Merrick

@Mystic I agree. However, I actually have an easier time picking apart DACs over amps. I'm sure I'm not the only one? Especially since people always harp that the chain of importance goes transducer > amp > DAC > source, I find that DAC > amp.

I found the difference between the GOV2 and the Bifrost Multibit to be immediate, but I'm not sure I'd necessarily find the difference between a Bifrost Multibit and Gungnir Multibit, or Gungnir Multibit and Yggdrasil as obvious. The difference between the Vali 2 and Valhalla 2 was obvious too, but it wasn't night and day.

And I agree that the Vali 2 is a remarkable amp for its price point, given that it can handle anything from IEMs to TOTL planars without collapsing. There are better amps out there, but for the money the Vali 2 is an incredible deal.

Vinyl? The CD and 'Hi Res' download sound like balls...

Yes, black vinyl. There have been a lot of reports of bad pressings, but they mostly seem to affect the US pressings, which is why I ordered the European release.

I do think the vinyl sounds more dynamic than the 24-bit download, but that's just my subjective impression. I actually think the 24-bit version is surprisingly listenable for a release with DR5. :-/

Tell me more about these - Is there a Redbook version, or only hires? Which albums? How's the dynamic range? Are they panned hard left/right?

Hi-res only, although they still sound good converted down to 16/4x (I use 16/48 for listening on my iPhone). It's all of his studio albums except the soundtrack to She's The One and any albums after Echo IIRC. They don't sound hard-panned to me.

Just bought the Live Anthology from HDTracks...mastering seems to be worlds better than CD version according to http://dr.loudness-war.info/album/view/75249

"Stirring" is the word I would use.

Just saw this performed live a couple months ago for the first time. Was an amazing experience.

That sounds like a great portable solution.

I thought it would be a decent convenient way to go for when I only wanted to carry my phone with me, but I'll be damned if I'm not sitting here at the computer listening to the audio out from my frickin' cellphone while I have a Bifrost Multibit and Valhalla 2 sitting right next to me. Now, it's not as good as a real desktop system, but it does have an addictive sound.

Good luck! Recently went through that process myself.

The pre-approval is the easy part. ;) Hopefully you don't live in a crazy area where most houses are snatched up 24hrs after they go on the market. :)

More like 72 hours :-/

Best of luck finding a home.

Often I don't buy even one record per month. This was a splurge. But I also have about 300 records now, so I'm not itching to buy every single album anymore because I have a lot of the ones I love. I want more Radiohead for sure and more Pink Floyd too.

Damn... 300??!! Wow. Vinyl goals for sure.

Ha, if you talk to the people on the Steve Hoffman Forums, that's barely a collection at all! But I think it's a good number without breaking the bank.

The vinyl-only release comes out in June for $29. The deluxe edition with the vinyl, CD, special packaging, and a snippet of one of their master tapes for $86 or something comes out in September.

I had it all mixed up! I thought only the CD was June. Glad my wait has significantly shortened - even if it is only in my head.

Yeah, I'll bite at $29 (plus shipping presumably) for the vinyl, but the deluxe edition is more than I'd ever need (even if it would be cool to own a piece of their master tapes).

These are incredibly good, precise and crisp while still retaining musicality. I can't imagine the $2k+ planar dynamics are much better.

Thinking back to when I owned it (and re-reading my notes), the original Paradox might have the best tonal balance of any headphone I've heard under $2K.. perhaps even better than the HD650.

This combo should have a lot of synergy since other planar manufacturers are Cavalli partners. I really like my Mad Dog Pro headphones with the LC.

@insidious meme I only have a few of his very best albums and one 12" on vinyl, but I have a significant amount of his work in my digital collection. I have all of his official albums, all of his extended mix singles up until about 1995, plus a healthy amount of bootlegs (full live shows and unreleased studio material).

When you overdose have a quiet hour. Prince kept the magic JB had and once it gets you, you want to keep listening. MJ lost that magic...

Magic is the right word for sure. I saw him live three times and each time it was like he was playing directly to me.

I'm supposed to be getting myself a DAC which would integrate better with my system as a whole, but here Cavalli comes with another distraction. Urghhhhh. =D

You think this second LC run is distracting? Definitely do not check @AustinValentine's for sale thread! I'm losing money hand over fist with that thread! At this rate I think a gambling habit would be cheaper.

OK, that's it. I'm signing off the internet until I have enough for my DAC.

It's 99% brand new releases, and 1% reissues/archival releases/anthologies.

And I will update it over the course of the year. It's a lot of music but I'm trying to cast a wide net.

You running Bifrost Multibit ->valhalla 2 or turntable ->valhalla 2?

RPi2->Bifrost Multibit->Valhalla 2. My vinyl rig is downstairs and could use some upgrades before I really integrate it. All of my vinyl listening is on speakers for now.

Went down the same route for digital at about the same pace, apart from the RPi2. Keeping my fingers crossed that Amazon will pull a Black Friday on the HD800 this year while I'm on exchange to Ireland so I won't have to deal with conversion fees.

Do not think about it. Insure the valuable parcels and go for the best service providers when you need them. I sometimes had the same feeling of "why?"

@Deep Funk In my experience, UPS has given me the best service time and time again, both as a shipper and recipient. I always choose them when given the option. Sadly, Schiit only offers USPS or Fed-Ex.

How does it sound? Will you make a post on process? Def interested

Here you go @JoshMorr: http://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/raspberry-pi-and-similar-as-audio-player.1429/