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Old 07-07-2019, 05:22 PM
PHC1 PHC1 is offline
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Originally Posted by Soundmig View Post
Having now lived with Aegir for several weeks, I have a couple of additional observations. One is that Aegir's greatest strengths is its ability to convey dynamics both macro and micro. This ability is critical when it comes to "realism" associated with the attack envelope of voices and instruments. To say that music "comes alive" with Aegir may be an understatement. So much so that some recordings almost sound like different recordings compared to listening to the same through other amplifiers. One such recording is Monty Alexander's "Goin Yard" from Telarc. The close mic'd and HARD hit piano along with hand drums (congo's?) on the opening cut (The Serpent) sound like a close mic'd hard hit piano and hand drums (imagine that). Using two other amplifiers (both with audiophile cult followings) the distinctive attack (like you hear if you're actually there) was rounded off with these other amplifiers (sweet and pleasant, but not accurate). Interestingly Aegir does this (reproduces the hard and sometimes nasty attack) without sounding "harsh" or "etched". Another example of digging deep into the micro dynamics is in Chris Isaak's vocals on "Blue Spanish sky" where he transitions from throat voice to mask as he goes up in pitch. With the Aegir you can literally hear the tongue switch positions as the air moves into the mask (nasal cavities) and pushes the pitch higher and changes the timbre of the voice to the desired effect. Again, on the "other" amps this microdynamic detail is mostly lost.

Aegir may or may not be your cup of tea, because it doesn't always sound like and "audiophiles" amp, but it does always (to my ears) sound realistic and accurate. The only place where macro dynamics may be less than stellar is when you push the volume to where Aegir is taxed to provide the power (its' only 20 watts). At that point you can get some softening of the bass "impact". Even so, I've yet to hear Aegir clip - even under some pretty tough pushing. I've just ordered another one to try Aegir as mono blocks :-)

Another thing that I ran into at a friends house was the fact that Aegir is very senstive to DC. The amp simply would not stay out of protection mode for very long in his system? He's had some problem with noise in his A/C supply suspects that there may be some DC in his lines. I contacted Schiit to find out what they thought, and they said that likely there is DC in his A/C supply as Aegir is VERY sensitive to DC and will shut down if any DC is detected. They were also suspicious of the Cardas Clear Beyond power cable we were using at his house, but i don't think that power cable could cause a problem?

Anyway, I'm really enjoying Aegir and look forward to reporting on Aeigir x2.
Great write up! The eye flinching transient response reproduction and the dynamic contrast some amp/speaker combos are capable of is indeed entertaining but often does lead to a feeling of a sterile and sometimes harsh response overall depending on the recording. The balance of having a great dynamic contrast, to be able to hear every note of every instrument start and stop on a dime in a realistic fashion but to keep things sounding natural and with proper weight and tonal balance is no easy feat.

I loved the Wilson/D'Agostino combo for that. The Harbeth/Luxman can't quite match that reference point that has been established in my mind having lived with them for a few years but then again there is a limit what one can achieve on a given budget to build such gear.

That Aegir exhibits these traits of flushing out dynamic contrast without sounding clinical is already a great testament. Most budget amps can not be both smooth and flush out great dynamic contrast, some much higher end amps are excellent at dynamic contrast but sound clinical and I'm not going to name them

At the price of the Aegir, even if is only 20w/40w of Class A, kudos to Schiit for pulling it off. I'd love to take the Aegir for a spin just to see what Schiit has achieved for under $1k. So far every piece of Schiit (no pun intended, it's not my fault they chose that name ) that I have laid my hands and leaned my ears on, has been nothing but tremendous bang for the buck. Enjoy your Aegir and looking forward to further x2 impressions.

Last edited by PHC1; 07-07-2019 at 05:59 PM.
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