Schiit Lyr Shipping! Impressions? - Page 147

Quote:

Originally Posted by IEMCrazy 

So, I've been thinking about adding complimentary cans to my beloved HD650s to use with Lyr.  I've been up and down the gambit of what would be complimentary to it.

 

There's the unattainable goal of the HD800s.  I'd love that kind of sound stage and performance for classical, but honestly, for the $1500 they run, I could get a whole collection of the whole gambit of lesser cans.  It seems kind of a silly direction to go until they come down in price.

 

Part of me is tempted by the orthos...largely just because I can because I have a Lyr and they're "better", right?  I looked at LCD2....for a variety of reasons, it's not those.  I'm considering HE-6.  But for $1200 I might as well splurge to $100 and get HD800.   That leaves HE-500 and HE-4.  Both very reasonable options. 

 

Then I keep coming back to K702 and DT880, the good old flagships.  You know, back when they were the best thing around at any price.  I keep hearing such good things about K702 paired with Lyr, and I know how good HD650 is paired with Lyr.  It strikes me that a duo of the old flagships may trump a single top-tier can.

 

I don't intend to ditch my 650s.  I love those cans.  So it would be something complimentary to them that I'm in the market for.

 

For those that have heard DT880, K702, and either HE-500, HD800, HD700, etc on Lyr...which would you go for and why, specifically as a compliment to the laid back HD650.

Dude! It's like you're in my head!!!  That's exactly what I'm searching for, also!
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Misterrogers 

I would recommend spending some quality time with the HE-500's. For the price, they give you the very best of what Ortho's bring to the table. Lyr drives them with authority.
 

 

From another thread you posted in a while back about this topic before you had HE-500 you said you used:

With your Lyr.   You've heard a pretty good portion of the options I listed on it....what would you say about the 990, K702, and HD600 compared to the HE-500 on Lyr?  Or, rather, what do you like more about your HE-500 now than you did back then with the DT990, K702, and HD600 trilogy?   

From what I've read, HE-500 is more of an "upgrade" path from HD650 than it is a companion can.  I really don't have any complaints at all about my HD650's on the Lyr, so I don't really desire to "upgrade" from them but to find something that synergystically completes the kit along side them.  All complaints I had about HD650 were solved by adding Lyr. 

Edit: Should have specified "other than preferences for one signature over another, what do you like more about them."  Since the goal is to have complimentary cans, sound signature preference is a mute point.

So has anyone done a comparison with the Schiit Valhalla? 

I plan on purchasing a HD650 in the future. I would be curious if anyone has done the comparison. I'm just curious how much i'll have to save up. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by OldSkool 

Dude! It's like you're in my head!!!  That's exactly what I'm searching for, also!
 

 

I didn't even notice that you were responding to my post until now!

If you're interested, I ultimately decided to go with K702 as the compliment.  The HE500 sounded lovely, but the numerous comments about "I love my HD650's still, but they've been collecting dust" worried me.  I definitely like my 650's enough to not desire something that would upgrade or replace them, and certainly not for the $700 price tag.  For the same $700 as one "ultimate headphones" (which we all know to be an infamous Head-Fi FOTM and will be replaced by the new must-have by Fang once a year for the next 5 years) I was able to get two of the three "ultimate headphones" from a few years ago :)  

Planar tech is great, don't get me wrong. But I think the "new wave planar" is still an emerging tech and going through it's learning curve.  I imagine over the next 3 years it will still undergo some major tweaks, changes, and reinventions.   That's a good thing, but it means right now you're paying an early adopter's premium for a "stepping stone" not a "milestone" product.  Same with Senn's edge ring drivers in HD700, HD800.  They're amazing cans, but it's the early adopter's R&D premium pricing still. 

Right now the old flagships just can't be beat on value if you drive them correctly.  I've spent one evening with the K702 on Lyr and as hoped they're about as opposite HD650 as one can get while still remaining musical (instead of a purely analytical monitoring tool.)  Much brigher, much less mid-bass, more energy, less liquidy (more dry), very articulate. 

It's only initial impressions of a non-broken-in headphone, but so far I do feel that this duo of cans gives the best of both worlds, both sides of the sound signature argument on demand.  I still like my HD650's best.  But it's nice to be able to pick at will and get an entirely different sound when I wish it, either for a particular recording, or to hear the same music differently.  I often find myself listening with the 650's thinking "I wonder what this sounds like on a more detailed, brighter, drier can."  Now I can find out.

They also make me notice the extreme clamping of HD650 more....

I wouldn't want K70x or DT88x (or any bright analytical can) as my primary can.  But it's a fun mixup to have in the arsenal, and I think a "one headphone solution" is a reach.  Not all recordings will behave well one one signature or the other.  Instrumental solos are out of this world on the K70x.  Female vocals...not so much.

You can read my early thoughts in this thread:

http://www.head-fi.org/t/566356/looking-for-a-headphone-amplifier-for-a-pair-of-akg-k-701s/15#post_8184746

Thanks for the description, I am contemplating the same setup.

My amp is still in the mail, custom clearence completed so hopefully this week sometime. I just got a MF V DAC II so this is my first venture into quality headphone sound.  I started to listen to cd's/itunes again and I really enjoy this hobbie. I am also looking to buy some beyer T1's in the future or the senns 700's but I will wait for the reviews. I like the clarity  of the q701's and the bass of the dt 990's. I also play alot of videogames and still a newb at headphone gear. This site has been really helpful and has emptied my wallet lol.

When ordering the Lyr and the bitfrost, which voltage should I order and which tubes do you all recommend, Nos tubes or JJ tubes?

Quote:

Originally Posted by AppleDappleman 

When ordering the Lyr and the bitfrost, which voltage should I order and which tubes do you all recommend, Nos tubes or JJ tubes?

Assuming you are in the US get the 115 volt.

Received my Lyr two weeks ago. After more than 100+ hours of burn in, I am very satisfy with the sound quality. Love the wider sounstage and details. Definitely a worthy upgrade.

There's a few really great DACs people talk about, but I doubt you'll find many people in a Schiit related thread who would suggest something instead of the Bifrost.  Depending on who you ask it's either an extremely solid performer in its price class, or performs well above its price class.  And if you have a Schiit amp, there's really little reason to break the continuity of an aesthetically matched stack

The Bifrost is a very transparent DAC, even slightly bright of transparent, so if you're looking for the DAC to warm your sound, perhaps look elsewhere (or tube roll the Lyr.)  But it would be hard to recommend something else...it's a great DAC!

There was someone lurking around either this forum or another who'd bought the Bifrost to replace his $2,000 Theta from the early 90's (which was also designed by Mike Moffat) and found that it sounded better (which Mike has also commented on it being better than the old ones at third the size and a fifth the price.)  So it will probably be handily outperformed by a $2,000 best technology can offer DAC of today, but it handily beats a $2,000 best technology can offer DAC of the 90's.  Not a bad deal! (and a fun story!)

There are better DACs...but not for anywhere near the price range, unless you're looking for a colorizing DAC which isn't the Bifrost.  Think neutrality there. There's a post in the Bifrost thread from someone who just got a Bifrost after moving from E17.  For that poster the apparent lack of bass and mids was disturbing.  In reality it's the lack of coloration that was probably the shock...so be warned, your E17 you're used to may be coloring the midbass.

Volume settings on Lyr in relation to source.

Rather than start a poll thread, I figured I'd just ask in here:  What volume settings do Lyr + K70x & HD650 owners use with their Lyr, and what do you use as a source?

Despite many people saying that on other amps they find they have to crank the K70x up higher than HD650, I've found the opposite.  Until now I was using a Pure I-20 and an iPod touch feeding digital coax to Bifrost, and kept the volume usually a bit over the 9'oclock mark on the Lyr and HD650, and for the K702's kept it at or below the 9'oclock mark.   I've seen that 9'oclock commonly mentioned with Lyr and these headphones.

I swapped out my I-20 for a Squeezebox Touch and the volume at the 9'oclock mark was ear shattering and quickly fatiguing on my K702's (I haven't tried the HD650s with the new source yet.)  I'm finding "comfortable" listening to be barely above the "volume off" position....maybe 7 o'clock - 8 o'clock on the dial now with very minute increments for adjustment. 

The I-20 had fixed unchangeable volume on the digital out, and the SBT is set to "fixed 100% volume" (a.k.a. bit-perfect.)   It's very listenable but it's not subtle that despite the same Bifrost (2vRMS) output, the digital input must be at a higher gain....or rather the iPod or I-20 must have been digitally altering the gain somehow.  I doubt the SBT is applying a digital gain increase in any way.  

It's very listenable, and sounds very good (better than on the I20, I  think, presumably due to the lack of digital gain alteration that must have been going on) though it feels wrong to be using the bottom 15% of the volume pot only almost to the point I'd be tempted to do digital gain reduction to open up the knob again....though I know I wouldn't be happy that way either!

I'm just curious where others set the knob for these phones and what source they use it on to see if the SBT is somehow producing abnormally loud digital output (gain boost for unexplained reasons?) or if the I-20/iPod was putting out abnormally quiet digital output (gain trim for unexplained reasons.) 

Note, neither device has ReplayGain/SoundCheck enabled (or, at least, shouldn't...)

bifrost.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by AppleDappleman 


Looks like I'm on the hunt again. I really do like the simple, elegant.....and SUPER AWESOME look of the lyr/bit frost combo. You do make me nervous when you say it's not that warm because I love the sweet warm sound because I feel like it brings the vocals to life and real.
So I guess in the 400 price range there really isn't much? Kind of a bummer but I expected this. Maybe I'll just keep looking around. It's so hard finding the he-5le, lyr, and bitfrost in mint condition used for a cheap price.
I'll keep researching til I find a good dac to pair with the lyr. I'm excited but I don't even have the funds yet haha

Quote:

Originally Posted by IEMCrazy 
Rather than start a poll thread, I figured I'd just ask in here:  What volume settings do Lyr + K70x & HD650 owners use with their Lyr, and what do you use as a source?

I rarely if ever turn the Lyr volume past 10 o'clock when using it with AKG K702. That is already loud enough.