Excellent!
What DAC and what is your source?
Oh, and headphones 
too
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Dedicated laptop computer with clean install running solely Spotify Premium 320 kbps, display off controlled with other device, wired Ethernet. Modi Multibit DAC. Senn HD650s. Eikons are en route.
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Enjoy the little blue beauty
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Cheers man.
With the HD650s and TRS output, I prefer the low gain and low impedance setting. Low impedance setting is noticeably less compressed and more unleashed (especially at the low end) in a sensible way. Low gain setting when volume matched is more dense throughout the spectrum with a more substantial backbone. I also tend to prefer gain and volume settings where the volume is in the middle third of the dial’s range.
This is a quality piece of equipment - taking my time as I get to know her.
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Take your time, I got it around 7pm on a Saturday and stayed up listening to music until 2AM. Thank god it was a Saturday and not a Tuesday, my Wednesday work day would have been shot. I found a used Woo Audio WA3 today, it will be my tube substitute until the DNA arrives in a few months. No comparison at all, but needed to satisfy the tube craving without blowing too much money.
Interesting your take on the output switch preference, goes to show how subjective this all really is.
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Today’s workday productivity was definitely a challenge. Good to hear you were able to find a capable substitute. Let’s see as things progress and I spend more time with it.
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Excited to see more of your impressions. 4 months left until mine comes and I am reading and rereading all the impressions and threads so getting another impression to fawn over will be fun!
Hope you are enjoying your time with it!
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T-minus 4 months! Loads of enjoyment and observations thus far. I tried to not have unreasonable expectations, but this amp lives up to the excitement it drums up thus far.
Upon first listen, I thought that it didn’t sound 10x better than the Asgard 3 (based on relative cost; I know that increases in performance aren’t proportional with increases in price) – not a criticism of the Starlett, more a reflection of the Asgard 3’s performance to my ears in my system. However, as time goes by and I compare the two, I find myself listening less and less to the Asgard 3 in order to develop observations - and I just don’t want to stop listening to the Starlett.
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Nice! I did hear the Asgard 3 shares some of the Starlett DNA (pun intended). Very excited to get mine and hope you enjoy your time with it!
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High five on the pun! Awesome - likely (in part) that shared Class “A” and single ended triode goodness.
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I may be misunderstanding something here, are we talking about the Schiit Asgard? Isn’t that a SS amp?
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Yep. From what people say tonality wise and sound signature wise they fall in line.
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Yes, the Schiit Asgard 3. It’s a solid state amp with Class A bias using Schiit’s proprietary Continuity output stage = Class A’ish. As we know, the Starlett is a Class A single ended triode design tube amp. SS and tube Class A aren’t equal “apples to apples,” but I believe there are some commonalities.
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That’s interesting! I wish i had known that, visited the Schiitr a few weeks ago and only tried the tube based amps.
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Darn, note that the Lyr 3 and Aegir speaker amp also have their Class A Continuity topology. I’m trying to get up there before the end of the month.
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My initial impressions regarding the impedance and gain settings generally carry forward. However, the high gain setting seems to improve staging for certain tracks and pairs well with female vocals and classical. I still prefer the low gain setting on most tracks, and opt for the more dense delivery in the mids even if it means giving up some air in the treble.
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I tried the Valhalla and Mjolnir, they were connected to the previous generation Bitfrost and Gungnir respectively. They have them all set up as listening stations so I hopped between both. This was right before listening to the Starlett, had some time to kill before meeting up with Donald.
Though my time with the Schiit amps were brief, my impressions were the Starlett was a huge step above them. That is why I’m curious about the similarity that you were able to notice.
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Oh I see. Nice. I’m curious how the Lyr 3 would have compared.
The step up from the Asgard 3 to the Starlett is also huge. With the HD650s, I feel like I’m getting all or nearly all I possibly can out of them. I didn’t perceive that with the iFi Zen, Heresy, THX AAA 789, Asgard 3, etc.
Part of it is resolution, staging, tonality, dynamics, the usual criteria. However, more than anything, it was this sensation that I am being transported back to the year and venue of the performance (time and place). I’m trying to be aware of and careful about that which can be logically/scientifically observed/evaluated, versus the sensory/emotional (maybe spiritual, but I won’t declare that just yet) experience/aspect. My Starlett listening for the day hasn’t commenced, yet.
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damn talk about selling haha. Sold I will buy one just from this comment xD
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Dude, real talk lol. I don’t have hype monger tendencies, and it’s real for me at least. That being said, I’m considering/leaning toward the Stratus to get the “fuller unleaded” effect. TBD. Donald said a Stratus may be available for demo in a couple months. My goal is to have a purchased amp delivered before the C19 vaccine lol.
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