[Delta9K]

I had read Soekris DAC is an exception,

I was using a Soekris 1541 with my v281 and then with the v550 when I got it. There was really good synergy with the Soekris DACs and Violectric amps mentioned.
I now have the v550 fed via a Yggy A2 Unison and that too is a very nice pairing - at least with my library, preferences, phones and source for that setup.

 

[adeadcrab]

I have both amps. Violectric has been living in my system for 2 years, GT has been in the system for more than a year. I have compared them face to face many times and I can say that the Violectric is a more dynamic and cleaner amp with more impressive bass punch as well as better control. Even a supercharger can't bring a GT up to the level of a VIO.

sidetrack - stock opamps?

tossing up vio 550 and gt with 3rd party opamps

 

[Ichos]

Nah. I don't do sterile sounding gear. My OTL was custom built for me by @L0rdGwyn and it is one of six in the world. It is however incredibly transparent and revealing with great stage and quite musical..
I reviewed it a year or two ago and at the time I had the vaunted and legendary Glenn OTL. The Airmid beat it across the board, sold the Glenn and now I own the Airmid.

I have 3 high end DACs here currently, the Lampizator Atlantic TRP, the Merason DAC1 MKl and the Cen Grand Deluxe. The v550 passes through whatever it's fed, whether its the stupid bass, imaging, tonality or air of the Lampi, the speed, dynamics, separation and detail of the Merason or the deep 3Dness and musicality of the Deluxe. The v550 is up to the task, but with a warm tilt.

Yes I agree with the last sentence and this is why I liked it!

 

[Ichos]

One pairing i honestly think may not work well with Violectric amps is R2R DACs below 2k mark, at this price point R2R DACs tend to have blunted highs, this combined with (very) slight warm tilt of the V550 may be bit too smooth for some folks, I had read Soekris DAC is an exception, the solution is to get a Delta Sigma DAC which usually have good resolution at the top end even at lower price.

The V550 was a great match with the Pontus II.

 

[nickyhkg]

Recently upgraded my Lumin U1Mini + Musician Pegsas to an Auralic Altair G2.1 a one-box solution, and it pairs really well with the V550. I get extremely good resolution and a huge soundstage with this pairing. Can't be happier! Enjoy the music mates!

 

[shwnwllms]

One pairing i honestly think may not work well with Violectric amps is R2R DACs below 2k mark, at this price point R2R DACs tend to have blunted highs, this combined with (very) slight warm tilt of the V550 may be bit too smooth for some folks, I had read Soekris DAC is an exception, the solution is to get a Delta Sigma DAC which usually have good resolution at the top end even at lower price.

my Pontus II / Iris combo paired nicely with the V550 Pro. Now that I’ve upgraded to a Holy May KTE it blows it out of the water, but there are certainly great options around the $2K price point

 

[Coran]

Just received my new V550 Pro yesterday. After doing some initial listening, I'm pretty damn impressed (also really looking forward to how it improves after 100 hours or so). I can already tell this is a massive step up from my Burson Soloist 3XP. This has introduced a slight hint of sharpness in the highs (with the Caldera). I have this thing were if the highs are a touch too much, I can feel it in my right ear only for a bit. I'll be interested to see how this changes as the amp gets more use, or could just be my dac (Bifrost 2).

I'm also impressed by the sheer power of this thing. I have the pre-gain set to -18 dB, and my Caldera is as loud as I'll ever want it at 9:00 on the volume knob (the Atrium is deafening at 10:00). I'm sure glad I finally got a chance to try a Violectric amp after reading about them for so long.

 

[DAPpower]

Just received my new V550 Pro yesterday. After doing some initial listening, I'm pretty damn impressed (also really looking forward to how it improves after 100 hours or so). I can already tell this is a massive step up from my Burson Soloist 3XP. This has introduced a slight hint of sharpness in the highs (with the Caldera). I have this thing were if the highs are a touch too much, I can feel it in my right ear only for a bit. I'll be interested to see how this changes as the amp gets more use, or could just be my dac (Bifrost 2).

I'm also impressed by the sheer power of this thing. I have the pre-gain set to -18 dB, and my Caldera is as loud as I'll ever want it at 9:00 on the volume knob (the Atrium is deafening at 10:00). I'm sure glad I finally got a chance to try a Violectric amp after reading about them for so long.

The Mantle Mesh will even things out on the Caldera for you. Do you ever notice slight static noise whenever you use the volume pot while listening? My V222 is silent but I heard this was common with the V500 series.

 

[Coran]

The Mantle Mesh will even things out on the Caldera for you. Do you ever notice slight static noise whenever you use the volume pot while listening? My V222 is silent but I heard this was common with the V500 series.

I'll check out the Mantle mesh. This wasn't an issue previously on my 3XP (or on my WA22) which is a little interesting.

The volume makes a very slight crackle when it is adjusted. That is because I got the Pro version, so that's just how it works with the relay volume. It is barely noticeable while listening to music. I don't have the more serious issues others have reported (thankfully).

 

[Monsterzero]

This has introduced a slight hint of sharpness in the highs (with the Caldera). I have this thing were if the highs are a touch too much, I can feel it in my right ear only for a bit. I'll be interested to see how this changes as the amp gets more use, or could just be my dac (Bifrost 2).

When I had maybe 20 hours on the v550 I tried the AKG K701 on the SE jack of the Vio and it was so bright it was unlistenable, but trying it again about a week ago the K701 sounded great.

Give her some time.

 

[DAPpower]

I'll check out the Mantle mesh. This wasn't an issue previously on my 3XP (or on my WA22) which is a little interesting.

The volume makes a very slight crackle when it is adjusted. That is because I got the Pro version, so that's just how it works with the relay volume. It is barely noticeable while listening to music. I don't have the more serious issues others have reported (thankfully).

Thanks, so is the "crackle" a signal type sound in the headphones themselves or is the sound coming from the V550 Pro unit itself and you are hearing it a little through the headphones when you are not listening to music?

 

[Coran]

When I had maybe 20 hours on the v550 I tried the AKG K701 on the SE jack of the Vio and it was so bright it was unlistenable, but trying it again about a week ago the K701 sounded great.

Give her some time.

This is my current plan. I'll be out of town all weekend so I'll probably just leave some music running while I'm gone.

 

[shwnwllms]

Thanks, so is the "crackle" a signal type sound in the headphones themselves or is the sound coming from the V550 Pro unit itself and you are hearing it a little through the headphones when you are not listening to music?

It’s from the design of the Reed Relays and should only be audible when changing volume. What you are hearing is the magnetic field initiating the contacts between each of the 256 steps (Pro model only)

“A 256 stepped volume control is designed around a collection of eight Reed relays. The contacts for these relays are contained in a gas filled protective tube, and a magnetic field initiates the contacts. The relays switch between 1% matched resistors and create a .4 dB step between each volume position.”

https://positive-feedback.com/reviews/hardware-reviews/violectric-hpa-v550-pro-headphone-amplifier/

 

[SunRa Fan]

The V550 has arrived. Knowing this thread as I do the very first thing I did when I unpacked it was to turn the volume knob...and it was rubbing like others have experienced. Disappointing. A quick email to Arthur brought a solution, which was to remove the knob and reattach it when properly positioned. It took a Home Depot run, but it worked. It's now burning in but I have to say that it already sounds better than the V222 at first blush. The differences between the two are not subtle which is a great relief to me. So far so good. Lord Buddha is currently taking one for the team.

 

[alvinmate]

Picked up today and took a while to reorganise my space. And guess what opened up the box played with knob and it was scrapping against the metal plate

Owned V281 and sold it couple of years back but for some reason kept the manuals. Came super handy when I found out that apparently the V281 came with allen key. It worked perfectly with adjusting the V550 knob. Not sure why newer models don’t have this anymore.

Compared to Singxer which I still have sound is even fuller, low end has better grip and tad more detail i can hear in my music now…I bet this should improve even more with time..Now waiting delivery for my balanced XLR interconnects.