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Darkvoice 336se Vs Bottlehead Crack Tube Average ratng: 7,7/10 3522reviews Folks wanting the ultimate price performance ratio should probably look at the Little Dot Mk III. And those who want a transparent amp without coloration or distortion should not touch this with a 10 foot pole. Who are the competitors? The Bottlehead Crack, of course, although the Crack is a DIY OTL tube. HD650 with DarkVoice 336se and either o2+odac or Aune T1 is a very lovely low cost combination.
This is an instance where. Ideally though we'd probably want to actually listen to one first before spending money like that but I get the feeling the Bottlehead Crack with Speedball is often a rare thing.
This video is related to Darkvoice unboxing Darkvoice Darkvoice 336se Darkvoice 336se headphone tube amplifier Darkvoice 336 Darkvoice 336se review Darkvoice 336se otl headphone amp Darkvoice 336se otl Darkvoice 336se smoke Darkvoice vs dot key features: 1. Tube Used: 6N8P 6N5P 2.Frequency: +/-1dB 10Hz20kHz 3.Distortion: =2% Output impedance: 32 to 600 ohm 4.Power handling capacity: 1W 5.Output terminal: 6.3mm Stereo Jack I declare that all the images i have used to make this video are from google search and advance search.Thanks to google and original sources to give such beautiful and related images. Music Credits: Song: Cartoon - On & On (feat.
Daniel Levi) NCS Release Music provided by NoCopyrightSounds. Watch: Download/Stream: - Please watch: 'Amazon Echo dot Indian Editions Unboxing only at rs 3000 Smartest device in world' -. Yes YES I have tried both, but it is limited about how detailed I can get, since it is a while ago now. To a degree, I would say the choice comes down to the headphones you are going to use with it Could you go into more detail about that? As Amps are not supposed to color the sound shouldn't it be as simple as 'ok these are transparent'? Both are tube amps so they should both handle the sound in the same way so unless one is incredibly slightly more transparent than the other I'm stumped. (Disclaimer I have not listened to the Vali 2 but given it is a schiit product I can't imagine them screwing up and releasing a bad amp) Also how would the headphones make a difference, would it take ultra accurate headphones to notice the slight difference in sound or something?
Just curious as I try to stick to the most amazing price to performance products and as the Vali 2 is the lowest priced tube amp on the market (according to schiit) and made by a respectable company I would immediately lean towards that but I can't suggest it having never listened to it. Could you go into more detail about that? As Amps are not supposed to color the sound shouldn't it be as simple as 'ok these are transparent'?
Both are tube amps so they should both handle the sound in the same way so unless one is incredibly slightly more transparent than the other I'm stumped. (Disclaimer I have not listened to the Vali 2 but given it is a schiit product I can't imagine them screwing up and releasing a bad amp) Also how would the headphones make a difference, would it take ultra accurate headphones to notice the slight difference in sound or something? Just curious as I try to stick to the most amazing price to performance products and as the Vali 2 is the lowest priced tube amp on the market (according to schiit) and made by a respectable company I would immediately lean towards that but I can't suggest it having never listened to it. 5 nothing is really 'transparent'.
Everything you add to your setup will have its own touch. A DAC also has its own sound, but the thing is these things are often fairly subtle and often very subtle compared to the difference between headphones. A tube (this is going to be very very general) will roll off the highs, warm up the mids and maybe add some bass, every single tube you get will do at least one of those things, the degree varies a lot.
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Transparent is also different from person to person, what I hear as transparent is by some called tending bright, while one of my friends calls things transparent that some call tending warm, we all hear things differently from each other. (prob going to sell him my tube DAC) Different amps accel at different things, x amp might be good at bringing out the mids and low end while being rather eh when it comes to the highs.
Something like the Starving Student DIY tube amp paired with the T50rp mod called Argon really brings out every single good thing about the Argons, where as the magni 2 wouldn't be able to do that. All amps are also far from equal, let us say we test a magni 2 and NFB 1AMP that is a 100$ amp vs a 485$ one, that is a pretty big gap, they are both generally viewed as good amps for their price, but why get the more expensive one? It gives you more detail, so detail actually gets lost in the magni 2 (it also does in the 1AMP, but not to the same degree), the lows, mids and highs get a bit cleaner and the sound becomes a bit wider, you might also notice that the 'speed' becomes faster and the lows might hit a little harder. If we then look at the Vali 2 and Valhalla 2.
The Vali 2 is less veiled, has a bit more speed to it, it is kinda a bit more controlled and then a tiny bit more slam to it, but not as detailed and has less plankton. So the Valhalla 2 has more of this veil to it and it offers more detail and is basically just a more normal tube amp in sound. The Valhalla 2 is one of the tube amps that often get recommended for HD 650's and also HD 600's because a lot of people think they match very well. If you want to learn the terms then basically just google them, it would take too long for me to explain them. We also have the fact that the Valhalla 2 is a OTL amp, meaning it sounds the best with higher impedance headphones and has the most power up in the 300 ohm range vs your normal amp that has most of its power at 32 ohm. The Vali 2 is a hybrid, meaning it takes trades from both the tube and the solid state, so you get some of that tube sound while having most of the power in the low Ohm range. There is a thing that is called matching your gear, meaning if you have X headphone, then you don't just go out and buy your average amp and DAC, you go out and test your headphone with many different setups to find the setup that you think matches very well with them and really lets the headphone shine.
I don't really recommend doing this if you are just getting into audio or don't have plans to drop a lot of money on audio. The conclusion to the 'transparent' part: a DAC is not just a DAC and an amp is not just an amp, every single one of them will add their own touch to what you hear. I hope that you can use this information. You can get cheaper tube amps and hybrids than the fulla 2, but would I really recommend doing it? No, not really, the vali 2 is basically just giving you a small taste of what a tube amp is. You also don't need ultra accurate headphones to notice a change, I would actually say that to a degree your hearing is more important than the actual headphone, yes some headphones are more sensitive to source gear than others are.
Schiit gear is TBH a bit too hyped at times, yes they have some good/great gear, but there are quite a bit of their gear I would classify as okay. I think that was it. I watched a Zeos review on the Vali 2 and he claims it is not enough tube and basically just a solid state amp. I trust his ears so I would suggest if you are going for a tube amp to maybe consider shopping outside Schiit. I'm sure the Valhalla 2 would be great but I personally would shop around because I'm sure there should be a great tube amp for $200 and jumping straight to the $350 pool feels excessive just to get tube sound.
Of course if your budget accommodates that easily then sure why not. The DarkVoice 336SE for around $200 sounds like an affordable, favorably reviewed tube amp. If after all this you still believe and amp is an amp and a dac is a dac, and transparent is all they need to be, get yourself an ODAC and an O2 Amp.
I believe that they should be transparent, and headphones/iems/speakers should be neutral sounding and if you desire any modifications to the sound of your music you should use an eq. I understand that not everyone shares that belief and that's ok.
(As long as they don't use that belief to bully someone into spending money they don't need to.) But this thread, and my comments on it are not about my beliefs but what tube amp this person should get. I watched a Zeos review on the Vali 2 and he claims it is not enough tube and basically just a solid state amp. I trust his ears so I would suggest if you are going for a tube amp to maybe consider shopping outside Schiit.
I'm sure the Valhalla 2 would be great but I personally would shop around because I'm sure there should be a great tube amp for $200 and jumping straight to the $350 pool feels excessive just to get tube sound. Of course if your budget accommodates that easily then sure why not. The DarkVoice 336SE for around $200 sounds like an affordable, favorably reviewed tube amp. I believe that they should be transparent, and headphones/iems/speakers should be neutral sounding and if you desire any modifications to the sound of your music you should use an eq.
I understand that not everyone shares that belief and that's ok. (As long as they don't use that belief to bully someone into spending money they don't need to.) But this thread, and my comments on it are not about my beliefs but what tube amp this person should get. Zeos is one of the last person I, (or most audio people) would trust.
I've had the darkvoice and little dot. Both were mushy warm rolled off tube shit. I was just wondering if the Valhalla 2 does better in this regard and gives me the 'tube' sound without sounding like that, perhaps something like an Eddie Current.
Based on the reviews I've read the Vali sounds like it is only extremely slightly tube sounding and considering you have the budget for multiple expensive tube amps I would jump straight to the Valhalla 2. While it wasn't worth the price for me it appears to be in your price range and you want tube sound so I'd say go for it. Maybe check with first to make sure your headphones don't conflict with that particular amp. Post navigation.
Click to expand.I had an amp that was a bit better, the Le Figaro Classic. Basically an upgraded 336 but without the pre outs. Effusion on this forum still owns a 336 SE.
As for sound it was pretty good but a bit congested compared to some amps you can now get under $300. Lots of tube rolling for flavoring but at the end of the day, I think you can do better. Depends on what can you plan to use. I used Beyer DT-880s 600 ohm and they liked the smoothed top end and extra warmth of this type design. And it also liked the more lush mids. That really helped the dry Beyers. The Darkvoice, I heard primarily on Senn 650s.
Nice but not outstanding. I personally would look for a better true OTL design like a Hartung (another of Effusions amps).
Or go with something like one of the tube Schiits depending on can. I like the Polaris SS amp just fine with my Senn 650s for example. Price is about right on the DV, I think I sold my Le Figaro for around that or about $175 or so. Bixby is correct, I've owned the 336SE for the past 7 years or so and I also own the Hartung 6080/6SN7 OTL amp as well. The Le Figaro Classic is the newer design, with a few different components internally and is also a slimmer unit, but I couldn't tell much difference between it and the SE, they are very similar. I believe they stopped manufacturing the 336SE, but you can still purchase directly new. One main difference with the La Figaro Classic is that the 336SE has pre-outs, so if you plan to run it to a power amplifier/speakers it is a plus.
I believe the output of the 336SE is a bit hotter than a usual line-level RCA, so make sure to pair it with a quality amplifier with well built inputs; I believe the extra juice is the reason the input on my original cheap small form Onkyo desktop amplifier eventually went out, but I've had no trouble feeding it to a Qinpu A-6000 MKII. In my experiences, the Darkvoice is just that, a little dark, but in my opinion a great little desktop amp for the price, plus the rolling options can make it really fun. It may not have the detail and openness of others, including much newer designs, within its price range, but it really meshes with the HD650s and the 6SN7 tube is just fun in general, while the 6AS7G and variants are easy to find NOS. I exclusively paired this amplifier with the HD650s and it truly is a great match for them; I'm assuming it would be just as good on the 600s, which I did try for about a week or so, prior to receiving my 650s, but it was years ago.
Compared to the Bottlehead Crack, I've always enjoyed the Darkvoice more. The base Crack was always been a bit too soft, polite, and sweet for me when I've auditioned in the past, while the Darkvoice gave a more forward sound with much better impact, speed, and attack overall. I recently heard the Crack with the Speedball upgrade as well as an upgraded pot and it was much better than stock; however, a 5998 tube was also being used, which generally gives a stronger, more forward sound with quite a bit more gain plus weight to overall signature.
I'm now convinced that these 3 upgrades to the Crack are well worth it and probably necessary for me at least. Also, the nice thing about the Darkvoice is that you don't necessarily need something like the 5998 for most applications. I've found that I quite enjoy quality 6080s better than 5998s or 6AS7Gs, as 6080s tend to give great soundstage/air by really opening up the sound and also impart a bit of sweetness, such as the Crack, but without dulling the sound too much or making it too sweet; European and military variants are my favorite of the 6080s. Although, it really all comes down to what type of music you enjoy the most, as I can see the Crack being a great choice, even stock, for certain genres. There has been a ton of discussion regarding the different rolling options for this amplifier over the years as well: As bixby also stated, I own a Hartung 6080/6SN7 headphone amplifier, which I believe is a true OTL design, whereas my understanding of Darkvoice has always been that it was more of a hybrid, albeit with great use of the tube section, unlike some. Hartung is a company that has been making OTL amplifiers for many years and are highly regarded in this area, more so in Europe, as I believe they are just less known in the states. Below is a link to their website, plus where you can find one for sale (I purchased mine from an auction a few years ago for $300 shipped off eBay direct from Hartung, so you might be able to find a better price than the $495 offered below): Overall to me the Hartung is more detailed, open, transparent, dynamic, and forward than the Darkvoice, giving better overall sound quality in general.
My only complaint is that there is no power switch on the Hartung, so you either have to unplug from the back or use a switch at the cord, etc. To turn it off/on. Also there is a switch on the back for US/Europe voltage, so you need to make sure it is to the right for US because there are no markings indicating which is which, be careful not to switch it accidentally either. Other than these two issues, I'd consider this Hartung as a great option for the Darkvoice/Crack/Valhalla 2 field.
Compared to the Bottlehead Crack, I've always enjoyed the Darkvoice more. The base Crack was always been a bit too soft, polite, and sweet for me when I've auditioned in the past, while the Darkvoice gave a more forward sound with much better impact, speed, and attack overall. I recently heard the Crack with the Speedball upgrade as well as an upgraded pot and it was much better than stock; however, a 5998 tube was also being used, which generally gives a stronger, more forward sound with quite a bit more gain plus weight to overall signature. I'm now convinced that these 3 upgrades to the Crack are well worth it and probably necessary for me at least. Also, the nice thing about the Darkvoice is that you don't necessarily need something like the 5998 for most applications.
I've found that I quite enjoy quality 6080s better than 5998s or 6AS7Gs, as 6080s tend to give great soundstage/air by really opening up the sound and also impart a bit of sweetness, such as the Crack, but without dulling the sound too much or making it too sweet; European and military variants are my favorite of the 6080s. Although, it really all comes down to what type of music you enjoy the most, as I can see the Crack being a great choice, even stock, for certain genres. Very cool, congrats on the purchase! I'm glad you are digging it with the HD600s. I agree, I like the look of the SE version the best, the chrome plate on the classic always looked like it would pick up a ton of prints and I believe would get a bit hotter to the touch as well. What tubes did it happen to come with? There are a ton of options for the 6sn7 out there, but it may be best to first determine what type of power tube, 6AS7G/6080/5998, would best suit your needs.
Most of the 5998s were made by Tung-sol, Chatham, and Western Electric, with re-brands here and there, and they'll give you more gain, powerful attack/speed, and quite a bit of impact. However the 6080s tend to be on the other end of the spectrum, with a more delicate, open, and less solid state sound overall. Many regard the 5998s as the best variant, however they have also been more solid state sounding to me and not always the best for every genre, but they do sound very good. As far as 6080s, I've always like the Bendix cast-iron plates and the European CV2984s the best, but all of the militarized WB versions are generally quite good. To me the 6080 tends to be the most tubey overall, with great bloom, soundstage, and air. However, the cheaper NOS versions were always a bit too laid-back, soft, and polite for my general tastes. The GE 5 stars and Sylvanias were always my least favorite and in this category, but they are easy to find and are cheap.
The military Tung-sol with cast-iron plates are also very nice, with a bit more weight than the Bendix, but with less of a top end. As far as 6AS7Gs, most are RCA's, with the black plates being earlier than the grey; most consider the sound of the newer grey plates to be a bit better as the black plates can sometimes seem a bit harsh, clinical, and shallow. Also, there is of course, the original, the GEC 6AS7G, which are regarded as the best sounding of the type, but they are expensive; my understanding is that the non-coke bottle GECs (look like 6080s) are virtually the same, but they tend to go for much less (I have yet to try any of them though).
Generally, I would put the 6AS7G between the 6080s and the 5998s on the spectrum, having more of a balance of flavor between the two extremes. The 6sn7 is one crazy world, since there were so many types and variants made, but there are a ton of impressions out there if you search. Then again, you may already know all of this and have some different types at hand already. Let me know if you have any questions and congrats once again! Very cool, congrats on the purchase!
I'm glad you are digging it with the HD600s. I agree, I like the look of the SE version the best, the chrome plate on the classic always looked like it would pick up a ton of prints and I believe would get a bit hotter to the touch as well.
What tubes did it happen to come with? There are a ton of options for the 6sn7 out there, but it may be best to first determine what type of power tube, 6AS7G/6080/5998, would best suit your needs. Most of the 5998s were made by Tung-sol, Chatham, and Western Electric, with re-brands here and there, and they'll give you more gain, powerful attack/speed, and quite a bit of impact. However the 6080s tend to be on the other end of the spectrum, with a more delicate, open, and less solid state sound overall.
Many regard the 5998s as the best variant, however they have also been more solid state sounding to me and not always the best for every genre, but they do sound very good. As far as 6080s, I've always like the Bendix cast-iron plates and the European CV2984s the best, but all of the militarized WB versions are generally quite good. To me the 6080 tends to be the most tubey overall, with great bloom, soundstage, and air. However, the cheaper NOS versions were always a bit too laid-back, soft, and polite for my general tastes. The GE 5 stars and Sylvanias were always my least favorite and in this category, but they are easy to find and are cheap. The military Tung-sol with cast-iron plates are also very nice, with a bit more weight than the Bendix, but with less of a top end.
As far as 6AS7Gs, most are RCA's, with the black plates being earlier than the grey; most consider the sound of the newer grey plates to be a bit better as the black plates can sometimes seem a bit harsh, clinical, and shallow. Also, there is of course, the original, the GEC 6AS7G, which are regarded as the best sounding of the type, but they are expensive; my understanding is that the non-coke bottle GECs (look like 6080s) are virtually the same, but they tend to go for much less (I have yet to try any of them though). Generally, I would put the 6AS7G between the 6080s and the 5998s on the spectrum, having more of a balance of flavor between the two extremes. The 6sn7 is one crazy world, since there were so many types and variants made, but there are a ton of impressions out there if you search.
Then again, you may already know all of this and have some different types at hand already. Let me know if you have any questions and congrats once again! Good purchase on the Thomson, they are nice and do quite a bit good, especially if you got a good deal. I had never tried them before, but my Hartung amp came with one stock that was NOS, so I'm thinking there is a big stash somewhere in Europe. Anyway, I enjoy it! As far as the Tung-sol reissue, I'm not really sure as I have not tried any new production 6sn7s.
They are Russian however, produced by the New Sensor Corp. And re-branded as Tung-sol. They ended up buying the rights to the old tube branding/design and produce them in the same way, however the materials and manufacturing tends to be less than stellar, at least compared to the old versions. I believe general impressions of the some of the new production Tung-sols are that they are a bit thin and shallow compared to their NOS counterparts, but it's a good place to start and they should work just fine. I do like Tung-sol 6sn7s though, with my favorites being the 'T' plates and the brown base WGTAs. The 'Round Plates' are also excellent, but are very expensive and in my opinion not really worth the extra coin.
Below are some 'examples' of the T and brown bases, but I have not looked closely at the sellers/results, etc., so just examples.Edit: I just noticed that the T Plate linked above is actually a 'Mouse Ear', which is a T plate, but has those round saucers protruding from the sides at the top, indicating that it is a mouse ear. In my experience, the mouse ears have great soundstage and air, but sound a bit thin and more polite than other Tung-sols. A true T plate is linked below (you'll notice that a few are taller than others, which is just differences in the years/manufacture): That CV2984 does look nice and isn't a horrible price or anything, they are hard to come. The ones I've used have been earlier productions though, probably 50's to 60's I believe, so I'm not 100% sure, but those appear to be them (mine have slightly different labels, etc.). In my unit they always gave me everything I wanted, no less, no more, and were generally my starting choice when rolling with others for the first time to get folks a good starting impression. You'll find that sometimes with tubes, compromises must be made, as most do some things right and other things not so right. The fun, at least for me, is being able to get different flavors for different genres or to just change it up a bit after using others for awhile.
Also, consider trying an RCA grey plate 6AS7G, or even a black plate, to a least get a sense of them compared to the Thomson as well. They are generally cheaper, around $20-$25 for NOS or close to, and easier to find than others. Plus, getting a sense of how different the 6080 is to the 6AS7G helps.
In addition, I've found that Tube World is a great resource for information regarding NOS types as there is info plus pictures of many different kinds. However, I don't remember them having much on the 6AS7G/6080/5998 types.
Anyway, it's nice to have a picture and description sometimes. I'm unsure of what they are including as stock nowadays, I believe they are probably cheap Chinese types though and you'll get better sound as soon as you swap them out. Let us know how those new tubes turn out!
Discuss anything and everything about Music, Equipment, Movies, Equipment, Gaming, Equipment and even some Equipment Discussions might pop up. This is the main 'forums' of the Z-Reviews Patreon and an open forums for all things media. BUYING GUIDES. Recommendations Lists Updated Monthly-ish COMMUNICATIONS. Instant Answer Gratification! - Live pictures of the day to day and community BSing - Many subchannels and BS. Vent1.light-speed.com PORT 6449 YOUTUBE REVIEWS.
(Liquidations, Perks and Exclusives) (One time Thanks) Rules: Keep a Civil tongue you Bastards. Try not to hate speech anything I don't hate speech first. Post pictures of your setups if you want.
Post playlists of music if you want. Post your Gone Wild Girlfriends tig ole bitties if you want. Wiki is open edit for the Lulz. Don't PM me to look at a thread.
If you need me for anything just put a username mention ' in any thread COMMENT on here or anywhere on reddit to summon me (like a Genie). If you find any spam, use the report feature under the post please. Hi, really need your advice and thoughts on the aforementioned amps. Here's my thoughts and concerns on the DarkVoice: Build quality and excessive heat (my room can reach 31 Celsius with AC off which I can handle).
As reviewed by his greatness:D, sound is an excellent fit for my needs. My thoughts on the APPJ 1502A: Requires lots of mods (relatively, since I don't know how to solder) to as sound good as I want it to be.
Any how, if the DarkVoice amp is a safety concern, then my only option is to get the woo audio WA3 or WA6, which I would like your experience if they produce similar excessive heat. Thank you all and best regards. Ok if you're going for OTL tubes then LCD-2, LCD-XC, and Ether C are out. OTL have significant power at higher impedance, but nothing at low.
IMO you should get the Audio-GD NFB-11 if you're thinking about getting something that is very versatile so that it won't limit your choices. I also think that it outperforms all of the tubes I have tried and I've tried a lot. The Schiit Jotunheim is another versatile option, but it's quite bright sounding and falls behind the NFB-11 quite a bit. I also highly recommend the Ether C since it's my favorite closed back headphone and was only bested by the new Ether C Flow.
I've had one for about a year. No smoke yet! However, you can develop a hum depending on the tubes you are using. Not all but some do this. There is a fix on Head-Fi that requires soldering some capacitors to eliminate the hum. It does run kinda hot when using it.
Works great for warming up the room in winter. I use this with Sennheiser HD650 and it sounds excellent. There is no 'veil' that happens with other amps. Not sure how this would work with the Beyers. Looks like you found this on Massdrop.
That's where I got mine. I've had one for about a year. No smoke yet!
However, you can develop a hum depending on the tubes you are using. Not all but some do this. The darkness 1 pc game free download. There is a fix on Head-Fi that requires soldering some capacitors to eliminate the hum. It does run kinda hot when using it. Works great for warming up the room in winter.
I use this with Sennheiser HD650 and it sounds excellent. There is no 'veil' that happens with other amps.
Not sure how this would work with the Beyers. Looks like you found this on Massdrop. That's where I got mine. Click to expand.yep, Massdrop.
Darkvoice 336se Tube Types
Great price at $220. I wonder how returns are handled there. Specs say 'Power handling capacity' 1W, I assume that means the output? Haven't heard it referenced that way before.
Specs on my other two amps are: Little Dot MK 3: Power Output 350 mW @ 300/600 ohm Valhalla 2: Maximum Power, 600 ohms: 450mW RMS per channel The Valhalla specs state 'per channel' which makes me wonder if the 1W spec on the DarkVoice means 500mW per channel, probably so? Guess that means it isn't much more powerful than the Valhalla 2.
Darkvoice 336se Schematic
You asked about returns; this is from the FAQ: What is Massdrop's return policy? Unfortunately, we do not accept returns for the products that you purchase on our site. Since we sell products through our drops, we do not carry inventory and we can’t resell individual items that have been returned. As such, manufacturers do not allow us to return unsold or returned products.
We run all of our drops for extended periods so that you have time to become knowledgeable about the product beforehand, and know what you’re getting. If you’re not sure, ask other members of the community and they can help you decide if the product’s right for you. Click to expand.yep, had the gains set to max. I should state that I listen on headphones mostly when I am tracking a song i.e. Playing guitar, bass or keyboards. It probably is louder than what most would consider comfortable but the volume is part of the process for me, it pumps me up and makes for a better 'feel' in the performance. The Little Dot MkIII was barely adequate, I had to turn it up to 9 to get the volume I needed but the distortion was too much.
The Valhalla 2 was a step up, but I still have to turn it up to 8 and there is some distortion. What I want is a headphone amp that I only need to turn to 7 (or less) to get the volume to that 'inspirational' level. When I saw the Darkvoice on Massdrop for such a nice price and what appeared to be 1w output, I got very interested. The preamp output is after the volume control. So turning the volume knob on the DarkVoice will change the volume of the preamp output.
The preamp output should have the tube character of the sound you hear from the headphone output. I've never heard the DarkVoice, either as a headphone amp or preamp, so don't know how well it does the tube character thing from the preamp output or headphone output. Most of a headphone amp is basically a powerful preamp. Adding a preamp output is a more common feature now on headphone amps.
Darkvoice Vs Bottlehead
For example, all of the Schiit headphone amps now include a preamp output. The first amps from Schiit did not include a preamp output. Lightly used Bottlehead Crack headphone amplifier with the Speedball upgrade and the following customizations: TKD volume control Furutech RCA jacks Cardas Quad Eutectic solder The amp was professionally built by HiFi Builder Guy (a small business made up of former Bottlehead employees who work with Bottlehead to build Bottlehead products for customers). The build and customizations cost $400 extra over and above the cost of the Crack and Speedball components. The base is a custom built bamboo enclosure by Blumenstein Audio with a clear acrylic bottom that allows a clear view of the internal components. This custom wood and acrylic base cost an extra $125.
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