Alright, first off, a big thanks to Bhav at Burson Audio for sending me 4 of the V6 Vivid dual opamps in exchange for my honest review. These opamps are the best I have heard to date. Secondly, I apologize for the delay on the review. I had issues with my Nu Audio Pro 7.1 sound card. The second one I had also ended up failing, so I was unable to do the review until now.
Packaging:
The V6 Vivid Duals came in a plastic case. They are protected with foam surrounding them, and are firmly seated. There is no way of them being damaged in shipping. They are very well protected.
Build Quality:
These are very nice opamps, and the build quality is fantastic. I like the fact that Burson Audio offers a lifetime warranty as well on these. This ensures that the buyer is forever protected in case of any unlikely defects. Just taking a look at them, the buyer knows they are getting a quality product.
Equipment used:
EVGA Nu Audio Pro 7.1 sound card. This is a two sound card set, with a 2 channel main board, and a daughter board for all of the surround channels. I originally was using LME49720HA (metal cans) opamps for all of the opamps. The sound card is connected to my home audio system. The receiver is an Integra DTR-80.3, which is a very heavy, and very high end receiver. My speakers are all Paradigm Imagine series. Note that I do not use any sound card effects. This is just a straight up 32bit/384000hz device for me. I have no interest in using anything except for straight multichannel analog to the receiver.
Installation:
The main sound card, and also the daugther board use a cover. These need to both be removed to be able to install these opamps. The 4 x V6 Vivid dual opamps replaced 4 x LME49720HA (metal can) opamps. Installation went without any issues and was very straight forward as expected. One thing to note though is that in the default state that they touch a couple of the surrounding capacitors. This results in having to bend the caps to the side slightly to be able to fit the opamps in. This is not a big deal. I would just suggest to anyone interested in doing this upgrade, that you just need to be careful when installing.
Sound Quality:
I have about 300 hours use on the opamps now, so I know that they are fully burned in at this point. The V6 Vivid opamps have a very lively and dynamic sound. I am very much into audio gear which has a neutral and detailed sound. I like neutrality, but with a quick, well extended, and tight bass response. This opamp offers the exact type of sound signature that I enjoy. The V6 Vivid Dual is quite neutral sounding. However, there is a slight hint of warmth present in the mids. There is one thing worth mentioning though with these opamps. During the first hours of use, straight out of the box, the treble on the V6 Vivid Duals are a bit rolled off. These opamps definitely mature a great deal after multiple hours of usage, and the sound quality improves greatly. There was some missing energy and sparkle in the upper most frequencies upon first installing. Once the opamps have had maybe 5 or 6 hours of use on them, the treble begins to open up. The upper frequency detail continues to improve all the way until about the 200-250 hours of usage range. Once fully burned in, these opamps are probably the best sounding available on the market.
Now, lets start off with the bass. The bass is tight, defined, detailed, dynamic, extended and impactful. The extension is just excellent, and it goes right down to the sub bass region with ease. There is no bloat, boom, or any muddyness present to it at all. There is no bleeding into the mids happening. These opamps are very agile in the lower registers. In fact, this is the best sounding bass I have ever heard from any opamp I have tried. The LME49720HA metal can opamps are also good in the bass department. However, the V6 Vivid dual is just on another level entirely. When I first tried the opamp, I was rather surprised at the deep impact and extension the V6 Dual offered. Kick drums in music are so tight and defined. These opamps really bring out the best from well mastered music. It really gives music a toe tapping character, and makes you want to keep testing out more albums.
In terms of the midrange, the V6 Vivid Dual absolutely excels. Everything sounds lush with gorgeous imaging. Instruments are well presented. Vocals are up front. Voices are just in front of everything else in the mix. Vocals are one of the other highlights of the V6 Vivid. There is just such a smoothness to voices. It should be noted though that there is definitely a slightly laid back character to the 3kHz region happening with this opamp. If I had to guess, this region has probably been reduced by about -1db. This is surprising, since these opamps have such a lively and engaging sound. The slight reduction at 3kHz is contributing to the slightly warm sound signature that this opamp has. I certainly would not call this opamp warm though. It is quite neutral in signature. It is just not fatiguing at all in any of the frequencies. In terms of micro detail retrieval, there are details present in the music on the V6 Vivids that are missed on the LME49720HA metal cans. The LME49720HA is already a revealing opamp, but the V6 Vivid just presents more information in the recordings. Soundstage has excellent layering, depth, and width. Instruments are completely separated, and everything is nice and spacious. Everything sounds cohesive, focused, natural and correct. Electric guitar, piano, keyboards, and any other instruments are very accurately reproduced. There is a smoothness and amazingly realistic character to everything. There is no harshness or grain to any frequency on the V6 opamps. Just as it was with the bass, the mids, vocals, and soundstage on the V6 Vivid are also the best I have encountered. Piano sounds very impressive and true to the recording. Instruments is another area that the LME49720HA metal cans also excel in, but the V6 Vivid is once again a huge step above.
Now, regarding the treble. Wow, it is stunning to say the least. I have to say that to my ears, the V6 Vivid certainly has an articulate and clean treble response. There is no distortion, grain, harshness, or any sibilant nature to it. This opamp is all about detail retrieval. It wants to recover every possible element within the recording, but do so without creating any level of sibilance. The LME49720HA also has a clean treble response, but the V6 Vivid is just more refined and more capable of revealing the micro details. Everything has a great sense of space and clean decay. Symbols just sound correct. This is something that I always look for when I am listening to equipment. This opamp is capable of presenting a satisfying treble response even at lower volume levels. This is not easy to accomplish. If a person hears any harshness to the upper frequencies on this opamp, it will be caused by very bright sounding equipment used in the system, or the music being played is horrendously mastered.
These are awesome opamps. They have a wonderful and musical sound to them. I definitely recommend them to people looking to step up to audiophile grade opamps.
Thanks once again to Bhav at Burson Audio for the opportunity to test these out. I really appreciate it.