Positive impressions so far driving the 1266 out of the Volot. Bass sounds fuller, more textured, and has authority to it. Vocals have more presence and don't feel so distant as they did at times on the FA-12. It feels like music sounds more natural and I get more of a feeling like I'm just hearing the music and not listening to headphones. I guess this means that imaging and soundstage is a bit better too. Overall I would say that the Volot sounds natural. The tonality is similar to the FA-12 although I think the FA-12 had a bit more treble energy which was nice on some tracks. The Volot is to my ears an improvement over the FA-12 although it's definitely not a 3x improvement given the price difference. Maybe 1.5x or so.
My Volot has been here for a week, powered on the whole time, and now approaching 75 hours or so of pushing signal into various dynamic headphones. Very interesting to read your impressions -- especially because mine are a bit different and I was actually starting to consider adding the FA-12 to the stable
Everything I read about the FA-12 as well as Vitaliy's own feedback on it as compared to Volot is almost opposite of yours -- in that it has a "darker" delivery with "fuller body" and "meatier mids". Amazing how we all hear differently but also how component pairings come into play? I wonder if any of the below resonates with you.
Initially I found the amp way too bright for my taste, even with some of the softer-sounding cans I have. Coming back to it after 50 hours of play I found the character changed quite drastically and the sound signature became much more balanced and cohesive.
Below is how it sounds to me so far and the related thoughts I have. Most of the listening was done with a lot of (well -produced) electronic stuff of various genres, even though I am normally a jazz fanatic. I just can't for now peel myself away from the sheer fun that Volot's slam-factor brings to that music. All the cans are dynamic and closed (save for HD650), as such has been my general preference. It has yet to be seen how this amp does gentle finesse and delicacy of tone -- a lot more listening to do, and it'll be put through its paces.
- I agree very much that it has a natural character but it definitely has a very highly resolved top end; not to say harsh but definitely resolved and full of nuance. Or at least that's how I hear it
Detail freaks should be happy. I am not one, and would not want the highs any hotter.
- amazing grip in the bass. Took almost every headphone I tried to the next level in that department. If the cans are capable, this thing delivers bottomless, hard-slamming bass, with incredible control.
- the amp is incredibly fast all across the frequency range. Incisive edges to all transients. No exaggerated decays or overhang in the lows and just a sense of precision everywhere. Not clinical by any measure; maybe a hint of warmth if anything but not at all a "rosy" presentation if one were looking for that.
- it conveys the sense of volume and depth rather well. It's not the most 3D-like presentation I have heard from a headphone amp -- that would go to some tube units I heard and owned -- but it surely isn't flat and is very engaging, and can step quite a bit outside of your head in all directions -- strongly depending on the recording and the headphones probably. All in all I'd say that while undoubtedly solid-state, this is solid state at its best, and the kind that when it's good, it's real good. And I am a long-time tube fiend when it comes to music reproduction.
- the headphone pairings. I feel that this is where the rubber meets the road with this amp in a sense that it will, I think, squeeze the max out of all but the most hard-to-drive cans, enhancing their qualities to a degree that one might not have expected, possibly more so than with other amps due to the immense power reserve and headroom and high current. Depending on the pairing, the result may be amazing, or it may be too much of a good thing. There probably may also be too much of a bad thing, although I have not yet encountered that with my headphone stash. Some headphones will scale more than others no doubt. I love and have a bunch of Foster-based cans, and not just because I am indeed a basshead but also due to their quality of tone and their spatial presentation. The one that deserves a special mention in connection to Volot IME so far is EMU Teak. I do love the Teaks in general despite their various shortcomings in comparison to either the th900 or 9200, or the Phonon, for that matter but they generally have remained for me a bit of a guilty pleasure in light of having these other cans. Until the Volot. This amp makes the Teak into a convincing TH900 beater in just about every aspect: the bass and subbass firm up, the bleed into the low mids is all but eliminated, a whole new level of clarity and resolution is obtained through the mids and highs, etc. Interestingly -- or maybe expectedly so -- the TH900 seems to become almost too much of a good thing, in contrast, and does not seem to scale just as well here -- but that's more of gut feeling, as I have not yet listened enough with them. Another can that's a bit of a guilty pleasure for me is the Z1R, and so far I am also REALLY liking what Volot is doing with it. On a different note, plugged in the HD650s -- always been a fan of them -- expecting them to find a whole new bass foundation, lose the veil, etc. -- and found out that the Jot 2 is a much better pairing with them to my ears: both amps easily lift the proverbial veil but with the Jot they sound more expansive and organic. Volot did NOT make them into bass monsters -- Jot does better there, too -- and somehow the pairing just sounded constrained. Which brings us to the last point:
- Volot makes you understand just how much of a value something like a Jot 2 is at 5x+ less money but at the same time it also clearly presents to you that next level of sound quality where some will see nothing but strongly diminishing returns and others will feel is worth every penny. No doubt a great amp -- that's for sure.
It makes me curious indeed how some hard-to-drive planars would sound with this amp. If anyone here in SF Bay wants to bring over a Susvara or some such to hear with the Volot, I can accommodate that, and I'd love to hear the cans
Just shoot me a PM...
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