[Rameish]

I am surprised no one mentioned the V2s don't have the Muting Relay , there's still that DC Voltage during on/off cycles ....******* pisses me off 

Is this true? Why wouldn't they do that? I had thought they has implemented this even before the 2nd version of Asgard was released and offered to fix the problem on older units of Asgard. Well let's just wait and see if they respond before pulling the trigger. Damn ...I'm gonna wait a couple of days till I hear from schiit.

 

[MrTechAgent]

Is this true? Why wouldn't they do that? I had thought they has implemented this even before the 2nd version of Asgard was released and offered to fix the problem on older units of Asgard. Well let's just wait and see if they respond before pulling the trigger. Damn ...I'm gonna wait a couple of days till I hear from schiit.

Well one guy on YouTube got a reply from Jason , according to Jason its not as dramatic as it used to be on the Asgard , due to some Engineering reason the V2s have a slow turn on feature which supposedly fixes the issue , I have not experienced the problem on all my headphones except the DT-150 in which I can clearly hear the V2 suck up the membrane.

 

[Rameish]

Well one guy on YouTube got a reply from Jason , according to Jason its not as dramatic as it used to be on the Asgard , due to some Engineering reason the V2s have a slow turn on feature which supposedly fixes the issue , I have not experienced the problem on all my headphones except the DT-150 in which I can clearly hear the V2 suck up the membrane.

So does this mean it won't damage the headphones over time? Could someone confirm or refute this? Please. I mean there are a lot of tech minded people here like tangent, morsel etc I mean the guys who designed the PPA should be able to confirm or refute this. Is Kurt W still active here. Sorry to ask but these were some of the people I respected back in 2001 when I first joined head-fi after headwize sorta hibernated. They also spoke their minds. Sorry but it's been years since I visited head-fi and maybe they are no longer active. What about hirsch he's a tube guy and is/was a mid is he still active?

BTW the beyerdynamic dt150 is a great pair of cans. I remember praising them to no end back in2001. Bit do I feel old suddenly...kekeke

I'm sure someone at schiit will respond soon. And explain it clearly. Let wait for that.

 

[superjawes]

So does this mean it won't damage the headphones over time? Could someone confirm or refute this? Please. I mean there are a lot of tech minded people here like tangent, morsel etc I mean the guys who designed the PPA should be able to confirm or refute this. Is Kurt W still active here. Sorry to ask but these were some of the people I respected back in 2001 when I first joined head-fi after headwize sorta hibernated. They also spoke their minds. Sorry but it's been years since I visited head-fi and maybe they are no longer active. What about hirsch he's a tube guy and is/was a mid is he still active?

BTW the beyerdynamic dt150 is a great pair of cans. I remember praising them to no end back in2001. Bit do I feel old suddenly...kekeke

I'm sure someone at schiit will respond soon. And explain it clearly. Let wait for that.

[quote="Schiit Audio, Asgard FAQs"url=http://schiit.com/products/asgard-2] So can I leave my headphones plugged in all the time, or do I have to do the unplug-and replug thing every time I turn Asgard 2 off and on?

You can leave them plugged in all the time. Asgard 2 has a muting relay which delays output on first turn-on, and mutes the output on turn-off.[/quote]
How's this? I know an independent answer might be more assuring, but they seem to have addressed the concern.

You could also email your concerns to them. Email responses are pretty quick.

 

[Jason Stoddard]

How's this? I know an independent answer might be more assuring, but they seem to have addressed the concern.

You could also email your concerns to them. Email responses are pretty quick.

 
Hey guys, this is covered in the product FAQ:
 
 
Does this have a muting relay, like all your other amps?
No. The slow turn-on and turn-off characteristics of tubes and limited current capability means there's no muting relay—which is the same for pretty much every tube OTL headphone amp out there. While there is DC on the output at turn-on and turn-off, it is on the order of 100mV into 32-ohm headphones. If you are concerned about this, unplug your headphones before turning the amp off, and wait 30 seconds or so after you turn Valhalla 2 on to plug in.

 

[MustelaNivalis]

For what it is worth, in practice I do not have any problems combining my Shure SRH1840 (65 [Ohm]) with the Valhalla 2. It is always plugged in and I even switch between low-gain and high-gain live (cans on my head). Potential DC doesn't make it to the membrane anyway it is dampened by the electro-mechanical system (AKA headphone) which has limited mechanical speed. Should you then also avoid loud percussion instruments? As long as the amplitude does not exceed the headphones peak-power specification... (usually 10 times or more higher than the RMS power)
 
BTW a common way of characterizing a system is by measuring the step response. Apply a step from zero to some DC value on the input and check how much overshoot and undershoot the output has and for how long. This is practised for ages on all sorts of audio equipment.

 

[Rem0o]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Valhalla has a slow turn on/off cycle due to the tubes starting to conduct slowly as they heat up. Combine that with what is probably some coupling caps or DC servo at the output, and you have no big DC spikes going at your headphones.

 

[Rameish]

That is reassuring news indeed Jason. Thanks.

 

[sandab]

No pops, click, or other potentially headphone-damaging output in my V2 when I turn it on or off.  It's perfectly silent.
 
Also, the V2 drives Beyer T1's very nicely.  No complaints.  Gorgeous-sounding with the stock tubes.
 
Got my Telefunken E88CC's and quickly popped them in to make sure they're good.  They come burnt-in, as a matched pair.  No cryo.  gmo 13500 & 13300.  Haven't done any extensive comparative listening, but off-hand they're definitely cleaner, smoother, more neutral than the stock.  Soundstage is different.  To be honest I think they might be a little too neutral for the T1's and my likes, but I think they'll be nice with the HD650s.  More listening is needed (the HD650s are at work and I'm taking the Bifrost + V2 in on Monday).  Or maybe I just need to get used to them.

 

[Syan25]

I have had no problems either though I am still in the burn-in phase - I heard nothing unusual using my DT-880

 

[MustelaNivalis]

  Correct me if I'm wrong, but Valhalla has a slow turn on/off cycle due to the tubes starting to conduct slowly as they heat up. Combine that with what is probably some coupling caps or DC servo at the output, and you have no big DC spikes going at your headphones.

You are absolutely right, a single ended output stage needs decoupling to block the DC. But there can always be a transient during on/off, charging/decharging the decoupling capacitor. In this case: P = U^2 / R = (100 mV)^2 / 32 = 0.3 mW. To my understanding that does not push the coil/membrane even near the mechanical maximum position nor does it approach the heat dissipation limit. A Shure SRH1840 for example can sink 1000 mW.
 
The simplicity of the single ended OTL topology for me is the main reason for buying the Valhalla. No push-pull, no cross-over, just a swing over a linear part of the transconductance curve. Tubes produce some second harmonics distortion but in this case that is < 0.04 %. This is worst-case so using a headphone with the lowest possible impedance (32 [Ohm] I guess). The white cathode follower always produces the max distortion on the lowest load impedance's. If the price I have to pay for this perfected simplicity is a little transient during on/off, so be it.

 

[Rameish]

I gave the Valhalla a listen this evening and it's looking good. I just need to bring my transport to the dealer to listen to the bifrost and Valhalla sometime next week. Might end up buying both. Hope they can give me a nicer price. Kekeke hope runs eternal right. Frankly even at the sg prices I might just both.

 

[Billheiser]

I gave the Valhalla a listen this evening and it's looking good. I just need to bring my transport to the dealer to listen to the bifrost and Valhalla sometime next week. Might end up buying both. Hope they can give me a nicer price. Kekeke hope runs eternal right. Frankly even at the sg prices I might just both.

Generally Schiit sells at its fixed retail price, which is as reasonable as they can make it. If the dealer offers a discount it would be entirely from their margin, so I wouldn't count on it. Will be interested if you get a discount; let us know if you did or didn't.

 

[Rameish]

Generally Schiit sells at its fixed retail price, which is as reasonable as they can make it. If the dealer offers a discount it would be entirely from their margin, so I wouldn't count on it. Will be interested if you get a discount; let us know if you did or didn't.

I said in half jest. But dealers in sg sell at a reasonably marked up price from what you see advertised at schiit. About US$90 for the lower end units. So hopefully if you buy to units you might get the mark up reduced at bit - hopefully. Nobody likes to pay more in life but such is life and capitalism

 

[MrTechAgent]

Valhalla 2 :
 
Peak DC Voltage when turning
on: -0.103v ~ 2.799v
off: -2.246v ~ 0.971v
 
That's a figure I got from a person on YouTube , unless you want to massage your headphone diaphragms I would suggest un-plugging your headphones before turning it off , its like going for a back massage and then coming out with a broken spine 
 
Again , I'm not bashing it , I own and love it but just keeping you guys updated for the safety of your headphones , take it or leave it ....
 
Not a big deal for me since my 150s suffer , not all