Schiit Valhalla 3 - Impressions Thread

[dasfast]

.... how about 'square UFOs?'

Ah the rare "square dish"

 

[Ripper2860]

Ah the rare "square dish"

Or as I call it -- the pill foil getter.

 

[JanMc]

I have mine hooked back up with the Lokius in the circuit and have been playing it ALL day. Not one issue. So merely switching tube sides fixed everything on mine. And I gave up on comparing to the Lyr. The Lyr is gonna get sold. I am in love. Sounds so like the instruments are right in front of me. So much air and depth. I could not be happier with this as a preamp. One day I will get around to using it as a hp amp, but not today. I just keep waiting for my wife to come in and ask me to turn it down.

 

[larryhokie]

Got mine back today, too. It's running in the bedroom now with the CV4033s (to keep my tests the same) and will switch to the CV-455s in a while. So far so good!

And that warning should just say "Caution: Hot!" since this thing is

Oh yeah!

 

[bcowen]

.... how about 'square UFOs?'

Yup, that's them. Perhaps they still didn't have a good grasp on aerodynamics even in 1963.

 

[ArmchairPhilosopher]

 

[NippleSauce]

I ended up magically receiving my GL tubes today!

On my Valhalla 3, the Gold Lion E88CC Gold Pins sound a bit more boring than the flavor provided by the Voshkod 1973 6N1Ps. The GLs are definitely lower gain, but are very balanced relative to the 73 tubes. The balanced sound paired with the added clarity to the upper mids and high frequencies make the highs more pleasant to hear than they were previously. However, the balance also softens the super low frequencies/bass- and that is a tube sound flavor that I prefer having a bit more of- and higher impedance or more power generally amplify the bass a bit to where you can physically feel a little bit of it (whereas increasing the volume when this 'flavor' is not present due to your currently installed tubes will not add that physical presence). I wonder if requesting my pair of tubes being high-gain would've helped in this regard...

Aside from that, I am still facing the audio drops with these extremely low heater current tubes installed along with the 6N6P tubes that came with my V3.

I have reached out to Schiit and will have to wait until after the weekend to see what they say.

Edit - Hopefully my opinion thus far on the GL 6922s changes after their initial burn-in time.
Edit 2 (2 days later) - It has, as the sound got a bit more amplified. Granted, I also changed my stock 6N6P tubes w/ a perfectly matched pair of the same tubes....

 

[MattTCG]

Anyone try the v3/hd800s combo. Just wondering how this pairing sounds? ty

 

[bevanc]

So the Valhalla 3 with GE5670 from '57 is very nice. A bit more polite than the 6N26P, but maybe more spacious in soundstage and maybe a little sweeter in the mid range. Very nice with the Arya Stealth. And at a nominal 350mA heater current, less likely to be an issue.

I am finding that the Valhalla 3 is very receptive to different tubes and headphones, highlighting changes quite a bit, perhaps more than even the Vali 3. I am finding a general preference to the no feedback setting. It may be the higher gain, but it just seems right for want of a better word. Currently listening to Mansun's Attack of the Grey Lantern, liking this combination a lot. Soundstage on this album is huge - not disappointing right now.

 

[dasfast]

Anyone try the v3/hd800s combo. Just wondering how this pairing sounds? ty

Got em running right now with some Brimar CV-455 tubes in the front. It sounds great!

 

[MattTCG]

Got em running right now with some Brimar CV-455 tubes in the front. It sounds great!

Is the hd800s peaky on the v3? How is the bass response? ty

 

[docBliny]

Got em running right now with some Brimar CV-455 tubes in the front. It sounds great!

I received four Brimar CV-455s (as I think I mentioned above) this week, but unfortunately three of them have a bad hiss (one was totally silent) even with volume all the way down. I've reached out to Langrex to see what they say. Anyway, I like the CV4033 better than the stock tubes, so they're staying in for now.

 

[dasfast]

The HD800s are just like they normally are, great for Jazz and Acoustic. If you need a bass lift, seek EQ assistance.

 

[Ripper2860]

I received four Brimar CV-455s (as I think I mentioned above) this week, but unfortunately three of them have a bad hiss (one was totally silent) even with volume all the way down. I've reached out to Langrex to see what they say. Anyway, I like the CV4033 better than the stock tubes, so they're staying in for now.

Sorry about your bad luck with the Brimar CV-455s.

 

[docBliny]

Sorry about your bad luck with the Brimar CV-455s.

It's not bad luck unless this turns out to be like trying to get a warranty claim through the company that made our outside garbage/recycling can sheds. They asked for a million photos and details just so that they could find something to deny the claim with. Even an idiot could see that the lids have warped due to weather, nothing else, but the "10 year warranty" looks good in the marketing material. (As a side note, I knew that was coming after having gone through their convoluted "warranty registration" process a couple of years ago when I bought them...)