[TurbOSquiD67]

True!

 

[Mediahound]

   
I think the thing you're failing to take into account, and what's confusing you, is the different "house sounds" of Schiit and Cavalli.  Just because two amps may look the same on paper, doesn't mean they'll sound the same.  Schiit amps across the board tend to share some distinguishing characteristics,  as do Cavalli amps.  What you'll find is that people tend to prefer one sound over the other and they will express their preference as "this is better than that".
 
So with Schiit amps, you tend to get a more dry, analytical sound with lots of power.  This can translate into a bigger soundstage and more apparent detail and space around the notes.  When I heard the MJ2 and GMB (with both stock tubes and LSST), it felt like each note was individually presented for my inspection.  It was a wonderful insight into the music and appealed to the analytical part of my brain.
 
With Cavalli amps, you tend to get a more "musical" sound without sacrificing detail.  With the Carbon, this translates into a more realistic soundstage presentation at the expense of size.  Also, it's a more musical experience where the notes flow into each other, allowing me to fall into the music rather than inspect it.  The details are still there, but it becomes more about layering and spacial cues rather than a note by note delineation.  
 
Obviously, I prefer the Cavalli sound as I own two of their amps.  I've noticed that my preferences have shifted from a focus on detail at all costs to an appreciation of the gear that will connect me to the music.  At first, as I was getting into the hobby, all I wanted to do was inspect the extra detail, hear things I've never heard, etc.  Now that I've spent a lot of time in the hobby, I'm remembering that enjoying the music is more important than enjoying the gear.  
 
One of the best setups I ever owned was an HD650+Project Ember+NFB-15 (Wolfson DAC).  There were certain songs on that setup that just gave me goosebumps in a way that much of the gear I've had since hasn't.  No, it wasn't the most expensive gear, nor was it the most technically superior.  But damn if "Great Gig in the Sky" didn't send chills down my spine every time!  I moved past that setup looking for "better" gear and it's taken me a while to get back to the point where I'm really enjoying the music like I did on that setup.
 
I guess the point of my rambling here is that people will listen to music in different ways and that can and will change over time.  Is the MJ2 a good amp?  Of course, it's just not my kind of amp.  Other people love the big soundstage and analytical presentation and that's perfectly fine.  Vanilla and Chocolate are both great flavors of ice cream, I just would rather have vanilla if I could only have one today.  What flavor do you want?

After I got my MJ2, I was immediately pleased with how much more alive it sounded with certain tracks, especially rock, than prior amps I've had (not Cavalli though). It just had more energy and sounded more alive and detailed. So it's really a fine balance to strike, too laid back can potentially be less involving or veiled. 

 

[boblauer]

Well after some consternation I took the plunge. Heard the Spark at CanJam and thought I could wait for that, heard the Carbon before and always loved it but being out of production and the few that do come up for sell go so damn fast thought it was not in the cards. Finances told me just get an iCan to go with the iDSD I have and call it a day. But every damn day I visit this thread first thing in the AM and wonder why not. Well today was the day, my restriction always was physical size as this will live next to my laptop in the home office so the 5" width is ideal, will feed it from my Nano iDsd and this will be my end game for now. That is until I read more posts and want to up my ante but gotta beg some desk top real estate from the wifey then. Anyhow this should be fun.
 
Anyone know the benefits from the provided software versus something like FooBar 2K which I use now for FLAC playback? Everything I play is FLAC most 44/16 rips from my CD collection but probably 20% 96/24. Does it support DSD playback? 

 

[jjshin23]

  Well after some consternation I took the plunge. Heard the Spark at CanJam and thought I could wait for that, heard the Carbon before and always loved it but being out of production and the few that do come up for sell go so damn fast thought it was not in the cards. Finances told me just get an iCan to go with the iDSD I have and call it a day. But every damn day I visit this thread first thing in the AM and wonder why not. Well today was the day, my restriction always was physical size as this will live next to my laptop in the home office so the 5" width is ideal, will feed it from my Nano iDsd and this will be my end game for now. That is until I read more posts and want to up my ante but gotta beg some desk top real estate from the wifey then. Anyhow this should be fun.
 
Anyone know the benefits from the provided software versus something like FooBar 2K which I use now for FLAC playback? Everything I play is FLAC most 44/16 rips from my CD collection but probably 20% 96/24. Does it support DSD playback? 

 
Here is the site with the specs of the software.
http://sonicstudio.com/amarra/products.php

Here is an article about the different software.  The article is for OS X but most of these are multi-platform so you'll get the idea.
http://www.headfonia.com/os-x-audio-players-amarra-audirvana-pure-music-fidelia-decibel-and-bitperfect/
 
Hope that helps.

 

[boblauer]

   
Here is the site with the specs of the software.
http://sonicstudio.com/amarra/products.php

Here is an article about the different software.  The article is for OS X but most of these are multi-platform so you'll get the idea.
http://www.headfonia.com/os-x-audio-players-amarra-audirvana-pure-music-fidelia-decibel-and-bitperfect/
 
Hope that helps.

Thanks definitely will give them both a read tonight once home. 

 

[husafreak]

I went to the Amarra site and I still don't even know what it is LOL. I know virtually nothing about computer audio.

 

[Hansotek]

I went to the Amarra site and I still don't even know what it is LOL. I know virtually nothing about computer audio.

 
This may not help you at all, I don't know.... but a couple of folks found this explanation I posted in another thread helpful in understanding what Amarra does:
 
*A note for you to help with my explanation, in case you don't know - DSP stands for digital signal processor.
 

 

 
Do we have any technical explanation as to why it sounds better?  Is it creating an attractive distortion, or is it actually somehow cleaning up the signal.  

 
It's an in-line DSP engine which bypasses your Mac's core audio. It's not exactly a new thing. Many or most professional production software suites will do the same. It's not "cleaning up" the signal, as you say... rather, it's having less negative effect than the core-audio DSP in your Mac. It's also not that the core-audio in your Mac is bad, Amarra's in-line processor is just a little better. 
 
Improving your audio chain through things like high-res files, DSPs, external DACs, cabling, power management, etc. is really less of a matter of addition than addition by lack of subtraction. Think of yourself starting at 100% - with the best, most pure and pristine signal possible. Loss is inevitable throughout the chain, but if you can make little 1% improvements here and there you might end up with 98% of the of the original signal instead of 93%. Improve current availability a little bit over here... reduce over-sampling errors a little bit over there... add a few of those things together and it starts to make a pretty noticeable difference.
 
Whether or not that investment is worth it... well, that's up to you. Fortunately, you don't have to take my word for it, because they offer a free 15-day trial of Amarra for Tidal. You can decide for yourself whether or not it makes a difference. It took me all of 10 minutes before I went back and bought the full version. http://www.sonicstudio.com/amarra/amarrastreamproducts
 

 

[boblauer]

For those of us running windows though the software is a moot point in the purchase. Appears to be only OS(n) based only. 

 

[Allanmarcus]

 

I went to the Amarra site and I still don't even know what it is LOL. I know virtually nothing about computer audio.

 
This may not help you at all, I don't know.... but a couple of folks found this explanation I posted in another thread helpful in understanding what Amarra does:
 
*A note for you to help with my explanation, in case you don't know - DSP stands for digital signal processor.
 

 

 
Do we have any technical explanation as to why it sounds better?  Is it creating an attractive distortion, or is it actually somehow cleaning up the signal.  

 
It's an in-line DSP engine which bypasses your Mac's core audio. It's not exactly a new thing. Many or most professional production software suites will do the same. It's not "cleaning up" the signal, as you say... rather, it's having less negative effect than the core-audio DSP in your Mac. It's also not that the core-audio in your Mac is bad, Amarra's in-line processor is just a little better. 
 
Improving your audio chain through things like high-res files, DSPs, external DACs, cabling, power management, etc. is really less of a matter of addition than addition by lack of subtraction. Think of yourself starting at 100% - with the best, most pure and pristine signal possible. Loss is inevitable throughout the chain, but if you can make little 1% improvements here and there you might end up with 98% of the of the original signal instead of 93%. Improve current availability a little bit over here... reduce over-sampling errors a little bit over there... add a few of those things together and it starts to make a pretty noticeable difference.
 
Whether or not that investment is worth it... well, that's up to you. Fortunately, you don't have to take my word for it, because they offer a free 15-day trial of Amarra for Tidal. You can decide for yourself whether or not it makes a difference. It took me all of 10 minutes before I went back and bought the full version. http://www.sonicstudio.com/amarra/amarrastreamproducts
 

 
Many people just want the bits from music file sent to the DAC and not have anything get in the way of that "bit perfect" stream. iTunes by itself can do that, just use an external doc, turn off the iTunes equalizer, and set the iTunes volume to 100%. The challenge comes in two places:
 
1) equalization
2) higher resolution files
 
If you want "better" eq, Amarra offers that, and the explanation above is good for that.
 
If you want to play higher res file in iTunes, you have to manually adjust the output in Audio Midi (at least on a Mac) to the match the resolution of the file. Amarra does that for you automatically.

 

[bronzboy]

  For those of us running windows though the software is a moot point in the purchase. Appears to be only OS(n) based only. 

Yep, not a bonus for the Windows world.  I use JRivers  software (wasapi) played though USB through a Schiit Bifrost Multibit DAC, and I'm very happy with sound.

 

[Stillhart]

There is a beta of Amarra for Tidal on Windows...

 

[Mediahound]

Does anyone use the EQ in Amarra and getting distortion with it on?

 

[Hansotek]

 
Many people just want the bits from music file sent to the DAC and not have anything get in the way of that "bit perfect" stream. iTunes by itself can do that, just use an external doc, turn off the iTunes equalizer, and set the iTunes volume to 100%. The challenge comes in two places:
 
1) equalization
2) higher resolution files
 
If you ant "better" eq, Gamarra offers that, and the explanation above is good for that.
 
If you want to play higher res file in iTunes, you have to manually adjust the output in Audio Midi (at least on a Mac) to the match the resolution of the file. Amarra does that for you automatically.

 
Even then, at full output, iTunes is still relying on the CoreAudio API's HAL, I/O Kit, Core MIDI and Host Time Services. 

 

[Hansotek]

  Does anyone use the EQ in Amarra and getting distortion with it on?

 
That will happen if you don't turn the preamp down to adjust for any boosts. I usually keep mine around -6 for a little buffer to play and then drop further as necessary.

 

[boblauer]

  There is a beta of Amarra for Tidal on Windows...

Thanks, I f I can find the link I'll post it up here for all to see. I just wanted to reply it was not windows based for the person who said he was new to computer audio, not sure if that would make a difference in purchase or not for some folks. The LC responds well to upgraded power cables per most reviews and the shirt looks cool so I did not bat an eye at the price increase from V1.