The day is almost here. My Torii MK V comes in tomorrow! I can hardly wait. The setup ought to look as follows:
Aurender N100H Streamer > Denafrips Ares II DAC> Rogue RP7 Pre > ZBit via XLR > Torii MK V > Zu Soul Supremes

Interconnects are Zu Mission MK II and RCA cable for ZBit to Amp will be the Decware Silver

Speaker cable is Tellurium Q Black II

Hoping all works well. Need to figure out what to set the volume controls to on the Torii MK V and how much to dial up the ZBIT. Any advice would be appreciated!

Thanks GroovySauce! Will definitely let you know how it comes together. Appreciate your input on the volume controls. Will definitely go about it how you mentioned there!

So in my setup, I will likely have the amp about 25ft away from the rest of the rig. So Steve had advised that I use the ZBit to traverse the distance via XLR and use a short RCA interconnect to the Torii. I had the choice of getting XLR inputs on the Torii, but opted to get the ZBit instead because I also plan to get the SE84UFO25 for comparison in the future. Thanks.

Yup, the Groove said it well. Since you have multiple gain stages, and tubes & tube regulation, there is no end the exploration and satisfaction. You'll be left cold and stale in an entirely SS world. Thankfully, I left that world of one button and that's pretty much it almost 3 years ago and my only complaint is that I didn't pay attention a long time ago.

As a wait-lister for the MK 5 about 3-4 months or so away, I too along with many of us here are all ears with what you have to say once its all set up.

Congratulations!

Brad

Thanks so much everyone! So a couple of caveats. This is the “way too early” impression. I kept everything up to the pre-amp the same and introduced the ZBit and Torii V along with 1 new RCA interconnect from the ZBit to the Torii. My amp previously was a FirstWatt J-2 that I also love!

Contrary to conventional wisdom of not messing with the tubes till broken in, I did substitute 2 sets of tubes:
1) The rectifiers are NOS Mullard 5AR4 tubes. Made for a more forward presentation with more energy than the stock Russian 5U4s.
2) The front input tubes were changed to NOS RTC E188C. The 5AR4s made the sound a little brighter but also more resolving. Introduced the RTC tubes in the front and were back down to good levels of treble and also since those tubes had about 100 hrs on them, they were broken in. Sounds texturally smoother with more resolution and refinement. Also, the sound has more weight now over the stock 6N1Ps.

Love the mid range I’m hearing too! Just very correct levels. Love me some Mark Knopfler on this.  The FirstWatt J-2 on mids are at times in your face, with the Torii not so…

I think the Soul Supremes and Torii are a great match! I really think the Torii gives the setup a lot of character while the J-2 is more analytical. I can see why so many folks are up listening to music late into the night.

The main difference is I think is the sound is not fatiguing. I can see myself just listening to music instead of analyzing the nuances of my sound once I dial things in.

Also, hoping to make some observations on the sound stage and resolution after break in. My room is in desperate need of treatment, all of which makes it hard to comment on the sound stage at this moment.

I think the Torri MK V is a keeper for sure!