Connect your headphone xlr cable to xlr to banana or spades speaker adapter cable like this one directly to the speaker taps on the back of Aic10.
Riviera AIC-10 headphones & speakers amplifier
- Thread starter BPED
- Start date
Thanks, I Just ordered my Riveria...................Connect your headphone xlr cable to xlr to banana or spades speaker adapter cable like this one directly to the speaker taps on the back of Aic10.
Just ordered mine.....................can't wait. My Chain will be Susvara, Lina DAC, Riveria. The last two years I have either owned, traded,borrowedThanks @BPED for opening this well deserved and long overdue thread!
The AIC-10 is becoming more and more popular among the ultra-high-end headphones enthusiasts, and I have yet to know somebody who has had it or listened to it thoroughly and wasn't impressed by its sound.
Of course, its price positioning was very ambitious from Riviera Labs, and this raises the bar of expectations to the rooftop, especially considering that in the price range of the AIC-10 you can find many legendary speaker amplifier models and brands, with much more well-established reputation and resale value.
I had the chance of auditioning the AIC-10 at home during my quest for the ultimate amplifier to pair with my AB-1266 headphones, a very enjoyable journey that took me little less than one year. I decided at the time to look mostly into speaker amps because I wanted to drive my LS3/5a as well, and because auditioning at home high end headphones amplifiers here in Italy is basically impossible, and I wanted to make my choice very carefully.
I have written several posts about my auditioning adventures in the Abyss thread and will not make this post even longer than what is getting to by recalling that saga, but in summary the reason why I chose the AIC-10 to pair with the Abyss is that it delivered the best traits of the very finest tube amps and solid state amps I tried in a relatively compact and practical package.
To my ears AIC-10 has bloom, body, richness, holographic presentation one normally tends to relate to tubes and grunt, scale, transparency, speed and bass / treble extension we normally find in the best SS products. The balance between this characteristics can further be adjusted to match taste, mood, and synergy with the remaining of the chain (headphones, to begin with).
Below you find a table with the ratings I have given to the amplifiers I tried over the last year or so. The light grey columns are where I listened in a setup nearly identical to mine, but only for a few hours, while the dark grey ones are shops / friends homes auditioning where the upstream chain to the amp / AB-1266 was different from mine (hence not very reliable). White columns relate to extensive listening at home. 10 does not mean 'perfect', but 'best' among the amplifiers listed, and it is specifically in the context of driving the Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC.
Of course, this ranking is very much specific to my system, subjective sound and musical genres preferences, so take it for what it is.
The bottom line is that, to me, the AIC-10 can compete at or beyond its price range for driving the Abyss.
Other headphones I tried with the AIC-10 are the SR1a (which I own), the Susvara and the MySphere 3.2.
In all cases the results have been very satisfying, where:
- for the Susvara I had best results when using the speaker taps (as with the AB-1266) and a more neutral tube like my Fivre (while for the Abyss and SR1a I still like the Mullard CV491 tonal match the most);
- for the Mysphere, which I found an exquisite combination, I was using low-gain output and, again, my Fivre;
- for the SR1a the AIC-10 is not powerful enough to make this headphone full justice, while being an extremely fine tonality match and able to bring spectacular results with some specific genres.
Coming to loudspeakers, I was skeptical at the beginning because of the renowned inefficiency of my LS3/5a, but all was cleared when I tried the AIC-10 at home.
Again, the AIC-10 gives some soul and bloom to the LS3/5a by preserving their most classical virtues as the pinpoint imaging, vocal presentation and midrange purity.
SPL levels and dynamics (within the intrinsic limitations of this BBC design) are more than adequate to my room / preferences.
In summary (sorry guys for the long post), this is my pro / cons bullet list:
Pros:
- sound
- easy sound tailoring (rolling a single, relatively cheap, tube)
- practicality (not excessive size and heat - I leave it always on, has a remote)
- versatility (low / high efficiency headphones, loudspeakers)
Cons:
- price (hard to justify, especially if you are a frequent buyer / seller)
- elegant but a little understated design for my taste (at this price, I would have preferred a statement design, like the flashy ViVa Solista)
The Aperio-Lina Stack-Bartok-WA 33-Prelude-AB1266-Nain-Focal Utopia,Moon-Meridian-Ican signature-LCD 4-LCD-5.....others after them All I really loved the Aperio the most with a but...........the bass , although out performs any e-stat assumptions was just not providing the impact/dynamics I wanted. After lots of research and advice and can jam discussions it seemed a TOTL Susvara chain could be as clean, clean and exacting as Aperio but with some drive and soul. I also paired the Aperio with the Lina DAC as the Aperio internal was excellent but not TOTL level in comparison. So I am hoping the Susvara,Lina,Riveria chain will make me get some sleep again and off the forums and hold onto some $$$ for a while..heres hoping??? BTW naturally these comments are IMHO
number1sixerfan
Headphoneus Supremus
Susvara and Aperio are so different. I would try not to think about comparing them in the sense of getting everything you love out of either and rather enjoying the Susvara as a TOTL can in its own, different right. I think a well powered Susvara does edge out the Aperio just slightly bass wise and is a bit more open and actually more e-stat like (traditionally) than the Aperio even is. I do also agree that the Aperio is absolutely excellent.
Either way, none of the above really matters. It sounds like you have an amazing system in place, enjoy it as much as you can and I wouldn't worry about missing out on anything at all regardless of any other headphones out there.
DHC Chimera speaker taps to 4-pin XLR + DHC Chimera cable to Susvara would be very synergistic to AIC-10
Thank you agree, I feel very fortunate after many many years to be able to pull this type of system together.Susvara and Aperio are so different. I would try not to think about comparing them in the sense of getting everything you love out of either and rather enjoying the Susvara as a TOTL can in its own, different right. I think a well powered Susvara does edge out the Aperio just slightly bass wise and is a bit more open and actually more e-stat like (traditionally) than the Aperio even is. I do also agree that the Aperio is absolutely excellent.
Either way, none of the above really matters. It sounds like you have an amazing system in place, enjoy it as much as you can and I wouldn't worry about missing out on anything at all regardless of any other headphones out there.
Thanks, Ill look them upDHC Chimera speaker taps to 4-pin XLR + DHC Chimera cable to Susvara would be very synergistic to AIC-10
Spawn300Z
1000+ Head-Fier
I use Danacable Lazuli Nirvana Speaker taps and Lazuli Nirvana Headphone cable to Susvaras. It’s also an outstanding pairing with the Riviera AIC-10.
Would you be comfortable share costs and sourcing?
thank you, much appreciated
Once you are all settled in you can roll some tubes. It is a nice way to tweak the sound in small doses. There is a lot of info in this thread earlier. Happy
Listening.
Listening.
walterboss
100+ Head-Fier
A question on speaker taps...I don't own a Riviera yet, but wondering about set up.
I'd be streaming from Mac Mini > Holo May > Riviera
I have Peter at DHC making me an adapter for speaker taps. Am I right in saying that the only thing to be mindful of when connecting to speaker taps is to turn the volume pot of the Riviera right down to start with?
I'm a little confused because Simone in much earlier posts seem to be suggesting his volume pot was at pretty similar levels regardless of headphone out or speaker taps connection.
Pretty scared of connecting either Sus or 1266 this way, but am surely just being a wimp. I'd rather be a careful wimp though
NB: If anyone wants to sell me a Riviera please PM me!!
I'd be streaming from Mac Mini > Holo May > Riviera
I have Peter at DHC making me an adapter for speaker taps. Am I right in saying that the only thing to be mindful of when connecting to speaker taps is to turn the volume pot of the Riviera right down to start with?
I'm a little confused because Simone in much earlier posts seem to be suggesting his volume pot was at pretty similar levels regardless of headphone out or speaker taps connection.
Pretty scared of connecting either Sus or 1266 this way, but am surely just being a wimp. I'd rather be a careful wimp though
NB: If anyone wants to sell me a Riviera please PM me!!
I use a zynsonix speaker tap to hp adaptor box for a bit of peace of mind. not saying it'll totally prevent any mishaps from using speaker outs to headphones, but the box is designed to reduce such incidents. of course, due care with the volume knob is always good.
Yes just turn the volume down everytime you turn it on or change a headphone. You will get over the initial fear after a few weeks. I was the same when i first got benchmark ahb2 and used rear taps for the fish time.A question on speaker taps...I don't own a Riviera yet, but wondering about set up.
I'd be streaming from Mac Mini > Holo May > Riviera
I have Peter at DHC making me an adapter for speaker taps. Am I right in saying that the only thing to be mindful of when connecting to speaker taps is to turn the volume pot of the Riviera right down to start with?
I'm a little confused because Simone in much earlier posts seem to be suggesting his volume pot was at pretty similar levels regardless of headphone out or speaker taps connection.
Pretty scared of connecting either Sus or 1266 this way, but am surely just being a wimp. I'd rather be a careful wimp though
NB: If anyone wants to sell me a Riviera please PM me!!
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