[RipcordAFF]

Well Head-Fi, you have done it again. I was all set to get the M-Stage for my 701s due to the overwhelming praise for that combo. I have a Peachtree Decco2 that I believe may not quite be up to the k701 task. Anyways, even though I already made up my mind about the M-Stage I was reading Skylab's review of the Valhalla. My that is a pretty amplifier. 
 
Intrigued, I did a little more research on it and I found that it was voiced with the k701 and is *supposed* to be a particularly good match. NOW, does anyone have any opinion on it for the k701 as opposed to the M-Stage? God knows that I would rather have the valhalla sitting on my desk than the kinda homely m-stage, but SQ is the most important aspect. 
 
All opinions welcome. Anybody auditioned both?
 
Thanks!

 

[livewire]

I havent had the chance to audition the Valhalla, but I'd bet it will have a more "tubey" sound.
Some want that, some dont.
Rumor has it that the Valhalla doesnt lend itself to tube rolling, if you are into that.
 
I do have the M-Stage and K702 combo.
For me it is a match made in heaven, I prefer a crisp reference type of sound and this has it.
The M-Stage is also very well suited for op amp rolling to tweak it's sound signature.
I also have a souped up Little Dot MKIII for when I am in a tubey mood and want
syrupy music delivery to take the edge off of the K702's highs which can get fatiguing
as in during a long listening session. This amp does pair well with the K702's also.
So there you go. I'd get both, then after comparing, sell one off.
Or as in my case, keep them both if they satisfy.

 

[navii]

buy the prettier valhalla, if you like the sound, keep it, if you don't, get the m-stage and compare, then sell one.

 

[RipcordAFF]

I'll be the first to admit my knowledge in this area is extremely limited. I just know that the M-stage gets stellar reviews around these parts and there is much more limited info on the Valhalla. One thing that holds me back about the Valhalla, however, is that I continually read that tubes aren't the greatest with the 701s (lack of raw power?) and that solid state should ideally be used. But Schiit themselves that the 701 was the primary can that the Valhalla was designed for.....

 

[navii]

schiit also offers a 15 day money back.

 

[Happy Camper]

Tubes can drive the Ks fine, just have to invest more in the amp than a budget unit. A tube amp needs more power than a SS amp. Also, if you like the tube sound, a hybrid gives you the tube sound with a solid state drive.

 

[livewire]

Hey Ripcord,
 
There are a lot of initial reviews of the Valhalla & K701/2's here in this thread:
 
Link:http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/510060/schiit-valhalla-has-been-shipped-reviews-impressions-and-musings

 

[RipcordAFF]

Thanks for the link livewire. I read through that thread as well as Skylab's comprehensive review. I suppose everything about it is positive with the K701s...but there just doesnt seem to be as hype as with the M-stage\k701 pairing. It seems like folks are falling all over themselves to talk about how the m-stag\k701 is the perfect pairing, pretty much bar none. Skylab is not prone to such hyperbole, but he is quite reserved in his review when he says that the Valhalla is good for the price, but no "giant-killer"....

 

[DasWax]

My Schitt Valhalla is on the way!!!

 

[Slaughter]

Did you miss Skylab's conclusion?
 
"As long as you pair it with something appropriate, the Valhalla is a whole lot of headphone amp for the money.  Enthusiastically recommended – and in fact, I am buying the review unit – I couldn’t bear the idea of sending it back.  Am I going to start listening to the Valhalla and stop listening to my high-end tube amps?  Ummmmm…No.  But the Valhalla is a great reference point for entry level tube-amp performance, and so I wanted to keep it on hand as a reference.  It’s value is that good."
 
Quote:

Thanks for the link livewire. I read through that thread as well as Skylab's comprehensive review. I suppose everything about it is positive with the K701s...but there just doesnt seem to be as hype as with the M-stage\k701 pairing. It seems like folks are falling all over themselves to talk about how the m-stag\k701 is the perfect pairing, pretty much bar none. Skylab is not prone to such hyperbole, but he is quite reserved in his review when he says that the Valhalla is good for the price, but no "giant-killer"....

 

[mikiphile]

God damn this Head-fi thing! I spent more money in a month, than the whole of last year I have a K701, and im desperately looking for an Amp and DAC. Recently I came across this Schitt. And from what ive been reading, this appears to be some good Schitt.
 
Ive been considering the E17+E9 for some time, however, lots of people recomended tubes for the analytical sounding 701s. Therefore, I became very interested in the Schitt Valhalla + Schitt Bifrost combo.
 
Given that my source is a laptop only with lossless FLAC music, including some 24/96 files. DO YOU think that this combo would be... well the IDEAL choice. 
 
Despite being a student who travels a lot, I am completely not interested in portability!

 

[Archerious]

Quote:

God damn this Head-fi thing! I spent more money in a month, than the whole of last year I have a K701, and im desperately looking for an Amp and DAC. Recently I came across this Schitt. And from what ive been reading, this appears to be some good Schitt.
 
Ive been considering the E17+E9 for some time, however, lots of people recomended tubes for the analytical sounding 701s. Therefore, I became very interested in the Schitt Valhalla + Schitt Bifrost combo.
 
Given that my source is a laptop only with lossless FLAC music, including some 24/96 files. DO YOU think that this combo would be... well the IDEAL choice. 
 
Despite being a student who travels a lot, I am completely not interested in portability!

I think Valhalla and Bifrost would make a great combo! I see you end up getting Lyr but hey that's life. It's been almost 8 months since you made that post above, its only natural you would've made a decision by now.....