I am very fortunate and appreciative to have been granted a demo session on the mk2 not just with my Susvara and IER Z1R, but also the ZMF Atrium and Focal Utopia by my local dealer.
Sources tested with was my Cayin N6ii E02 lineout and if I remember correctly, Matrix Audio's X-Sabre 3* via bluetooth.
Demo length was only about 80 minutes long, I don't think I can write a fully fair critique, so I'll just note down my demo experience, please take what I say casually.
I have never tried (and most likely would avoid for personal reasons) to drive my Susvara off a speaker amp, my demo experience will be based subjectively around the headphone amplifiers I have used before. Sorry for any possible disappointments when you demo it yourself, my AHB-2 brethren.
My personal observations, songs used are of Rock, Jazz and Pop genres :
- Drives the Susvara loud enough (or rather to my personal enjoyment levels) at around 12'o clock, definitely still has some headroom available in my case. I think the MK2 stock tube setup maintains a good balance of bass and treble, I never felt anything was off. Very pleasant to listen to. Based on previous experience, I had the expectation that there is a possibility that the mk2 would have flabby bass, but I found that this was not the case in my opinion.
- Using the IER Z1R, whilst not the most sensitive IEM there is, it would still comparatively be somewhat sensitive compared to most headphones. I can still perceive a minute buzz (as in, I really had to focus HARD) when left silent, however, the buzz was not audible when music is playing, even at a low level (I believe it was turn up half past 7). Sound quality was reasonable to a certain extent, but I would definitely not get the mk2 if all I use are IEMs (you will never know who is reading this...)
- This is also my first impression of the Atrium! I loved the timbre and general tonality from this combo, but I felt there was a distinct lack of treble presence, I am unsure which part of the chain it is due to lack of testing and experimentation, it would be wrong to pinpoint the "issue" on my end. Solid combo that will please many with the excellent bass, but I don't think I would personally use these for extended listening sessions, this combo don't feel like daily driver material
- Unexpected surprise for me was definitely pairing the Utopia with the mk2. I had tried the Utopia eons ago, and I didn't like it along the HD800s, I felt that both sounded harsh to me. This was not the case when the utopia is paired with the mk2 today, it has a fantastic, fuller midrange, with no semblance of harshness perceived at all, just the right amount of warmness for me. I would go out on a limb and say if I preorder the mk2, I see myself ordering the utopia a few months after. Utopia owners, you owe it to yourself to demo the mk2 out if you can.
- A seemingly common critique of the mk1 was the potentiometer, I believe the mk2 does not have this issue, or I could just be lucky enough that the steps are to my liking. In the very least, I would say that the potentiometer is not an issue for me.
- In terms of presentation....well you can just see it for yourself, I like its looks in black more than the mk1's silver. VU meter looks pretty cool. Switches all felt solid to me. No immediate build complaints, but naturally I did not touch every nook and cranny. 29KG is a weight I'd probably want to remember, especially since my rack is rated to support up to 30kg in each tier. Might be a disaster waiting to happen for me.
Right now I am strongly debating for preordering the mk2, as the other HPAs that I have on my radar are Flux Acoustic's Volot (Unobtanium lately for obvious reasons), Holo Audio's Bliss (still no confirmed release date and details), and Ferrum's OOR + Hypsos. I have not tried WA's WA33, Feliks Audio's envy and other tube amplifiers of its ilk / tier, so I cannot comment whether the value proposition provided by the mk2 is actually comparable apart from stating the obvious that the mk2 is at a fraction of the cost, compared to its tube related competitors.
I will be demoing the Ferrum's OOR + Hypsos in a few days (yea I know its like apple vs oranges, but is it really all that different if all you want is to seek musical enjoyment) before making a final decision, but as of now, I believe the mk2 is a steep mountain to beat.
Based on the gears involved in your audition, I believe you had a good day at Zeppelin.
THIS is the setup at CanJam NYC 2018 when we launch the original HA-300. I have two HA-300 on display at that show. Empyrean occupied one set exclusively because it was a co-launch event. HA-300 + Susvara + Utopia was my choice of demo setup. Enjoythemusic.com reviewed this set up in their show report very favorably. So I am not surprised that your audition is surprisingly good
