This post is very similar to the one I made in the Verité thread but is more focussed on the amp side. I will still leave the parts in about tonality matching of the Verité with its pads for completeness:
So here's the edited version:
ZMF Verité, FAW Noir Hybrid HPC
DACs : Violectric V590, Schiit Bifrost 2
Amps: Custom Pass Labs HPA-1 with superior PSU and overall components, Cavalli Liquid Crimson with Telefunken E88CC, V590's amp aka V5XX
overall clarity/transparency: HPA-1, then V590 (let's say 90%) and then Liquid Crimson. HPA-1 is the leanest and most linear of the bunch. This of course also helps in perceiving clarity and transparency. V590 has slightly warmer treble but actually not by much. V590 has the best bass presence of all three and this also adds to the overall warmth. I wish the HPA-1 had that kind of bass presence too. Would have "helped" its more linear and leaner nature. Note: Lean != anemic or thin. It's always in the context of the other gear. HPA-1's extension is not lacking at all!
overall linearity: HPA-1, then V590/Liquid Crimson. See above. HPA-1 is kinda ruler-flat if such a thing exists but not boring or dead sounding like THX amps. Not at all. This is how you design a linear amplifier instead of deadening everything. Absolutely masterful but it also means that pairing headphones is least forgiving. Ranking for ruthlessness: HPA-1 > V590 > Cavalli Liquid Crimson. Yes, pairings on the Cavalli are not fail-safe at all. It's after all no bloomy, tubey, superwet sound amp but very close to the other two.
bass presence, body/palpatibility: V590 > HPA-1 > Liquid Crimson. V590 is more palpatible in the bass and a bit more enhanced than both. It definitely shares some of the bass presence of the US4+. It's the most potent but not bassy. Hard to describe bass presence. Do not see it as volume or equalization but the feeling of bass and how it lingers, sustains, "strikes, hits, pounds" and how you believe "being there".
mid tonality: Liquid Crimson (with the TF E88CC 1967) and HPA-1 are the most linear here actually. V590 gives a bit more body for male vocals and makes them more present. I would definitely say there's a very slight bonus in the lower mids but not by much. Very very slightly. It will not make your lower mid "enhanced" headphone speak like an Uruk-Hai, don't worry.
treble character/tonality: This is kinda easy to assess from the above descriptions. The HPA-1 and the V590 share a very fine delicate, grain-free treble that is very well extended though and sparkles with microdetails and leaves you with tasteful decay. Not dryness, no unnatural cutoff. The V590 as expected comes off slightly warmer but it's not really far off so the V281 experience does not apply here which makes pairing a different game. Not as strong as the HPA-1 and the US4+ but still, it changes the game.
See
@F Bizzle 's important remark when pairing the Bifrost 2 with the V590 vs the V281.
The PSU sections of both are very well implemented, it's just magnificient to see how both amps can impose their signature without adding glaring flaws.
The Cavalli is the least bright of the bunch here and as stated slightly softer, more forgiving but still an incisive, lively amp, make no mistake.
The tube imposes its own magic onto the sound, giving the treble a "see-throughness" character, making the Cavalli the most holographic amp here.
Micro/Macro/Quattro Spaghettino, involvement factor:
I have a hard time holding these 3 very apart here. The Liquid Crimson really is a master of microdynamics and involvement. It's why I believe it's held in such high regard until this day. It really outshines it's comparative "inferiority" in macrodynamic swings. V590 is the most potent in macrodynamic swings and it also has the right bass potency to leave its mark on the listener. The HPA-1 is somewhere in the middle, albeit a bit more on the leaner side but still as capable as the V590. Both solidstates have a fixed tonality and character whereas naturally the Cavalli offers variance through tubes but not to the degree as we know of much more thorough tube based designs. All three amps are designed to be involving and deeply digging into the music and all three excel. During my evaluation (with the Verite and HE-1000SE) I only timed the listening session so that I did not needlessly burn through the Cavalli's tube to get as much quality time with it as possible. It was that good of a session, it had to be min/maxed. That's how much I cherish all three.
If there's one trait where you should not hold one of these 3 accountable, it's resolution. I would not bother much honestly: There is nothing that one amp does noticably better than the other, BUT there are important differences that unavoidably result in a ranking:
HPA-1 and the V590 are more transparent and actually really similar in many more ways than to the Crimson, they are more "true to the source" than the Cavalli. No doubt. As clean as the Cavalli is it does not reach both amps there and does not share their blackground. It makes for a less "studio sound" as the designer of the HPA-1 told me when he was comparing mine with his work. He even called it a cassette experience but being a former master of cassette tapes during my childhood and youth I do not agree here. However sometimes words have to be more striking to help distinguishing and I appreciate his ruthlessness as much as the ruthlessness of the HPA-1.
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To get back to my assessment of the Verité with these 3 amps:
Here's my ranking with the Verité Pads in terms of best pairings where the goal is not get fatigued quickly like a modern overprocessed pop song on an untreated HD 800 with Sabre Glare:
1) Cavalli Liquid Crimson
2) V590 ~ Pass Labs HPA-1
The Verité's transients are sharper and more aggressive with the Verité pads, there's also a slight emphasis in the upper treble that the Universe pads compensate if needed or wished for. Both pads have their fans after all. Overall I like the Verité pads best.
The Cavalli counters the Verité pads best. Despite its incisiveness it's still slightly softer than both other amps and takes a bit off the initial shot, striking the absolute best balance between liveliness and peakiness. Also breathes in a bit of romance with the 67's(?) Telefunken ECC88 singing and glowing in the middle of this phenomenal amp.
V590 "counters" with a slightly warmer treble than the HPA-1 and the best bass fundament of both. It inherits US4+'s sustain and presence but not to the same extent. Still something the Verité "rewards". In terms of treble it does not reach the Cavalli's balance though as it's less "rolled off" or less warm.
I placed both the V590 and the HPA-1 on the same stage in the end as despite the HPA-1 going more forward and ruthlessly through with absolute linearity the treble response of both is not that far off and both kinda land in the same "aggressiveness" territory after all. This custom HPA-1 uses a better PSU and better components than the original one, it's an absolute magnificient headphone amp but it's the most linear and leanest of all three. It should be placed on number 3 but since it's not decisive enough I made both share the spot. Someone has to be number 1.
Now here's my ranking with the Universe Pads in terms of best pairings
1) V590
2) Cavalli Liquid Crimson ~ HPA-1
Positions change slightly here. The Universe Pads are now as expected warmer, softer for the Cavalli and it loses the balance that it previously held with the Verité pads.
The V590's again in the middle of both amps. In the middle of treble tonality, with sharper transients than the Cavalli, better bass presence than both.
HPA-1 again as expected cutting through everything. The universe pads can only do so much. Note, the HPA-1 is not a bright amp in the sense we would call a HD 800 a bright headphone. It is masterfully tuned, it simply is tuned to be more linear than both other amps and thus needs more careful matching. The Verité despite its perceived character is potentially aggressive. It's a highly technically capable masterpiece that blends Utopian technicalities with romance.
In terms of DAC I have an internal XMOS 24/192 in the V100, ModiMB, Teac UD-505 (AK4497), SMSL M300MKII (also AK4497) and Gustard A18 (AK4499) upcoming soon. For cables: Nordost Heimdall RCA, SPM Reference XLR, Valhalla XLR. So far the best combination for my taste is UD505/SMSLM300 (AK4497) -> ValhallaXLR -> V200->T1.1. Bright and very detailed but not agressive. I'm aiming at getting a DAC less V590 to hook up with Gustard A18 and the Valhalla XLR and using the T1.1 headphones. Will provide feedback when I get a V590NoDAC.
