Recent content by Brianc

Shout out to JDS Labs support. I bought the Atom in May and this week the power adapter failed. I used their contact form and got a response the same day, and a new adapter in two days. Impressive.

I do indeed set the Atom input volume to max but on low gain. I have to use high gain usually on the Jazz, at least with the HD650s.

Beyond my ability to answer. But I can tell you this: if I turn the Jazz volume control past 1 oclock there is audible hum. I don't get anywhere near that setting using the Atom preamp outputs to feed it. I went back to the St. Vincent performance on ACL I mentioned in a previous comment, which...

Thanks. This also allows me to use the Jazz's superior volume control.

I've been using the Atom as a pre-amp for the Jazz, so I still have the crossfeed available on the Jazz. I'm getting robust output at 9oclock on the volume setting (12oclock with the HD650s). I assume this is because I'm getting extra gain from the Atom. Would there be other sonic advantages...

The subjectivism vs. objectivism debate in audio has a huge double standard though. If a $100 DAC measures bad, it's junk of course. But if a $1000 DAC measures bad, then it's "measurements don't tell the whole story".

Interesting discussion. I'm new to this forum, but I'm guessing a lot of audiophiles, who are generally upper income people, hate it because it champions products that don't require a fat wallet. Easily obtainable high-end performance deprives them of elite status based on purchasing power. The...

I know they're probably not recommended on this measurements-oriented site, but a lot of people like OTL tube amps with higher impedance phones like the HD6xx. Is there possibly some measured shortcoming of those amps that actually improves the sound subjectively? I realize this falls under the...

I agree about the build quality. The Atom feels like a 50 dollar amp.

I have had the Atom for several days now and have been comparing with the Jazz, using Senn HD650 and Audioquest Nighowls. The latter are rated at 25 ohms and are much easier to drive than the 650s. I appreciate the inclusion of the 3.5 mm input on the Atom, which makes using my phone as a source...

I just got the Atom a few days ago (kudos to JDS for the quick delivery time), and I'm still getting a feel for it. A question about the preamp capability: if I connect to another amp with volume control, is it best to use one or the other? It seems to work better to set the Atom to low gain and...

I'm sitting here listening to A Lark Ascending through AQ Nightowls, the Corda Jazz (crossfeed engaged), and Topping D30 coaxial input. The sound is lovely to my ears. Maybe I don't have sensitive enough ones to hear the problems reported in the review, or I just don't have a need to really push...

I've been using the Corda Jazz for a while and have been pleased with it. I mostly used it (until recently) with HD650s. When I first got it, I occasionally found power to be lacking (and audible distortion) with some sources, particularly my laptop feeding a cheap USB dac. Then I switched to a...