Niimbus Ultimate Series US4/US4+/US5/US5 Pro Headphone Amps - by Lake People
Oct 26, 2022 at 1:21 PM Post #1,351 of 1,796
The Yggdrasil is too large for my desktop so unfortunately will have to find another DAC hat takes up less space as it will have to be place side by side next to the Niimbus. Also the price is not affordable at the moment so prefer to stay around the 1.2-1.3k $ range.
 
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Oct 26, 2022 at 2:54 PM Post #1,352 of 1,796
I am thinking of purchasing a Singxer SDA-6 PRO to pair with the Niimbus US5 PRO I placed an order for.

Does anyone have any experience with this combo? I picked this DAC because it only performs that single function and I have no need for a preamp, Bluetooth or a remote control as the DAC will be sitting on my desk at all times. The internals seems to be of extremely high quality and the layout looks to be very well thought out and executed.

Also, since I will be using it with my computer the SDA-6 PRO has galvanic isolation on the USB input which is a big plus for me and my noisy gaming PC.

On paper it ticks all boxes except the fact that it is Chinese which I dislike but then again it doesn't have to be my end game DAC and I might consider upgrading it in the future if I'm not fully satisfied with the pairing when more funds will be available to allocate towards a higher end unit.

I've also considered the Gustard X26 Pro but it is slightly above my budget at the moment so only option to buy it will be used but I'm not sold on it as much since It doesn't have galvanic isolation on the USB input and according to soundnews.net only bests the Singxer with dynamics but losses in terms of resolution and transparency.

My philosophy regarding the audio chain is the following: The source and the amplifier must be as neutral as possible and in case one prefers to add some tonal color to their music, that should solely be done at the output so headphones or speakers. Reason being if one decides to grow a collection of headphones/speakers to suit different music styles they can without having to worry about also buying more gear to suit them

Willing to consider used options (US or EU made) DACs if there are any I should be looking out for.
I got the Niimbus last year and I deliberated over and over and over what DAC to pair with it.
I am now of the belief that this amp will probably sound good with anything .
I was worried the Qutest might not do it justice ………… I have never listened to my headphone set up as much as I do now . It sounds awesome .
 
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Oct 26, 2022 at 3:21 PM Post #1,353 of 1,796
I got the Niimbus last year and I deliberated over and over and over what DAC to pair with it.
I am now of the belief that this amp will probably sound good with anything .
I was worried the Qutest might not do it justice ………… I have never listened to my headphone set up as much as I do now . It sounds awesome .
I was actually hoping you would reply as I was also considering a used Chord Qutest however I think it falls below the SDA-6 PRO in terms of technicalities but I must say the build quality and the fact that it is made in the UK is a very attractive point.

Also not a huge fan of the fact that it doesn't have balanced outputs as it won't be very flexible in its setup in case I ever decide to move it elsewhere but I know it won't affect the SQ coming into the Niimbus as all signal processing is done in single ended mode inside the unit any way.

Really wish I could audition DACs prior to purchasing but as is always the case in audio, I will rather have to base my purchasing decision on reviews and/or your experiences with the gear.
 
Oct 26, 2022 at 3:25 PM Post #1,354 of 1,796
I was actually hoping you would reply as I was also considering a used Chord Qutest however I think it falls below the SDA-6 PRO in terms of technicalities but I must say the build quality and the fact that it is made in the UK is a very attractive point.

Also not a huge fan of the fact that it doesn't have balanced outputs as it won't be very flexible in its setup in case I ever decide to move it elsewhere but I know it won't affect the SQ coming into the Niimbus as all signal processing is done in single ended mode inside the unit any way.

Really wish I could audition DACs prior to purchasing but as is always the case in audio, I will rather have to base my purchasing decision on reviews and/or your experiences with the gear.
When I got the Qutest to pair with the Niimbus it was because I was on a limited budget.
it was always my inten to replace it when more cash was available . I now have no plans to replace it. Music sounds amazing
 
Oct 26, 2022 at 3:31 PM Post #1,355 of 1,796
When I got the Qutest to pair with the Niimbus it was because I was on a limited budget.
it was always my inten to replace it when more cash was available . I now have no plans to replace it. Music sounds amazing
Seems like we chose a similar path by blowing our budget on the amp first and then get a DAC with whatever remained of said budget.

I'm glad to hear that you are enjoying your music and have no intentions of upgrading your Qutest. Maybe it's a DAC I should be considering seriously in that case.
 
Oct 26, 2022 at 6:46 PM Post #1,356 of 1,796
Hello. Violectric DHA V590 mk2 corresponds to which nimbus performance? has anyone heard both?

do the alps and 256 relay volume controls have properties? what are the ones that immediately show which one the device is using?
 
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Oct 27, 2022 at 12:47 AM Post #1,357 of 1,796
You want something brutally detailed but full and sweet sounding with that amp. Yggi A2 all the way.
I've been enjoying Yggy a2 Unison - Niimbus - Utopia (older version) like crazy these days. So much fun!!
 
Oct 27, 2022 at 1:26 AM Post #1,358 of 1,796
Hello. Violectric DHA V590 mk2 corresponds to which nimbus performance? has anyone heard both?

do the alps and 256 relay volume controls have properties? what are the ones that immediately show which one the device is using?
V590 is a DAC/AMP amp is the same as V550, dac section is "meh"... Niimbus is superior in every way.
 
Oct 27, 2022 at 8:00 AM Post #1,359 of 1,796
V590 is a DAC/AMP amp is the same as V550, dac section is "meh"... Niimbus is superior in every way.
several people wrote that they can't hear a difference between the dha v590 and nimbus amplifiers. which is understandable, since they have the same structure and connections and there is hardly any difference in price between them. that's why I would be interested to know if anyone among the people reading the topic here has heard both of them side by side, although the chances of this are small in my opinion.
 
Oct 27, 2022 at 9:38 AM Post #1,360 of 1,796
several people wrote that they can't hear a difference between the dha v590 and nimbus amplifiers. which is understandable, since they have the same structure and connections and there is hardly any difference in price between them. that's why I would be interested to know if anyone among the people reading the topic here has heard both of them side by side, although the chances of this are small in my opinion.
https://www.headfonia.com/violectric-dha-v590-review/4/

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/violectric-v590.24768/
 
Oct 27, 2022 at 10:01 AM Post #1,362 of 1,796
No.
 
Oct 27, 2022 at 10:09 AM Post #1,364 of 1,796
The component game got a lot harder, a lot of time is being spent on looking for suppliers. It's not a big priority right now. Probably once the Violectric line is "completed", but there's more to Niimbus than just DACs and amps anyway.
 

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