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Sound – Intro
As said, SAEQ insists that using a high end source with the Armageddon is needed. As it is a transparent high-end amp, it is important to use a highly detailed source. We in this review have used the Musician Audio Aquarius R2R DAC as dedicated source
The ARMAGEDDON amplifier delivers an unparalleled authenticity in sound reproduction, creating the illusion of being present at a live music performance. It allows you to delve into the most astonishing sonic details with a resolution and relaxation that have an incredible synergy. Building on the esteemed legacy of our renowned HYPERION Ge model, the ARMAGEDDON enhances your audio experience with clearer details and a finer spatial presentation. Listeners perceive the ARMAGEDDON as the sound of a top-tier vacuum tube amplifier, characterized by minimal coloration and a rich fullness of tone. The contours of tones are full and clear, offering a world of new perceptions.
The assessment was done with a series of high-end, different technology headphones which I will get back to in the dedicated chapter later. The Aquarius DAC was connected to my laptop (running ROON) with a Chord Epic Digital cable, and connected to the Armageddon via XLR.
Sound – General
The Armageddon is a more neutrally tuned amplifier when referring to warmth and lushness, but it does have a full bodied presentation from top to bottom. You get a weighty sound over the whole frequency range, no matter what headphone you connect to it. It however is perfectly controlled weight, and there never is too much (or too little). For me, SAEQ got it just right body wise on the Armageddon, but for some it might come over as too full sounding.
The presentation and delivery of the Armageddon is not warm, but it is smoother and softer if you ask me, especially when using the attenuated outputs. I quite like this typical tuning with all the richness it comes with, and the mid -timbre (but also the bass) is mega impressive. Three other things the Armageddon excels at are control, cleanness and clarity. This SAEQ amplifier is always in control, and the bass section is incredibly impressive in this regard. As long as you feed the Armageddon with a high level source and a good signal, you will get a perfect clarity and cleanness no matter what headphone you are listening to. I myself find the PDA-1b to be even cleaner sounding, but that’s probably because it is a tad lighter sounding body-wise.
The Armageddon’s speed is good, but it isn’t the ultimate performer for what concerns PRaT. The level is good, but there is margin for improvement. The Armageddon does make up for that with incredible sub bass performance, award winning depth from top to bottom, as well as layering.
We already have explained that the Armageddon is a powerful amp and that it can drive multiple headphones at the same time (like the PDA-1b), but it also sounds powerful and energetic no matter what music you play or headphone you hook up to it. SAEQ has managed to add an ear pleasing musical presence to all of that, making it an amplifier that many audiophiles will easily adore, and rightfully so.
While the Armageddon is a good performer when it comes to sound stage, it isn’t the very widest extending amplifier, especially on the top end. The bass and mids do have an airy presentation and that sure helps, but when using headphones such as the HD 800, you might find it a bit limited in the higher frequencies.
What also impressed me is that the Armageddon is a dead silent amplifier an it has a perfect pitch-black background. No matter what headphone driver tech is used or what sensitivity and impedance the headphones have, perfect silence is all you will hear.
If I have to mention what I like less with the Armageddon, then it would be the beforementioned top end extension but also the absolute refinement (microdetail) and note extension. The SAEQ is a bit short in decay, and the ultimate detail is higher in even more expensive amps like the Headonia. The Armageddon is a high-end amp so the performance of course is good in these areas, don’t worry about it, but it could be even better. I find the PDA-1b to perform better on top (extension).
One of the statements SAEQ makes on their website is how the Armageddon gives you the sound of a top-tier tube amplifier. It is not directly how I would describe the sound or tuning but looking at the timbre, fulness and musicality, this surely makes sense.
Sound – Headphones
The Armageddon with it’s Class A circuit is very good when it comes to powering notorious harder to drive headphones. With its attenuated outputs it however should also work fine for high impedance and high sensitivity headphones, so that is what we will be checking as well in this chapter.
As said the attenuated outputs were designed to handle headphones with a sensitivity higher than 105db/mv, but they basically can drive anything as well giving you more headroom. The fact that the Armageddon can drive 4 headphones at a time is remarkable, and it really comes in handy for reviewing or for doing direct comparisons.
The headphones choses for this section are the following: The RAAL 1995 Immanis, the Hifiman Susvara Unveiled, the Abyss Diana DZ, the DCA Stealth, the Sennheiser HD 800S, the Beyerdynamic DT1990 PRO and the Austrian Audio The Composer. Let’s get started!
The brand new Hifiman Susvara Unveiled might be a bit easier to drive than the original, but it still likes power and it scales up nicely the better the amplifier it is hooked up to is. With the SAEQ Audio Armageddon, I prefer to listen to the Unveiled (Impedance 45Ω and Sensitivity 86dB) on the direct output, even though the -5 Attenuated one also is perfectly fine if you want some more volume room to play with. Anyway, the synergy between the Unveiled and the Armageddon is remarkable. I have already shared with you that I feel the Unveiled is one of the very best headphones on the market, and the Armageddon can really push it so it sound its absolute best. The result is a very high technical level, a powerful yet musical and engaging presentation, but also with good body from top to bottom. I adore the mid timbre, (sub)bass impact, overall layering, etc etc etc. It simply is a sublime high-end combo which shows what the Susvara Unveiled is capable off, and it is a lot.
The RAAL 1995 Immanis is another headphone that likes power to perform at its best, but it isn’t absolutely needed. Of course you still need to use the Ribbon Current Interface here, and I prefer connecting it to the direct output of the Armageddon. You here are greeted again with a high-end sound and it is clear that the Immanis gets all the power it needs from the Armageddon, even at low gain. Sure the volume dial goes up more compared to with the Unveiled, but there are no driving issues at all. In fact you can drive both the Magna and Immanis at the same time if you would want to. The synergy here is good and the performance is great, but I find the RAALs to be even more spectacular when driven by the high-end Auris Audio Headonia 300b tube amplifier which I reviewed just a few weeks ago. I am mostly talking about airiness, note extension, decay and sound stage in this case. Don’t get me wrong, this combo does sound really good with excellent bass presentation, top level layering as well as depth and engaging vocals, but to me the Immanis can sound even better. The Magna matches the Armageddon’s characteristics a little more.
The Abyss Diana headphone series all like power, and while the newest DZ is supposed to be easier on your system (impedance 50 ohms and sensitivity 92 dB/mw), it does still like power to shine. I prefer hooking up the DZ to the Direct output but also to the -5db attenuated output, as that presents a softer, more relaxed sound compared to the fuller and more energetic direct output. The vocals do sound better without attenuation though. I really like the synergy between the DZ and the Armageddon and you get the typical Diana sound with excellent bass (control), natural vocals and a lively energetic top end. All that presented in a musical and softer way with a high technical level. I really am a fan of the Diana series, and the Armageddon also makes them shine. Some amplifiers might focus on different things a little, but all-in-all I like the magic between these two.
The Dan Clark Audio Stealth (Impedance 23 ohm and sensitivity 86 – 87 dB/mW) is a headphone which I find harder to match to get it to sound its best. The Armageddon however drives it nicely delivering a full, spacious sound with excellent bass impact, punch and control. Note extension here is impressive for the SAEQ (cymbals!) and the stereo image is super impressive, as well as female vocals. Do try Elisa Waut’s – Four Times More (from 1986!) to know what I am talking about. This setup I can listen to all day long, even if I don’t need a closed-back headphone. The synergy is that good.
Switching to dynamic driven headphones, the Sennheiser HD800 S is the first one up. With its 102 dB sensitivity and 300Ohm impedance, it in theory is a headphone to connect to the attenuated outputs. It actually works fine with or without attenuation, and you get a full sounding, energetic and perfectly driven as well as controlled HD 800S. The difference between the direct and attenuated output here is the same as with the DZ. The -5db attenuated output presents a softer, more relaxed sound compared to the fuller and more energetic direct output. Vocals on both outputs here are good, but softer on the attenuated one. Like with the Immanis, the combo certainly is nice, but I really do prefer the Senn on a high-end tube amp such as the Headonia. Think sound stage, decay, note extension, spaciousness. Do the combo is good, silent and nice, but not everyone will like the high impedance Sennheiser this way.
The Beyerdynamic DT 1990 PRO (250 Ohm and 102 dBSPL) is in the same boat as the Sennheiser, but I do clearly prefer the attenuated output here. You get perfect control, softer highs, sublime bass presentation and control, and natural lively vocals. I find the Beyer to sound a little too shouty and aggressive on the direct output, The synergy between the Armageddon and the DT 1990 PRO is excellent though, and I could listen to this combo for hours without having the feeling I am missing something.
The Austrian Audio The Composer headphone (22Ohm and 112dBspl/V) is one of the most recent headphones with the highest sensitivity, so I absolutely wanted to include it in this part. Here the attenuated -10dB output really sounds best as all of the other outputs just are too much for it. The synergy between The Composer and the Armageddon is excellent and it really makes the headphone sound really good, it will just get loud fast. For some reason I don’t listen to The Composer that much, but this combo really works well and it does want me to listen to the Composer headphone more again. Simply excellent, if you can live with the smaller volume range.
With all of the headphones I tried, the Armageddon at all times was silent and there was no audible noise present. I also hardly ever go over 5 or 6 on the volume dial and that is in low gain. I really never had the feeling high gain was needed for any of the headphones I hooked up to the amplifier.
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End Words
With the Armageddon, SAEQ has built a serious powerhouse and TOTL contender for those looking for a high-end headphone amplifier. If you have big pockets, a larger collection of (reference) headphones and want to be able to listen to all of them at the same time, the Armageddon is one of the main amplifiers to look at.
The latest SAEQ amplifier is more than just a powerhouse though. With its powerful, controlled, weighty and very musical presentation, the Armageddon will win over many hearts. The mid timbre, bass presentation and layering – just to name a couple of characteristics – are of the very best in the segment.
Yes, the Armageddon is an expensive amplifier, but you do get a lot in return as well. The build quality is excellent, the components are well-sourced and the sound quality is impressive, even though not perfect.
Each time when I read a show report, I see how many people are impressed by the Armageddon’s performance. I fully see (and hear) where that is coming from and as I said before, the amp’s tuning is so easy to like that I am sure SAEQ will sell many of these.
Summary
Pro
– Tuning: Body, (sub)bass, layering, control, vocals
– Power
– Can drive 4 headphones simultaneously
– Also works as a speaker amp
Con
– Microdetail and note extension can be better
– Top end extension
– PRaT has room for improvement
Specifications
Load Impedance headphones out – direct: direct output: 4- 600 ohms / out with attenuation 32 – 600 ohms
Load Impedance speakers out: 4-16 ohms
Output Power: 30/4 ohms, 20W/8 ohms, 8W/16 ohm, 4W/32ohm, 2W/64ohms, 1/120 ohms, 0.5W/300 ohms, 0.25W/600 ohms at 1khz/sine
Frequency Response: 500mv/ in/sin. 10hz – 100kHz (-0.5dB/ -2dB)
Power Bandwidth: Better than 10-50kHz (-0.5db) at 5W
Distortion: Better than 0,2% at 1khz
Signal to Noise Ratio: Better than 90dB
Input Impedance: 100kΩ
Input Sensitivity (High and Low) for full OUT: 1V(high gain), 2,5V (low gain)
Input Connections: INPUT 1- 2 RCA Single-Ended and INPUT 3 – 2 XLR 3-pin Balanced (female)
Output Connections: 1 x XLR 4-pin female +6,3mm stereo jack-direct, 1 x XLR 4-pin female + 6,3mm stereo jack direct/attenuation 5-10db (balanced Planar & Dynamic headphones)
Max Power Consumption: 100W, without signal 15W
Working voltage: 115V/230VAC (selector switch)
Dimensions: Height 122mm, Width 370mm, D 240mm
Weight: NET- 8kg, PACK 9,2 kg
Page 1: SAEQ, Armageddon, Design, Build quality, Lay-out, Usability
Page 2: Sound Intro, Sound General, Synergy, conclusion, Summary, Specifications
