[Ichos]

......I remain impressed by its dynamics & bass (both are epic) & "voicing" that manages to combine resolution w/slight warmth & a musical sound.......

Exactly what i am hearing with it's little brother the V280.
A great TOTL amp and a great match with HD800s.

 

[RobertSM]

I'm now also using V281 as a preamp for a pair of Genelec active speakers. I can confirm the same sonic character we all know and love in the headphone stage is present in the line stage of V281.

 

[phonomat]

You, Sir, are a man after my own taste.
I use my V281 as a pre-amp for the Genelec 8331's on my desk (but with Hugo for DAC), and I can't really imagine a better desktop setup. Honestly, the only gripe I have is that the Vio and the Chord don't look good together, so I'm waiting for a new Vio Dac to exchange it. Soundwise, zero complaints.

 

[Fegefeuer]

After some strange overload issues, I am getting a replacement unit - Fried has been ever so helpful (as has Gerardo from PlayStereo in Italy). Can't wait to get it back up and running.
I thought I was happy with the V200...which is brilliant, but the V281 is just better in every way. Detailed, not overly analytical and very musical. Just my kind of sound...
I am not going to try and explain how it sounds but I just love it with my LCD-3's - a real end game headphone amp (also sounds fantastic as a preamp for my Naim Power Amp).
Still hankering after a pair of Focal Utopias and wondering whether I should swap my Qutest DAC for something else...maybe an RME ADI-2 PRO or even an Yggdrasil but am going to wait and enjoy what I have for now.
That said, you know how it is when you get 'upgraditis'...

I am reading through all 283 pages of this thread on DAC pairing with the v281 but would love to hear from anyone with more DAC recommendations - especially on how the RME ADI-2 PRO or Yggdrasil sound with the V281.

@sahmen has the Yggdrasil A2 as far as I know. He already provided impressions of it with the V281 but maybe he wants to chime in again.

 

[3083joe]

I'm now also using V281 as a preamp for a pair of Genelec active speakers. I can confirm the same sonic character we all know and love in the headphone stage is present in the line stage of V281.

Very nice. Thinking of trying it in my setup

 

[sahmen]

@MolecularMark and @Fegefeuer , the V281 and the Yggy A2 just make a fantastic pairing, for both headphone and speaker listening. The versatility of the V281 allows it to do double duty as an extremely capable headphone amp, and as a preamp serving my front Tower speakers via a prepro which simply passes the Analog sound through without any processing... I have commented several times about the sonic performance of this combo, so I won't belabor it.... Let's just say that after three years of enjoying the combo, I still do not have any wish for changing anything... The Yggy A2 has undergone two major upgrades in that period--the USB-5 and the Analog 2 upgrades--, and each time, the V281 has interpreted and translated the sonic improvements superbly, and with a lot of aplomb.

I could sing the praises of this combo all day, and might still wind up feeling that I haven't said enough. Still, I want to make clear that I am not at all implying that one cannot find a better combo, which would be rather silly... I myself often dream of the Niimbus US4+, which is a unit I would like to audition in my system one day, along with a number of DACs, new and old, that I have been curious about for a while (the Chord Dave, the Denafrips Terminator, the Metrum Acoustics Pavane L3, among others come to mind), but all that dreaming remains abstract whenever I'm listening to the v281 and Yggy A2 combo, which I am not thinking of replacing any time soon.

 

[BobG55]

From Buzzlulu : Who is carrying the 281 these days with a return policy? I know Arthur is no longer the distributor

Where did you hear this? Is Arthur retiring?

Just to let members of this thread know, Arthur is once again the sales representative/ distributor for Violectric USA. I spoke with him on the phone about a sales matter & I brought up the subject. Arthur told me he was reinstated as the sales representative. So if anyone needs to contact Violectric USA for any reason, Arthur's your man, again.

 

[3083joe]

From Buzzlulu : Who is carrying the 281 these days with a return policy? I know Arthur is no longer the distributor



Just to let members of this thread know, Arthur is once again the sales representative/ distributor for Violectric USA. I spoke with him on the phone about sales matter & I brought up the subject. Arthur told me he was reinstated as the sales representative. So if anyone needs to contact Violectric USA for any reason, Arthur's your man, again.

Thanks for the info

 

[tholt]

Does anyone know the difference between this and the Violectric brand?

https://www.chinahao.com/Product/52...mplifier_with_preamp__germany_lakers_hpa_v281

When I clicked on this link I couldn't believe it. There's 'being influenced by' but this is outright copying! Wow. I've seen some Chi-fi knock offs of well-known audio products, but this wins the Clone of the Year award. Wonder if Violectric has seen this and considered legal action. Probably not, Chinese knock offs are a dime a dozen and probably not worth the hassle. I'm still floored.

I just bought a V281 and running it with Abyss 1266 Phi CC. So far seems to be a terrific pairing. A couple questions (I've done some searching in this thread but thought I'd just ask directly...)

1. Is there a noticeable difference with burn in? If so, what is the recommended time?
2. Are there any negatives/sonic penalties to using the pre-gain dip switches?

 

[cj3209]

I just bought a V281 and running it with Abyss 1266 Phi CC. So far seems to be a terrific pairing. A couple questions (I've done some searching in this thread but thought I'd just ask directly...)

1. Is there a noticeable difference with burn in? If so, what is the recommended time?
2. Are there any negatives/sonic penalties to using the pre-gain dip switches?

The Chinese hi-end audio companies have come a long way: HiFiMan, iBasso, Shanling, Cayin, among others that I can think of. But that last knock-off was pretty bold and you know the saying: caveat emptor.

I use the V281 pre-gain switches on the back when I switch between my i4s and 1266 (-12 and +6, respectively). Its used to accommodate different headphones; very useful if you ask me.

 

[phonomat]

According to Fried Reim, the dip switches should have no effect on sound, IIRC.

 

[S Crowther]

According to Fried Reim, the dip switches should have no effect on sound, IIRC.

In my experience the dip switches alter the sq noticeably. It is easy enough to try it and see.

 

[tholt]

The Chinese hi-end audio companies have come a long way: HiFiMan, iBasso, Shanling, Cayin, among others that I can think of. But that last knock-off was pretty bold and you know the saying: caveat emptor.

I use the V281 pre-gain switches on the back when I switch between my i4s and 1266 (-12 and +6, respectively). Its used to accommodate different headphones; very useful if you ask me.

Agreed. I wasn't speaking about legitimate Chinese companies who are making true innovations and running respectable companies. I have a Cayin iHA-6 which is a wonderful amp for the 1266 and built very well. But that thing... I've never seen such blatant copying.

Interesting -- you have the V281 at +6 for the 1266? You must not be able to turn the volume knob very high before it gets loud. I'm finding if anything I'm going the opposite way: setting the pre-gain to -6 or even -12 gives me much more volume play.

According to Fried Reim, the dip switches should have no effect on sound, IIRC.

Cool. I'll do my own experiments, just posing the question to see if there is a consensus from the group and just getting others' experience.

 

[tholt]

In my experience the dip switches alter the sq noticeably. It is easy enough to try it and see.

Agreed, I'll prob play around a bit. Briefly doing so yesterday, I felt that unity gain (no pre gain) seemed a tad more transparent? What did you find that noticeably changed?

 

[jlbrach]

when i owned my 281 i was able to listen at -12 balanced with the abyss 1266 phi and even the susvara