[genefruit]

What do you mean?

I believe what he means is the gain section is when the volume is past 00 (+00 to +12 aka max, otherwise it's attenuating the input (-72 aka min to 0)

 

[alekc]

Yeah, not a ton of new DSD releases these days and SACD is dead except for a few releases in Japan.

@idairyou apparently (and fortunately at least for some) this is not entarely true any more, it seems that SACD format experiencing a renaissance. Here is a very recent set of 5 SACD from Poland:

 

[Timbuk2]

can anyone comment on using a tube as a pre-amp into the Bliss?

There are also many comments further back in history about using a tube preamp. The Schiit Freya+ is highly regarded. Search for "Freya" in this thread, and that will take you to the comments. I've been using a borrowed Schiit Mjolnir 2 as preamp to Bliss, and I am very happy with the sound. For one, it adds a boost to gain that helps hard to drive cans. But mostly, tubes can add a tremendous presence to the sound stage as you'd expect or you can tailor the sound to your liking with tube rolling. I can't imagine running Bliss without tubes now. You get the best of both worlds. Might be worth your time to also look at the AC power coming into your devices, if you haven't already done so. Resolving noise in the AC line and cabling can bring out more details... That's a whole 'nother can of worms though, for other threads, ha!

 

[babarrun]

There are also many comments further back in history about using a tube preamp. The Schiit Freya+ is highly regarded. Search for "Freya" in this thread, and that will take you to the comments. I've been using a borrowed Schiit Mjolnir 2 as preamp to Bliss, and I am very happy with the sound. For one, it adds a boost to gain that helps hard to drive cans. But mostly, tubes can add a tremendous presence to the sound stage as you'd expect or you can tailor the sound to your liking with tube rolling. I can't imagine running Bliss without tubes now. You get the best of both worlds. Might be worth your time to also look at the AC power coming into your devices, if you haven't already done so. Resolving noise in the AC line and cabling can bring out more details... That's a whole 'nother can of worms though, for other threads, ha!

Thanks. You have me sold on the Freya+. Wondering if a feliks Evo or Euforia can be used as a pre amp.
I’m looking for that warm tube sound.

Regarding cables; I did get Lavri grand to the spring and been super happy with them. Power cables I bought something not expensive for the looks. I understand the bliss don’t require specially fancy power conditioning due to their galvanic conditioning (?).

 

[MatW]

Thanks. You have me sold on the Freya+. Wondering if a feliks Evo or Euforia can be used as a pre amp.
I’m looking for that warm tube sound.

Regarding cables; I did get Lavri grand to the spring and been super happy with them. Power cables I bought something not expensive for the looks. I understand the bliss don’t require specially fancy power conditioning due to their galvanic conditioning (?).

I pointed you to my post before, just a few pages back in this thread:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/holo-audio-bliss.964155/page-191#post-17739020

 

[Leto Dal]

From my experience tube preamplfication smear the sound of Bliss. Yes it becomes a bit (!) more tubey, without sounding like a true tube amp, but losing many of its strenghts in the same time. For me it made more sense to directly use a well tuned tube amp for more analog silky sound or bliss, if I am in the mood for clarity and energetic impact. Saying this, I think Bliss is one of the few solid state amps that sound really natural and analog on its own.

 

[Timbuk2]

Thanks. You have me sold on the Freya+. Wondering if a feliks Evo or Euforia can be used as a pre amp.
I’m looking for that warm tube sound.

Regarding cables; I did get Lavri grand to the spring and been super happy with them. Power cables I bought something not expensive for the looks. I understand the bliss don’t require specially fancy power conditioning due to their galvanic conditioning (?).

Freya+ is a great option, because you can shut off the tubes easily and still pass through the signal to Bliss. With the MJ2 I have to be mindful of tube life, no pass through. I think I'll get a Freya+ in time... There are all kinds of tubes out there, some warm, some bright, cryo, non-cryo, NOS, etc. So if you go down the tube rabbit hole, it can be quite a journey. Here's a tube comparison chart that's helped me... https://tubedepot.com/pages/tube-comparison-tool

Yes, I've heard that conditioning is not beneficial to Bliss and amps in general. But the AC line can carry noise from all the devices along its path, and that affects details. I came across this after noticing that my system sounded much better really late at night, started trying to understand why... So if you've got good components and cabling, and you still feel that you aren't getting the SQ you expect, maybe begin to look at your AC line noise. Furutech makes filters, among others.

 

[Timbuk2]

From my experience tube preamplfication smear the sound of Bliss. Yes it becomes a bit (!) more tubey, without sounding like a true tube amp, but losing many of its strenghts in the same time. For me it made more sense to directly use a well tuned tube amp for more analog silky sound or bliss, if I am in the mood for clarity and energetic impact. Saying this, I think Bliss is one of the few solid state amps that sound really natural and analog on its own.

I found the smear to be true when comparing different tubes. I settled on cryo Gold Lion tubes, which give me the euphoric soundstage that I crave without affecting clarity and transparency. The trick may be finding the right tube for your ear. Bliss is so transparent that I found it easy to discern tube characteristics. I can see that purists would prefer one amp or the other, but at the moment, for my ears and my pocket book, adding a tube preamp is the best compromise. One day I will probably order a Decware amp. Like on bagels, a bit of smear adds a nice flavor, ha! That's the beauty of this hobby, so many flavors... Bliss is the best SS amp I've heard. I love it. It's a keeper.

 

[Tubewin]

Don't know where else to write this, but this thread seems to be gaining steam faster than the other Holo threads so I will just post it here. I had purchased a cable from Tim at Kitsune. I had it plugged in for a day, and it didn't mesh well with my system. I contacted Tim and asked if it was possible to send it back with the added restocking fee, if I ended up not liking it. He said that this specific item would be extremely difficult to resell, understandably so. I thought my only recourse would be to resell it on the used market. But Tim contacted me back and told me that he was going to refund me completely and in his unfathomable generosity told me that I should keep the cable as well, since reselling a used cable would be almost impossible. I have never seen someone willing to take such a loss (a very expensive item at that) to satisfy their customers. Safe to say, my next few purchases will be with Tim at Kitsune.

 

[Zachik]

Don't know where else to write this, but this thread seems to be gaining steam faster than the other Holo threads so I will just post it here. I had purchased a cable from Tim at Kitsune. I had it plugged in for a day, and it didn't mesh well with my system. I contacted Tim and asked if it was possible to send it back with the added restocking fee, if I ended up not liking it. He said that this specific item would be extremely difficult to resell, understandably so. I thought my only recourse would be to resell it on the used market. But Tim contacted me back and told me that he was going to refund me completely and in his unfathomable generosity told me that I should keep the cable as well, since reselling a used cable would be almost impossible. I have never seen someone willing to take such a loss (a very expensive item at that) to satisfy their customers. Safe to say, my next few purchases will be with Tim at Kitsune.

Just curious: what cable was that? Power cable? Interconnect? something else?

 

[Tubewin]

Just curious: what cable was that? Power cable? Interconnect? something else?

I rather not say at the moment, out of respect for Kitsune and Tim. Not sure what kind of arrangement he has with the cable company. I'll pm you if he gives it the "O.K.".

 

[Roasty]

that's amazing customer service. to the level of almost unheard of! kudos and hats off. my opinion is, even if Tim okays u revealing what cable, maybe don't..

 

[chesebert]

that's amazing customer service. to the level of almost unheard of! kudos and hats off. my opinion is, even if Tim okays u revealing what cable, maybe don't..

Something that dealer can afford to give away is not something worth buying. Sorry to those who paid real money for whatever that cable was.

 

[Superunknown2]

Has anyone here tried to run their Holo Bliss and May or Spring setup with HQ player, with its 16,000,000 taps? From what I hear, that might actually sound better than a $20,000 Chord Dave and M-Scaler setup, since that "only" runs at 1,000,000 taps.

 

[Tubewin]

Something that dealer can afford to give away is not something worth buying. Sorry to those who paid real money for whatever that cable was.

That's what you got out of that? You're hard to please, the man gave a complete refund (when he didn't need to)and said I could keep the item (he didn't need to do that either), and then you spin it, saying it speaks badly about the dealer? In what world does that makes sense or is appropriate?