ampsandsound Agartha, which is a 6SL7 / 300b amp, along with the Jotunheim. I love my Agartha, but I was looking for something a little less noisy to use with my LCD-4 and my Focal Clears.

So far, the Lyr 3 sounds pretty damn neutral to my ears. A very nice, clean non grainy top end, with better-than-Jot detail and clarity in the mids. The bass foundation sounds solid and controlled, but slightly less prominent than the Jot. I'll be switching the Agartha back into my chain and seeing how it compares to this $500 amp...

 

^^ I"d expect the lyr3 to get spanked by the Agartha given the price difference. But hey, you never know.

Lyr3 doing VERY on layering without blending things together especially with vocals. Listening to Fairfield Four: Standing in the Safety Zone. Five dudes acapella singing old gospel and blues. The separation of the vocals here and harmonizing is tremendously good. Really sucks me into the music and let's me get lost. I'm hearing subtle vocal cues from individual singers....raspy, deep guttural tones coming from the baritone singer. This is good stuff.

I was a little concerned that the lyr3 would be at it's best with planars and only be "pretty good" with high impedance (650), but that's not the case. This is a very good amp with the 650.

 

I haven’t had a 650 in house for awhile, perhaps I should pick one up. Getting used to the Lyr 3 with the Clear, it’s just the polar opposite (but still great) of the Abyss.

 

I been listening to this amp pretty much all afternoon. I admit that I'm a little smitten with it. There is detail and transparency here that I usually see with some of the big boy amps. AND it presents these qualities with a finesse that makes it so easy to listen to.

Now, who want to paint this damn thing for me? Rolling Stones "Paint it Black"...looking at you Stoddard.

 

I've been enjoying symphonies a lot these days. This amp is stupidly well resolving volume gradations at any loudness. I can think of several amps with better macro- or micro- dynamics (not both together though), but it is really difficult to list amps that reproduce small details at this level of (perceived) accuracy.. regardless of asking prices (note: I have little experience with real summit-fis).

Now listening to Scheherazade (Sir Charles Mackerras and LSO, recorded in 1990) with LCD2C+Lyr3.. having goosebumps, really. My ears (not brain) are easily convinced that sonic contrast of these tracks were well controlled but delicately expressed. It's just happiness to re-discover the true value of recordings I own..

 

Lyr 3 - Initial Impressions from a Discrete-Amp Noob

Spoiler: Intro and Some Background Info:

After getting a Audeze LCD-i4 back in November, I wanted a over-ear HP and ended up choosing the HD800S for its light weight and soundstage. I am an EQ user, so I can shave off the treble peaks with EQ. I was originally intending to use the HD800S with just my Lotoo Paw Gold music player (LPG), as my lifestyle doesn't allow me to spend lot of time tethered to a desktop. Until I got to try my cousin's Magni 3. The little bugger, despite being just an entry level amp, beat LPG in aspects like soundstage, instrument nuances and macro dynamics. And then I wanted to get a discrete amp for myself. I wanted to stay in the Single Ended ecosystem, as long as I could, and so the release of the Lyr 3 couldn't have come at a better time. I wanted a good Single Ended DAC. I have been wanting to try NOS DACs for a long time. But I decided to save that for the future and I picked up a Hugo 2, as it could double as a portable DAC/Amp.

Sound Preference: I generally prefer a warmer sound with a good soundstage. Actually the tonal preference ranges anywhere between neutral to warm depending on my mood and the type of music. I highly value instrument & vocal timbre, imaging precision and layering. After getting exposed to macrodynamics, I have come to want it equally.

Setup: Macbook (JMC) > Hugo 2 > Lyr 3 > HD800S, Audeze LCD-i4, EE Phantom
Lyr 3 Config: No Module (Amp Only), Tung-Sol 6SN7

Hum and Hiss: With 800S or the LCD-i4, no signs of hum on both Low and High Gain. EE Phantom is a sensitive multi-BA IEM and picks up noise from powerful sources. On Low Gain, there is a feeble hiss that is not distracting for the most part. The level of hiss only as mush as what I get on my LPG and Hugo 2. On High Gain, there is not just a noticeable hiss, but also a loud hum. So the HG is definitely no-go for IEMs. I

Low Gain to High Gain Switching: As others have reported, going from LG to HG makes the transients and attacks sharper. It also introduces brightness in the upper-mids as well as some glare in the treble. I prefer to use the HD800S on LG and the LCD-i4 on HG.

Sonics:
My impressions are probably not going to be of much help for amp veterans, as this is my first ever fully-discrete amplifier, and I do not have other reference points, to which I could compare the Lyr 3. But hopefully it will help those coming from portable audio.

Note: The amp seems to improve after a few hours of warm-up. At Hour Zero, it sounds a little congested and the macro dynamics feel a bit restricted. Before heading out in the evenings, I left it On and running and when I returned after 4-5 hours, I noticed some changes/improvements to the sound. I was hearing better separation, layering and better rendering of macro and micro dynamics. I am not sure at what hour the improvement occurs, as I got back only after 4 or 5 hours on both days. OTOH, I can't seem to notice any improvement when left running beyond the 4 hours.

Tonally, the amp seems to fall on the neutral side, with good clarity throughout its signature. Maintaining a clean stage that is free from any unwanted warmth, helps with separation and maintaining the transparency in the presentation. Coming from portable audio the most captivating aspects to me are; the large soundstage, full-size instrument images, longer reverbs and macro dynamics. Bass has that power, authority and size that you don't come across in portable audio.

I have heard better resolution in the mid-range on devices like Hugo 2 and LPG. Despite the difference in resolution, the Lyr is able to present good timbre of instruments due to its transparency and effective rendering of micro-dynamics. I wouldn't say the treble is entirely smooth, but it is free of harshness on Low Gain. Switching to High Gain brings in some glare and hardness.

The soundstage Lyr presents is quite large for someone coming from portable audio. My only gripe is, the stage is not large enough to accommodate and spatially separate all the full-size instruments** present in the stage. The overall presentation is not exactly intimate, but it is a touch forward than neutral. Stage depth and layering is good and is on the same ball park as the Hugo 2.

I don't want to add more comments just yet, given this is my first proper experience with a desktop-class, discrete amplifier. I will try to share more thoughts later, once I have spent more time with it.

Closing Thoughts:
I bought the Lyr 3 based on some brief impressions on here and HF. Coming from portable audio, I wasn't sure what to expect. And trying the amp as soon as opening the package was an underwhelming experience. Until I let it warm up and listened again. Expecting way more than this from $500 amp may not be completely fair. Overall this seems to be a nice amp for $500. At this point, I am quite satisfied with my purchase.

**Full-Size Instruments - Not to be confused with thickness. It simply means that the size of the instruments in the musical image is presented large

 

^^Great write up^^ I too find the Head stage excellent on the Lyr 3. I could be wrong, but I think that the staging and imaging are excellent on the Lyr 3.

In fact, to @Ice-man ’s concerns regarding the Lyr 3 with dynamics versus planar, you needn’t worry Mate, it’s excellent with both. I’m going full Schiit fan boi this morning, the Lyr 3 (left on 24/7, playing music since Monday) is grabbing the Clear by the balls, and providing the best bass and stage I’ve heard through these headphones.

 

Which tube are you using? I’ve tried stock Russian, new production TS, Sylvania GTB chrome dome and they all sound good but don’t do anything to help the closed-in headstage of Clear. Please note I’m using JRMC and IVS with CanOpener crossfeed into Gen 5 Bifrost Multibit. I wonder if using my Gen 5 Gungnir Multibit might improve the head stage for Clear.

 

Tubes may alter this mildly, but I wouldn't expect dramatic changes to soundstage.

Most likely, it's different user standards for what "good" headstage is.

 

I’m using a Sylvania VT-231 JAN, @Skyline i beg to differ, the current tube offers far greater headstage, particularly depth, compared to TS or a Ken Rad I tossed in to the mix. I’m going to coothe Ken Rad overnight and see how it sounds tomorrow.

 

I should have added, “for the Clear, it’s expanded, particularly in depth.” Its not competing with the Abyss or HD800 in that department, but is impr.

 

It's okay. You're allowed to be wrong.

 

Couldn't agree more with these well-said statements.

My bet is that perception of headstage is somewhat related to how spacial cues (several different cues usually located at some treble points) are heard. Tubes may matter or not. Even so, not a day-or-night change IMO. And probably not a strong point for non Transformer-coupled amps..

But I also experienced tiny actual changes led to huge perceptional differences (or maybe moderated by placebos). So god (and the owner) only knows.

 

Totally agree boss. The only thing I’ve found to help Clear so far is using the MCTH combined with a crossfeed plugin. I do acknowledge some tubes will increase stage depth, but most people favor more girth, ahem, width to their soundstage on headphones.

 

@k4rstar Thanks for the impressions. I too am hoping for a more direct Valhalla 2 improvement from Schiit that retains the strengths of the amp while improving on its weak points. Are you still using the Valhalla 2 or are you on a different amp now?

It'll probably be a while before the Lyr 3 loaner comes around to me, but I'm looking forward to hearing it.

 

Anyone getting a loud pop when headphones are plugged in and first turning on the amp? I thought there was some sort of mute relay built in as a protection circuit.

 

Yes, I get it too. After one bitter experience (ear-splittingly loud pop/click), now I don't plug my headphones in, until I hear the click, after booting the amp up. There is a click when turning it Off as well. So I unplug the headphones, before turning the amp Off.

 

Yea I thought schiit eliminated this issue long ago with the original lyr?