[W3WEB]

Most people in my audio group prefer tubes as well but it is hard to say how many picked up on that during a blind listen, that would be another comparison down the road.
Once again I used the same test music my group uses, scored each DAC and then put on Beethoven's 9th symphony as well as other selections I knew well and just could not get past the great tube output stage. I would not be unhappy owning any of the final five DACS and they were not very far apart. In this round the OG Yggy + came in third. I did not want to open up the Doge to change tubes since it belonged to someone else. I had permission on the PrimaLuna. I started with tube audio when I was 13 and this makes a great final system for me.

Thank you for sharing your DAC adventure with us. I have been fascinated by the PrimaLuna DAC, but am very nervous about the soldered in oscillator tube. As a bedroom system, this would be powered on for 12 hours every night - which would give ~ 2 years of life on that tube. Not enthusiastic about replacing / re-soldering. If only they made it socketed like a normal tube, I'd purchase in a second.

That said, the Yggy and Bifrost MB are both excellent too. For me, the tube amps add enough magic for my ears.

 

[corndog71]

What am I missing? I found Andor to be OK, the Mandalorian is cute but otherwise pretty bad, and Boba Fett was just absolutely ghastly.

It’s fantasy. What’s not to like?

 

[Paladin79]

Thank you for sharing your DAC adventure with us. I have been fascinated by the PrimaLuna DAC, but am very nervous about the soldered in oscillator tube. As a bedroom system, this would be powered on for 12 hours every night - which would give ~ 2 years of life on that tube. Not enthusiastic about replacing / re-soldering. If only they made it socketed like a normal tube, I'd purchase in a second.

That said, the Yggy and Bifrost MB are both excellent too. For me, the tube amps add enough magic for my ears.

I can solder lol. Naturally I would help if you ever needed that tube replaced, I will most likely stock up on that tube once I get my own personal DAC. A group member loaned one for the challenge.

 

[dstrimbu]

Would you care to share any subjective listening notes characterizing the sonic changes switching between any of the amps on those setups? It sounds like you used to have mono Vidars driving your LS50s, but not entirely sure if that's what you were saying.
Feel free to PM to me if you'd prefer. Just trying to get an idea of what I might expect to change.

Thanks!

Hi, BeyerMonster - sorry - I should have been more clear. I never connected the Vidars to the LS50s, but here's a summary of what I have tried...

The big system [Vidar monos, migrated to Tyr monos]:

The mono OG Vidars were purchased in May of 2018 to drive my 'big' system. In January of 2020, I upgraded the loudspeakers to B&W 804 D3s. With the Vidar monoblocks, the system sounded very, very good. I rarely listen at high volumes (over 75-80db), but on occasion, one might feel the need to show off... and, although the Vidar monos could drive the B&Ws at a very high volume level, they seemed to lose a bit of control over the bass drivers at higher volumes, especially on program material that had strong bass. The B&Ws have an impedance dip in the mid-bass region that can make them difficult to drive, from what I have read, and this situation seems to reinforce that factoid.

Also, at high volumes, the Vidars projected a tiny bit of stridency in the upper mids / low treble. Never shrill, not even close - just a tiny bit of strain that was noticeable at nearly the exact same volume level each time I 'cranked it', pretty much regardless of program material. My Benchmark LA4 preamp reports output level in 0.5db steps, and the point of diminishing returns happened within +,- 1 db. As a reference, that point corresponded to approximately -14db on the LA4's display, so I will go out on a limb and state that the stridency was probably not originating in the preamplifier. YMMV.

After replacing the Vidars with the Tyr monoblocks, I would "derate" my subjective rating of the Vidar pair (in this specific system) a bit and say that - compared to the Tyr, the monoblock Vidar sounded very good. "Only" one very. Yeah, I know, not quantifiable in any way, shape or form. I can say that the Tyr seems to have a tremendous power reserve (thank you power-supply choke, I think) and exhibits audibly better control over the bass drivers of the B&Ws at high volume levels, on music with strong bass content. The Tyr monos never deliver any stridency, up to and (momentarily) beyond my high-water volume mark.

Without getting too far off base (I am the guy who uses "very" vs. "very, very" as quantifiers... WTH, anyway? ) - I can also say that the Tyr monos have zero audible "grain" in their presentation; from the lowest to the highest volume levels, they sound incredibly smooth, powerful and detailed. They deliver a perfectly black background (now that the Left Tyr, which had a slight, +6db over background hum, took a trip back to Valencia for a motherboard replacement), and seem to have total control over the loudspeaker drivers at any volume level, sane or not.

Most important point: if I had never heard Tyr, I would still be happy with the Vidars, and would have stayed that way for a long time.

The office system [Carver TFM-35 stereo, migrated to Aegir monos]:

Prior to getting the Aegir pair, I had a refurbished Carver TFM-35 (stereo) driving a pair of LS50s in my office.

The upstairs system also sounded very good with the TFM-35 driving it. I went for the Aegirs on a whim, and... wow. As you know, I'm not good with audio adjectives, but I can say that the Aegirs brought a lush, smooth and incredibly detailed presentation to the LS50 / near-field setup in my office. Honestly, I bought the Aegirs after John Atkinson (of Stereophile) tested Tyr with his LS50s and stated that he could live with that pairing 'forever' - I thought that that was crazy overkill, and Aegir monos would be more than enough.

AFAIC, I hit the jackpot. I am in this seat 8-10 hours a day, and I routinely stop what I'm doing and just listen to the Jotunheim -> Aegir monoblock -> LS50 setup and wonder "How much better can this get?".

Probably a little bit. Maybe I need another Yggy for the office system? Nah... I'm just going to listen for a while, and keep smiling (and tapping my foot).

More to come on the office system as I get more concrete examples.

Cheers! /ds

 

[dstrimbu]

Never underestimate the power of cardboard. Well, maybe with a little help.

You laugh, Mr. Cowen, but you can glue a rowboat together with FlexSeal and drive it really fast, too.
I saw it on the TV, so it MUST be true...

 

[OldRoadToad]

Most people in my audio group prefer tubes as well but it is hard to say how many picked up on that during a blind listen, that would be another comparison down the road.
Once again I used the same test music my group uses, scored each DAC and then put on Beethoven's 9th symphony as well as other selections I knew well and just could not get past the great tube output stage. I would not be unhappy owning any of the final five DACS and they were not very far apart. In this round the OG Yggy + came in third. I did not want to open up the Doge to change tubes since it belonged to someone else. I had permission on the PrimaLuna. I started with tube audio when I was 13 and this makes a great final system for me.

What does this DAC look like, please?


ORT

 

[dstrimbu]

I'd love to try an Aegir on my 91dB sensitive Martin Logan ElectroMotion ESL's. I don't crank, so I wonder if it would work?

I'll bet it would sound fantastic.

 

[OldRoadToad]

I haven't any experience with what's shown. However I have experience with very similar gear. I Have 3 Douk tube buffered mono amps(stereo and sub) along with my Schiit stuff as they provide major space and weight savings in our Class B and also our travel trailer a tube buffered stereo amp for the same reason.

No problems after 35,000 miles and counting!

Sorry ORT, no meters on mine!
In the "B" an original Modi Multi-Bit is mounted underneath the table, thinking about the new one!

For long term stays in the trailer. The little amp is below behind the headphones.


Jason doesn't make any RV Schiit power amps, so there ya have it.

Excellente'!

ORT

 

[Paladin79]

What does this DAC look like, please?


ORT

 

[dstrimbu]

Seems like the world needs a slightly more powerful Aegir, maybe 50W stereo and 100W mono? But the mono doesn't sound as good?

The mono Aegirs sound amazing here into a pair of LS50s, but maybe I'm using them wrong...

According to Jason's Law, that slightly larger Aegir would weigh twice as much as the current one and would output 10K BTU/hr (2.9kW).

j/k

 

[OldRoadToad]

That is really good looking! I know I can not afford it but I am happy any one else can! WoW!

"There can be no understanding between the hand and the brain unless the heart acts as mediator." - Maria in Metropolis

ORT

 

[adydula]

What do you use as a source for the MM2 and do you upsample the music file (to 192khz) before it goes to MM2 or do you play the music file at its original sampling rate to the MM2?

I send the PCM as is...whatever bit depth and sampling rate.
Most of my stuff is 16/44.1.
I go out of my way to keep the original source as is.
Its a pain at times.
Select NOS on the MMB2.

Unless I want to play and see what if etc..

 

[dstrimbu]

I agree with your description. Vintage to me means old but still desirable. Vintage cars, audio gear, etc.

Wine... don't forget wine.

 

[dstrimbu]

Too late! I just got off the phone with SONGS, aka San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station and ordered up one. Since the aptly nicknamed "Dolly Parton" is out of commission I got a sweet deal. The lads at Chernobyl tried to sell me on a "vintage retro repro" but reading this thread kept me from losing my mind, my hair (what is left!) and my wallet. USA all the way.

'n' Schiit.

ORT

Careful, ORT - you may be getting scammed. SONGS was shut down permanently in 2013. Not sure that the decommissioning team is picking up the phone...

That was the plant at which Bechtel installed a reactor vessel backwards in 1977. The error was totally fixable, but at 400+ tons mass, a bit of a headache back-ache.

 

[ImagesbyMurray]

I see that power switch there - sneaking up around the corner.......