Review: ALO Audio Continental V5 – CDM Competition?

The sound stage width is good but it isn’t the widest ever either. It’s also wider than it is deep and layering is ok. The level of detail from bass to highs is good but not that spectacular like CDM’s. The mids have enough richness to make the CV5 musical while still showing all the detail. Dynamics are pretty good and the CV5 really is a mix of the tube sound from the CDM and the solid state sound from the RX. The sound signature of the CV5 isn’t closer to either of these amplifiers, it really is right in the middle. Power wise the CV5 has enough to drive big full sized headphones but we’ll get back to that part in a bit.

Even though it’s a hybrid amplifier with a tube in the input stage, I would describe the sound signature as fairly neutral with a hint of warmth and tube smoothness and that is noticeable from bass to highs. CV5 is what I would call a “lighter sounding amplifier”. The bass has very normal and good body and isn’t boosted in any way. Sub bass on the CV5 is lighter though and it’s more upper bass and lower mid bass. Its presentation is soft but you can clearly hear the layering very well. Bass runs perfectly in to the mids and has the same amount of body. Fans of big bodied music will probably crave for thicker mids though. The tube softness is noticeable here as well but the mids are rich and detailed making this a very musical amplifier. The level of depth and layering is the same as in the bass department. Treble of course has a smoother touch to it as well but it’s lively and has good timbre. It’s not the most energetic or extended though.

alo-audio-cv5_7

The advantage of the CV5’s hybrid design is that you get a mix of all the good things: you get good speed (like a solid state amp) and at the same time it has that relaxed and easygoing sound character from the tube making it the perfect amp for those who find the RX too solid state like and the CDM too soft. In that regard ALO Audio did a great job. If you’re looking for a portable amp with a spoken for character you might prefer CDM’s or the RX’s sound signature more, as the CV5 amp clearly is a compromise of both signatures.

I have to say I find the CV5 an amp with a character: with some ear- & headphones it plays sublime while it with others doesn’t have the same kind of magic mostly because of the lighter signature. Almost all amplifiers work better with certain headphones, that’s pretty common, but it does mean it’s hit or miss.

Ear- & Headphones

I took the CV5 with me to Canjam Europe last month and dropped it off at the Pro-Ject Audio booth so people could listen to it over the weekend. I don’t know what they used the CV5 with but the feedback on Sunday was that the CV5 is a picky little amp. Every amp has its favorites but the CV5 can be picky indeed. I do have to say the CV5 sounded remarkably better once the 6111 tube had been fully burned in but the CV5 has a lighter presentation of bass and mids compared to many other amplifiers, including those from the ALO Audio range.

The Radius hp-twf41 is a universal IEM with a weird fit and a full tight bass sound signature. Unfortunately this IEM immediately shows how picky the amp can be as the bass doesn’t show as much when plugged in to the CV5. The sound is a more flat tuned and neutral one with good detail. On the RX this IEM has more body in bass and mids and it is very different from the light signature it has on the CV5 (with the same source). The CV5 is dead silent though and there’s no channel imbalance. Switching to the CustomArt 8.2 ciem, the CV5 comes back alive with top dynamics, great bass, very musical mids and energetic treble. This combination works wonderfully well even though you can hear some background noise when no music is playing, as I said earlier. The 8.2 and CV5 are very good and musical combination. The Fidue A91 Sirius is a 4 driver universal IEM with big bodied bass and mids and the combination with the CV5 is wonderful and one of the best I’ve tried. There’s no noise or channel imbalance, it’s incredibly musical and addictive. Great stuff! The brand new CypherLabs Austru is a 4 driver universal IEM with a bass switch. I personally liked it a lot when using the Cayin i5 as source with the CV5 but I didn’t really like it with the CV5/Hugo combo as the sound got more light and forward, even with the sub bass activated. The Austru in combination with a full bodied source on the other hand produces really good sound with great clarity, detail and precise bass.

alo-audio-cv5_8

The VE Monk+ and ZEN are extremely popular and while the monk+ is “only” 32Ohms, the ZEN is an impressive 320Ohms. The CV5 in low gain has no problem driving the ZEN and you get a detailed and spacious musical sound with good bass and mid body. If you want more than “normal” bass from the balanced ZEN you’ll have to use a different amp though as the CV5 makes it very linear sounding (as it should sound). The VE Monk of course has more bass body but it doesn’t have the precision and detail of the ZEN. This is a bass heavier IEM and the CV5 makes it sound the best it can.

The 300Ohm Sennheiser HD650 is a headphone I like most on tubes or with warmer sounding amplifiers. The CV5 on high gain manages to drive it but for me personally the sound is a little too bright and sharp for an HD650. The Hifiman Edition X is an easy to drive planar technology headphone and the new ALO amp makes it sound musical, spacious and precise without boosting anything in particular. In high gain you get a little more bass body which might please many listeners. The 32Ohm Beyerdynamic DT770 sounds really good on the CV5 with tight bass and good detail on low gain. I can listen to this combination all day long. Its big brother, the DT1770PRO, also sounds really good on the CV5 and even used this setup in the train home. It’s clean, clear precise and musical with tight bass. The open version of this headphone, the DT1990PRO has more bass in the mids but it performs equally well with the CV5.

Sennheiser’s new HD599 is awesome and the CV5 makes it shine. In contrast to the HD650, bass body here is perfectly good. The mids are still a little lighter though but it sounds really good. The HD599 is hard not to like just like the 598 was. It’s such an awesome headphone and this has been my favorite combination at the office with the CV5.

ALO Audio on several occasions has confirmed they like the HE-1000V1 on the Continental V5 and I can fully see why. Even though it doesn’t have the authority of say the Erzetich Perfidus, the CV5 on high gain manages to make the HE-1000 sound precise, clear and very dynamic. Some would call it a “reference” or “audiophile” tuning with detail and clarity and no boosts. If you want more bass you’ll have to go to another amp though. Sennheiser’s HD800 sounds a lot better than the HD650 does, even though the mini amp can’t get the best out of it, but that’s no shame.

Comparisons

ALO’s solid state RX amplifier might be the CV5 biggest competitor but the CV5 is better equipped to handle full sized headphones. The Continental V5 has more detail and sounds cleaner while the RX has more bass body and especially mid body. The RX sounds less spacious but more fun because of the bigger bass presence. The CV5 clearly has the edge on technicalities. CypherLab’s Picollo amplifier sounds more analogue but it also sounds a bit slower. It has a smoother and warmer sound signature overall with bit more bass body. Mid body is about the same but the CV5 has a more spacious presentation with further extended treble and better dynamics. The Picollo goes deeper and has better layering overall. The CV5 is the more neutral tuned amp of both with a clearer presentation while the level of detail is about the same. A tough choice as both amps drive full sized headphones too.

alo-audio-cv5_9

ALO’s CDM (running the 6112 Mullards and bypassing the DAC) sounds even more spacious and detailed while bass is a little bigger and tighter. I do find the CDM’s sound stage to be wider and deeper and the presentation is clearer and richer. It certainly isn’t warmer or smoother with these tubes. The mids are a little thicker too with this tube set. To me and probably to Nathan as well, the CDM still is ALO’s number one. Cypherlabs’ Trio amplifier also uses the 6111 tube but it isn’t user replaceable. Trio sounds brighter and sharper and not as smooth and musical as the CV5. Concerning body and detail these are pretty much on par except for the treble section which clearly extends further on the Trio and sounds richer.

Combinations, Tube rolling, and Conclusion on the last page, click HERE

4.4/5 - (20 votes)
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Lieven is living in Europe and he's the leader of the gang. He's running Headfonia as a side project next to his full time day job in Digital Marketing & Consultancy. He's a big fan of tube amps and custom inear monitors and has published hundreds of product reviews over the years.

9 Comments

  • Reply October 20, 2016

    JohnC

    Thanks for the review – been waiting for it before buying (or not). How would you compare your i5 DAP (or AK70) + mojo + CV5 to just the DAP + CV5?

  • Reply October 21, 2016

    Barun C

    Nice review Lieven. Well said in the end, cause to me $599 with pre order of $499 would have been a sweet spot as well, but Portable Headphone Amps now have become passé, personally speaking, since the improvement of one stop solution DAPs (E.G. QP 1R, LPG).

    Anyway, seems this will be in the league of Vorzüge Pure II & Portaphile 627X.

    • Reply October 21, 2016

      dale thorn

      Would those one-stop-solution DAPs include a flexible Parametric Equalizer (you choose the frequencies and bandwidths)?

      • Reply October 21, 2016

        Barun C

        I believe, LPG has parametric EQ. Not for the QP1R though, I have been requesting Questyle, to introduce the same along with letter wise scrolling, it might take some time,the FW is very basic and uses the linux platform.

        It recently got USB DAC functionality. They have introduced features asked by users since the release in each FW update, which is a good thing, but I’ll be honest, I have not touched the EQ since the day I got the QP1R, and I have been using it for more than a year now, sound is its core competency and it excels at it better than any DAP or portable combos I’ve used, FW wise it is primitive.

  • Reply October 25, 2016

    Mateo

    I would like to know how the hd599 compared with he400s …

  • Reply October 26, 2016

    Gr8soundz

    How would you rate the CV5 against the Fostex HP-V1?

  • Reply October 26, 2016

    Lieven

    I don’t have the Fostex, sorry

  • Reply November 21, 2016

    John Hospod

    How does it compare with the Portaphile 627X?

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