New Schiit Vali 2 Discussion Thread

Alright so I spent a few hours listening to the Vali 2 after listening to the Vali 1 and Valhalla 2 with the same music tracks.

These comments are initial impressions only, I need to spend more time with the unit - but this is my opinion so far.

Setup used:

JRiver MC21->Schiit Wyrd->Schiit Bifrost (not multi-bit)->Vali 2->HD800/HD650

I had high expectations for the Vali 2 - however I did not expect it to sound as good as it does.

The first thing I noticed, it is very quiet for a tube amp - impressive.

The second thing I noticed is it is not as "warm" sounding as one might expect from a tube amp (using the stock Vali 2 tube)

The third thing - the Vali 2 is like Mighty Mouse. It powered my HD800's and HD650's on high gain with no problem at all. I was curious, so I tried listening on low gain as well. And while I have to turn up the volume knob a bit more, even on low gain, there was still plenty of power to drive the HD800's and HD650's, even to louder volume levels than I usually listen.

Initial conclusion:

What can I say? Schiit has done it again. The Vali 2 for the price with my initial impressions is exceptional for the price. Quiet, powerful, and clear. The soundstage seems a bit smaller than the Valhalla 2 - but not by much. The Vali 2 could use a little more warmth for my taste, but hey, you can roll to a warmer tube.

Final initial thoughts:

I love the Vali 2 for it's price - period. Get one.

After some more prolonged listening and more A/B testing, maybe even some tube rolling, I will try to report back with a more refined and informative review.

*These are initial impressions and not an in-depth or comprehensive review, and are my personal opinion (except for the facts as far as being able to power my headphones)*


(Click to enlarge photo)

 

Interesting stuff, keep it coming.

 

@The Alchemist, I completely agree with the soundstage comment. This is the biggest noticeable difference between the Vali 2 and Valhalla 2 (HD580).

 

@The Alchemist that metal shelf and concrete wall in your photo makes it look like you did this listening session from your cell in a supermax prison. You must be a model inmate to be allowed access to all of that gear.

 

Ah, good. Glad we're not dealing with an Ember-killer here

 

I'm actually a little concerned for Ember's life right now... It's a little more airy/treble-y than Vali 2 (w/ HE-4 and HE-6), and it has a lot more headroom, but it's not like I'm using the headroom and having a milder treble is pretty satisfying for these treble-y Hifiman headphones. Ember is looking like the Jack of all trades that is only being used for a specific trade and it appears as though Vali 2 can pick up the slack in that trade if Ember were to leave.

Needless to say, I'm ecstatic at how great the Vali 2 is. I prefer it over Ember with my HD580 (clearer and more lively, less punchy though - not tube dependent either), it sounds better than the Valhalla 2 with my TH-X00, and it sounds very sweet with my HE-6.

Vali 2 is great with a large array of headphones and it does it without cutting corners.

 

I'll be very curious to see how you feel after some more time with it. Keep me updated. I have a hard time believing it handles the HE-6 as well as the Ember, but who knows. Guess there's only one way to know for sure.

I tend to like the airy/treble nature of the Ember, which can be toned down a little with the right tube if you feel the need (6N6P). Headroom also makes me happy, even if it's meaningless in the end. It's a peace of mind thing for me.

 

I had the postman cryo some cables this week.

Looking forward to your impressions as well.

 

My Vali 2 showed up today, along with a Modi 2U. Always amazes me how small Schiit gear, way smaller than it looks in the pictures. I will say though that whoever invented the packaging for the Vali 2 is some sort of devil creature. It took me a while to figure out how to get that thing out without ruining the packaging haha the tube sticking out the top also doesn't look nearly as ridiculous as I thought it was going to from the pics online. And it and the Modi 2U are an adorable little stack. More impressions later, though only stuff I have to compare it to is the Black Widow, for now though nothing sounds off with it, color me impressed for the cost so far

 

I think an unboxing video of someone getting angry and tearing the box to shreds in a futile attempt to open it would be even more awesome.

 

What did they do to make the unboxing difficult?

 

Consider our packaging engineering the least Apple-like thing about the company.

The goal of packaging is to:

(a) get the product to you in one piece, despite the various vagaries/tantrums/misadventures of the USPS or FedEx
(b) be lightweight, so it doesn't impact the shipping cost too much
(c) be cheap, so it doesn't impact the actual cost too much

Its purpose is not to:

(a) showcase the product lovingly against a background of soft-touch, purpose-molded biodynamically acceptable material (made in China)
(b) make you wonder if you should build a small shrine to the box itself, rather than get your ass listening
(c) cause dark thoughts about how much of the BOM cost went into the packaging.

 

They made us think.

Bastids.

 

I honestly find the same kind of pleasure opening a Schiit product as an apple product. Its not as colorful, but it shows ingenuity, care and precision. And like an apple product, its always smaller than you think it could be.

 

I'd rather open a new box of Schiit than anything from Apple. In fact I have opened more Schiit than Apple.

 

This x11.

 

I can only imagine the rage mongering going on at head fi regarding getting this thing out of the box.

 

And the posting of serial numbers. Don't forget the serial numbers.