[Tunkejazz]

For the headphones that you have, both amps will provide plenty of power. That's no problem. Ember has more setup options but it also is not a good match for IEMs or other highly efficient headphones. My Fostex TH-X00, for example, have a very noticeable noisefloor when plugged into Ember at 0 volume.

I have owned Ember for a couple years and I love it (#1 amp for a lot of my headphones), but I just bought a Vali 2 to accommodate my Fostex and other efficient headphones.

Also, FWIW, I really didn't enjoy most of the tubes I've tried with Ember, including a couple 6SN7 tubes. People have gone nuts with tubes on this amp and, while I'm sure they found some spectacular matches, my simple 6DJ8 Bugle Boy tube has been better than every other tube I've tried. Point being: the tube rolling may empty your pocket faster than you would like and the Vali 2 will not allow this to happen.

Well...my Ember with 25ohm headphones can be pretty quiet depending on the tube I use (it can be noisy too).

Saying that the Vali2 will not empty your pocket is...let's say not true. In the Vali2 thread some people are already discussing tubes that can cost more than the amp (i.e. telefunken e88cc).

 

[HOWIE13]

Well...my Ember with 25ohm headphones can be pretty quiet depending on the tube I use (it can be noisy too).

Saying that the Vali2 will not empty your pocket is...let's say not true. In the Vali2 thread some people are already discussing tubes that can cost more than the amp (i.e. telefunken e88cc).

 

Well...my Ember with 25ohm headphones can be pretty quiet depending on the tube I use (it can be noisy too).

Saying that the Vali2 will not empty your pocket is...let's say not true. In the Vali2 thread some people are already discussing tubes that can cost more than the amp (i.e. telefunken e88cc).

Indeed, and added to that in general terms, with one or two notable exceptions, it's been my experience that the better 6DJ8's are more expensive than many good Octals.

 

[HOWIE13]

  For the headphones that you have, both amps will provide plenty of power. That's no problem. Ember has more setup options but it also is not a good match for IEMs or other highly efficient headphones. My Fostex TH-X00, for example, have a very noticeable noisefloor when plugged into Ember at 0 volume.
 
I have owned Ember for a couple years and I love it (#1 amp for a lot of my headphones), but I just bought a Vali 2 to accommodate my Fostex and other efficient headphones.
 
Also, FWIW, I really didn't enjoy most of the tubes I've tried with Ember, including a couple 6SN7 tubes. People have gone nuts with tubes on this amp and, while I'm sure they found some spectacular matches, my simple 6DJ8 Bugle Boy tube has been better than every other tube I've tried. Point being: the tube rolling may empty your pocket faster than you would like and the Vali 2 will not allow this to happen.

I found Ember to synergise pretty well with most of the tubes I've tried.  Some have been excellent, some reasonable, but none, maybe surprisingly, really poor. Bugle Boy is also my favourite 6DJ8 for Ember but tweaking with the Octals has furthered my horizon and desires. 

 

[Thujone]

Saying that the Vali2 will not empty your pocket is...let's say not true. In the Vali2 thread some people are already discussing tubes that can cost more than the amp (i.e. telefunken e88cc).

The amp is twice as expensive (almost) and is very limited in the amount of tubes you can try. Your argument can easily be used against Ember.

 

[Thujone]

Let me clarify, since I don't want to upset the hype train:
 
1. Project Ember is the best amp purchase I've made to date; it has the best value for the price. Period. Ember has so many possible configurations and it can easily drive my HE-6 without issues.
 
2. Ember does have its faults. No, it isn't the quietest amp with IEMs and other sensitive headphones. Even Polaris apparently has issues here, and it doesn't have the tube distortion to go with it.
 
3. Ember's auto-bias opens a much bigger realm of tubes than Vali 2. If you love tube rolling (as most do), this isn't a bad thing. There are enormously expensive tubes that can be put in Ember or Vali 2, so that's a moot point.
 
4. I personally found plenty of tubes that I really dislike for my tastes. I would prefer a warmer, punchier tube over a dry tube with poor dynamics. I have had to purchase more tubes than necessary, but such is the life of tube rolling. Sure, you can find tubes that are quieter, but what about the sound? Trying to find a tube to satisfy your sensitive headphones (good sound, low noise) is almost another journey in and of itself.

 

[HOWIE13]

  Let me clarify, since I don't want to upset the hype train:
 
1. Project Ember is the best amp purchase I've made to date; it has the best value for the price. Period. Ember has so many possible configurations and it can easily drive my HE-6 without issues.
 
2. Ember does have its faults. No, it isn't the quietest amp with IEMs and other sensitive headphones. Even Polaris apparently has issues here, and it doesn't have the tube distortion to go with it.
 
3. Ember's auto-bias opens a much bigger realm of tubes than Vali 2. If you love tube rolling (as most do), this isn't a bad thing. There are enormously expensive tubes that can be put in Ember or Vali 2, so that's a moot point.
 
4. I personally found plenty of tubes that I really dislike for my tastes. I would prefer a warmer, punchier tube over a dry tube with poor dynamics. I have had to purchase more tubes than necessary, but such is the life of tube rolling. Sure, you can find tubes that are quieter, but what about the sound? Trying to find a tube to satisfy your sensitive headphones (good sound, low noise) is almost another journey in and of itself.

I have the Ember, Horizon and Starlight and the Starlight suits IEM's best IMHO. There is no noise and there is still a lot of opportunity to tweak if you want to, actually more so than it's more expensive siblings in some respects.
It costs about the same as the Vali so I think it would be the natural G1217 amp to compare with the Vali.

 

[Thujone]

@HOWIE13, I agree. Based on specs, G1217 has a lot of competitors to the Vali 2 but you may be right about Starlight being a more direct competitor.
 
Ember and Vali 2 are different enough that I somehow justified needing both. Why I chose Vali 2 over G1217's other offerings is sort of random. I have a Wyrd to put under it? Hah. The specs are pretty satisfying as well (hungry orthos). Definitely a decent, powerful amp at a small price. Can't wait to hear it.

 

[Tunkejazz]

  Let me clarify, since I don't want to upset the hype train:
 
1. Project Ember is the best amp purchase I've made to date; it has the best value for the price. Period. Ember has so many possible configurations and it can easily drive my HE-6 without issues.
 
2. Ember does have its faults. No, it isn't the quietest amp with IEMs and other sensitive headphones. Even Polaris apparently has issues here, and it doesn't have the tube distortion to go with it.
 
3. Ember's auto-bias opens a much bigger realm of tubes than Vali 2. If you love tube rolling (as most do), this isn't a bad thing. There are enormously expensive tubes that can be put in Ember or Vali 2, so that's a moot point.
 
4. I personally found plenty of tubes that I really dislike for my tastes. I would prefer a warmer, punchier tube over a dry tube with poor dynamics. I have had to purchase more tubes than necessary, but such is the life of tube rolling. Sure, you can find tubes that are quieter, but what about the sound? Trying to find a tube to satisfy your sensitive headphones (good sound, low noise) is almost another journey in and of itself.

@Thujone of course you have had your own experience and it is well appreciated here!
I just wanted to clarify that tube rolling will empty your pockets no matter what (I wasn't referring to the price of the amp!).
 
I guess the Vali 2 is a great sounding amp (I haven't had the chance to test it), but the concept of having a single tube amp at a very competitive price was already available for a long time in the G1217 listings. When Schiit makes a new amp, the hype goes beyond reality. I had the Vali 1, and I liked it but it had its flaws too. I much prefer the Ember and the Polaris.
 
I guess the Vali 2 has better isolation against electromagnetic interference as it has a closed chassis compared to the G1217 options. I have to admit that I don't use IEMs.
 
I totally agree with point 4

 

[Thujone]

Hah! I can definitely agree that it's unfortunate that G1217 isn't getting as much hype as the Vali 2 when they've had the single tube hybrid concept for a looooong time. Plenty more options to suit your needs too. Seriously. Again though, the Vali 2 just appears (spec wise and price wise) to suit my needs a little more than another G1217 offering. At this price, it competes with Starlight the most but Starlight may struggle a little bit more with hungry orthos. The price and specs of Vali 2 vs. Starlight are very very close though!

 

[richard51]

i was tempted by shiit product in the beginning.... i listen to one... i thanks the guardian angel that drive me to garage 1217 ....After 2 years... I love it more...marketing genius is good but i prefer modest product with great return ... The ember is this one ... i thanks god and garage 1217...

 

[iancraig10]

I think people are forgetting here that Jeremy is not really like a business. He's a one man band and an enthusiast. That's why his customer service is so good. You're getting to the boss straight away!!

His amps are hand made by him. Unless you build the kit. He's run off his feet

The Schiit hype is caused by the users because perhaps more have been sold? Just because there's less hype doesn't necessarily mean anything is 'better' than something else, but comparing two amps on here Could easily cause problems between two sides.

 

[DecentLevi]

IMO, product comparisons are healthy for this industry because any any improvements of one product over another can cause the other vendor to make improvements - accelerating innovation. And if my assumptions are correct comparisons are something the vendors come to expect.
 
The above could also be said for negative reviews on a product

 

[iancraig10]

Yes. But it does depend on the quality of reviews as well rather than anecdotal comments.

I'm sure that many of us have bought products that we might have regretted later, due to reviews.

 

[ericr]

...

2. Ember does have its faults. No, it isn't the quietest amp with IEMs and other sensitive headphones. Even Polaris apparently has issues here, and it doesn't have the tube distortion to go with it.
...

It own a good number of IEMs from $35 Vsonic units to TOTL from 1964 Ears and found the Ember to be such a phenomenal amp with them I bought a second Ember for use at work. You have to learn which tubes have what gain and avoid high gain tubes such as the 12AX7 in favor of low gain tubes such as the 6CG7 and 6SN7.

Also, for Ember 1 owners like myself, Jeremy will do a mod of two resistors to reduce the levels of the low gain setting. For Ember II owners it's just a simple matter of installing a resistor pack to reduce the level of the low gain setting.

 

[HOWIE13]

Yes. But it does depend on the quality of reviews as well rather than anecdotal comments.

I'm sure that many of us have bought products that we might have regretted later, due to reviews.

I take with a pinch of salt about 50% of what people say when it comes to reviews.
I mean you couldn't make up some of the stuff - 'weeping with emotion after my spiritual journey', 'feeling like I was the microphone right in front of the singer's mouth' and the all time favourite 'WOW I heard sounds I've never heard before'.
Do these people never stop and just think for a moment that maybe I wouldn't want to be stuck right in front of somebody's mouth, or that maybe the writer/composer doesn't want us to hear every tiny detail of the sound in the mix?