- Thread Starter
- #221
Funny there as the manual says use of "audiophile" fuses could void the warranty! So on that front at least, they are speaking the truth....maybe they had different "audiophile fuses" in them ???
Funny there as the manual says use of "audiophile" fuses could void the warranty! So on that front at least, they are speaking the truth....maybe they had different "audiophile fuses" in them ???
What is really suspicious in general is that neither Stereophile nor TAS ever write more than a hint of criticism on the equipment they test. I followed their recommendation when I purchased 12-13 yrs ago my last expensive CD player, an Esoteric X-05. Yes, it did sound OK, but surprisingly it has a noisy disc spinning mechanism, in spite of the many superlatives they spent on the description of its build quality. I isolated the tray with tongues of rubber and it has improved the noise a bit, a 5 cents fix in a $ 6,000 CD player.Someone gets a "minus F" for not doing their work:
Pass Labs' HPA-1 offers superb measured performance that reflects equally superb audio engineering.—John Atkinson
vs
I can't express enough how the HPA-1 ruined the sound of the two headphones I tested with it. Had this been my only experience, I would have thought neither headphone is any good! This mirage of more distortion is good for you needs to go go away and commitment to fidelity restored. - Amir
For 3600$ it better measures like a Benchmark HPA4. Or else.
These are made in small numbers and built the USA, and as such they will be expensive. Here once again we have proof that "U.S. Made" and EXPENSIVE do not always translate to HIGH QUALITY.
$3,600 and I don't have a device almost the same as the other? The excuse of the craftsman is always to cover company deficits. I can think of almost undrinkable $150 craft whiskeys, but they are artisanal, do you want to put?The Stereophile review showed better THD results than Amir's test revealed. I wonder if there is a unit-to-unit performance difference here?
The use of a design that allows a little low order THD tends to make things sound more "tubelike" and more like the kind of sound produced by guitar amplifiers.... to some people this is "more musical;" and some research has shown that a little 2nd harmonic makes the stereo image sound "deeper." But this amp doesn't allow "a little" low order THD- it is way worse than "a little." I am surprised by the amount of power supply noise. That is inexcusable unless they are going for the "blues bar" sound here....
These are made in small numbers and built the USA, and as such they will be expensive. Here once again we have proof that "U.S. Made" and EXPENSIVE do not always translate to HIGH QUALITY.
Someone gets a "minus F" for not doing their work:
Pass Labs' HPA-1 offers superb measured performance that reflects equally superb audio engineering.—John Atkinson
vs
I can't express enough how the HPA-1 ruined the sound of the two headphones I tested with it. Had this been my only experience, I would have thought neither headphone is any good! This mirage of more distortion is good for you needs to go go away and commitment to fidelity restored. - Amir
For 3600$ it better measures like a Benchmark HPA4. Or else.
I am sure on subjective websites this review will be seen as a 'hack job' or 'Amir setting out to discredit Nelson Pass and plugging Topping'.
That already happened in the DIYAudio forum thread.. That's why it would be interesting to see a THD measurement with the HD 650 at practical listening levels. I only found one testimony of someone hearing distortion with this amp, and he thought it was an issue with the recording
Hi All, so how much money would one need to spend in order to match this level of performance?
Hi All, so how much money would one need to spend in order to match this level of performance?
2V is comfortable loud (without Harman type EQ)
At 8V (distortion knee HPA-1) the distortion reaches 0.1% (-60dB) and is 123dB SPL in the HD650. Far beyond what Amir measures (114dB)
The Stealth/Expanse, however, at impressive levels (> 2V DAC input) is reaching measurable levels.
The distortion is intentional and can be designed this way
I admit I got a little alarmed but this so I slobby tested what it would take for such a connector to come off (I have an extra 1200as2 on my amateur test bench connected with jst connectors with ribbon I had in hand)The loose connector inside (quality control, those connectors do not come out with shaking the device)
Can someone answer the question when would spending over $1000.00 for a headphone amp be a good idea ? I’m seriously asking.
I'll go there and put an 1000 euro price tag for my ancient orthodynamics .and at the same time buying/selling vintage 30 yr old headphones to keep gaining profit,