New Schiit Vali 2 Discussion Thread

Quick question, guys. What amp pairing do you like the best for the following? I'm looking at buying one for the home, one for the office. (They could be two of the same, too.)

1) HD600 - Mostly Classical, lots of strings - Magni 2U or Vali 2 (stock)?

2) HD650 - Mostly Jazz or Post Rock - Magni 2U or Vali 2 (stock)?

FWIW, sometimes I can find the HD600 a little too bright...

 

LISST anyone?

 

On the Schiit site, Jason said just buy a Magni Uber instead:

"Hey, can you use LISST in this?
Sure you can, but why? Magni 2 Uber is a better, more powerful, and less expensive choice for a solid-state amp. "

 

Nonetheless, it would be interesting to know if it has any redeeming qualities over tubes, say, better sub-bass extension and definition?

 

Newbie here. Do I need a DAC if my set up is phone > vali 2 > HD600?

 

@Ronco yeah i'd recommend that you get a DAC. i mean you could get a 3.5mm to RCA converter into the vali, but it wouldn't be optimal at all in my opinion.

 

I do the 30 pin line out of iPod/iPhone to male RCA to my amps all the time. Cable is made by Ziotek. One foot, two foot, etc. Cheap on Amazon.

 

@Noodlz Why does having Y cable from my phone to vali 2 NOT optimal?

 

Two reasons:

1) If your phone doesn't have a true line out, then you are getting amplification from the phone, and then again with Vali, ie double amping. I think general consensus is that double amping isn't horrible, but still not optimal.

2) You are using the DAC built into your phone, which is generally crappier than external DACS.

 

Listening to the Vali 2 with modded HD600's, got some Talk Talk playing right now and the sound is absolutely sumptuous. Hell of a combo.

 

@Ronco pretty much what @lm4der said. the internal DAC of the iphone is just very ok, it will definite sound way better with an external dac >> vali. a good option that i think alot people have said is to get a Geekout V2 (or even any of the V1s since they're going for super cheap nowadays) and use the line out of that to the vali 2.

 

Does anyone know if the design of the Vali 2 would benefit from a more sophisticated power supply?

 

My favorite tube so far is a NOS Amperex bugle boy from Holland. 60s era I believe. Will hopefully be able to try a new gold lion today.

 

I don't know, something like this perhaps?
I was wondering because I figured it could be an upgrade to the amp instead of replacing it a bigger one further down the line (same as with rolling, you can roll a better tube), I just like the prospect of that. Obviously I have zero experience with this stuff, that's why I'm asking more experienced folks if they know if this would make a worthwhile difference in sound.

 

If you don't understand the basics of power supplies, you should read up in the DIY forums here and other places first. Simply asking random questions, where the answers would have no real meaning to you beyond yes and no, doesn't contribute here or help you learn. I know it is the audiophile (phool?) way to throw a linear power supply on everything to "improve" it, but in this case, just get a better amp if you feel the Vali 2 is somehow lacking. Upgrading to a Valhalla 2 will do much more for you then trying to build a better power supply, likely for less money. Just so you know, the Vali 2 needs two different voltages of AC externally and does its regulating internally. Just about any LPS you find online will output DC and be useless in this scenario.

 

Thanks, that puts things in perspective.

 

Thanks.

I have a Pioneer Elite SC-71 receiver. Can I just connect Vali 2 to it thu the 'audio-out', which basically makes the receiver a DAC?

 

Has someone tried Vali 2 with the Akg 7xx? i have recently purchased them form massdrop and planning to find the best amp pairing (i already have the bifrost DAC...)

 

I have, against my GO450 there isn't a stark difference, maybe a better defined soundstage. The difference is more pronounced with my modded T50RP. I will be getting a switch box to compare it level-matched to the GO450 and report back.