[Ticonz]

The Quicksilver Audio tube amp also pairs nicely with the VC

My quicksilver audio amp arrives today amd can't wait to listen to the VC with them. It will be my first tube amp!!!

 

[wgkwgk]

There's quite a few amps that pair well with the VC around that price: Bottlehead Crack with Speedball, Feliks Echo (MK 1 or 2, they sound the same), Valhalla 2, Hagerman Tuba, and Woo WA3 or WA6. I personally would go full tube amp vs hybrids. I found hybrids to sound too compromised vs a full tube amp. They still sound more solid state than tube state, and all I tried lacked the air and spatial qualities full tube amps bring. At your budget I think an OTL like the Echo would be your best bet. It can easily power all the headphones you listed, and sounds really nice. I really liked how my VC sounded on the Echo. If you can stretch your budget and see a used unit show up, a Decware CSP2 or CSP3 is killer, as are Ampsandsound amps like the Pendant, Mogwai, and Kenzie. Not sure how often those show up down under, or at what price, but if you do see one and can afford it, I would say don't even hesitate, just grab it.

I have the Kenzie Ovation. Still in burning but sounds great with Auteur and am just burning in VC, so not sure yet. Before I got the KO the Decware Taboo and Feliks Euphoria were strong contenders.

 

[Renexx]

Did somebody hear the euphoria and can compare it to the Kenzie ?

Those ampandsound amps look really sweet but I think they don't have CE sign for European market.

 

[erics75]

I have the Kenzie Ovation. Still in burning but sounds great with Auteur and am just burning in VC, so not sure yet. Before I got the KO the Decware Taboo and Feliks Euphoria were strong contenders.

What's awesome is i'm listening to my KO with my Auteur as I type this! The KO is a killer amp for sure. It made my VC sound its best by a good margin. I always found the VC to be a picky headphone to amp because of it's revealing nature. But man the KO made it sound near perfect. The Auteur is magical on it as well. So euphonic and musical. It amazes me how a neutral headphone like the Auteur can be so engaging and musical. My past experience with neutral headphone left me feeling bored and disengaged (HD800, T1.2, Utopia), but not so with the Auteur/KO.

 

[Hiker816]

Probably stretches the budget too far, and I'm not sure about the CE certification, but I think ZMF will give you a discount on a Pendant SE if you recently bought ZMF HPs. I have a Pendant on order right now. Just throwing it out there.

 

[Steve Wilcox]

Just got back from seeing Van Morrison live at Sheffield City Hall. I've been a fan for years but this was the first time I've caught him live. I was a little nervous as I've heard so many reports of how miserable and uncommunicative he can be. Well, he was those things, but his voice is still great and he's just got so much soul. The band were really tight.

I think many of you will agree how well recorded his albums are. I can't think of any that are less than top notch. So the big question - was the sound quality at the gig (and I was sitting right behind the mixing desk) better than listening to his albums through my VCs? Naah!

 

[Snowshine]

Thank you all for your input!!! I'll definitely consider these once the budget recovers a little lmao.

 

[sp33ls]

Don't underestimate the Bottlehead Crack with Speedball -- or the lesser-known Crackatwoa. Great price point for OTL magic.

 

[lazarian]

Can't wait to see peoples pics of these!
https://www.instagram.com/p/CVoREMKvt2a/

 

[RobertSM]

If the VC is now offered in the noble African Blackwood then I'm instantly interested. I too would love to see pictures.

 

[chrisnyc75]

I'm definitely looking ~1000AUD. The Valhalla 2 is definitely appealing to me, with my setup of VC/DT1990s/LCD-2s, but I've heard some worrying stories that it either A. sounds solid state or B. doesn't have a whole lot of power, but I've no personal experience with either - I guess the Lyr 3 is also an option then. I also just like the idea of supporting smaller companies outside of China to try and keep the space competitive in general.

In my subjective but very well considered opinion, Valhalla 2 is fantastic with Verite. I would even go so far as to say there's a real synergy in the pairing. Together, they have an organic elegance, a refined ease that is smooth yet also somehow not at all lacking in dynamics or detail. I'm sure there are more impressive pairings out there, but for the price you really can't beat Valhalla and its synergy with Verite may surprise you.

As for power, Valhalla has way more than enough for Verite; as for "sounding solid state", not really, though I suppose it may depend on your choice of input tubes.

 

[Snowshine]

In my subjective but very well considered opinion, Valhalla 2 is fantastic with Verite. I would even go so far as to say there's a real synergy in the pairing. Together, they have an organic elegance, a refined ease that is smooth yet also somehow not at all lacking in dynamics or detail. I'm sure there are more impressive pairings out there, but for the price you really can't beat Valhalla and its synergy with Verite may surprise you.

As for power, Valhalla has way more than enough for Verite; as for "sounding solid state", not really, though I suppose it may depend on your choice of input tubes.

Good to hear!! In your experience, do you find tube rolling for the Valhalla to be as difficult/expensive as some hype it up to be?

 

[Curtisvill]

Good to hear!! In your experience, do you find tube rolling for the Valhalla to be as difficult/expensive as some hype it up to be?

Tube rolling is not difficult. It can become a very expensive rabbit hole a lot of us go down. It’s fun hunting for the tubes, and when you find some you like it is magic.

 

[chrisnyc75]

Good to hear!! In your experience, do you find tube rolling for the Valhalla to be as difficult/expensive as some hype it up to be?

No, it's not at all difficult, there's a huge variety of input tubes that work with Valhalla, and they are plentiful. And it can be as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be, but when the amp only costs $349 you'll certainly have some $ left for tube rolling.

 

[Snowshine]

No, it's not at all difficult, there's a huge variety of input tubes that work with Valhalla, and they are plentiful. And it can be as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be, but when the amp only costs $349 you'll certainly have some $ left for tube rolling.

Thank you for your input!!