Sound Impressions
Summary
The V590 taps into the AK4490EQ’s penchant for excellent low-end power but delivers an implementation that superbly refines the output to offer excellent clarity beyond the low-end with a superbly refined treble presence.
It easily has enough headroom to drive modern planar headphones and a surprising level of efficiency to work well with a wide range of IEMs.
I would not define the V590 stock sound as overly neutral but rather it aims to deliver a sound more to the natural and slightly euphonic side but without an abundance of coloration that drowns out one aspect of the FR over the other.
That is perhaps one of the key differences for those thinking of moving from the older V281 amplification sound signature. You will not lose that sense of planted power but it is not as dominating nor as warm on the V590. Importantly, it allows the mids on our tested headphones to come to the fore in terms of both presence and perceived complexity.
I am down with that change yet applaud Violectric for retaining many aspects of their popular house sound.
As a result, the V590 pairs amazingly well with headphones that have a bias to key attributes that tease out powerful musical-sounding presentations as well as imbue a bit of character to others that could be described as more ‘reserved and technical’ in their sound.
Coloration
I have never found AK4490EQ DAC implementations as anything other than punchy, ‘musical’, and with a certain fun factor.
It is a crude description because the way Violectric has implemented the dual AK4490EQ inside the V590 is nothing like older DAP tunings that often left the vocals a little shouty and the treble slightly hard-edged.
The V590 does retain that punchy powerful low-end with an instrumental and vocal timbre that errs to the sweet side but what has impressed me is how they have dampened down on the treble and added a level of refinement.
It sounds impeccably smooth but clear without any significant attenuation to achieve that level of performance.
That’s why I call it a sweet coloration rather than an overly rounded and thick sound. There is less of a wall of bass or a thickness in the bass quantity that overshadows or overly richens the mids with just enough treble infusion to keep the harmonic balance natural rather than achingly precise.
Resampling
However, there is more to the V590 coloration with a resample feature which I have grown to appreciate with breathy soulful vocals that require a degree of smoothness without glossing over details.
Vocals with character or vocals delivered from the chest with a broad rich timbre work are good examples because they tend to have a long sustain in the note that can expose any tonal unevenness in an amp’s sound signature.
With the stock sound, you get a few sharper partial overtones in gritty vocalist performances such as Buika or Joplin that can slightly upset the tonal coherence when they hit those long holds. These notes are superbly smoothed out by opting for their “Best” resample option.
This is a 96kHz that is a beautiful blend of detail and slightly euphonic harmonic balance that serves to enhance that natural tone from the V590.
Sure, you can opt for the X4 for a higher level of perceived detail but for these types of vocals, they can sound overly precise for my liking. I tend to revert to X4 for synthwave and EDM music which favors that clean and precise sound signature.
Staging
The V590 tends to offer what I define as a ‘live stage’ feel in terms of staging and imaging performance. It is not as upfront and precise as the studio-like delivery of the Chord Electronics Hugo TT2.
This is more like a few rows back with excellent depth, perhaps more so than the TT2 which sounds comparatively neutral or linear with slightly more deference to midrange intimacy.
Mids on the V590 are a shade further back compared to the Tt2 but are lively and more focused than the older V281 presentation with more solidity to instruments pitching around 500Hz to 2-3k. Channel separation is very good but again more of an emphasis on delivering a natural soundstage than an artificially widened experience.
Treble is subtly faded for timbral coherence to get that sweet and natural sound but not to the point where the headroom feels like it could be an issue. Parings such as the Diana Phi and Heddphones showed off some excellent grain-free treble with a slightly liquid overtone and above-average articulation.
Synergy
Noise
The V590 is pretty darn good for a powerful amplifier when it comes to noise floor performance. I tested it with a very wide range of headphones and more sensitive IEMs.
Yes, when you get down to Campfire Audio’s Solaris SE you are going to pick up a bit of hiss in both balanced and unbalanced outputs. However, dropping the pre-gain down to -18dB, and going single-ended will reduce it considerably to a workable level.
You also get about 1/3 headroom on the reed relay volume control so there is enough there for micro-adjustments without it getting too loud too fast.
Is it as black a background as a Chord Hugo TT2? Sadly, no, the TT2 does better with sensitive gear offering a very black background. However, the V590 is much quieter than the V281’s amplification output and does suggest that the additional lower -8dB on the noise floor spec sheet is a valid statement.
Once you drop down to sub-110dB SPL on in-ear stuff then the noise just floats away and you get a very nice black background indeed. IEMs such as the 64 Audio Tia Trio and Vision Ear’s Elysium have no problems with the -18dB setting, with no audible signal at the lowest level and plenty of micro-control from the reed relay pot.
Power
The V590, in combination with its pre-gain and/or balanced output, has no problems delivering excellent dynamic range and volume to our tested headphones.
You do not need any pre-gain to adequately drive the Empyrean balanced and the Final D8000 Pro unbalanced. Both require no additional dB gain tweaking to sound suitably driven so keep it at 0dB or all switches off.
Even the normally thirsty Abyss Headphones Diana Phi worked just fine from the 0dB pre-gain setting offering a comfortable volume setting of around 1-2 pm which leaves decent headroom if you really want to go higher.
And it is not just volume either. The dynamic range was excellent with some stellar staging depth and width on the Phi as I would expect there to be.
On the extreme end with the Hifiman Susvara and the older HE6 at 83db each respectively you will find the reed relay volume control go fairly high at 2-4 pm at 0dB for a comfortable listening level.
My suggestion here is to make sure you go balanced with a +18dB gain selection on both channels on the headphone out pre-gain. That will drop the volume levels and give you a little more headroom if you need it.
Pairings
Abyss Headphones Diana Phi
The smooth timbre of the V590 still has plenty of gusto and energy for me so combined with the power I enjoyed the Diana Phi and Diana V2 pairings.
These are two very revealing world-class planar headphones but the Phi, in particular, can have an unforgiving treble nature with poor source/amp matchups. I have tended to keep it with my Xi Audio Formula S’s sweet tone rather than something like the Chord TT2 because it is just too vivid and exhausting on the TT2.
The V590 creates a very agreeable middle path between the sweet but lighter touch of the Formula S and the vividness of the TT2.
You also get a nice injection of low-end warmth and power which can be the Formula S’s Achilles heel. The Phi is fairly transparent so it picks up right away on the V590’s solid low-end and excellent dynamic range.
More so than the V281, even when jacked into the V590’s DAC output. The V281 just seems a little looser, not quite as well separated or as refined on the mids and treble. With the V590 amp, it sounded a little tighter with better separation and a smoother treble timbre.
Meze Audio Empyrean
The Empyrean was effortless on the V590, with superb bass definition and a delicious vocal performance. Treble was clear without sounding overly exaggerated or harsh which is exactly how the Empyrean should sound.
I tended to use the resampler set to Best for this pairing (96kHz) as it seemed to deliver a nice balance between vivid and smooth. The X4 tended to sound almost too precise and perhaps even a little dry with the Empyrean compared to the Best setting’s more liquid delivery.
Hedd Audio Heddphones
I also recommend the Best setting on the V590 for the Hedd Audio Heddphones, especially with brighter recordings where a little bit of sibilance in higher-pitched vocals can creep in. With the Best resample setting it seemed to deliver a more natural-sounding sibilance without artificially damping it down or doing away with it.
It also does a nice job easing out odd harmonic nasties in broad breathy vocal performances such as Concha Buika where tonal consistency is critical. She tends to hold her note but within that note, you get a lot of vocal cracks and chesty breathing techniques with a lot of character shining through.
With the resampler off the Heddphones tended to just sound a little edgy on her vocal timbre but with the resampler set to ‘Best’ this pairing sounded much smoother and more consistent without any loss of detail.
By the way, the black background on this pairing is spectacular with Buika’s often solo vocal performances with nothing but a Spanish guitar and a lone trumpet in the background. Hugely listenable performance.
