[Sajid Amit]

Before you jump the gun, why don't you get the Susvara first and try it with your Violectric amp? That way you can establish a baseline of how it sounds with what you've got.

Then you could get an adapter made (or pick up the Hifiman version) that allows you to connect it directly to a power amp. With Susvara in hand, you could visit some HiFi stores (if there are some by you) and try it out.

I found a great deal on a speaker amp and made the jump soon after I got mine. I'm satisfied with it, but I wish I'd shopped around a little first and tried what else was out there before committing to anything. I understand wanting to have something ready when the Susvara arrives, but if you can actually try some amps out in-person, it seems more likely that you'd find a good match instead of relying on peoples' opinions.

This is a just a suggestion based on my experience.

Good advice.

 

[801evan]

Tone and timbre are not as rich as musicality-first people favor tho.

This is correct. And susvara can have proper tone, timbre, bass extension and soundstage just on a Hugo 2 or ifi Diablo. One needs to focus on a very good transport and digital and power chain. That's all. Nothing about a beefy amp. You can still keep the Vio and it has that extra weight and density to help the Susvara but may be a bit grungy... But still better off improving the transport and digital chain.

 

[PrTv]

Thanks mates, for the advice. I may first get the headphones and resistor box, and find appropriate amp later.

What's the best resistor box for the Susvara?

 

[1Audiophool]

Before you jump the gun, why don't you get the Susvara first and try it with your Violectric amp? That way you can establish a baseline of how it sounds with what you've got.

Then you could get an adapter made (or pick up the Hifiman version) that allows you to connect it directly to a power amp. With Susvara in hand, you could visit some HiFi stores (if there are some by you) and try it out.

I found a great deal on a speaker amp and made the jump soon after I got mine. I'm satisfied with it, but I wish I'd shopped around a little first and tried what else was out there before committing to anything. I understand wanting to have something ready when the Susvara arrives, but if you can actually try some amps out in-person, it seems more likely that you'd find a good match instead of relying on peoples' opinions.

This is a just a suggestion based on my experience.

+1 on this advice.
I’m currently in the same position…recently bought Susvara and V280 is my main amp.

Decided to get the Sus first then upgrade around it. Now that I’ve had it for a little while with the V280 I’m not in a huge rush to jump at a new amp too quickly.
Since I really don’t have any shops I can test gear locally I’ve decided to hold off and take my Sus with me to CanJam SoCal in September. Hopefully I’ll find what I’m looking for there and maybe pick something up at the show.
In the meantime I’m always looking and open to suggestions for Sus pairings…Dac and amp because I’m in the market for a new dac as well

 

[Gavin C4]

How do you guys manage crossfeed? Do you apply crossfeed ? I'm still not satisfied even apply Roon's crossfeed DSP.

I found the soundstage is so wide and vocal is not focus /stretched when connected directly to my gryphon's speaker tab.

You got a really beefy setup right there. With dCS Bartok as the source, you should be all covered on the digital side of things. You can focus your effort on the amp pairing with your headphones. Btw, Diablo 300 might be too powerful for the Susvara, with 600w of power, I do not dare to have that much current running centimeters away from my ears. You should be better off using a dedicated headphone amp and using dCS Bartok as the source. It will be a really solid music streaming setup with Roon and Tidal.

 

[ufospls2]

You got a really beefy setup right there. With dCS Bartok as the source, you should be all covered on the digital side of things. You can focus your effort on the amp pairing with your headphones. Btw, Diablo 300 might be too powerful for the Susvara, with 600w of power, I do not dare to have that much current running centimeters away from my ears. You should be better off using a dedicated headphone amp and using dCS Bartok as the source. It will be a really solid music streaming setup with Roon and Tidal.

Diablo 300 should be totally fine with the Susvara (and actually pretty ideal overall in terms of sound signature.) Just dont crank the volume. Keep in mind, it does 300w into 8ohms, not into the Susvars 60 ohms. It is also an integrated amp, so there is even less chance you will ever accidentally run it at full volume and blow the headphones.

The amount of power being drawn from the amp, and beside the ear, would be the same from the Diablo 300 as it would be from a fleawatt headphone amp, given the same volume output. If anything, one would be more worried about electrostatic headphones and their high voltages beside the ears, not a speaker amp driving a planar magnetic.

 

[Erwinatm]

You got a really beefy setup right there. With dCS Bartok as the source, you should be all covered on the digital side of things. You can focus your effort on the amp pairing with your headphones. Btw, Diablo 300 might be too powerful for the Susvara, with 600w of power, I do not dare to have that much current running centimeters away from my ears. You should be better off using a dedicated headphone amp and using dCS Bartok as the source. It will be a really solid music streaming setup with Roon and Tidal.

Diablo 300 should be totally fine with the Susvara (and actually pretty ideal overall in terms of sound signature.) Just dont crank the volume. Keep in mind, it does 300w into 8ohms, not into the Susvars 60 ohms. It is also an integrated amp, so there is even less chance you will ever accidentally run it at full volume and blow the headphones.

The amount of power being drawn from the amp, and beside the ear, would be the same from the Diablo 300 as it would be from a fleawatt headphone amp, given the same volume output. If anything, one would be more worried about electrostatic headphones and their high voltages beside the ears, not a speaker amp driving a planar magnetic.

Thanks for the advise guys. I know this beefy monster (using your terms) can kill the tiny drivers/planar easily with 1 flick.

I was tempted to do the experiment because I read in this forum that a speaker amp can do magic as well with headphones. Why not test it?

Cheers.

 

[Erwinatm]

I want to share a bit of my experience, what I felt when directly connect Susvara, 1266TC, ZMF VC, HD650 to stereo amps , Gryphon Diablo (SS) 300w and Manley Ichiban (tube) 200w.

First I pick a large orchestra piece, my gosh it was amazing, spectral, really fantastic. Soundstage is big and wide, like you are watching movie in IMAX theater. Very dynamic, bass was deep and tight, treble is clean, open, transparant, well extended. Instrument separation was tidy, pitch black background. My friends and me were stunt. We never expect the presentation will be that magnificent like big speakers setup.

Then, we tried jazz from Allison Krauss, Sara K, Linda Ronstadt, Al Jarreau to Miles Davis, Art Blakey, Charlie Haden etc. This is where we spotted that there was something not right in the presentation. The vocal was not pinpoint, dead center like we used to hear from well setup speakers and especially from headphones amps. There was a hollow, empty space in the middle of the stage.

Then we tried roon crossfeed dsp, playing with several cut off frequency and gain. It is helping a little bit but still not the correct presentation like we use to hear from well setup headamps (At that time we had Riviera AIC10, Xi Audio Formula S, Burson Soloist 3GT at my place).

Conclusion:
Well, if you want to have the best out of your headfi system, use dedicated amps for headphones. Big amps has its own advantages and superiority but the presentation is different from what a good headamps give you. It just like they are sailing a different kind of sea.

Guys, my opinions may not be to your liking or conform with your impressions, it's just mine. You may have different opinions and impressions. If you are satisfied with what you have now, just keep on enjoying & play with it. Music is for your own delight and pleasure, don't mind what people say about it.

Cheers and enjoy music.

 

[BassicScience]

I want to share a bit of my experience, what I felt when directly connect Susvara, 1266TC, ZMF VC, HD650 to stereo amps , Gryphon Diablo (SS) 300w and Manley Ichiban (tube) 200w.

First I pick a large orchestra piece, my gosh it was amazing, spectral, really fantastic. Soundstage is big and wide, like you are watching movie in IMAX theater. Very dynamic, bass was deep and tight, treble is clean, open, transparant, well extended. Instrument separation was tidy, pitch black background. My friends and me were stunt. We never expect the presentation will be that magnificent like big speakers setup.

Then, we tried jazz from Allison Krauss, Sara K, Linda Ronstadt, Al Jarreau to Miles Davis, Art Blakey, Charlie Haden etc. This is where we spotted that there was something not right in the presentation. The vocal was not pinpoint, dead center like we used to hear from well setup speakers and especially from headphones amps. There was a hollow, empty space in the middle of the stage.

Then we tried roon crossfeed dsp, playing with several cut off frequency and gain. It is helping a little bit but still not the correct presentation like we use to hear from well setup headamps (At that time we had Riviera AIC10, Xi Audio Formula S, Burson Soloist 3GT at my place).

Conclusion:
Well, if you want to have the best out of your headfi system, use dedicated amps for headphones. Big amps has its own advantages and superiority but the presentation is different from what a good headamps give you. It just like they are sailing a different kind of sea.

Guys, my opinions may not be to your liking or conform with your impressions, it's just mine. You may have different opinions and impressions. If you are satisfied with what you have now, just keep on enjoying & play with it. Music is for your own delight and pleasure, don't mind what people say about it.

Cheers and enjoy music.

Honestly, if vocals weren't being imaged realistically, you likely made a wiring error with whatever adapter you used with the speaker amp. A phase error or channel swap could account for what you perceived. Otherwise, moving from a headphone to a speaker amp should not have the effect you described. I say this as someone who has lots of actual experience driving Susvara with both.

 

[Articnoise]

Honestly, if vocals weren't being imaged realistically, you likely made a wiring error with whatever adapter you used with the speaker amp. A phase error or channel swap could account for what you perceived. Otherwise, moving from a headphone to a speaker amp should not have the effect you described. I say this as someone who has lots of actual experience driving Susvara with both.

Yes agree probably something is wrong between the channels. All the speaker amps I have tried has had better image and more 3D presentation.

 

[goldwerger]

+1 on this advice.
I’m currently in the same position…recently bought Susvara and V280 is my main amp.

Decided to get the Sus first then upgrade around it. Now that I’ve had it for a little while with the V280 I’m not in a huge rush to jump at a new amp too quickly.
Since I really don’t have any shops I can test gear locally I’ve decided to hold off and take my Sus with me to CanJam SoCal in September. Hopefully I’ll find what I’m looking for there and maybe pick something up at the show.
In the meantime I’m always looking and open to suggestions for Sus pairings…Dac and amp because I’m in the market for a new dac as well

Check the new Wells Audio Headtrip III, Level II. I tested it with my Susvara at the recent CanJam in Chicago and it’s amazing (if you also add the Wells Commander, Level III preamp then you’re in for a serious treat though very pricy).

I’ve put some notes on that in my CanJam write up:

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/can...s-thread-june-18-19-2022.963828/post-17016052

One more option is the Ampandsound Red October. I tested it in CanJam NYC earlier this year and absolutely loved the 300b tube voicing.

 

[801evan]

I want to share a bit of my experience, what I felt when directly connect Susvara, 1266TC, ZMF VC, HD650 to stereo amps , Gryphon Diablo (SS) 300w and Manley Ichiban (tube) 200w.

First I pick a large orchestra piece, my gosh it was amazing, spectral, really fantastic. Soundstage is big and wide, like you are watching movie in IMAX theater. Very dynamic, bass was deep and tight, treble is clean, open, transparant, well extended. Instrument separation was tidy, pitch black background. My friends and me were stunt. We never expect the presentation will be that magnificent like big speakers setup.

Then, we tried jazz from Allison Krauss, Sara K, Linda Ronstadt, Al Jarreau to Miles Davis, Art Blakey, Charlie Haden etc. This is where we spotted that there was something not right in the presentation. The vocal was not pinpoint, dead center like we used to hear from well setup speakers and especially from headphones amps. There was a hollow, empty space in the middle of the stage.

Then we tried roon crossfeed dsp, playing with several cut off frequency and gain. It is helping a little bit but still not the correct presentation like we use to hear from well setup headamps (At that time we had Riviera AIC10, Xi Audio Formula S, Burson Soloist 3GT at my place).

Conclusion:
Well, if you want to have the best out of your headfi system, use dedicated amps for headphones. Big amps has its own advantages and superiority but the presentation is different from what a good headamps give you. It just like they are sailing a different kind of sea.

Guys, my opinions may not be to your liking or conform with your impressions, it's just mine. You may have different opinions and impressions. If you are satisfied with what you have now, just keep on enjoying & play with it. Music is for your own delight and pleasure, don't mind what people say about it.

Cheers and enjoy music.

This is what I've been saying. You are correct. Don't mind these guys ....

 

[fiiom11pro]

Hi guys,

I have a question about speaker amplifier matching. I plan to buy the Susvara very soon, to integrate it with my current setup. However, knowing that my V281 is far from ideal to drive them, I have set aside the budget for a good speaker amplifier.

I prefer the speaker amplifier (power-amp) to conventional headphones amplifier, because I also have the VC / Utopia / Empy, and my V281 drives them beautifully. Also my DAC has one RCA + one XLR output, and both ports have been occupied by V281 and my tube amplifier. So using my V281 as pre-amp to connect to a speaker power-amp via XLR seems to be logical way.

Now, I'm looking at Benchmark AHB2, so I have these questions:
- How good is synergy?
- Will it sound bright? Benchmark is known for its analytical sound, and I hate anything that is bright/too analytical.
- Is resistor box required? I read some articles saying "hard to drive" headphones can be connected directly to the power amp's speaker port without the need of resistor box, provided the user can control the volume properly with pre-amp.

If you have other alternative in mind that can drive the Sus better / sound warmer than the AHB2, I'm welcome for any suggestion. The power amp should not be too large and should be within USD3K (the cheaper the better).

Thanks a lot!

violectric v281 is not far from ideal in fact one of the best 'pairing' for the Susvara. Plenty of power to with the +12db switch at the bank. V281 is a warm sounding amp which complements the Susvara adding more ooomph which tc owners wants out of their abyss'. Try it out first before venturing into other Amp adventures.

 

[Erwinatm]

Honestly, if vocals weren't being imaged realistically, you likely made a wiring error with whatever adapter you used with the speaker amp. A phase error or channel swap could account for what you perceived. Otherwise, moving from a headphone to a speaker amp should not have the effect you described. I say this as someone who has lots of actual experience driving Susvara with both.

Nope, I'm sure it was not out of phase.

Staging was deep and wide, 3D was nicely layered also.
Instruments that supposedly on the left is on the left.

It was just, at least for me, the image of the singer or lead instrument was not as natural as produced by headamps.

The image was like MBL omni directional speakers, if you familiar with MBL. Staging width, depth, 3D is good except the vocal image is not like conventional direct driver speaker which we are accustomed to.

Cheers guys

 

[PrTv]

violectric v281 is not far from ideal in fact one of the best 'pairing' for the Susvara. Plenty of power to with the +12db switch at the bank. V281 is a warm sounding amp which complements the Susvara adding more ooomph which tc owners wants out of their abyss'. Try it out first before venturing into other Amp adventures.

Thanks mate! Hearing this is a bit of relief. Actually, I'm now using the amp with -12 setting as my Utopia / VC / Empy don't need all that power to shine. Never tried +12 though.