[Xenophon]

Yeah, the usb implementation is the weak spot. Only point of criticism I have about the V200 for the rest is that it's not the best in detail retrieval. V800 is really very good, I was looking to different brands for an upgrade but came to the conclusion that in order to do significantly better I'd have to spend at least 3 kUsd on the Dac alone, not worth it for me, especially as DAC technology still evolves fairly quickly.

 

[Fegefeuer]

 
I wonder how we should interpret this. IIRC, the balanced V181 and single-ended V200 are pretty similar, but have different output designs and power supply. So maybe this means the V281 will be a strict upgrade from the V220, where the balanced-capable V181 generally seems to be a side-grade or down-grade from the single-ended V200?

 
It sounds kinda negative but it quite isn't and you're spot on. V220 is a clear upgrade from the V200 and the V281 is basically two V220s. It'll outdo the V181 significantly. 

 

[TwoEars]

   
It sounds kinda negative but it quite isn't and you're spot on. V220 is a clear upgrade from the V200 and the V281 is basically two V220s. It'll outdo the V181 significantly. 

 
Is there anything that can be said about the voicing of these amps? The V200 is quite famous for having a full bodied warm character that paired well with the HD800 for instance.

 

[BeyerMonster]

  I almost snarfed my coffee when I saw this since I just placed an order for a V200/V800 combo last Friday.

Almost feel bad posting this in a thread about the new Violectric gear, but I got my V200/V800 stack about 2.5 hours ago.
Sounds great. Any buyer's remorse that I may have had is completely gone.
 
If the new stuff is "more of the same, but better", it's going to be great.

 

[Xenophon]

Well, it IS very good, only question is how much more the new gear might bring by comparison for a bit more cash. Out of curiosity, what other dac/amp combos did you try?

 

[BeyerMonster]

Well, it IS very good, only question is how much more the new gear might bring by comparison for a bit more cash. Out of curiosity, what other dac/amp combos did you try?

tl;dr version:
First impressions are that this stuff is great, but I have nothing meaningful to compare it to, in terms of a modern competitor that is for-sale. So feel free to call BS on everything I say. Everything was observed in the span of about 5 hours on headphones that I've only had for about a week, and zero burn-in time on the V200. V800 was a demo model, so presumably it has been broken in already. I'm having too much fun listening to music to really tinker with any more inputs/settings right now.
 
long version:
Most of my "critical listening" in the past was with my full-size gear (most of which is listed in my profile), and very little critical listening has been done on my cans. While my can comparison systems are completely outmatched, I'm VERY familiar with the material as I've listened to most of it for years (decades in some cases?) and recently for months on end at work(been too lazy to rip CDs in a while). The following are things that jumped out immediately when using the LCD-XC+Violectric Stack in comparison to a week of LCD-XC+ALO Pan Am and a year+ with my work laptop piping sound into my Beyer stack(no "proper" DAC):

1. Percussion sounds great. Cymbals are distinct, snares sound like snares, and impact is present in spades. I thought the XCs were bass thin, especially in comparison the LCD-3, but the punch is back (Ex. Sound City Players - You Can't Fix This w/ Stevie Nicks, David Guetta - Nothing But the Beat - Titanium, Foo Fighters - The Colour and the Shape - My Hero)
2. I felt as though the LCD-XCs had a bit of upper mid/treble harshness which I no longer find present (Ex. Aqua - Aquarium - Barbie Girl*). It was bad enough when driven by a Meridian Prime, that I almost changed my mind completely about the purchase, but since it wasn't there with the ALO Studio Six, I figured I could find a workaround. 
3. Pianos sound like pianos again (Ex. Tori Amos - Little Earthquakes - Happy Phantom)
4. Haven't looked at my Audiophile dictionary in a while, so can't think of the term, but it's much easier to hear performers playing together instead of where one performer/instrument takes turns at the forefront at any given time. (Ex. Metallica - Four Horsemen, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon Soundtrack - A Wedding Interrupted)

 
My non-can gear is in my profile, but it's also located downstairs. My head gear is all upstairs. At some point I'll move some things up or some things down so that I can compare the V800 and Gungnir against my SCD-XA9000ES which is the real test.
 
Other recent comparisons:
I originally demo'd the LCD-X, LCD-XC, and LCD-3 with a Meridian Prime and an ALO Audio Studio Six in a noisy environment (~2hrs total at SXSW Music Gear expo), spending the least time with the LCD-X. The Studio Six sounded amazing, but I knew it was out of my budget so I purposely limited my time on it to try and prevent making my budget fit the amp.  The Meridian Prime I felt was OK with the LCD-3, but was kinda harsh with the LCD-XC. In fact, I almost didn't want to buy the XCs anymore after hearing them on the Meridian Prime.
 
Also recently listened to some LCD-2's driven by a laptop going into a Bryston stack BDA-2/BHA-1 with Kimber Silver Streaks at the Austin Audio Fest in a not-so-loud-not-so-quiet environment. I was generally impressed by that setup, but they also wanted to use that room to demo Kimber cables on some full range speakers, so I only got maybe 15 minutes in. I wanted to go Bryston, but opted to buy the Schiit and Violectric stacks since I need a home and work setup anyway. Didn't want to fall in love with a $3000+ stack and have to buy 2 of em.
 
On the way are 2 Schiit stacks and a bunch of non-exotic interconnects made with Mogami cabling from proaudiola. So it'll probably be a few weeks before I can reach any meaningful comparisons/conclusions, which are of course still completely subjective.
 
* - don't laugh, I use it as my harshness test, but yes I like some EuroTrash DancePop mixed in with my Metal and Classical.
 
P.S. All listening was done with:

1. stock Audeze headphone cables
2. 10+ year old BetterCables.com unbalanced interconnects (first thing I could find that wasn't already plugged in)
3. Asus Xonar DX feeding digital data via optical to V800 with Volume Pot maxed and resampling set to Best
4. V200/V800 dipswitches at defaults where applicable.

 

[Megalomaniak]

Maaaaaaaan, when these will be released

 

[Red Jacket Mike]

I am definitely interested in the V281.  I have a V200, and I'm looking at upgrading to something with a similar sound signature, more power, the balanced outputs, etc.  
 
I won't need the DAC module, but the motorized/stepped volume controls sound like interesting options.  
 
It sounds so far like this could be a great all around amp for all my headphones.

 

[Megalomaniak]

  I am definitely interested in the V281.  I have a V200, and I'm looking at upgrading to something with a similar sound signature, more power, the balanced outputs, etc.  
 
I won't need the DAC module, but the motorized/stepped volume controls sound like interesting options.  
 
It sounds so far like this could be a great all around amp for all my headphones.

 
What Fried told me:
 
 
"It´s not only about output power, it´s also about output voltage.
 
While V181 offers “only” standard voltage in SE mode because of “standard” operating voltage of +/- 18 V,

V281 offers the same voltage like V200 in SE mode.

In balanced mode the output voltage will exceed 35 Veff which is kind of dangerous )
 
While owners of V181 only had 2 x  “normal” amp in SE mode,
The owners of V281 will have true 2 x V200 in SE mode and an extraordinary amp in balanced mode."
 
So yeah, this thing will be a beast.

 

[roskodan]

hm, since i've the conductor i found having a selectable gain from the from panel is a must for it to be usable
 
can't really see myself using dip-switches again
 
there must be a reason why it's not implemented in the new violectric amps

 

[Xenophon]

   
What Fried told me:
 
 
"It´s not only about output power, it´s also about output voltage.
 
While V181 offers “only” standard voltage in SE mode because of “standard” operating voltage of +/- 18 V,

V281 offers the same voltage like V200 in SE mode.

In balanced mode the output voltage will exceed 35 Veff which is kind of dangerous )
 
While owners of V181 only had 2 x  “normal” amp in SE mode,
The owners of V281 will have true 2 x V200 in SE mode and an extraordinary amp in balanced mode."
 
So yeah, this thing will be a beast.

I have to admit that I don't understand what is meant here.  V200 is a SE amp.  It's logical that in a true balanced setup the voltage output will double, no?
 
Anyway...from what I understood Megalomaniak has a V281 on pre-order.  I salute you for your readiness to take one for the team 

 and look forward to you impressions and comparison.

 

[BeyerMonster]

  I have to admit that I don't understand what is meant here.  V200 is a SE amp.  It's logical that in a true balanced setup the voltage output will double, no?

Disclaimer: I'm not an electrical engineer, but I play on one TV.
 
Internal voltages:
From the V181 manual, it uses +/-18V rails for everything.
From the V200 manual, it uses +/-18V rails for the preamp stage and +/-30V rails for the output stage.
 
Output voltages:
http://www.violectric.de/Pages/en/technical-data.php
 
So this is one of the many reasons why output/voltage is dependent on load when comparing the V181/V200.
 
Assuming the page I found on Google is correct, the conversion from Veff to Vpp is as follows:

Veff = (Vpp / 2) * (0.707)^2
 
For reference, the Schiit Mjolnir puts out 45Vpp into 32Ohms. So I think that would be a Veff of ~11.25V.
 
I don't know which of these figures are peak vs RMS, and it's been a long time since I've studied this stuff, so take everything I said here with a grain of salt.
 
Hope this helps.

 

[Megalomaniak]

  I have to admit that I don't understand what is meant here.  V200 is a SE amp.  It's logical that in a true balanced setup the voltage output will double, no?
 
Anyway...from what I understood Megalomaniak has a V281 on pre-order.  I salute you for your readiness to take one for the team 

 and look forward to you impressions and comparison.

 
Yeah, sure, this was a little like a "ohmygodletstry", I was tired of researching for a top level solid state amp, too many options, all in the +1600-1700 area and suddenly when I was about to pull the trigger in the V200 amp which I love, I came across this post and "ohmygodletstry" haha.
 
I hope I dont regret the decision
 

  Disclaimer: I'm not an electrical engineer, but I play on one TV.
 
Internal voltages:
From the V181 manual, it uses +/-18V rails for everything.
From the V200 manual, it uses +/-18V rails for the preamp stage and +/-30V rails for the output stage.
 
Output voltages:
http://www.violectric.de/Pages/en/technical-data.php
 
So this is one of the many reasons why output/voltage is dependent on load when comparing the V181/V200.
 
Assuming the page I found on Google is correct, the conversion from Veff to Vpp is as follows:

Veff = (Vpp / 2) * (0.707)^2
 
For reference, the Schiit Mjolnir puts out 45Vpp into 32Ohms. So I think that would be a Veff of ~11.25V.
 
I don't know which of these figures are peak vs RMS, and it's been a long time since I've studied this stuff, so take everything I said here with a grain of salt.
 
Hope this helps.

 
Thats pretty much it, I think this V281 will equal the power to the typical Mjolnir or Taurus MKII but with the Violectric sound signature. Dont mind that much about its power, but its resolution and quality.

 

[Poladise]

  Thats pretty much it, I think this V281 will equal the power to the typical Mjolnir or Taurus MKII but with the Violectric sound signature. Dont mind that much about its power, but its resolution and quality.

 
Yeah, having adequate power isnt a concern with this thing. I'm hoping it will have more resolution and work better with the LCD-3, because many say V200's not a good match.

 

[BeyerMonster]

   
Yeah, having adequate power isnt a concern with this thing. I'm hoping it will have more resolution and work better with the LCD-3, because many say V200's not a good match.

I haven't seen too many negative opinions on the V200 with LCD-3 which is why I bought it, but I did primarily intend to pair it with my LCD-XC.