Schiit Valhalla 2

Discussion in 'Headphone Amplifiers and Combo (DAC/Amp) Units' started by Cspirou, Oct 8, 2015.

  1. Case

    Case Anxious Head (Formerly Wilson)

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    @mrflibble , my Valhalla 2 is quiet. I'd get it looked at.
     
  2. a44100Hz

    a44100Hz Friend

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    Two easy things to try which may or may not help:

    -Plug the Valhalla 2 into its own wall socket rather than on a power strip
    -Clean the pins on the tubes
     
  3. Garns

    Garns Friend

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    If it's an obvious hum or buzz which moves with the tube then tube is duff. May go away with warm up (as you note) and may go away with burn in, but I wouldn't count on it. Give it 10-20 hours to burn in and if it's still there return the tube.

    Sounds like your tube is also microphonic. Is it worse if you tap directly on the tubes? If so, then that's your problem. A bit of microphony is not uncommon but if it is ringing all the time that's a problem. Like before, it could go away but probably won't.

    Like a hum/buzz when you turn the volume to max with nothing playing? Same with all tubes? Try disconnecting all inputs. If it goes away, probably a ground loop. If it is still there I would guess you have dirty power (Val 2 is pretty sensitive to this). You could try to beg borrow or steal a power conditioner to see if it helps.
     
  4. mrflibble

    mrflibble Friend

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    Thanks Guys, especially @Garns . I will have another go at the amp tomorrow. Bedtime now.

    I've just done a bit of reading about microphonic tubes (didn't know what it was), and that is one of the things I am experiencing.

    With regards to the hum with the 6CG7's, that goes away after the amp has been on awhile. I tried the amp in its own wall socket and it didn't make a difference. It doesn't really bother me, so its cool :)

    Will report back on the E88CC's .
     
  5. mrflibble

    mrflibble Friend

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    I left the amp on over night, about 10 hours. I came back to it this morning and the left channel was still humming. The microphonics are quite bad, just moving the headphone cable on the desk generates them.

    I will contact the seller.
     
  6. mrflibble

    mrflibble Friend

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    I received a partial refund for the Reflektor's

    I liked the sound of the Reflektor's, looking for something with a similar sound signature but not too expensive. Currently looking at:

    Philips Miniwatt E88CC NOS - bids are likely to go above budget
    Tesla E88CC Gold pin NOS
    Sylvania JAN 6922 NOS (£44 pair + shipping)
    Sylvania JAN 7308 NOS (£40 pair + shipping)
    JJ Electronics Gold pin NEW (£34 pair + shipping)

    Looking for something a little bit warmer than 6CG7's but not rolled off too much in the treble. A reviewer on www.tubestore.com liked the JJ's in their Valhalla and another reviewer thought they were better than the Philips JAN 6922 .

    Anybody have any experience or opinions of these tubes?

    I see @lm4der seemed to like the JJ's back on page 12:

    They maybe too warm?

    @zonto liked the Reflektor's on the same page (hence why I tried them). Maybe I should try and get some more from a different seller? I'm leaning towards trying the Sylvania JAN 7308's.

    Many thanks.
     
    Last edited: Feb 9, 2017
  7. a44100Hz

    a44100Hz Friend

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    @mrflibble it might take me a few days but I have miniwatts, reflektors, 6GC7s, JJ gold pins, stock Russian tubes and stock Canadian tubes and can throw them in for some brief comparisons if you're interested.
     
  8. mrflibble

    mrflibble Friend

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    That would be very good of you. I would appreciate that. I may take a punt on the Sylvania's anyway, but it is always good to have more info. It may help some other people too.

    The 6GC7 is definitely an improvement over the stock tubes but still a hair too bright and thin for my liking. The stock tubes sound similar to single ended Jotunheim to me.
     
  9. Garns

    Garns Friend

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    If you liked the Reflektors you should probably just try and get some more Reflektors. A seller called orpheus_2005 / lci_electronics on eBay is reputable for Russian tubes. I've chatted with a guy on head-fi who confirmed that the test results are accurate, plus hassle-free returns and refunds if something goes wrong.

    Maybe these?
    http://www.ebay.com/itm/2x-Matched-...3-SARATOV-HiFi-TUBES-6DJ8-E88CC-/302066879916
     
  10. mrflibble

    mrflibble Friend

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    @Garns Cool, I hadn't spotted those. I've put them on my watch list. :)

    I've ordered a pair of Sylvania 7308's for £44 inc postage. I think they are a pretty good deal. 7308's are the premium version of the 6992. If I don't like them I can always sell them on. The seller on ebay uk has four left if anybody is interested.

    Looks like I will be doing a tube shootout next week some time!
     
  11. BrettMatthews

    BrettMatthews Friend

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    @mrflibble Just be careful with tube rolling with the Valhalla 2. I would recommend not going to far down the tube rolling road with it, you are better off saving the money and moving up to a higher-end (or different) amp depending on the sound that you are looking for.
     
  12. mrflibble

    mrflibble Friend

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    The Sylvania 7308's arrived over the weekend but I did not like them compared to the other tubes, so returned them for a refund. The tubes I compared were the Sylvania 7308, GE 6CG7, and the Reflektor 6N23P.

    The sound characteristics of the Reflektor 6N23P and the 6CG7 have been very well described by @zonto , and @Garns & @k4rstar , respectively. Far far far better than I can manage. I found hearing the differences between tubes on the Valhalla 2 to be more much more subtle and difficult to describe than describing the differences between two amps. My descriptions of the differences between tubes will therefore be brief and uncomplicated.

    My main test track was "Bullet in the Head" by Rage Against the Machine. This was a FLAC rip from the original CD album.

    7308: Everything sounds clear, well placed, inoffensive, musical. The cymbal work is very noticeable, but this is characteristic of the track and / or amp and carries over to the other tubes. The vocals sound slightly recessed, laid back. The music seems somehow subdued. Bass is tight.

    Reflektor 6N23P: These seem louder than the 7308's. The most noticeable difference is the guitar sound (not sure how to describe it) in the left channel near the start of the track, with these tubes it is much more prominent, clearer, and exciting. Cymbals are about the same. There is more weight and presence to the music. The bass has more punch but is maybe a bit looser than the 7308's.

    6CG7: These are the clearest, most defined and airy of the tubes. They have less weight than the Reflektors, they are thinner. They have a more prominent treble than the other two sets of tubes (but this was more apparent in a later track I listened to - "Lean On" by Major Lazer). They have greater similarity to the 7308's than the Reflektors, except unlike the 7308's they are not subdued or laid back. The prominent guitar of the Reflektor's is not present.

    Listening to "Derezzed", Tron Legacy soundtrack (FLAC rip from Deluxe, Remastered Edition download), the Reflektor's had more "splash" compared to the 6CG7's, whereas the 7308's were thicker than the 6CG7's.

    I listened to more tracks but I would just be repeating myself. The general takeaway is that vocals on the Reflektor's were more forward than the 7308's and that it is a more exciting and involving listen, yet I would still describe the 7308's as musical. The 7308's don't seem to be as loud as the other two sets of tubes. The Reflektor's seem to have more soundstage and bring forward certain instruments (but not in an artificial way - they still seem natural) compared to both the 7308's and 6CG7's. They also seem to have more texture to certain instruments. The 6CG7's have the most forward and defined treble and they are the lightest and airiest of the tubes. The 6CG7's are closest to the stock tubes, but fix their shortcomings e.g. the slightly spitty treble.

    The 7308's are for if you are ready for your pipe and slippers and want to go to sleep (perhaps a slight exaggeration)
    The 6CG7's are for if you want something clean, airy and neutral with more exciting treble.
    The Reflektor's are if you want to be more involved in the music, enjoy more texture and not get too fatigued from the treble.

    The Reflektor's will be my primary listening tubes but I will keep the 6CG7's for when I feel like a bit more excitement. I think it is worth owning both sets as they are quite different in some ways. I don't recommend the 7308's. This will be the end of my tube rolling adventures for the Valhalla 2.

    My Reflektor's had a quite a bit of microphonics and one of the tubes was a duffer with hum. One of the 7308's had a quiet and intermittent buzz.

    Many thanks to @Garns for finding some more Reflektor's for me on ebay, which I have ordered and should hopefully arrive in the coming days.
     
    Last edited: Feb 2, 2021
  13. zonto

    zonto Friend

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    Great impressions! Wanted to flag my follow-up post on the 6N23P microphonics issue. Assuming non-crap tubes, I think it boils down purely to year of manufacture.
     
  14. SKiring

    SKiring Friend

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    @Garns, the 6CG7s are the real deal... Holy crap, just got myself a pair of 6CG7's (first got RCA blacks but I have some serious humming in 1 channel and luckily picked up some Sylvania's locally, don't hear any difference side the hum being gone). There's slam (heft and much more controlled) and the articulation of strings, voices and piano amazingly accurate. The slight haziness/dryness of the treble is pretty much gone, the blackness is real. I do need to up the volume a bit but man this is amazing.

    This will be the first and last time I will be hyping tubes but I'm incredibly satisfied and wanted to share my thoughts. I tried ECC88s but they're all just simply too soft for my liking, so far I was preferring the stock tubes but man this is simply amazing. Many thanks for the write up. @k4rstar as well, your combined write ups made me look into these.

    For anyone wondering the chain is PC > Bifrost Multibit > Valhalla 2 > HD800 (SDR + my cutout SBAF material + some minor cork placement) and HD650M.
     
    Last edited: Feb 17, 2017
  15. mrflibble

    mrflibble Friend

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    Received my new Reflektors today, I think they sound even better than the previous set and no nasty buzz or microphonics from them! :punk:

    I'm still experiencing a *very* quiet hum on the right channel, I swapped the tubes over and the hum remains on the right. I'm going to try the 6CG7's and the stock tubes again and hear if the hum is present with those.

    EDIT: Yes the hum is there with all the tubes. Tried the amp in its own wall socket, didn't make a difference.
     
    Last edited: Feb 18, 2017
  16. zonto

    zonto Friend

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    Try moving it away from other transformers or sources of EMI/RFI.
     
  17. mrflibble

    mrflibble Friend

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    I've not tried moving it, but I have tried switching everything else off (including the computer and the monitor). Didn't make any difference. There is a *very* faint buzz coming from the unit itself as well.
     
  18. cskippy

    cskippy Creamy warmpoo

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    Make sure interconnects aren't following power cable paths, it's very easy to pick up hum and other noise. Another potential issue can be your cellphone.
     
  19. mrflibble

    mrflibble Friend

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    I checked that the interconnects aren't close to the power cable and I tried removing the interconnects from the Valhalla 2, but it didn't make any difference. My cellphone is in another room.

    I've also tried plugging the unit into its own wall socket (with everything else switched off) and didn't help.

    Would it be correct to therefore conclude that the problem is not a ground loop? And is therefore either dirty power or a problem with the Valhalla 2?

    The hum on the right channel does bother me on very quiet passages in music.

    Is it normal for the power LED to take some significant time to fully extinguish when the power is switched off to the unit?

    Many thanks.
     
  20. SKiring

    SKiring Friend

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    This part I can confirm.

    I do feel that your Valhalla2 might have an issue. It has to be very bad grounding for it to have a consistent hum in one channel only and you'd probably see it with more electronical devices.
     

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