[heliosphann]

Thank you for this. My original production Liquid Carbon has just started to fail and I was somewhat distraught as to how to get it repaired.

I had a v1 with a "Lifetime Warranty." Then Cavalli shuttered and a few months later it took a dump on me.

 

[Pharmaboy]

a few months later it took a dump on me

God, I hope that's a figure of speech.

I love my LC v2. If it crapped out, I'd have to spend real bucks to try to get it repaired. But it runs perfectly.*

I have a lifetime warranty on the LC, too. But that was another lifetime.

*I have 7 amps and use the LC only 3-4X a year, never for more than a day or two here and there. So it has few hours and little real wear once the 150 hr burn-in was complete.

 

[Ham Sandwich]

There is the Massdrop Liquid Carbon X that I'd consider a suitable replacement if a Liquid Carbon V1 or V2 died and was not repairable. There are more LCx amps in the wild than the LC V1 or V2. So more likely to be able to find a LCx on the used market.

I own three of the Cavalli Audio amps (Fire, Glass, Carbon V1). If anyone should be upset about Cavalli Audio closing and loss of warranty it should be me. And I'm not upset about it at all. It is what it is. Alex has always been a good guy and generous with his support of DIY. I have no bad feelings about Cavalli Audio shutting down. I know to send the amps to Avenson Audio if they ever need repair, and cross my fingers that it is something that is repairable.

There is always a risk when buying from a smaller boutique style audio company run by one person. A risk that the company may no longer be there in 5 or 10 years. If you want longer term stability then buy something like a McIntosh headphone amp. McIntosh is going to be around for a while and supporting their older gear. And some of their headphone amps sound pretty good.

My only regret with Cavalli Audio shutting down is that I never bought a Liquid Crimson and the Liquid Tungsten tube amp never happened.

 

[Odin412]

My only regret with Cavalli Audio shutting down is that I never bought a Liquid Crimson and the Liquid Tungsten tube amp never happened.

I keep hoping that Monoprice will resurrect the Liquid Tungsten and Liquid Glass as X models like they did with the Liquid Gold. There was also a Liquid Ambience prototype that sounded really good. Drop and Monoprice, are you listening?

 

[Pharmaboy]

I keep hoping that Monoprice will resurrect the Liquid Tungsten and Liquid Glass as X models like they did with the Liquid Gold. There was also a Liquid Ambience prototype that sounded really good. Drop and Monoprice, are you listening?

Damn. Never even heard of these 3 Cavalli variants. Now I want to hear more...I've turned into a Cavalli fanboy, or as much as one can be in 2021.

Curses!

 

[jonathan c]

I keep hoping that Monoprice will resurrect the Liquid Tungsten and Liquid Glass as X models like they did with the Liquid Gold. There was also a Liquid Ambience prototype that sounded really good. Drop and Monoprice, are you listening?

Indeed, and don’t be ‘Cavallier’ about it…

 

[Odin412]

Indeed, and don’t be ‘Cavallier’ about it…

Good one!

 

[Odin412]

Damn. Never even heard of these 3 Cavalli variants. Now I want to hear more...I've turned into a Cavalli fanboy, or as much as one can be in 2021.

Curses!

The Liquid Glass was a tube hybrid amp designed specifically for tube rollers. It had sockets for small (e.g. 6922) and large (e.g. 6SN7) tubes. I had a chance to listen to it at one of the Newport Beach audio shows at a MrSpeakers (now Dan Clark Audio) stand next to a Schiit Ragnarok v1 (solid state) and Woo Audio WA5 (300B based). The Ragnarok was crisp and clean and the WA5 was super lush sounding and I remember that the Liquid Glass was a perfect mix of the two other amps.

The Liquid Tungsten was a flagship tube amp that just made it into a final prototype form before Cavalli Audio closed shop. I listened to a couple of prototype versions and it was always excellent. BTW the design of the final version was quite interesting - it looked like something that Darth Vader would have on his desk.

The Liquid Ambience was kind of a single-ended version of the Liquid Platinum. I listened to a prototype and I recall that it sounded even more smooth and 'tubey' than the Liquid Platinum (which was also in prototype form at that time).

 

[jonathan c]

Speaking of which, I would like to see: (1) a balanced-only (no SE sockets) LP with a linear (not switching-mode) power supply; (2) a SE only (no XLR sockets) LP with a linear (not switching-mode) power supply; (3) premium capacitors in (1) and in (2). “Monoprice, where are you….?”

 

[heliosphann]

There is the Massdrop Liquid Carbon X that I'd consider a suitable replacement if a Liquid Carbon V1 or V2 died and was not repairable. There are more LCx amps in the wild than the LC V1 or V2. So more likely to be able to find a LCx on the used market.

I own three of the Cavalli Audio amps (Fire, Glass, Carbon V1). If anyone should be upset about Cavalli Audio closing and loss of warranty it should be me. And I'm not upset about it at all. It is what it is. Alex has always been a good guy and generous with his support of DIY. I have no bad feelings about Cavalli Audio shutting down. I know to send the amps to Avenson Audio if they ever need repair, and cross my fingers that it is something that is repairable.

There is always a risk when buying from a smaller boutique style audio company run by one person. A risk that the company may no longer be there in 5 or 10 years. If you want longer term stability then buy something like a McIntosh headphone amp. McIntosh is going to be around for a while and supporting their older gear. And some of their headphone amps sound pretty good.

My only regret with Cavalli Audio shutting down is that I never bought a Liquid Crimson and the Liquid Tungsten tube amp never happened.

I had a v1, v2 and LCX at the same time and didn't think the X was anywhere near as good as the v1/v2.

 

[Ham Sandwich]

The Liquid Glass was a tube hybrid amp designed specifically for tube rollers. It had sockets for small (e.g. 6922) and large (e.g. 6SN7) tubes. I had a chance to listen to it at one of the Newport Beach audio shows at a MrSpeakers (now Dan Clark Audio) stand next to a Schiit Ragnarok v1 (solid state) and Woo Audio WA5 (300B based). The Ragnarok was crisp and clean and the WA5 was super lush sounding and I remember that the Liquid Glass was a perfect mix of the two other amps.

The Liquid Glass is a chameleon that changes with different tubes. The sound qualities and style depends a lot on the tubes used. It's a hybrid where the tubes define the sound and the solid state is there just to let the tubes fly their freak flag.

The Glass is kind of the flip side of the Fire/Crimson/Platinum. The Fire/Crimson/Platinum have about 75% of their sound defined by the solid state side of the amp. The tubes only affect the remaining 25%. The Glass is the opposite. The tubes define about 80% of the sound qualities while the solid state side about 20%. Changing tubes in the Liquid Glass makes a big difference. Changing tubes in the Fire/Crimson/Platinum makes a small relative difference. I can get the Glass to have a very mid forward sound with some tubes, or get it to have a very mid set-back sound with some tubes. I can get the Glass to have more transient emphasis with some tubes, or get it to sound woolly or mushy. If you want to describe the sound of the Liquid Glass you have to also state what tubes were used and what those tubes sound like. It's a fun amp.

 

[Ham Sandwich]

I had a v1, v2 and LCX at the same time and didn't think the X was anywhere near as good as the v1/v2.

The LCX isn't as good as the V1 or V2, but I consider it close enough and it keeps the same style of Cavalli sound. If my LC V1 died I'd switch over to using the LCX for the purposes I use the LC for cause it's doubtful I'd be able to find a V1 or V2 on the used market. I have an LCX in the gear closet. But an even better replacement for an LC v1/v2 would be the Liquid Gold X. The Gold X is awesome. Better sonically in every way than the Carbon.

 

[Pharmaboy]

The LCX isn't as good as the V1 or V2, but I consider it close enough and it keeps the same style of Cavalli sound. If my LC V1 died I'd switch over to using the LCX for the purposes I use the LC for cause it's doubtful I'd be able to find a V1 or V2 on the used market. I have an LCX in the gear closet. But an even better replacement for an LC v1/v2 would be the Liquid Gold X. The Gold X is awesome. Better sonically in every way than the Carbon.

I'm still trying to figure out the Gold/LGX. Did a head-to-head comparison of it vs the Liquid Carbon v2 last week (headphone was Final D8000 & DAC was Audio GD DAC-19). These amps sounded ~95% the same, with the edge going to the LGX in every way. That was the best sound I've yet gotten from the D8000, which I'm finding to be a pretty fascinating headphone.

Tonight did some listening to the Verite Open (a headphone I'm intimately familiar with) on the LGX, and the results were paradoxical. In addition to all the VO's usual attributes, it sounded slightly bright, which is a first in IMS (I've heard it on 5 others amps and it never once sounded even slightly bright).

I suspect the LGX is more susceptible to subtle HP impedance & sensitivity factors than the LC ever was. Impossible to confirm, but that's my guess.

This isn't a knock on the LGX at all. It's more powerful than the LC, also somewhat more refined with better layering and resolution. When it locks in with a headphone, as it did with the Final D8000, the sound is exalted. But still, it seems to be more of a sonic chameleon than any of my other amps.

 

[Ham Sandwich]

Speaking of which, I would like to see: (1) a balanced-only (no SE sockets) LP with a linear (not switching-mode) power supply; (2) a SE only (no XLR sockets) LP with a linear (not switching-mode) power supply; (3) premium capacitors in (1) and in (2). “Monoprice, where are you….?”

A souped up LP like that would be awesome. But would have to be designed by Alex. Monoprice can't do any modifications to the amp without Alex's approval and input.

I really like the LP but it's also not up to the sonic performance of the Fire and Crimson. It can do better. There is room for improvement. The Fire and Crimson have more transparency and more of that magic that gets the Cavalli "liquid" sound to work so well. Transparency in the sense of being able to better hear through the amp and better hear what the source and headphones are doing. And that magic in the Cavalli sound is something you just have to hear and experience to understand. I consider the LP to be about 90% of the Fire. But in audiophile terms that last 10% is a doozey. A big doozey that can get audiophiles to spend a thousand bucks. Definitely room for improvement with an improved LP.

Getting rid of the single-ended headphone output would also help in reviews. Some of the middling or not-so-good reviews of the LP have been because the reviewer used the single-ended headphone output. Even though the manual says not to use the single-ended for critical listening. The reviewers did anyways. It's like they never read the manual for the gear they review.

 

[Ham Sandwich]

This isn't a knock on the LGX at all. It's more powerful than the LC, also somewhat more refined with better layering and resolution. When it locks in with a headphone, as it did with the Final D8000, the sound is exalted. But still, it seems to be more of a sonic chameleon than any of my other amps.

The Liquid Gold X is an amp that is going to be more fussy about system synergies. Synergies with the headphone and synergies with the source components. The LGX is more transparent than the Carbon, and even more transparent than my Fire or Glass. Transparency in the sense of being able to better hear through the amp and into the source components and into the characteristics of the headphone. It's a more transparent lens into the recording and into the other components in the chain. The headphones can't hide. The DAC can't hide. The quality of the recording can't hide. And it does that transparency while presenting the involving and easy to listen to Cavalli style "liquid" sound.

I can listen to a minimally mic'ed chamber orchestra recording and hear all and more of the precise 3D imaging details and micro details that I hear with the Fire and Glass. The Fire and Glass have a deeper soundstage due to 2nd harmonics from the tubes. But the Gold X has a cleaner and more transparent sound. The Carbon sounds flat and lacking that level of imaging and layering in comparison. The Gold X manages to achieve solid state sonic holography. Sonic holography is something I generally associate with very good tube amps. The Liquid Gold X is my only solid state amp that gives me a very good flavor of that sonic holography. Tube amps still have the advantage of being able to do that sonic holography thing with a deeper soundstage because of the magic of even harmonics. The Liquid Gold X is my solid state amp that lets me explore and enjoy that style of 3D sonic holography in solid state form.

But the Liquid Gold X is also very fussy about headphone tuning. Its style of transparency doesn't let wonky headphone frequency response hide. The LGX is going to pair better with some headphones than others. As an example, the LCD-2 and LCD-3 tuning works very very well with the Fire/Crimson/Platinum and also the Glass. The tubes manage to fill in the midrange where the LCD-2/LCD-3 tuning takes a downward slope. With the Fire and Glass I barely notice that the LCD-2 tuning is a bit weird. The amp and headphone sound synergizes and just sounds right together. That is not the case with the Liquid Gold X. The LGX doesn't let the wonky tuning of the LCD-2/LCD-3 hide. With the LGX I notice when a vocal or violin is in the sucked-out frequency range of the LCD-2/LCD-3. And wow, that doesn't work so well. I love the LCD-2/LCD-3 turning paired with the Fire, Platinum, and Glass. I don't like it so much with the Gold X. So with the LGX I have to find a different headphone for synergy. Maybe something with a tuning more similar to the LCD-X or the new LCD-5? Or HiFiMan Arya? Or HEDD? Or? It's good with the HD650 tuning so I'm thinking that a planar magnetic with that style of midrange tuning will have better synergy. I haven't been able to demo and find that right headphone synergy due to the pandemic. It's something I need to demo in person to find. I can't rely on reviews. When the pandemic is over and I can demo comfortably in person I'll find headphones with that magical synergy with the LGX. Even if it means an LCD-5. The LGX is worth getting good headphones for.

I can EQ the LCD-2 and fix the midrange issue when playing through the LGX. But I don't like using EQ. My goal is to build a chain that doesn't need EQ to sound good to me. I find that digital EQ does more harm than good to the 3D imaging sonic holography that I like to listen for. Especially with minimally mic'ed style acoustic recordings. So I'm not going to pick a headphone that relies on EQ to get it to sound right. It has to sound good to me without EQ or it's not going to work for me.