Official Schiit Vali 2 Thread

[ScubaMan2017]

Now that you have the adapters, you might want to look at the Tung-Sol 6sn7gt "mouse ears". I've recommended them several times before and have had nothing complementary results.

The "mouse ears" are an odd looking piece of glass. I'm intrigued...

 

[Mr Trev]

Thanks for the suggestion. There's a RCA 6CG7 on TubeDepot that I might get.. I don't really want to go over $50 for now so I'll keep looking around but the RCA clear top might be the one I get.

Hope you like the cleartop. You already purchased before I got here, but I was going to mention that rebrands can be had stoopid cheap - mine was under $10 and supposedly has perfectly balanced triodes. Bought it at the same time as a Matsu 7dj8. The poor Maty hasn't had a chance to play (other than to confirm it works)

I was trying to be nice helpful non-enabling lying full of it misleading pragmatic. Didn't work?

What's the deal with these Telefunkens you speak of anyways? Can you even get one for less than I paid for the amp? Besides, I thought you were a Amperex 73something guy…

 

[tafens]

Reading this thread has very much interested me in the Vali2, and I was wondering; how does the Vali2 compare to the Lyr3?

 

[bcowen]

What's the deal with these Telefunkens you speak of anyways? Can you even get one for less than I paid for the amp? Besides, I thought you were a Amperex 73something guy…

One of my top favorites in the Vali 2. Telefunken was one of the best (if not the best) at this tube type. A liability of the 6DJ8 type is that many can be noisy or microphonic -- the 6922 overcame a lot of those problems. So If I were buying any I'd be sure to get a right of return if it turns out to suffer from noise issues. They can still be had in the $50 - $75 range (for a single) if you keep your eyes peeled. In fact, a pair up right now for $100:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Telefunken...m3fbe40beaa:g:uIgAAOSwlf5cfdqx&frcectupt=true

The Amperex 7316 is a rich man's 12AU7 and therefore requires an adapter, and is even more $$ than the Tele. But it's another fave.

 

[Mr Trev]

One of my top favorites in the Vali 2. Telefunken was one of the best (if not the best) at this tube type. A liability of the 6DJ8 type is that many can be noisy or microphonic -- the 6922 overcame a lot of those problems. So If I were buying any I'd be sure to get a right of return if it turns out to suffer from noise issues. They can still be had in the $50 - $75 range (for a single) if you keep your eyes peeled. In fact, a pair up right now for $100:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Telefunken...m3fbe40beaa:g:uIgAAOSwlf5cfdqx&frcectupt=true

The Amperex 7316 is a rich man's 12AU7 and therefore requires an adapter, and is even more $$ than the Tele. But it's another fave.

Gotcha. I'll keep my eyes open. My Yugofunken is one of my favs so far, I should probably get a proper Tele. And a native tube will be a bonus.
I was thinking the Amperex was a 6922 equivalent, my bad

 

[ScubaMan2017]

Reading this thread has very much interested me in the Vali2, and I was wondering; how does the Vali2 compare to the Lyr3?

Upon first blush... The Lyr3, by default uses a larger tube (the 6SN7). For my Vali2, I have to use socket savers (in order to clear the chassis) and adapter to use 6SN7 tubes. I also consider the Lyr's volume knob (potentiometer) to be superior to my Vali (that's why I had to modify its knob). Both of these units use just 1 tube -- and that makes it a hell of a lot cheaper to play around with different tubes (mind you, I need to purchased balanced triodes; FAQ #6 [at Tube Depot, it's $2/tube extra]). The Lyr3's an all-in-one unit... I'm running 2 or 3 little brushed aluminum boxes (Vali + EITR + ModiMB + Cthulhu power supply) to get the similar effect. I like clutter & copious shiny things. I've been lucky - I don't suffer detectable electromagnetic interference (EMI) from the various boxes, floor warts, cables, power bars, and wall warts. I'd assume the Lyr3 might be assembled to minimize EMI . Aesthetically, I think the Lyr is more streamlined than my boxes. I suspect at the end of the day, my set up sounds identical to the Lyr3. I'm restricted to headphones (no towers-of-2-channel-power for me). I like my Vali because it allows me to safely play with different gizmos.

@tafens , I assume you're just comparing their amplification prowess. I suspect like my Vali3 (and Magni3), the Lyr will drive my Sennheiser HD650 clones (from Massdrop) just fine. I'd recommend the Lyr if I wanted a one-stop-shop device. My 2 cents...

 

[bcowen]

I was thinking the Amperex was a 6922 equivalent, my bad

The 7308 is the 6922 family member.

The 7316 was only made by Philips (and Amperex branded for the US market) while the 7308 had several manufacturers, both European and American. The European versions are especially good sounding (and would also be native), but prices for the good ones has entered stupid territory. 7316's are still just insane.

 

[tafens]

I assume you're just comparing their amplification prowess. I suspect like my Vali3 (and Magni3), the Lyr will drive my Sennheiser HD650 clones (from Massdrop) just fine. I'd recommend the Lyr if I wanted a one-stop-shop device. My 2 cents...

That was mainly what I was after, yes

I love the sound of the Lyr3+multibit, and I was thinking that if the Vali2 is anything like it (probably not exactly so of course, the Lyr3 has some engineering wizardry the Vali2 doesn’t), it would be a great set-up at work combined with the Modi multibit I also have.

Aside: I was very close to getting the Vali2 before, but then the Magni3 came and I went for the Magni3+ModiMB combo. After that, the Lyr3 appeared, in it’s very appealing all-in-one package.. and now that I found that tubes are my thing, I’m again looking at the Vali2 to maybe dethrone the Magni3 as a secondary setup

 

[Mr Trev]

The 7308 is the 6922 family member.

The 7316 was only made by Philips (and Amperex branded for the US market) while the 7308 had several manufacturers, both European and American. The European versions are especially good sounding (and would also be native), but prices for the good ones has entered stupid territory. 7316's are still just insane.

Ugh, so many numbers. I used to think the Chinese DAP makers were the worst with their alphabet-soup naming schemes. That was before I fell into this quagmire…

 

[quimbo]

For a perfect fit, make your own cables. Not necessarily cheaper, but you can get the exact size you need.

for perspective here is how the schiit cables look https://www.head-fi.org/threads/magni-3-impressions.860812/page-96#post-14052343

 

[ScubaMan2017]

....{snip}........Aside: I was very close to getting the Vali2 before, but then the Magni3 came and I went for the Magni3+ModiMB combo. After that, the Lyr3 appeared, in it’s very appealing all-in-one package.. and now that I found that tubes are my thing, I’m again looking at the Vali2 to maybe dethrone the Magni3 as a secondary setup

Would you consider saving up & purchasing a Valhalla2? Large knob. Lots of tube-potential. The Vali's okay, but the Valhalla... ah, that's something else.

 

[Robert Padgett]

Would you consider saving up & purchasing a Valhalla2? Large knob. Lots of tube-potential. The Vali's okay, but the Valhalla... ah, that's something else.

I can second that emotion. I still use my Vali 2 on the second system, as the tube buffer and HP amp, but the Valhalla 2 is everything I ever expected from a tube amplifier for my Dekoni earpads attached to the Massdrop 6XX Sennheisers. I have listened to a well-matched -- by date code, Tung-Sol 6SN7GT tubes.

I had a third one, that I paired with the black plate Mouse Ears from 1951, and I am at 3 o'clock (max volume is 5 o'clock), lacking nothing in terms of musicality and clarity, the bass is solid and not a hint of hissing esses.

 

[tafens]

Would you consider saving up & purchasing a Valhalla2? Large knob. Lots of tube-potential. The Vali's okay, but the Valhalla... ah, that's something else.

I have considered it, but my wallet did not agree with me. It’s not the cost of the amp itself as much as the implications of rolling four tubes (matched pairs no less) instead of just one..

Wait.. did you say.. large knob?

 

[Robert Padgett]

I have considered it, but my wallet did not agree with me. It’s not the cost of the amp itself as much as the implications of rolling four tubes (matched pairs no less) instead of just one..

Wait.. did you say.. large knob?

Matched tubes may not be all that necessary. The stock 6N6 power tubes should have a good long life and don't really need to be 'rolled'. As for the driver tubes, I have used two different tubes--not at all "matched" and it sounded just fine. Is a matched pair of driver tubes preferred? Yes, I am sure they would be better, but I had some "odd" un-paired 6SN7 tubes, which I used together and in headphones, I couldn't tell the difference.

 

[Jacobh]

I have considered it, but my wallet did not agree with me. It’s not the cost of the amp itself as much as the implications of rolling four tubes (matched pairs no less) instead of just one..

Wait.. did you say.. large knob?

For the Valhalla you won't notice much (if any difference) from rolling the power tubes. You are really just looking at the two input tubes and those can be changed independently of the power tubes.