Storytime: NITSCH x Schiit Magni Piety, Magni Pi, etc.

Discussion in 'Headphone Amplifiers and Combo (DAC/Amp) Units' started by purr1n, Oct 29, 2022.

  1. Cspirou

    Cspirou They call me Sparky

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  2. caute

    caute Lana Del Gayer than you

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    Can you give some brief, sketchy impressions of the Piety with the LCD-X? Very interested to hear how these pair together...
     
  3. Philimon

    Philimon Friend

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    Ive only had LCDX a short while so didnt feel confident in making specific comparisons to Vali2+ except to say I was very much enjoying my initial audition which I felt could at least justify an ambiguous “its good” ranking. I was relying on others to a/b amps because so many cords and cables and I dont care that much. Dont wait on me to get back to you with an answer swiftly or any time, sorry. Ill update if I do.
     
  4. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    One of the rare use cases where a Schiit Cthulu brick is recommended (but I think it's discontinued now?).
     
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  5. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    It's good.
     
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  6. bazelio

    bazelio Friend

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    Work vs home. Piety will be the envy of my coworkers.
     
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  7. earnmyturns

    earnmyturns Smartest friend

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    Updated impressions, now with ETA Mini C and having left DAC on overnight to stabilize: punchy bass to lower-mids, dense mids, not the fastest but quick enough for engaging percussion. I was going to say "slightly soft highs" but that was really for having the DAC on the minimum phase (green) filter, once I switched more linear phase (orange), highs became present enough. Overall darker and wetter presentation than the same headphones on Hugo 2, a bit less micro detail, but yesterday's graininess is gone and I can state that this is amazing value when I am here enjoying the latest modern, electric-y jazz (Avram Fefer Quattest's "Juba Lee") when I could be doing the same with the 10x more expensive May/Stellaris setup next to it. Now, of course there's more detail and space in the high-end system, but for 3rd headphone setup, 2541>Piety>Mini C is a couple of notches up in engagement, un-bloomy warmth while maintaining good dynamics and enough detail, relative to previous work solid-state setups I've owned.
     
  8. Philimon

    Philimon Friend

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    That's what Im feeling. :headbang: That's the best I have (thanks @earnmyturns ) for now @caute

    edit: update impressions.
     
    Last edited: Nov 29, 2022
  9. gixxerwimp

    gixxerwimp Professional tricycle rider

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    So it'll sound better with Cthulu? I haven't seen that mentioned anywhere. I think I still have one in the cupboard, maybe ...
     
  10. Baten

    Baten Friend

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    Don't do this, don't give me 15VAC PSU nervosa..
     
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  11. RestoredSparda

    RestoredSparda Friend

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    More so that you won't have 4 massive walwarts to fit somewhere for such a tall stack of schiit.
     
  12. gixxerwimp

    gixxerwimp Professional tricycle rider

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    Ah, I didn't read @Armaegis' post as being in response to this pile of shit. Still, will dig around and see if I can find my Cthulhu.

     
  13. lagadu

    lagadu Facebook Friend

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    Quick out of the box impressions, listening with an lcd4z after only a couple hours:

    This is the unfairest of impressions, as the piety is sitting next to two big girl amps tthat IMO sound fantastic: a Starlett and an Oor.

    I didn't like low gain, sound seems a little too dead and compressed, so the impressions are on high gain. I find that it hisses with the volume pot past three, no hiss below that (I control the volume on my Freya S).

    This is a vivid sounding amp, leans a little toward the warmer side (on my already warm chain). The treble is splashy enough that it bothers me, I think impolite is a good description, this contrasts a bit with the rich sounding mids. I find that it lacks a sense of space and when compared to the other two amps it sounds closed in and lacks the textures.

    On the very positive side: it doesn't sound dead; it actually sounds fun and engaging, which I find to be an uncommon quality in many modern amps.

    That said, I do find that it pairs better with the 4z better than the Starlett does, those two just refuse to play along to my ears but it sounds a lot less effortless, refined and detailed than the Oor.

    Overall I'm mostly pointing out what annoyed me because that's what bugs me the most and I'm in "comparison mode" but overall it's good! I rather enjoy the piety and it plays well with the 4z, I'll be keeping it: I just need to find a suitable dac with good synergy. Truth be told I suspect the spring 2 I'm using as dac isn't a good match for it, with its bold and saturated presentation; maybe something a little more "serious" would be ideal here.

    I'll get further into it once I've had more time and I'll also give it a try with my VO.
     
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    Last edited: Nov 28, 2022
  14. YMO

    YMO Chief Fun Officer

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    Confirmed. For me to obtain more control on the volume knob I had to switch to Software playback via moOde for my PI2AES > OG BF2 setup for my DD IEMs (Moondrop Kato mostly).

    If you are a pure 0db output bit-perfect guy, maybe the PeePee isn't for ya for IEMs.

    Edit: If using Roon you would need to flip it to DSP Volume Control for the endpoint and adjust the volume. I have it at -10db for plenty of room on the knob except for crappy loudless recordings then I make it go down to -15db at least.
     
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    Last edited: Nov 29, 2022
  15. GuySmiley'sMonkey

    GuySmiley'sMonkey Almost "Made"

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    For analogue source people I guess it would be possible to add pre attenuation via a couple of resistors to give more room for movement on the Piety's pot. This would function in a similar manner to adding a passive pre based around a stepped attenuator like Goldpoint before amplification, but something this expensive doesn't make sense with the Piety. Maybe a JBL Nanopatch, but there might be more signal degredation or channel imbalance than a couple of well chosen resistors. Do any manufacturers sell something like this, maybe built into some interconnects?
     
    Last edited: Nov 29, 2022
  16. scblock

    scblock Friend

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    I've used Harrison Labs in-line attenuators from the DAC to amp successfully in the past for things like this. I never quite answered the "is this better or worse than equivalent modern digital attenuation" question though. Most of the time now I dial it back in Roon if I need to. Another option is an iEMatch on the output of the amp.
     
  17. Pescatore

    Pescatore New

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    Or just use a SYS between the source and Piety?
     
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  18. tranq

    tranq Friend

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    This is a kick ass little amp, been listening this afternoon with HD6XXs, unmodded. First via modi multibit, now fed from Yggdrasil A2.

    Quick impressions

    Tone, texture, timbre are all really nice. Detailed and full sounding, bass and treble sound balanced, dont feel any need to EQ like when I used my Magni 3. Seems to be a closer or more intimate presentation then Yggdrasil to rag 2 (balanced), not as much space or separation, but that intimacy isnt a bad thing.

    Will be swapping in HD600's, HE6se, Focal Clears as the night goes on.

    Piety puts off a nice amount of heat. Not as much as my Asgard 2, but more then Rag2, more then Magni 3.

    What looks to be a hand signed thank you card by CEE TEE was a nice touch. (maybe its autopen, I can't tell, nice touch either way)
     
    Last edited: Nov 29, 2022
  19. Azimuth

    Azimuth FKA rtaylor76, Friend

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    It will still work with a 14 - 16 V AC adapter. My power at my wall is 124V, so my 16V AC wall warts actually output over 19V. I actually had an issue with an older Vali 1 because of this. Not any newer devices though (even Magni 1 was fine).

    But really, not to worry... these are voltage regulated devices.
     
  20. Woland

    Woland Friend

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    That would do attenuation, yes. However, that kind of attenuator is known for creating channel imbalances with one channel attenuated more than the other. There might be other reasons for concern.

    Schiit has moved towards stepped attenuators for their higher priced products to address the problem. Goldpoint is known for its high quality stepped attenuators. @GuySmiley'sMonkey is suggesting something that has the quality of the stepped attenuator without the cost.
     

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