[dmallen]

To be honest it was the first time I had the 650's on decent DAC and AMP and i am impressed. I have only rolled the tubes once on my Glow Audio Amp one and that was going from cheaper Chinese tubes to better NOS. For this was a noticeable difference. I dont have allot of experience rolling tubes but the stock tube on the Vali 2 sounds great. I doubt the lads from Schitt would deliver a tube that was not up to scratch. Once i get the JJ Gold pin i can give a better opinion.

 

[MrPanda]

I have the 598SE and to my ears it sounds very good with my Modi and Magni 2U on my iMac (iTunes 16/44.1). However I'm wondering how (better, different or same) it would sound with a Vali2. I worry if I can only live with the stock tube as I don't want to spend more on a couple of tubes than the Vali2 itself but many have reported that the stock tube is very good with the Vali2.

There's some sibilence with the 400i that I was hoping to tame with the tubes that hasn't happened with the two tubes I've tried.  (I listen to a lot of choral music, and extra sibilance in a big reverberant room can sound like a chipmunk convention).  That's not so much a problem with the X2 in general.  Bass is really good with the Vali 2, aa are overall dynamics with both phones, but I was looking for something to smooth out that trouble range in the 400i...

 

[MrPanda]

Gotta agree, 6CG7 might just be it for me. The stock tubes although very nice was a bit too intimate, despite the relatively improved soundstage and lower end over the first Vali. However, the 6CG7, I can listen to this for long sessions with joy!

I've got the matched one from Electro-harmonix, and haven't taken it out of my Vali 2 since.

 

[MrPanda]

  Pairing with the TH-X00:
 
Its an interesting pairing to be sure. These cans with the original Vali were too warm I would say. As it has been said before, the Vali 2 is a bit more neutral, making it a better pairing with the Th-X00. 
 
Holy bass. Loud, deep, clear. This extends up through the mids - giving artists such as Ed Sheeran the clarity they deserve, while also delivering a kick on the lower end. (Runaway is a great song for this). At the top end things start to get a bit lost. The X00 isn't as critical as my T90's, which with this amp provides a slightly warm analytical sound. However getting into treble and bass range the X00 surpasses the T90. 
 
Flipping between hi and lo gain, the high gain fills out the X00 immediately, and gives you that kick down low. I prefer keeping it at low for the X00 - Cranking it up still gives that full bass and sound very quickly, while reducing a bit of a fuzz/muddied sound you get with high gain on these 25 ohm cans.
 
Written for @MrPanda
 
Anyone feel free to ask questions or call out my vocabulary. I'm new.

Thanks for the review!  I just put myself on the waiting list for the next Massdrop.  Hope it's not too long for it to come back..

 

[Designer79]

It took FedEx only two days to ship the Vali 2 / Modi 2 U combo from California to Paris. That's less than 48 hours, since I clicked on that checkout button on Shiits online store. Well, color me impressed! It's new years day though so I guess no further shipping over the weekend. The wait is killing me ...

Gonna report on first impressions paired with the Beyerdynamic T90's after receiving the V2 / M2U stack early next week. Cheers!
 
btw, there were reports on the FedEx tracking site, about a massive snowstorm in the southwest of the US. I guess that's why you guys living at the east coast had to experience some delay with shipping, maybe.

 

[OldRoadToad]

Hail and well met!
 
In keeping with the spirit of their ad campaign (Pull Quote Alert!) ..."for the music you have, not the music you have to buy", I will be using any new amp (and this one is in serious contention) for listening to records and perhaps to internet radio (no digital output on my source so RCA out to the amp it shall be).  The other amp I am considering is their more upscale Valhalla 2 (four times the glow for just over twice the dough).
 
Both the Vali 2 and Valhalla 2 feed the romantic in me.  The fourteen year old Toad used to babysit for a young couple back in Hawaii over 40 years ago and they would always, always have George Harrison's magnum opus, "All Things Must Pass" ready for my listening pleasure on a Teac 10" reel to reel (VU meters rule !) and when home it was ever at the ready on my GE Wildcat portable stereo phonograph.  I would turn out all the lights and bask in the music and soft glow of said VU meters as well as the lights from the attendant equipment.  I  would listen and dream of what the future might hold.
 
Well, the future for that 14 year old is here.  And I want a taste of the past to make it all the more palatable, so ...
 
I am slowly becoming an enthusiast of the medium of vinyl again as I like to have a hard copy of music that I truly enjoy and having grown up with records I have begun to purchase them again but only titles I really want. 
 
Perhaps an addendum to the aforementioned ad could read ..."and the music you want to own.  Again." ?
 
This jewel of an amplifier is something of a WayBack Machine that Mr. Peabody would be proud to own and use. Call me Sherman.

 

[BenWaB3]

  APPJ Audio amp came in last night.Set up & ran for 10 hours before listening.With stock Chinese tubes pretty much a dead ringer tonally for the Vali 2 with a bit wider SS & NONE of the sibilance exhibited by the V2.Rolled in 3 perfectly matched & balanced Mullard Tubes(1953 & 1959) & the amp became a MONSTER!EVERYTHING I could have dreamed of & it's only got a few hours on the new tubes!ABSOLUTE Heaven!
 
 

 

 
The Massdrop on this didn't receive enough pledges to happen. One thing I didn't realize until after I pledged though: The APPJ has only the headphone out as opposed to the Vali 2's headphone & line outs - unless I pledged on the wrong unit. The extra output could tip things back in the direction of the Vali. I'm still looking forward to your additional impressions of the APPJ though. That could tip me back that way.

 

[painted klown]

  When you bring it up from 0, the right ear comes up first.
 
@RyanRoloYo

 
This.
 
However, one the left channel comes in, there is no further imbalance, and the turn on the knob to get the left channel to come in, is very, very slight,

I have the 598SE and to my ears it sounds very good with my Modi and Magni 2U on my iMac (iTunes 16/44.1). However I'm wondering how (better, different or same) it would sound with a Vali2. I worry if I can only live with the stock tube as I don't want to spend more on a couple of tubes than the Vali2 itself but many have reported that the stock tube is very good with the Vali2.

I have the original 598 and they sound great on the Vali 2. Using them now actually, to listen to some Bach. The great thing about this pairing is that the Vali 2 keeps the 598's pretty "even keeled" sounding and helps to fill in the bass a bit when compared to my Emotiva DC-1's HP amp. From what I have read on the 598SE thread, the differences in sound between the beige 598 and the black SE version are pretty much accounted for in manufacturing tolerances. I think you will be quite pleased with this pairing. For the record, I use the 598 on the low gain setting.
 
Quote:

  Pairing with the TH-X00:
 
Its an interesting pairing to be sure. These cans with the original Vali were too warm I would say. As it has been said before, the Vali 2 is a bit more neutral, making it a better pairing with the Th-X00. 
 
Holy bass. Loud, deep, clear. This extends up through the mids - giving artists such as Ed Sheeran the clarity they deserve, while also delivering a kick on the lower end. (Runaway is a great song for this). At the top end things start to get a bit lost. The X00 isn't as critical as my T90's, which with this amp provides a slightly warm analytical sound. However getting into treble and bass range the X00 surpasses the T90. 
 
Flipping between hi and lo gain, the high gain fills out the X00 immediately, and gives you that kick down low. I prefer keeping it at low for the X00 - Cranking it up still gives that full bass and sound very quickly, while reducing a bit of a fuzz/muddied sound you get with high gain on these 25 ohm cans.
 
Written for @MrPanda
 
Anyone feel free to ask questions or call out my vocabulary. I'm new.

Thank you for your review.
 
I agree about the gain switch filling out bass on various headphones. I am tempted to put it in high gain mode and just leave it there, but the only headphones I have the really need it are my HD-650's, so I find myself flipping the switch when I listen to another pair of cans.

 

[volly]

Well, I've been listening to the Vali 2 since Christmas and I've still enjoying the heck out this little guy!
 
I've also been keeping tabs on this forum and it's post, it's interesting to read "some" of members thoughts.
 
I haven't been to hasty to impart my "final thoughts" of the Vali 2 but rather keeping in the spirit of this thread, being that it really is an "Official Schiit Vali 2" thread and really nothing more or less?!
 
Anyways, I've had a chance to give this amp a solid run and it's integrated quite well in to my setup, currently running Halide Devilsound\Vali 2 (Stock tube)\Philips X2. 
 
I originally ran the amp in Low gain mode and enjoyed very low noise floor whilst breaking in the new amp/tube.
 
I've later switched over to High gain and don't mind a very low but detectable hum. 
 
I feel, when in low gain, the X2's sound fantastic and polite. With the volume knob at a comfortable 11 o'clock position. Switched over to High gain after about a week, and I just prefer it more now! 
 
The music is more fleshed out and more dynamic, certain passages in songs go from soft lulls or trickling water to crescendos of raging torrents while watching (metaphorically) through a clear glass window. It's simple time stopping as I get lost in the music!
 
Certain members say they have experienced sibilance, I have not. Perhaps when the Vali 2 was first ever turned on and tube still in the process breaking in but nothing since. Granted my setup is also tilted towards a Dark/Warm sound compared to others.
 
Now on to the stock tube, I first stated I'll be listening to the stock tube for a while before changing over. However I do have a tube on it's way but I will say this stock tube is very capable as others have stated. The sounds is clear, dynamic and musical with a very good level of detail!
 
Compared to my Asgard 2 that I've had with me for many years, the Vali 2 does not take a backwards step in sound. To my ears it still delivers all what the Asgard 2 had to offer but there is an emotional connection to the music now more so than before (Perhaps psycho-acoustics maybe?!) but never the less more musical and less clinical I suppose. 
 
I was really worried that the Vali 2 would be more a side-grade but I'm really glad that I have it now more than in the beginning, I won't be going back to the Old Asgard 2 for the foreseeable future. Also, it's summer down here in Adelaide (Australia) so I don't miss that big Class A amp-beast-mode Asgard, man does that thing pump out some heat! The smaller foot print is actually a great thing giving me back more desktop space! 
 
I've actually got to do some head time with the HD600's with the Vali 2 and can say that it definitely sounds better through the Vali 2, but more on that later as the X2's just keep hogging up my time!
 
BBL.

 

[bigro]

Hmm Now that I have a few weeks on the Vali 2 Im going to have to switch to High Gain Now. Interesting Findings. Thanks for the Info, I am using PSB M4U1's with the Vali 2. I am Curious if I will find the same outcome.

 

[E8ArmyDiver]

Hey fellas.I'm sorry I didn't realize anyone was still following me in this thread.The Vali2 is heading back to Schiit as it developed not only a channel inbalance at low level but the 1/4" jack also started shorting out.As for the APPJ,it now has about 40 hours on the NOS Mullard Tubes(1953 12AX7 & 1959 6V6GTY) & my ears are in heaven.I'm going to start a Thread for it in the Amp Forum as I have a feeling it's going to start getting a lot of attention(rightly deserved).I'm really looking forward to making the next Meet in my area so the guys with the real knowledge can give it a listen.

 

[OldRoadToad]

 
There's some sibilence with the 400i that I was hoping to tame with the tubes that hasn't happened with the two tubes I've tried.  (I listen to a lot of choral music, and extra sibilance in a big reverberant room can sound like a chipmunk convention).  That's not so much a problem with the X2 in general.  Bass is really good with the Vali 2, aa are overall dynamics with both phones, but I was looking for something to smooth out that trouble range in the 400i...

Sibilance is something that I can not abide and hopefully it is confined to the model headphone you mentioned above.  My choice in headphones is rather pedestrian running the gamut from my favorite Superlux 668B to Grado SR225s and the Audio-Technica ATH AD700.  I generally listen at rather low levels but no discernable hiss via to date.   I had been hoping to one day purchase a nice pair of entry level Planars.  Is this anomaly attributable to tube powered amps or just something that sometimes occurs regardless of amplification?
 
I primarily listen to traditional Jazz and Pop vocals with some Classic Rock thrown in when the mood strikes me.
 
I know of the potential for "ringing" that is a tube trait but expect no such problem for myself but would appreciate any guidance on the matter.

 

[E8ArmyDiver]

 
Sibilance is something that I can not abide and hopefully it is confined to the model headphone you mentioned above.  My choice in headphones is rather pedestrian running the gamut from my favorite Superlux 668B to Grado SR225s and the Audio-Technica ATH AD700.  I generally listen at rather low levels but no discernable hiss via to date.   I had been hoping to one day purchase a nice pair of entry level Planars.  Is this anomaly attributable to tube powered amps or just something that sometimes occurs regardless of amplification?
 
I primarily listen to traditional Jazz and Pop vocals with some Classic Rock thrown in when the mood strikes me.
 
I know of the potential for "ringing" that is a tube trait but expect no such problem for myself but would appreciate any guidance on the matter.

NO ABSOLUTELY NOT the HE-400i's! Go back  look at all my posts on the Vali2,SIBILANCE was noted in all  my notes.Now with the all tube APPJ amp the 400i's are simply glorious!

 

[E8ArmyDiver]

 
There's some sibilence with the 400i that I was hoping to tame with the tubes that hasn't happened with the two tubes I've tried.  (I listen to a lot of choral music, and extra sibilance in a big reverberant room can sound like a chipmunk convention).  That's not so much a problem with the X2 in general.  Bass is really good with the Vali 2, aa are overall dynamics with both phones, but I was looking for something to smooth out that trouble range in the 400i...

There is NO trouble range,it's the amp.

 

[mysticstryk]

There's some sibilence with the 400i that I was hoping to tame with the tubes that hasn't happened with the two tubes I've tried.  (I listen to a lot of choral music, and extra sibilance in a big reverberant room can sound like a chipmunk convention).  That's not so much a problem with the X2 in general.  Bass is really good with the Vali 2, aa are overall dynamics with both phones, but I was looking for something to smooth out that trouble range in the 400i...

Probably the spike at 8khz. EQ that down a few db, should take care of that spike.