SPL Phonitor X *Updated* Review (DAC & Headphone Amp)

[Martin]

@amirm Did I miss the bit where you declare what the source of the product was?

I sent this unit to @amirm. This was the replacement unit sent directly from SPL’s US distributor for the original I sent earlier this year. Performance is better but not state of the art. Unfortunately, I own Audeze LCD-3 headphones which, it looks like from Amir’s comments, may not be a good match for this unit. Thanks for the excellent review Amir. It is purdy.

Martin

 

[Dogen]

Shame...I love the looks and the fact it implements crossfeed. I’d still like to have one, but I don’t want to pay this much for it.

 

[Soniclife]

I sent this unit to @amirm. This was the replacement unit sent directly from SPL’s US distributor for the original I sent earlier this year. Performance is better but not state of the art. Unfortunately, I own Audeze LCD-3 headphones which, it looks like from Amir’s comments, may not be a good match for this unit. Thanks for the excellent review Amir. It is purdy.

Martin

Audeze list the 3 as being 110 ohm, so you should be fine.

 

[Martin]

Audeze list the 3 as being 110 ohm, so you should be fine.

Yes, they are rather high for a planar magnetic headphone; certainly much higher than Amir’s Dan Clark Audio Stealth (23 ohm) and the highest among the headphones in my detailed subjective review.

Martin

 

[Killingbeans]

How can you call your product 'Phonitor' if it doesn't have a phono input?

 

[Dmitri]

I sent this unit to @amirm. This was the replacement unit sent directly from SPL’s US distributor for the original I sent earlier this year. Performance is better but not state of the art. Unfortunately, I own Audeze LCD-3 headphones which, it looks like from Amir’s comments, may not be a good match for this unit. Thanks for the excellent review Amir. It is purdy.

Martin

Thanks for providing for the re-review Martin. It’s a brave soul willing to send in their prized equipment for Amir’s merciless scrutiny. You’re definitely a braver man than I.
I’m going with it will sound great with your Audeze and just being able to look at this beauty will help mitigate any disappointment regarding less than perfect measurements. Those meters have me salivating copiously. ; )

 

[Zensō]

All show, no go.

 

[Soniclife]

Yes, they are rather high for a planar magnetic headphone; certainly much higher than Amir’s Dan Clark Audio Stealth (23 ohm) and the highest among the headphones in my detailed subjective review.

Martin

The 2 lowest ones of that 4 might be a challenge, but at least you will know why now if you heard something off.

 

[thefsb]

Needless to say this is a gorgeous looking desktop product

TBH, I wanted this one so much for quite a long time. Only because it does look so cool

Hm. I prefer the look of Buckeye amps. Nostalgia styling is depressing.

 

[BostonJack]

Very pretty unit. Outperformed by devices at < 1/10 the price. Geez. are they selling enough to fund a major redesign?
I wonder what kind of volume these guys sell.

 

[AdamG]

At $3,000 entry fee, it should be the Panther robbing the piggy bank.

 

[Nango]

Not bad, but still, I'm glad I've opted for the RME instead

Even so many years after, it is still the benchmark to outperform in so many terms, not only in sound terms. If I only had known before I started to colect tons and tons of other items.

 

[GWolfman]

Thanks for the rest. Looking forward to some new charts (if indeed that's the case).

 

[bidn]

How can you call your product 'Phonitor' if it doesn't have a phono input?

"Phon" means "Sound" in Greek. They might have wanted to combine Phon with Monitor, however monitor is Latin, so this creates then a "bastard compound", like a few other words mixing up Greek and Latin ( television, automobile).

 

[Killingbeans]

"Phon" means "Sound" in Greek.

I know. But when I saw the name, I assumed it was a phono preamp + headphone amp combo. Just thought that was funny.

Then again, RCA connectors are also sometimes referred to as 'phono plugs', so in that sense it does have a phono input

 

[617]

How can you call your product 'Phonitor' if it doesn't have a phono input?

It has an RCA input and a switch on the front to go between a/d inputs.

From a features standpoint it's a great unit. I'd like to see slightly better performance for the money though.

Major points for style.

 

[Killingbeans]

I'm starting to realize that my attempt at a joke was weak sauce... or should I say 'weak source'? Eh?Eh? Get it?... I'll see myself out.

 

[bogart]

A question for the recording engineers in the room: is SPL/Phonitor gear found in many control rooms? I see it is sold through the pro channels, but how likely is it to be found in the wild?

Who would be the usual suspects in real world pro use - Benchmark, Mackie, MOTU?

 

[sarumbear]

How can you call your product 'Phonitor' if it doesn't have a phono input?

Maybe it has a telephone input?

 

[maverickronin]

So how is the crossfeed implementation on this? That's really the killer feature.

I've seen these at shows, but never had enough time to play around with the settings and get a handle on it.