Monolith Liquid Platinum Headphone Amplifier - Designed By Alex Cavalli | 3.6 Watts Per Channel, Ful
Monolith Liquid Platinum Headphone Amplifier - Designed by Alex Cavalli | 3.6 Watts Per Channel, Fully Balanced Amp
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- LUMINOUS TUBES. THE POWER OF SOLID STATE. SPECTACULAR SOUND. As an embedded tube/hybrid amplifier (DC coupled in to out, no coupling caps), the Liquid Platinum gives you the beautiful sound of tubes together with the grunt of solid state circuitry to drive the headphones. It uses two 6922 tubes or exact equivalents, such as 6DJ8s.
- SINGLE ENDED and BALANCED INPUTS and OUTPUTS: With multiple inputs and outputs for balanced and single ended operation and easy front panel input selection, the Liquid Platinum is compatible with just about everything.
- KEEPS ITS COOL. The Platinum is ventilated with two long, screened slots on either side of the top and large screens on the bottom to ensure that it is well cooled. Ensure your amplifier has enough space around the vents and is not in a sealed enclosure.
- YOU'RE PROTECTED.The Liquid Platinum has a built-in, slow power on. It warms up the heaters first and then, after a short delay, brings up the SS rails and tube HV, protecting the internal circuitry during startup.
- It also includes a connection delay to the headphones and an active offset detector, just in case an internal fault or source fault applies too much DC voltage to the output, it immediately disconnects your headphones
Brand : Monolith
Category : Electronics,Headphones, Earbuds & Accessories,Amplifiers
Rating : 4.5
Review Count : 360
SalesRank : 0
Monolith Liquid Platinum Headphone Amplifier - Designed by Alex Cavalli | 3.6 Watts Per Channel, Fully Balanced Amp
- --Introducion--I\'ve had the LP for a couple of weeks now. My sound impressions will be brief as my main goal here is simply to add another data point for those that may still be on the fence.I was on the fence myself. I don\'t trust Monoprice since this is their first foray into serious headamps. I was expecting multiple reports of shoddy build quality or exploding amps and it kept me from pulling the trigger at first. A huge thanks to the few trusted audiophiles that took the time to talk with me and push me over the edge.One caveat to my impressions is that moving up from the Schiit Lyr 3 meant that my DAC (Schiit Gungnir Multibit A2) was also going from SE use to balanced use. That means that any improvements I hear may be a mix of the amp itself and also utilizing the Gumby more appropriately. There\'s no way for me to reliably distinguish between the two.All listening is Gumby A2 (USB V)-->LP-->HD650 (stock).--Packaging--I ordered from Monoprice and their packaging of the amp is atrocious. A huge box with two pitiful packing bubbles, which means the amp is bouncing around all over the place during shipping. On the plus side, I was quite impressed with the amp box itself. It feels appropriate for a $700 (or $770 now, I suppose) amp. There\'s a nice bag for the amp itself, and everything is well packed inside custom-cut foam. I know, who cares, right? It\'s all about the sound. I only mention this, because value is the big question here. $700 is a lot for someone like myself and I want to feel like the money was well spent. Monoprice has done well here...it feels like a luxury product.--Build Quality--I thought this was a hideous amp when the prototype pics were released. In person, though, it\'s quite nice. Everything feels solid, and the case is well-aligned. The dark gray on the front plate blends into the black body nicely, and makes the whole thing look very sleek. I have no idea why the left and right balanced inputs are switched on the amp. I originally plugged them in incorrectly and was shocked when I heard the channels switched. But, hey...I always tell my students to take the time to read before answering a question and yet I was apparently incapable of reading the L & R printed above the sockets. So, that\'s on me. The construction is all metal, there\'s a good weight to it, and again...it feels like a $700 amp should. This does not feel like a cheap toy.--Tubes--The tube sockets are very tight, which makes installing the tubes fairly difficult the first time aorund. The right tube took some force, but went in without too much difficulty. The left tube felt like I was pressing against a brick wall. I finally realized the tube pins were just a tad crooked, and things went more smoothly after straightening them out a bit. However, things loosen up a little each time you swap the tubes out and after 3 or so swaps everything is fine. Tubes still take a little work to remove, but it\'s a non-issue. Tubes go in very easily at this point.While the stock tubes are perfectly usable, this amp responds very well to tube rolling. The stock tubes are nice and clean sounding, but lean a bit on the dry side. After rolling some NOS Amperex tubes to add some warmth, the sound is now dialed in perfectly to my preference.--Sound--This is a step up from the Lyr in nearly every way. This isn\'t a criticism of the Lyr, which I enjoyed quite a bit.The LP isn\'t aggressive, but the improvement in dynamics from the Lyr are obvious. The stage is also improved, especially in width. Instruments have their own spot in the mix, and the sound is very immersive. Once again, I don\'t think the soundstage of the Lyr is bad. In fact, I think it\'s pretty decent relative to some other Schiit offerings. The LP is simply better.Everything sounds very natural and easy, without crossing over into the realm of boring. Clean sound, but not clinical.The sound, in one word?Convincing.Enough said.--Misc.--GAIN - This appears to be the big issue people have with this amp, but it\'s a non-issue for me personally. There is no gain switch, so you\'re stuck with 5x gain (14db). I\'m typically somewhere between 9-11 on the dial and it\'s smooth and accurate enough that I don\'t have any problem getting the volume exactly where I want it. This about the same experience I had with the Vali 2 and Lyr 3 on high gain. Of course, YMMV. I\'m only using the HD650, so more sensitive headphones will have less play on the volume knob. If this is an issue for you, then it is worth your time to look into passive preamps or other attenuation methods. I realize this is an extra expense, but the sound of the amp makes it worth it.HEAT - Yep, it runs hot. So what? It\'s a non-issue.--Conclusion--This amp seems like a bargain to me. I\'ve owned a ton of amps in the $500 and under category and I questioned whether this would be a clear step up.It is.Remember, this is a re-design of the Liquid Crimson which went for around $1500. The Liquid Platinum sounds nearly as good for half the price.Yes, reliability is a question that remains to be answered, but with a 5-year warranty it doesn\'t feel like much of a risk.--Final Conclusion--Upgraditis Status: Cured.
- Very solid-feeling, sounds great with a super low noise floor. I haven’t done too much A/B testing with my other gear, so I can’t say how the tubes affect the sound exactly.The only problem I have with it is that it’s not exactly pretty… but that’s subjective I guess.
- I have been buying headphone amps since the Creek OBH11 came out,in 2003, (which was a disaster)...and have graduated to the O2, (meh)... and from that to the Cavalli Massdrop CTH tube hybrid (sweet and smooth tube-like warmth)...a few DAC/amps of various brands..and on to the Schiit Jotunheim (still a reference for me)...until I decided to check out the latest versions of amps that sell for around $100.00. I bought the Schiit Magni 3+...the Schiit Heresey....and the Cavalli designed Liquid Spark prodced by Monoprice.I am amazed by what fine quality now comes in these small packages!!As a long time speaker designer and builder, I love hearing music through different systems, and comparing the sound of different transducers and components in the payback chain. so...I conducted extensive listening, on each amp, with three headphones of my choice, The Audeze 2 Closed, The Sennheiser Amperior, and the Audeze LCD X, to a wide variety of music from CDs after all the headphone amps had burned in for about 100 hours.I compared five headphone amps, the two small Schiit amps, (Heresy & Magni3+)... (the two Alex Cavalli amps, (the CTH & the Liquid Spark)...and my long-time standard, the Schiit Jotunheim, which is by far the most costly of these amps, using a Schiit Bifrost DAC fed S/PDIF optically from a Yamaha CD changer. Three amps were simultaneously connected on identical cables, (from WBC), to that wonderful DAC.I realize this is not a scientific study with double blind tests. I realize I have personal biases concerning sonic preferences, and music, as does everyone. I have a home recording studio with good gear, and I record mix, and master both acoustic and electronic music. I have been doing this for decades (5) and still have good hearing (so grateful!), for a guy my age. That said my ears roll off at 14Khz now...but it happens so gradually, you think you still hear everything (lol). I do like to ask others of their opinions on sound, and read a lot of reviews on equipment, (and see and hear them)....yep ...hooked.:-)Cutting to the chase, purely subjectively, here are my findings;1) Jotunheim barely retains first place, but only wins in its balanced mode, which is unfair due to the fact the other amps are not balanced, and are a fraction of Jotunheim\'s price. If I were to rate these amps strictly in S.E mode the Jotunheim would tie witrh the Liquid Spark on these headphones. If your cans are not efficient or harder to drive, the Jotunheim would rule here with its huge power, even in SE mode.2) Liquid Spark, when using the cans I had, and comparing all SE, ties the Jotunheim! It excels in detail presentation, resolution, sound staging and space, lack of grain or glare, solid punch, low bass, airy highs, and musical presentation in general in all music types. I think this amp would pair well with headphones with well balanced frequency responses. Bass shy, overly bright headphones ,(I won\'t mention names), might sound best with the Cavalli CTH, with its warm smooth character and broad imaging.3) Schiit Magni 3+ is a winner I could be entirely happy to live with as my only amp, if I hadn\'t heard and lived with the Liquid Spark, that is. The Schiit has a slightly warmer and ever-so-slightly smoother sound signature that is powerful and dynamic, but not as refined or transparent as the MonolithTo sum up, the best of these four amps, used single ended, is the Liquid Spark, hands down. Follow the directions for use that come with it, and be patient with burn-in , and give this amp time to mellow (and it does beautifully). It will reward you with superb sound. The Liquid Spark runs quite warm, as does the Schiit Magni 3+, but the Heresy doesn\'t. That is all I wish to say about the Heresy. It left me cold.
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