Had no idea what I was missing until I bought the LYR3 Tube Amp. Highly recommended. And the only reason I learned about tube amps was watching a Marcello stream many months ago!! You Da Man 🤘
Never tried tubes but been curious for the longest time. Wondering if it's better to get Saga+ (tube pre) and plug into Soloist 3XP, or just get the Lyr3. I don't really need Saga's multiple input or remote though.
@@JTB-- Thanks for the warning LOL. Yeah tubes seem like another rabbit hole! By the way sounds like you prefer LYR3+3XP combo over LYR3 by itself, is that right? I was thinking if the amp portion of the LYR3 is not great (compared to 3XP) then probably Saga+ pre is a better option.
I own the Asgard 3 for almost a year now and am still totally satisfied. It's a great little powerful amp. Even scales well with higher quality sources. Currently my go to amp for my Sundaras as they match just perfectly.
Interesting! I have Sundaras with hart cables too, looking to upgrade my amp and have an SMSL SU8 dac. A lot of people said the Magnius actually pairs well with the Sundara. Guess the only way is to try it yourself! Wish I had the money to do both haha, but I’ll prob be going with Asgard despite losing balanced
Cool intro Marcello, my favorite parts of your vids are the intros and b-rolls. The spoken part is legit too but nobody in the yt hp review game is on this level.
I have an Asgard 3 and a Magnius on the way (grabbed a B-Stock). I really want a Lyr 3 after seeing this video! Unfortunately I have to wait 6-8 weeks though :(, unless it comes back in B-Stock or I can find one used, but the used market is pretty dry right now for Lyr 3. Great review! I subbed to this channel :).
A fun NOS tube for the Lyr 3 on some headphones that need a bit of warmth and touch more base is the Kenwood 1944 mil spec'd black glass (sounds really good with the Focal house sound, imo). The only reason I put this out there is I already have a couple and don't care if the price spikes more than it already is, lol. Another good NOS tube if you have sennheisers 6 series is the Westinghouse 1952 or 53 iirc, with the D shaped getter.
I just swapped my Asgard 3 out for a Jotunheim 2 after only around 6 months or so with the Asgard 3. I use a Bifrost 2/64 DAC which I have had maybe 4 months, and that DAC is insanely good. I had a Hifiman Sundara as my main pair at the time, with a DT 700 Pro X for a closed back option. However I had no idea I'd find a sale on Focal headphones and buy a Radiance and a Clear MG for less than what 1 of those normally costs, and I must say, both these pairs are insane. Single Ended on the Asgard 3 was fine, but I wanted to try Balanced out and I'd also heard the the Jotunheim is a better pick for people who love bass, which I do. Basically, yes. Anyone who loves bass, and has Focal headphones I think the Jotunheim 2 is the better pick, both SE and Balanced sound better to me, a little bit more detailed, but also far more thumpy and enjoyable, gaming is also far more exciting. I also personally think the SE output sounded noticeably better than the Asgard 3 despite some people saying it's technically worse. I've heard the peeps at Schiit Audio say that the Magnius sounds worse SE than a Magni, but nobody as far as I know at Schiit Audio has ever stated this between a Jotunheim 2 and Asgard 3. I think even though the SE on the Jot is half the power of an Asgard 3 it would be worse, but to me it still had all of what made the Jot sound good, you'd just have to crank the volume up louder. For these reasons, if you're listening to bass heavy music, love bass, play games with them too, then just get the Jot and don't look back, the Asgard 3's issue is it may leave some customers wishing they got the slightly better Amp, which is exactly what happened to me. If you want Balanced obviously it's automatically the Jot 2 since the Asgard 3 has no Balanced.
I compared the Asgard 3 to the Magnius with my DT1990pro at the Schiitr and the Magnius was easily better. the Asgard 3 sounded mushy compared to the Magnius. I ended up getting the Jotuntehim 2 later.
Thanks a lot for the video😍, I have the hifiman Sundara and I use it with ifi idac2 & ican se. Which one of these amps would you suggest to me? I also have schiit vali 2 for my HD650.
Interesting observation with the HE6, I didn't realize how power hungry those heapdhones really are. My primary complaint with my Jot2 is that there's almost no usable range before its too loud, I'm barely at 8 o'clock on the dial with low gain before it's too loud for cans like my verite closed, I wish they'd build in even lower gain options.
I think it's more a situation of how much current they need. I think they can get plenty loud, but to control the drivers and some of the peeks in the FR they need lots of current IMO.
Hmmmmm I would probably lean towards the Jotunheim 2 or LYR 3 @Phanindra MVR , full transparency I am not an IEM guy though so that recommendation is based on headphone use. Come follow the other channel I am producing more regular content on ruclips.net/user/thesourceavdesigngroup thanks for your support!
Any chance you could address the HIFIMAN HE-6 (my phones) issue and why you would not pair either the Lyr or Jotunheim with HE-6? Schiit thinks they both pair quite well.
It's really up to you and you what you like. For my preferences, I enjoy Asgard. The only reason you might want to upgrade if you are currently happy is if you need more power. They do have a different sound signature, though.
Haha yeah, I don't do it anymore but I would guess it's because we are putting things that are part of our everyday lives into shots to connect with others that may also share in those EDC items.
I wonder how difficult it would be to make a LYR 4 with balanced and preamp switch like the Jot2. Basically a miniaturized Mjolnir 2. That would be cool to see.
Hi guys I have the Hifiman Ananda and Dac SMSL VMV D1SE with the SP200 which the XLR inputs are defective but looking at a different amp looking at this Singxer-SA1 or Jotunheim 2. What would you think be a good match i would like more bass out of my Anandas and not as harsh highs?
Enjoyed your "take" on these products. Overall -- and it does not have to be one of these three amps -- what amp would you rec for the Bifrost 2. I'm interested in detail and stage. Thank you...
Hi @Marcello, My question is can we introduce more tubyness in lyr by tube rolling and since it's using only one tube I'm not sure if it's gonna impact much. What are your thoughts?
Hi @Marcello Rostagni , as a first tube amp , What do you suggest among LYR 3 vs Feliks Audio Echo mk2 vs hagerman tuba ? I have focal radiance, HD6XX , Austrian Audio Hi-X65, Beyer T5p. Im looking for tube sound - a little more soundstage and intimate vocals. This would be my first tube amp purchase. I have other amps like THX 888 , Singxer Class A and schitt Bifrost as my DAC. Im really confused on what to buy as my first tube amp under 1K. Many suggested Bottlehead but i cant build it myself , so left it out of equation.
The LYR 3 is very good as it can pair with many different headphones and impedance ratings with a little tube flavor. I really like the Echo MK2 tvp.ag/0FL22l0vrY as well as the Hagerman Tuba, honestly, they are all three very good amps in their respective price ranges. The EchoMk2 and the Hagerman Tuba will give you more tube sound than the LYR3. @Lenin Reddy So double-check the impedance ratings of your headphones and the EchoMk2 and Hagerman Tuba and make sure they will be good matches. The Echo MK2 will give you a bit to much bass bloom for my personal preferences with the Radiance, but you may like this if you want lots of bass.
I currently use the LCD-XC 2021 as my main pair of headphones. I might get another higher-end Audeze in the future. I have the Modi+/Magni+ stack. What would you recommend for end game DAC/AMP for those headphones? - Jot with DAC? BF/Jot? BF/Lyr? - I'd appreciate any feedback.
I really don't know if endgame exists, I have personally found my Endgame setups for headphones based on what I am willing to spend. I would also look at Chord products as well. thesourceav.com/products/chord-hugo-2?variant=41222043369628 or thesourceav.com/products/chord-hugo-tt-2?variant=41222097371292 are endgame for most but very expensive.
@@MarcelloRostagni Thank you for your response. You make a very good point. I ended up with the Bifrost 2/64 and the Soloist 3XP and I am very happy with them. They pair really well. I might get a Lyr 3 to satisfy my tube curiosity and a Composer 3XP down the line. I believe I might have found my end game in that range.
Hi @John A. day Eira The Asgard has a warmer punchy sound to it, so it could be a good option to help tame headphones that might lean a bit brighter or less dynamic sounding. It's not going to completely fix overly bright headphones. No solid-state amp will likely do that. You would want to search for a tube amp to help in that department more.
I realize everything is subject with these things, but would the Hifiman Sundara be a good match with the Lyr 3, because I really wanna try out tube? I also wanna try multibit, so should I buy the Bifrost 2, or just add the multibit to the Lyr 3? What would be the difference there? Thank you.
you say that the Jotunheim 2 isn't warm, yet i've read and watched many reviews of it where people claimed it is warm and actually sort of sounds like a slightly scaled back LYR3 in terms of warmth. you also said that the Asgard 3 is actually warm, but in every review i've seen comparing the Asgard 3 to the Jotunheim 2 the reviewer always said that the Jotunheim 2 is warmer - especially when using balanced. now i am just confused lol can anyone clarify this?
I have an Asgard 3 and just bought a Jotenheim 2 in what I thought would be an upgrade. Ah....not really. I can barely tell them apart. There can't be 2-3% difference between them. In a blind test I would never be able to tell the difference. Tonality is the same. Sound stage is very similar. Balanced or single ended makes no difference even with a balanced DAC. I've A/B them back and forth and nada. I was expecting the Jot2 to be so much more dynamic and having so much more body etc. Nope. The Asgard has plenty of power and none of my headphones are power hungry. Same your money. Get better headphones. You'll really hear the difference then. My lesson is learned which is what this hobby is all about.
Which one would be best for dt 1990 pro I know there not the best cans out there but the best ones I have would like a good amp so when I do upgrade down the line
I never tried the pairing, I might guess the warmer leaning Asgard might be a good match if it delivers the power requirements, I wasn't really a big fan of BD headphones personally.
![SingXer SA-1 vs Jotunheim 2 vs A90 vs THX AAA 789 [ Solid State Showdown Pt.1 ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/429AMOXdYZY/mqdefault.jpg)
Had no idea what I was missing until I bought the LYR3 Tube Amp. Highly recommended. And the only reason I learned about tube amps was watching a Marcello stream many months ago!! You Da Man 🤘
Thank you brother @JTB !
Never tried tubes but been curious for the longest time. Wondering if it's better to get Saga+ (tube pre) and plug into Soloist 3XP, or just get the Lyr3. I don't really need Saga's multiple input or remote though.
@@JTB-- Thanks for the warning LOL. Yeah tubes seem like another rabbit hole! By the way sounds like you prefer LYR3+3XP combo over LYR3 by itself, is that right? I was thinking if the amp portion of the LYR3 is not great (compared to 3XP) then probably Saga+ pre is a better option.
11:22 This is spot on description and reason why I love Asgard 3 so much and tell everyone that it's ridiculously good for the price.
Thanks @Flisker appreciate you!
I own the Asgard 3 for almost a year now and am still totally satisfied. It's a great little powerful amp. Even scales well with higher quality sources. Currently my go to amp for my Sundaras as they match just perfectly.
What cables do you use for your sunduras?
@@hi-filuggage13 Hart Audio Cables
Interesting! I have Sundaras with hart cables too, looking to upgrade my amp and have an SMSL SU8 dac. A lot of people said the Magnius actually pairs well with the Sundara. Guess the only way is to try it yourself! Wish I had the money to do both haha, but I’ll prob be going with Asgard despite losing balanced
Cool intro Marcello, my favorite parts of your vids are the intros and b-rolls. The spoken part is legit too but nobody in the yt hp review game is on this level.
Thank you @Ace of Spades, appreciate you man!!!!
First time seeing any of your videos. Very much enjoyed. Keep it up. This is going to help me in my purchase.
Thanks!
Thank you, @Scot Berman !
Excellent review. Not too brief, not too long, with great b-roll. But the question is: black or silver, which is better?
Black. Always black
I have an Asgard 3 and a Magnius on the way (grabbed a B-Stock). I really want a Lyr 3 after seeing this video! Unfortunately I have to wait 6-8 weeks though :(, unless it comes back in B-Stock or I can find one used, but the used market is pretty dry right now for Lyr 3.
Great review! I subbed to this channel :).
A fun NOS tube for the Lyr 3 on some headphones that need a bit of warmth and touch more base is the Kenwood 1944 mil spec'd black glass (sounds really good with the Focal house sound, imo). The only reason I put this out there is I already have a couple and don't care if the price spikes more than it already is, lol. Another good NOS tube if you have sennheisers 6 series is the Westinghouse 1952 or 53 iirc, with the D shaped getter.
I just swapped my Asgard 3 out for a Jotunheim 2 after only around 6 months or so with the Asgard 3. I use a Bifrost 2/64 DAC which I have had maybe 4 months, and that DAC is insanely good. I had a Hifiman Sundara as my main pair at the time, with a DT 700 Pro X for a closed back option. However I had no idea I'd find a sale on Focal headphones and buy a Radiance and a Clear MG for less than what 1 of those normally costs, and I must say, both these pairs are insane. Single Ended on the Asgard 3 was fine, but I wanted to try Balanced out and I'd also heard the the Jotunheim is a better pick for people who love bass, which I do. Basically, yes. Anyone who loves bass, and has Focal headphones I think the Jotunheim 2 is the better pick, both SE and Balanced sound better to me, a little bit more detailed, but also far more thumpy and enjoyable, gaming is also far more exciting.
I also personally think the SE output sounded noticeably better than the Asgard 3 despite some people saying it's technically worse. I've heard the peeps at Schiit Audio say that the Magnius sounds worse SE than a Magni, but nobody as far as I know at Schiit Audio has ever stated this between a Jotunheim 2 and Asgard 3. I think even though the SE on the Jot is half the power of an Asgard 3 it would be worse, but to me it still had all of what made the Jot sound good, you'd just have to crank the volume up louder.
For these reasons, if you're listening to bass heavy music, love bass, play games with them too, then just get the Jot and don't look back, the Asgard 3's issue is it may leave some customers wishing they got the slightly better Amp, which is exactly what happened to me. If you want Balanced obviously it's automatically the Jot 2 since the Asgard 3 has no Balanced.
I have the new Vali 3 and honestly, its better then my Jotenheim2. I'm not kidding.
Any update with the Lyr+ that seems to be a Lyr 4??
I absolutely need to get an Asgard, it's been on my list for a while, and seems like exactly what I'm looking for.
For the money it’s a terrific value IMO @Grumpy Goose !!!
Great vid, Marcello. Thanks for your efforts. See you on HC. Cheers 🥂
I compared the Asgard 3 to the Magnius with my DT1990pro at the Schiitr and the Magnius was easily better. the Asgard 3 sounded mushy compared to the Magnius.
I ended up getting the Jotuntehim 2 later.
Killer review, keep it up!
Thank you @Snow Rang3r appreciate you brother!
Which one is best with Hifiman Arya or Arya Stealth?
im thinking of buying dt 1770 pro which one out of these would you recommend the most?
Thanks a lot for the video😍, I have the hifiman Sundara and I use it with ifi idac2 & ican se. Which one of these amps would you suggest to me? I also have schiit vali 2 for my HD650.
I would check out the LYR3 or the Jot2! Thanks for watching.
Interesting observation with the HE6, I didn't realize how power hungry those heapdhones really are. My primary complaint with my Jot2 is that there's almost no usable range before its too loud, I'm barely at 8 o'clock on the dial with low gain before it's too loud for cans like my verite closed, I wish they'd build in even lower gain options.
I think it's more a situation of how much current they need. I think they can get plenty loud, but to control the drivers and some of the peeks in the FR they need lots of current IMO.
Nice Video. So which one would be your final choice for Aeolus?
Probably the LYR 3 @Ali Arghavan
Hey. Of the three, which amp you suggest for Focal Clear OG and Audeze LCD XC. I may use IEMs too, like Sony IERZ1R, Audeze LCD i3 & i4.
Hmmmmm I would probably lean towards the Jotunheim 2 or LYR 3 @Phanindra MVR , full transparency I am not an IEM guy though so that recommendation is based on headphone use. Come follow the other channel I am producing more regular content on ruclips.net/user/thesourceavdesigngroup thanks for your support!
Any chance you could address the HIFIMAN HE-6 (my phones) issue and why you would not pair either the Lyr or Jotunheim with HE-6? Schiit thinks they both pair quite well.
Personally I think they require more current and power to fully flesh out their sound and deal with peaks in the treble when under powered.
Is it worth buying the Jotunheim 2 if I already have the Asgard 3? I'm not going to use the balanced headphone output.
It's really up to you and you what you like. For my preferences, I enjoy Asgard. The only reason you might want to upgrade if you are currently happy is if you need more power. They do have a different sound signature, though.
Still will never understand why RUclipsrs feel the need to put their knife in the corner of a shot of a completely unrelated product...
Haha yeah, I don't do it anymore but I would guess it's because we are putting things that are part of our everyday lives into shots to connect with others that may also share in those EDC items.
I wonder how difficult it would be to make a LYR 4 with balanced and preamp switch like the Jot2. Basically a miniaturized Mjolnir 2. That would be cool to see.
I'm trying to figure this out as well -- why do a Lyr with no balanced output?
It's the only reason I wouldn't upgrade my Jotunherim to a Lyr. It makes no sense that Schiit doesn't make the Lyr double ended.
Thanks for your review. How would you put the Topping L30 vs Asgard 3 for Focal Clear? Thanks
Passion For Sound compared the 2 and said the Asgard is better. Also have Clears and plan to order an Asgard but the wait time is 6-8 weeks.
Asgard 3 all the way @Ebu Selah’edin IMO.
Hi guys I have the Hifiman Ananda and Dac SMSL VMV D1SE with the SP200 which the XLR inputs are defective but looking at a different amp looking at this Singxer-SA1 or Jotunheim 2. What would you think be a good match i would like more bass out of my Anandas and not as harsh highs?
Asgard 3 or the LYR3 probably would be the better fit @cisco150
Enjoyed your "take" on these products. Overall -- and it does not have to be one of these three amps -- what amp would you rec for the Bifrost 2. I'm interested in detail and stage. Thank you...
Check out some of the content and amps on the new channel I produce content on youtube.com/@TheSourceAVDesignGroup
Hi @Marcello, My question is can we introduce more tubyness in lyr by tube rolling and since it's using only one tube I'm not sure if it's gonna impact much. What are your thoughts?
Hi Lenin, you can add a bit more tube flavor depending on the tube, but it still doesn't sound as tubey as the other two amps we discussed.
@@MarcelloRostagni Thanks for the reply. Appreciate you taking time to reply
Hi @Marcello Rostagni , as a first tube amp , What do you suggest among LYR 3 vs Feliks Audio Echo mk2 vs hagerman tuba ? I have focal radiance, HD6XX , Austrian Audio Hi-X65, Beyer T5p. Im looking for tube sound - a little more soundstage and intimate vocals. This would be my first tube amp purchase. I have other amps like THX 888 , Singxer Class A and schitt Bifrost as my DAC. Im really confused on what to buy as my first tube amp under 1K. Many suggested Bottlehead but i cant build it myself , so left it out of equation.
The LYR 3 is very good as it can pair with many different headphones and impedance ratings with a little tube flavor. I really like the Echo MK2 tvp.ag/0FL22l0vrY as well as the Hagerman Tuba, honestly, they are all three very good amps in their respective price ranges. The EchoMk2 and the Hagerman Tuba will give you more tube sound than the LYR3. @Lenin Reddy So double-check the impedance ratings of your headphones and the EchoMk2 and Hagerman Tuba and make sure they will be good matches. The Echo MK2 will give you a bit to much bass bloom for my personal preferences with the Radiance, but you may like this if you want lots of bass.
@@MarcelloRostagni Thank you for the response. Im thinking to go with tuba as it has two jacks one for low impedance and other for high impedance.
I really enjoyed that amp, especially with the right tubes for your preferences.
I currently use the LCD-XC 2021 as my main pair of headphones. I might get another higher-end Audeze in the future. I have the Modi+/Magni+ stack. What would you recommend for end game DAC/AMP for those headphones? - Jot with DAC? BF/Jot? BF/Lyr? - I'd appreciate any feedback.
I really don't know if endgame exists, I have personally found my Endgame setups for headphones based on what I am willing to spend. I would also look at Chord products as well. thesourceav.com/products/chord-hugo-2?variant=41222043369628 or thesourceav.com/products/chord-hugo-tt-2?variant=41222097371292 are endgame for most but very expensive.
@@MarcelloRostagni Thank you for your response. You make a very good point. I ended up with the Bifrost 2/64 and the Soloist 3XP and I am very happy with them. They pair really well. I might get a Lyr 3 to satisfy my tube curiosity and a Composer 3XP down the line. I believe I might have found my end game in that range.
hello brother Marcello, thanks for your video, where to buy tubes?
Tube Depot, Upscale Audio are a couple of places to try.
Strange you call the Asgard III a little amp ..they look to be all of the same size..lol
Would the Asgard 3 pair well with bright, forward headphones such as Grado?
Hi @John A. day Eira The Asgard has a warmer punchy sound to it, so it could be a good option to help tame headphones that might lean a bit brighter or less dynamic sounding. It's not going to completely fix overly bright headphones. No solid-state amp will likely do that. You would want to search for a tube amp to help in that department more.
@@MarcelloRostagni thank you 👍
I realize everything is subject with these things, but would the Hifiman Sundara be a good match with the Lyr 3, because I really wanna try out tube? I also wanna try multibit, so should I buy the Bifrost 2, or just add the multibit to the Lyr 3? What would be the difference there? Thank you.
Give it a shot, it's the only way you will know if you like it. LYR 3 should have plenty of power and current for them.
Great job as always, Marcello! It sounds like the Asgard 3 is quite the bargain.
Thanks @Brandon , I think it is, especially for my tastes.
you say that the Jotunheim 2 isn't warm, yet i've read and watched many reviews of it where people claimed it is warm and actually sort of sounds like a slightly scaled back LYR3 in terms of warmth.
you also said that the Asgard 3 is actually warm, but in every review i've seen comparing the Asgard 3 to the Jotunheim 2 the reviewer always said that the Jotunheim 2 is warmer - especially when using balanced.
now i am just confused lol
can anyone clarify this?
I can't speak for any other reviews just what I heard with my audio chain.
I have an Asgard 3 and just bought a Jotenheim 2 in what I thought would be an upgrade. Ah....not really. I can barely tell them apart. There can't be 2-3% difference between them. In a blind test I would never be able to tell the difference. Tonality is the same. Sound stage is very similar. Balanced or single ended makes no difference even with a balanced DAC. I've A/B them back and forth and nada. I was expecting the Jot2 to be so much more dynamic and having so much more body etc. Nope. The Asgard has plenty of power and none of my headphones are power hungry. Same your money. Get better headphones. You'll really hear the difference then. My lesson is learned which is what this hobby is all about.
Which one would be best for dt 1990 pro I know there not the best cans out there but the best ones I have would like a good amp so when I do upgrade down the line
I never tried the pairing, I might guess the warmer leaning Asgard might be a good match if it delivers the power requirements, I wasn't really a big fan of BD headphones personally.
Which one is best to pair with hd800s?
Asgard or the LYR with a warm tube
im 2 minutes in, just saying, you got great taste in errything. all the best.
Glad you enjoyed!