Campfire Audio Andromeda Review: Holy Cow, This is a Dream, Awesomesauce!

Just be sure to inspect the nozzle from time to time and remove any debris with the included cleaning tool.

 

I am doing that but undoubtedly a piece of dirt will sneak in there, i hope it doesn't get lodged in the drivers and start buzzing... filterless design doesn't agree with my ocd

 

I changed the tube and tips since then. I now sounds great.

As for the cap coupled comment: a capacitor in series with a resistor (the "load" seen by the amplifier) forms a high-pass filter across said resistor (see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-pass_filter#First-order_continuous-time_implementation)

The cut-off frequency is given by 1/(2piRC). The lower R (the load) and C (the output capacitance), the higher the cut-off frequency. Since this is high-pass filter, the higher the cut-of frequency, the more bass roll-off.

The amps are designed for a certain range of (assumed) headphone impedance, generally ranging from 16 to 600, worst case. The output capacitor is chosen for this worst case 16 ohm load.
Since the andromeda has such a weird impedance curve, with dips approaching the 2ohms mark, the cutt-off frequency will be ~8 times higher than for a 16ohms headphone.
This is assuming a resistive load. In practice it's a bit more complicated, but the reasoning remains valid.

The insertion of the IEMatch mitigates the issues, since - at least on paper - it presents a constant >16ohms load to the amplifier: right within the specs.

 

I'm just like you so I'm using the Comply TX 400 to catch the wax.

 

I'm finding the Andro a little warm sounding combined with Mojo, so a wax filter won't help the sound.. but Dragonfly red seems to wake it up a little so a filter might be ok with this combination

 

Just got Andro and enjoy listening by pairing with iPhone SE. It was the best among DAPs (Fiio X3 & X5 & M3, HUM Pervasion) & phones (Samsung Note 4, iPhone 5S and SE) I currently have... Keen to try QP1R or OPUS #1 in the near future when I have some funds to spare. After getting Andro, wallet is paper thin...

 

i should do that as well, thanks for the tip!

is there a marked improvement from your 5s (i am currently using the 5s and mojo)

 

Hi. To me, there is no marked improvement between 5S and SE. One noticeable difference was the volume. I normally listen 50% on 5S and it is about 35% of volume on SE so SE drive better. If I nitpick, 5S sounds tad bit warmerthan SE. I prefer clarity so SE suits me better. However, the difference is very small so may not worth selling 5S and upgrade to SE.

 

The only thing I can attest to is that it sounds thin on a OnePlus 3. Don't have an iPhone.

 

I've been trying to find info on Mojo + Ifi iematch + Andromeda and if it brings positive improvements in terms of making the Andros more neutral sounding (decreasing bass), but nothing concrete so far - has anyone tried this combination?

 

It should, since Mojo has near 0 output impedance, which produces the highest bass output on the Andromeda.
The iFi has 2.5 ohm (high) or 1 ohm (ultra), which is perfect for the Andro.

 

Great to hear..Does it still work with desktop rig, say desktop amp? I think that I read somewhere that it does seem working with portable amp but not desktop rig since power is too big even in low gain. Correct me if I am wrong because I am keen to try ifi IEMatch if it really works for both portable and desktop dac/amp (low gain).

 

Has anyone tried Andro pairing with Modi Multibit+Vali2? Spec says, "Output Impedance: 1.2 ohms in low gain mode, 5.8 ohms in high gain mode". It seems that it might be good match with Andro at low gain mode. Currarong at HF told that hiss is surprisingly very minimal on Vali2 but not sure recommending the pairing in terms of sound. Curious how it sounds and why it is not a good match...

 

Marv has measurements of Andro on Vali 2 somewhere around here that I saw the other day, check his first post there may be a link there. IIRC it was a bad pairing with noticeable bass rolloff

Edit: http://www.superbestaudiofriends.or...o-andromeda-iem-measurements.2088/#post-52702

Edit 2: While I'm at it, I've only had the Andro for 4 hours, but it's noisy out of Mjolnir 2 balanced (tubes), Jupiter isn't even this bad. Kinda unlistenable

 

Thank you very much. I did not realise that there was measurement on it... Very hard to find one good desktop/laptop rig that goes well with both HD650 and Andro.. Not ideal for me but I may end up going for Schiit gear for HD650 and ZX2/QP1R for Andro. I watched "Minimalist" documentary on Netflix yesterday and try to practice minimalism and it is already not working......

 

@PoochZag and @Decomo

I'm currently using the teac HA-501 which is hiss free ime and works plays nice with my HD650 as well. Adjustable ZO (though limited in range, from 0.5 ohms to 6 ohms) and quite powerful. I think they MAY be discontinuing it as its available for peanuts (less than Asgard 2 here).

http://www.hifinews.co.uk/news/article/teac-ha-501-pound;700/20446

 

I would like to point out that my original impression that the comply tips are horrible for these was due to the fact that I thought the foam tips provided by campfire was comply ones, which is apparently not true. I've been using the Penon audio generic tips since they provided the best fit for me, but unfortunately the rubber is very low quality and lost it's hold on the stem in about 3 months and it takes a while for them to ship it over to the states, so decided to get some complys with wax guard and they actually went on the andromedas with ease.

 

I just ordered the Iematch for quite a lot of money considering what it does (I can't find anything else that does a similar job for the money in UK), here's hoping it'll make the Mojo combination bit more neutral - i will post my impressions once I get it. I'm also seriously considering getting an HTC 10 or LG V20 phone to pair with the Andros - I can't find the output impedance of both of these devices so it would be good to hear if anyone's had a chance to compare?

I also got the Comply comfort tips TXS-400 or something, they are more comfortable than the originals that came in the box. I've come to the conclusion the Andros sound best with comply, the treble peak is flattened and sound is a little more diffuse (for the better) - any other non foam/comply tips and sibilance rears it's head from time to time

 

Too much gain and too much noise without the IEMatch.

With the IEMatch on High (10dB attenuation) I'm right at the point where the volume pot starts losing tracking, for normal listening level at work, on low gain.

 

@Decomo See this on the previous page.

@Marvey's measurements show the bass roll off with the Vali 2, but @Clemmaster says the impedance added by the iEMatch fixes this.