[ghostchili]

Has anyone else tried the he560 and the lyr amp? I keep getting that nagging feeling that the he560 has the potential for better than what I'm getting out of it. I have some decent tubes and my dac isn't terrible so that probably isn't it.

I can try my Lyr2 / BiFrost combo tonight with my HE-560s if you want. I have my 74' tubes in currently.

 

[rawrster]

If you don't mind can you compare that and the v281. I've been starng at that amp and really close to buying it as of late. It could be the lyr isn't the best match or I'm just spoiled..

I think I have 74 reflektors in my lyr right now.

 

[ghostchili]

If you don't mind can you compare that and the v281. I've been starng at that amp and really close to buying it as of late. It could be the lyr isn't the best match or I'm just spoiled..

I think I have 74 reflektors in my lyr right now.

Sure, want me to use the BiFrost or Directstream DAC?
I'm interested in seeing how the V-281 stacks up to the new HiFiman amp that's coming out soon.

 

[rawrster]

I'm guessing bifrost since I have never heard the other dac.

I've gotten a few reports about the v281 being one of the best solid state amps they have ever heard but I'm still on the fence on it. I'm not sure about the Hifiman amp yet. I'll have to hear that when it comes out in a nyc meet to get an idea of it.

 

[money4me247]

Has anyone else tried the he560 and the lyr amp? I keep getting that nagging feeling that the he560 has the potential for better than what I'm getting out of it. I have some decent tubes and my dac isn't terrible so that probably isn't it.

 
yup, that's my combo (lyr 2 though). very solid combo even just with stock tubes. i like the extra warmth tube amps provide for the he-560's extremely neutral sound sig. started out in the hobby as a little bit of a basshead hahah. would recommend the pairing.

 

[Exacoustatowner]

Has anyone else tried the he560 and the lyr amp? I keep getting that nagging feeling that the he560 has the potential for better than what I'm getting out of it. I have some decent tubes and my dac isn't terrible so that probably isn't it.

I do. I have the stock tubes right now. I bought some other tubes-but they have not yet arrived. Are you wondering if there are better amps or am I misunderstanding the question? Everyone including Schiiit say that it sounds different with different tubes- look on the tube rolling thread.
 
I listened to some high end amps yesterday-and my impression was that the Lyr is good-but that they had somewhat smoother treble. The caveat being that I did not have the Lyr present and it was not a true A/B test as it required moving the SACD player from Amp to Amp.

 

[ghostchili]

I'm guessing bifrost since I have never heard the other dac.

I've gotten a few reports about the v281 being one of the best solid state amps they have ever heard but I'm still on the fence on it. I'm not sure about the Hifiman amp yet. I'll have to hear that when it comes out in a nyc meet to get an idea of it.

Warming everything up. I will let you know what I think after I get the kids down.

 

[money4me247]

I do. I have the stock tubes right now. I bought some other tubes-but they have not yet arrived. Are you wondering if there are better amps or am I misunderstanding the question? Everyone including Schiiit say that it sounds different with different tubes- look on the tube rolling thread.

I listened to some high end amps yesterday-and my impression was that the Lyr is good-but that they had somewhat smoother treble. The caveat being that I did not have the Lyr present and it was not a true A/B test as it required moving the SACD player from Amp to Amp.

bifrost is a bit of a brighter dac, so balances out well. yes the sound will change w tubes, but the popular tubes are all quite pricey nowadays. $100 at least for one generally & u need a matched set. w tubes i get the impression tat u kinda do u comparing & searchin to find what suits you. seems like a very expensive endeavor

 

[Exacoustatowner]

 

Warming everything up. I will let you know what I think after I get the kids down.

I'll be interested. I ordered the Ragnarok yesterday. I want a high end HP amp-and a higher end speaker amp than my 2005 Yamaha mid level A/V or my 1992 Denon Mid level A/V. I envision moving the Lyr to the bedroom. Violectric V281! I wish I could compare to the Ragnarok.

 

[ghostchili]

Warming everything up. I will let you know what I think after I get the kids down.

Tomorrow I am going to go over my set-up to see if I'm having volume issues. I was pushing the volume last night for comparison sake, listening at very high levels. I will trouble shoot and tube roll to see why I ran out of volume on the Lyr 2.

 

[rawrster]

  I do. I have the stock tubes right now. I bought some other tubes-but they have not yet arrived. Are you wondering if there are better amps or am I misunderstanding the question? Everyone including Schiiit say that it sounds different with different tubes- look on the tube rolling thread.
 
I listened to some high end amps yesterday-and my impression was that the Lyr is good-but that they had somewhat smoother treble. The caveat being that I did not have the Lyr present and it was not a true A/B test as it required moving the SACD player from Amp to Amp.

 
It's more that I am not satisfied at the level of performance I am getting with the setup I have now and I don't believe that I have maximized the performance of the HE-560 with what I am hearing from the Lyr 2 so far. I do have some decent tubes (74 Reflektor, Orange globes, 78 voshkod silver shields) and I don't want to go deeper into purchasing tubes. 

Well I am sitting down with the Binaural Album Explorations in Space and Time Lossless at 176.4k 24. The song War has deep drums, cymbals, bells, snares, huge sounds stage and the V-281 rocks it with the HE-560s if I put the gain to +12 and go past 3 o'clock it hurts me ears. On the Lyr 2 I have the gain on high and the volume is all the way up but it isn't loud enough. I'm missing the impact the V-281 has. Some albums it can get loud enough with the Lyr 2, most can't. I listen to music at a moderately high volume. The V-281 had a lot more muscle. The 74's for the Lyr I are some of the best and the warmth is perfect for the 560's, just needs more power. The overall sound of the V-281 is really good in all areas, very full sounding. I started the comparison using the Bifrost but swiched to the DirectStream DAC because I can switch to each amp instantly and the DAC is invisible so I can truly hear the minute differences in each amp. The Lyr 2 sounds harsher and a tad tinny. Remember these are to completely different price brackets. For the money the Lyr2 is tough to beat if you get the right tubes. The V-281 is also tough to beat for the money, it's just a lot more money.

Sorry for the rambling I am writing real time, I'm also in a Binaural kick right now as the soundstage is really cool. It gets friends that come over smile. My neighbor got sick to his stomach with the LCD-Xs on with a Binaural Chesky song on. He kept opening his eyes looking around to see what the hell was going on. Lol

If you want anymore specific comparisons let me know.

 
Thank you for doing this. I know the V281 is at least a 2k investment depending on volume control options. I don't usually consider price bracket although in this case it is obvious. The reason being I have heard amps in a larger price bracket that should be lower and vice versa however it's hard not to compare $500 vs 2-3k. The volume is definitely an issue on all the tubes I have. I have to use high gain and most of the time around 50% or more of the volume for the HE-560 and I don't consider myself a high volume listener. I think I'll go for this amp in a month or so. I do need a bit more to save up and then I should be good to go. I'll probably sell a few sets of tubes since my decision is pretty much made. 

 

[jexby]

 On the Lyr 2 I have the gain on high and the volume is all the way up but it isn't loud enough. I'm missing the impact the V-281 has. Some albums it can get loud enough with the Lyr 2, most can't. I listen to music at a moderately high volume. The V-281 had a lot more muscle. The 74's for the Lyr I are some of the best and the warmth is perfect for the 560's, just needs more power. 

 
this is just unreal- is your source material mastered ultra quiet?   some driver not at max volume at the OS level?  DAC level not putting out 2V?
 
 
mac Audirvana+ to any decent DAC (modi 2 uber, Concero HD, iFi iDSD micro) then to Lyr 2 with any decent NOS tubes-
I can't go over 12noon on the knob until HE-560 are head blistering loud.
 
won't say you are wrong about your set up, just really asking you to check the complete chain of your source material.
this might be the first post (ever) on head-fi that claims Lyr 2 doesn't have enough power for HE-400/500/400i/560.
 

 

[ghostchili]

this is just unreal- is your source material mastered ultra quiet?   some driver not at max volume at the OS level?  DAC level not putting out 2V?


mac Audirvana+ to any decent DAC (modi 2 uber, Concero HD, iFi iDSD micro) then to Lyr 2 with any decent NOS tubes-
I can't go over 12noon on the knob until HE-560 are head blistering loud.

won't say you are wrong about your set up, just really asking you to check the complete chain of your source material.
this might be the first post (ever) on head-fi that claims Lyr 2 doesn't have enough power for HE-400/500/400i/560.

OS max volume, DAC max. Volume to the amps are the same with BiFrost or DirectStream. Some material is quieter than others, most of the time I run out of volume. The Lyr2 can rock my LCD-X at low gain. Unless I missed something as the Mac mini is new and I'm a PC guy. And when I run out of volume it's loud, just missing somerhing.

 

[money4me247]

OS max volume, DAC max. Volume to the amps are the same with BiFrost or DirectStream. Some material is quieter than others, most of the time I run out of volume. The Lyr2 can rock my LCD-X at low gain. Unless I missed something as the Mac mini is new and I'm a PC guy. And when I run out of volume it's loud, just missing somerhing.

you can max out the volume pot on your lyr 2 with the he-560 on high gain????
 
lol. on high gain my lyr 2 is at like 6 o'clock or less. if your volume is maxed out everywhere else, contact schiit cs.
 
also, try right click volume icon, playback devices -> right click your dac > properties > levels (make sure at 100% with balance correct). then select enhancements, disable all enhancements. then select advanced, select the right sampling rate & bit depth, uncheck allow applications to take exclusive control of this device & give exclusive mode applications priority.

 

[Exacoustatowner]

  you can max out the volume pot on your lyr 2 with the he-560 on high gain????
 
lol. on high gain my lyr 2 is at like 6 o'clock or less. if your volume is maxed out everywhere else, contact schiit cs.
 
also, try right click volume icon, playback devices -> right click your dac > properties > levels (make sure at 100% with balance correct). then select enhancements, disable all enhancements. then select advanced, select the right sampling rate & bit depth, uncheck allow applications to take exclusive control of this device & give exclusive mode applications priority.

That is amazing. I agree that something is not right.. I have the Lyr and the HE-560. Most rock/jazz is comfortably loud at 10-11 and lower level recorded classical from 12 to 1 PM. 
As has been said-the signal going IN is low for some reason. If I turn it all the way up my ears would lose any remaining hearing.