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Magic smoke: How loud the Lyr will get how quickly is a function of four variables - source voltage, headphone efficiency, headphone impedance and Alps volume taper. To calm distressed nerves over blasting from zero to hero over the first few millimeters on the dial where channel tracking tends to be imperfect, I ran through my arsenal of seven phones with various sources to report on the approximate range of settings. Naturally what's low, normal and loud will be different for me and you. For reference, on a standard speaker system I consider 90 to 95dB peaks at the ear loud.


While the following isn't exact, it should suffice to convey the essentials. The Ortofon IEMs in this list were the obvious odd man out. I can't see anyone using their kind on this amp. They were the only headphones to have the Lyr slightly noisy. For the volume settings 7:00 equals mute. This progresses clockwise to full blast at 18:00.

Headphones
Source voltage
Volume control settings
Progression
AKG K702
1V iPod
2V CD
5V DAC
10V DAC
low 12:00 - normal 14:00 - loud 16:00
low 10:00 - normal 11:00 - loud 12:00
low 09:00 - normal 10:00 - loud 11:00
low 08:30 - normal 09:30 - loud 10:30
slow
fast
very fast
very fast
Audez'e LCD-2
1V iPod
2V CD
5V DAC
10V DAC
low 11:00 - normal 12:30 - loud 14:45
low 10:00 - normal 11:30 - loud 12:30
low 09:00 - normal 10:00 - loud 11:00
low 08:30 - normal 09:30 - loud 10:30
slow
fast
fast
very fast
Audio-Technica
ATH W5000
1V iPod
2V CD
5V DAC
10V DAC
low 10:00 - normal 12:00 - loud 14:00
low 09:00 - normal 09:45 - loud 10:45
low 08:30 - normal 09:00 - loud 09:30
low 08:00 - normal 08:30 - loud 09:00
slow
normal
fast
very fast
beyerdynamic T1
1V iPod
2V CD
5V DAC
10V DAC
low 12:00 - normal 14:00 - loud 16:00
low 10:00 - normal 12:00 - loud 14:00
low 09:00 - normal 10:00 - loud 11:00
low 08:30 - normal 09:30 - loud 10:30
slow
normal
fast
very fast
HifiMan HE6
1V iPod
2V CD
5V DAC
10V DAC
low 14:00 - normal 16:00 - loud 18:00
low 12:00 - normal 14:00 - loud 16:00
low 09:00 - normal 11:30 - loud 13:00
low 08:30 - normal 11:00 - loud 12:30
slow
slow
normal
normal
Ortofon eQ7
1V iPod
2V CD
5V DAC
10V DAC
low 09:30 - normal 10:30 - loud 12:00
low 08:30 - normal 09:15 - loud 10:00
unusable
unusable
normal
fast


Sennheiser HD800
1V iPod
2V CD
5V DAC
10V DAC
low 12:00 - normal 14:00 - loud 16:00
low 10:00 - normal 11:30 - loud 12:30
low 09:00 - normal 10:15 - loud 11:30
low 08:30 - normal 09:15 - loud 10:30
slow
normal
fast
very fast

These settings show that the chosen taper on the Alps pot properly matches a wide variety of headphones to not come on song too soon.


With its pre-outs the Lyr is the only Schiit to allow preamp use. To preempt folks from equating 6 watts into 32Ω with real fun directly into 8Ω speakers Jason explained that "Lyr does not have any electronic current limiting but the dynamically adaptive output stage is designed to work optimally into typical headphone impedances.


"Sure the Lyr will drive 8Ω but it is not a speaker amp. Speaker amps usually have some decoupling from heavy reactive loads. Lyr doesn't need it for light headphone diaphragms.


"It also has self-resetting passive internal protection that will limit output at about 1A of current over long periods. If you're going to try to drive speakers or 8Ω transformers, you could potentially run into problems with back EMF and trip our passive protection." 
 

Bedside break-in with Antelope Audio Zodiac Gold w. Voltikus
iPod Classic, Pure i-20 digital-direct dock & HifiMan HE-6

After extended burn-in during which various speaker reviews were handled, the core quality of the Lyr sampled first over my favorite Audez'e LCD-2 with upgraded ALO Audio leash was juiciness. By extent it reminded me foremost of Frank Blöhbaum's stupendous Thorens TEP3800 preamp. Since the term itself is soft to also suggest dripping peach slop, let's tighten down. People coming from transistor amps often have a common reaction when they first switch to a SET amp (if their speaker match is copasetic which is far from guaranteed). They note harmonic filling out. This usually gets described as image density, from-within pressure or illumination, deeper colors or textural liquidity. Looking from there back on transistors makes them flatter and drier.


That's SET sunny side up. On the greasy flip side there are drive issues. Those translate into softer bass and transients; frequency extension limitations; and a propensity to get a bit obscure or opaque with the complex stuff. Reconsidering transistors makes them tauter; more extended and resolved at the extremes; better separated during dense passages; and often more dynamic particularly in the macro range. The Lyr combines SET-ish color temperatures and from-within pressurization—fullness, mass, pumped-upness—with the bandwidth, grip and dynamic slam of transistors. This combination nets juiciness. It's perfectly à propos to envision a ripe peach. Just extricate the saccharine glazed baker's touch. Instead inject a bit of acidic fruitiness like a properly tart rhubarb pie whose native contrast setting hasn't been sugared to death.


If that characterization sounds like a meet of tubes and transistors, it obviously is. Such hybrids are simply never guaranteed to end up with best-of traits from each parent. Else they'd be far more common. Tube voltage and transistor current gain sounds like a good idea on paper. Given the Lyr's deliberately pushed power/drive aspect, the potential for noise was simply high. Since the amp wasn't envisioned as just a driver for inefficient orthos, very low self noise was obviously mandatory. Because it is, the juicy core vibe finds itself accompanied by high detail magnification. This is another aspect where honest comparisons between equally excellent valve and transistor amps often have to—grudgingly—admit that transistors fare better particularly at low volumes. No matter how loud you like your 'phones, the output voltage that makes it so is still peanuts compared to loudspeakers. What makes the Lyr (and given its price, what makes it special) is that it harvests valves for their textural density and color temperatures, transistors for resolution and drive control. What adds specialness (actually, specialty) is its ability to properly drive HifiMan's orthos. It drives the Audez'e just as well but their push/pull magnetics don't require Lyr muscle. As I learnt, the HE-5LE and HE-6 do. Rarely was the term 'wakeup call' so apt.

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