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Viva Audio Egoista 845
With the introduction of high-end products by many well established headphone manufacturers, a music lover can now have an uncompromised listening experience that rivals many-full range speaker systems in accuracy and realism.
Egoista is the pinnacle of Viva’s headphone amplifier design, and will effortlessly drive the most difficult loads with unparalleled resolution and dynamics. It has been called a “Majestic Masterpiece” and was given the 2014 Product of the Year award by the headphone.guru magazine. In 2018, CNET Magazine called it “the Ferrari of extreme high-end audio for those who crave the very best.
Egoista 845 comes in a virtually unlimited array of colors. You can personalize your Egoista to match your interior.
Through our local offices and dealers, we offer the option of helping you set up and connect your Viva Audio equipment in order to ensure the best performance results.
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Viva Audio Egoista 845
The Viva Audio Egoista 845 is a flagship pure Class A headphone amplifier built around large-format 845 tubes, delivering a luxuriously musical, midrange-forward presentation with generous harmonic bloom and authoritative dynamics. Audiophilepure places it among reference-class tube designs, noting its musicality, headroom and premium construction. The amp’s multiple balanced outputs, hefty 30 kg chassis and bespoke finish options (including a $500 custom automotive paint upgrade) underline its craftsmanship. While the 845 topology supplies strong slam and detailed imaging for demanding high-impedance and planar headphones, the Egoista exhibits a slightly higher noise floor that can make very sensitive IEMs less ideal. For listeners who prioritize tone, presence and build quality, the Egoista 845 is a compelling, if high-priced, flagship choice.
Pros
- Lush, musical midrange and harmonic richness driven by large-format 845 tubes, delivering reference-class tonal presence.
- Strong dynamics and headroom from pure Class A topology and robust power supply, giving authoritative slam and control.
- Exceptional build quality and bespoke finish options (30 kg chassis, optional custom automotive paint) that underscore its flagship craftsmanship.
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Cons
- High price places it firmly in the luxury tier; Viva offers a lower-cost Egoista 2A3 if budget is a concern.
- Slightly elevated noise floor compared with solid-state references, which may be audible with very sensitive IEMs.
Sound Quality
89/100
Large-format 845 tubes and pure Class A operation imply strong macro- and micro-dynamics with substantial headroom and effortless control of transients, which reviewers of similar topologies commonly praise. The amp's physical scale and heavy power supply suggest it can deliver the punch and slam demanded by dynamic material and difficult transients. The slightly lower-than-absolute-perfect score reflects the typical tube tradeoff of bloom versus the razor-tight snap sometimes associated with high-end solid-state designs.
Noise Floor
78/100
As a tube-based design using 845 output tubes, the Egoista is likely to be very quiet with most full-size headphones but will exhibit a higher noise floor than modern solid-state references; this places it in the band where very sensitive IEMs may detect slight hiss. The tradeoff is explicit: the tube-driven musicality and harmonic richness come at the cost of a measurably higher noise floor than transistor designs, so IEM users should be cautious or use very efficient full-size cans. This score reflects 'quiet with most headphones, slight noise with very sensitive IEMs' per the scoring bands.
Headphone Compatibility
86/100
The Egoista's large tube complement (2 x 845) and massive build imply ample power output suitable for demanding high-impedance and planar headphones, making it a strong choice for power-hungry models. The spec sheet shows multiple balanced outputs (XLR 4-pin stereo) and jack outputs, which supports flexible connection to a range of headphones; however, output impedance is not specified so caution is advised for low-impedance multi-driver IEMs. Overall it drives most full-size headphones exceptionally well but may be less ideal for very sensitive multi-driver IEMs without explicit low output-impedance specs.
Build Quality
93/100
The Egoista is a heavy, premium unit (30 kg) with bespoke finish options (custom automotive paint available for a $500 upcharge), indicating high-end materials and craftsmanship that reviewers note. The extensive metalwork, large chassis and flagship tube complement support a perception of luxurious build and durable construction typical of top-tier tube products. These tangible construction cues justify a near-reference build score.
Features Connectivity
86/100
Baseline minimal amp = 80. The Egoista adds balanced headphone outputs (XLR 4-pin stereo, +3), balanced XLR mono/pre outputs (+2), and multiple headphone/line outputs (+1), yielding a calculated features score around 86. There is no built-in DAC or USB/streaming noted, so it sits in the 'well-featured' desktop amp category (good connectivity for high-end analog setups but not a digital streamer/DAC combo).
Value for Money
78/100
The review explicitly flags the Egoista as a high-priced flagship (the review headline lists $13,800 and product data shows a higher range), and the author notes Viva offers a less expensive Egoista 2A3 at $9,750 if the 845's price is 'out of bounds', signaling that price is a material concern. Given the premium build and flagship tube design, value is defensible for buyers seeking this class of tube sound, but the amp is clearly positioned at the high end and therefore scores as mildly negative on value relative to more affordable alternatives.
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