The All Purpose Advice Thread

Discussion in 'Advice Threads' started by purr1n, Sep 26, 2015.

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  1. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    The XP-17 XLR out has output impedance of 220-ohms which is a tiny tiny bit high. The RC 35 has balanced input impedance of 10k-ohms which is kind of on the lower end. The balanced Goldpoints have 10k-ohms input impedance, which is on the lower side as well. Thinking about it, I think you should be fine. Give these specs to the Goldpoint guy and ask him for advice. He should know better than anyone else.
     
  2. ogodei

    ogodei MOT: Austin AudioWorks

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    You can get a custom input impedance on the goldpoints if you ask, 10k is the default if you dont specify.

    @Goldenears, I was using a goldpoint SA2X following a Pass Labs XP-27 (same specs as the XP-17 I think), no problems whatsoever. goldpoint's owner is Arn Roatcap, nice guy, I wouldn't hesitate to call him with questions.
     
    Last edited: Feb 26, 2022
  3. magicscreen

    magicscreen New

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    Best and cheapest op-amp rolling friendly headphone amp? Which one has a op-amp socket so easy to roll. And has a wide op-amp selection. Like NE5532 and company.
    I have seen the Douk U3 and HV-10-RA1 so far. Which one is better or any else?
     
  4. lcmusiclover

    lcmusiclover Friend

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    Don't know about 'easiest, but I did roll some opamps in my Matrix HPA-3B with no struggle.
     
  5. magicscreen

    magicscreen New

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    Easiest only means it has an op-amp socket. So I do not need to solder.
     
  6. lcmusiclover

    lcmusiclover Friend

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    Same here, then Matrix is 'easiest' :)
     
  7. ColdsnapBry

    ColdsnapBry Almost "Made"

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    I'm thinking about trying out a Utopia, just a bit curious what Focals offerings sound like as I have little experience with them. The thing is I don't think my chain is really well paired for the Utopia, I'm not sure. It's a Bifrost 2 and Jot 2 (I have a SW51+ and BHC too, but those won't be a good match I know). I've had a few failed 650/Aeolus upgrade attempts with TOTL, I'm not looking for a grand slam synergistic chain off the bat, but sort of still looking for a TOTL that I could see myself building a chain around.

    I guess I'm asking experienced people, should I try the Utopia with what I have?
     
  8. crenca

    crenca Friend

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    ...

    The Utopia is like a truth serum for your up stream gear, showing you what it really sounds like. That said, while I have not heard the Jot 2 I still have a Jot 1 I occasionally use. The Utopia reveals the Jot 1 to lack real detail/plankton, to be forward, flat (all width), but clear and generally inoffensive if not exactly satisfying. Triangulating what others have written about the Jot 2, I would think with the Bitfrost 2 (being warm, probably toning down what offends some folks about the Focal housesound) in front of it you would certainly get a decent taste of what the Utopia has to offer.
     
  9. iucounu

    iucounu New

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    High-level question from a newcomer to the hobby: in a headphone-only setup, how much, proportionally, should be invested in the DAC vs amp vs the headphones themselves? I've seen people say that you should spend more the closer you get to the ears, which makes sense, but how much more? Are price and quality too loosely correlated for this to have a good answer?
     
  10. k4rstar

    k4rstar Britney fan club president

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    step 1. buy very efficient easy to drive headphones that have a sound signature you like. try a few different ones by purchasing them from places they can be returned to or buying them used at steep discounts from retail. efficient headphones are great because you do not need a nuclear reactor on your desk to make them grunt.

    step 2. buy a dongle DAC with a headphone socket. there are now at least 200 dongle DACs on the market from a wide variety of companies anywhere from $20-$350. you are bound to find one that meets your feature needs and sound taste. again buy from places that you can return easily or buy them second hand at a steep discount. if you must have something for desktop use, buy an ifi zen dac or schiit fulla.

    step 3. plug your highly efficient headphones into your dongle DAC, ifi zen dac or schiit fulla.

    step 4. log out of audio forums and remove audio websites from your bookmarks

    step 5. listen to music

    step 6. dont come back. seriously. collect Warhammer 40K figurines or something instead.

    this is the best advice you will ever receive in your life. ignore it at your own peril.
     
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  11. crenca

    crenca Friend

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    Since your not going to follow @k4rstar advice, though you should particularly if your above average on the obsessive-compulsive scale and/or have trouble sticking to budget/living within your means, here is another answer (one of many possible answers to your question):

    Rather than trying to philosophically come up with a ratio, purchase a consensus rig - one that most folks recognize is "audiophile" SQ yet also on the value side of the hobby. Here is an example:

    Qobuz subscription > USB to cheaper Schiit stack > HD6XX (or HD650/600). Get as much as you can used

    Spend some time with it, several months at least, and then try changing one thing at a time - cheap DAC, or another cheap amp, maybe an Elex - used if possible. Spend time with each upgrade, couple of months at least, before changing. After a while, a year or two, you will have a grasp of what you like and can then think about those $1k amps/dacs/HP and whether the 5.6% improvement per every $1k spent is worth it to you.
     
  12. iucounu

    iucounu New

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    Thanks, I appreciate the detailed and earnest response to my extremely vague question. I should say that I've had an HD6XX since they first dropped, paired with some little Dragonfly USB dongle, and that's been treating me fine for years. I very purposefully avoided going beyond that, for all the reasons laid out above.

    I was always curious, though, if there was any there there. I'm also fortunate in that I can afford to go at least knee-deep into the audiophile pool. Long story short, this is my desk right now (and just out a frame, a Schiit Jotunheim):

    [​IMG]

    I've had the RME ADI-2 for about a month now, and have come to the conclusion that I kind of hate it. It's extremely fatiguing, which is a term I hadn't really understood before using it. Doing the A/B test on my DAC stack has been interesting, in that I can definitely tell the difference between the ADI-2 and the non delta-sigma DACs, but the difference between the Bifrost and Soekris is either extremely subtle, obscured by my amps, or entirely in my head (though maybe, per the threads here, I need to leave everything turned on for 24+ hours before doing any critical listening). The Chord 2Qute on the top of the stack is really difficult to volume match (unlike the others, it puts out 3Vrms) and also freaks out whenever the bitrate changes, so I've had trouble doing a proper comparison.

    This is all to say that I appreciate the warnings, but I'm beyond saving, and still very interested in how you all think about where the "value" comes from in your equipment chains.
     
  13. gixxerwimp

    gixxerwimp Professional tricycle rider

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  14. iucounu

    iucounu New

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  15. Linkgoron

    Linkgoron New

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    I've been using a Modius, HD6xx and a Vali2 1.0 for a few years now, and I've been thinking of upgrading. I'm not a fan of having tons of headphones, so I thought about getting a new amp. I've been planning on going balanced, as I've heard that the Modius is noticeably better balanced.

    In general I've been happy with the Vali2, but I would like to see what something "better" can give me. I was hoping for Schiit to produce some kind of balanced Vali2+, but it hasn't shown up and after going over the Lyr 3 FAQ, I assume that it's not going to happen (at least in a Modius/Jot/Lyr form factor), and I don't want to side-grade to a Vali2+. I've been thinking of going for a Liquid Platinum (although wary of QC) or going SE anyway with a Lyr 3 (I've also seen the SW51+ recommended around here, but I believe that it's not relevant given the situation in Ukraine. There are numerous solid-state options that I've seen, but I've grown attached to tubez). Are there any other recommendations at these prices that might fit that?
     
    Last edited: Mar 8, 2022
  16. crenca

    crenca Friend

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    Just my opinion, value is idiosyncratic mostly. I do think there are some products on the market that are a value to just about anybody (anybody you would want to know ;) ), like many Schiit items and the PI2AES. Otherwise it is too dependent on your relative budget - one man's value is another extravagance, or "meh", etc.

    Unless I'm mistaken there are not too many here at SBAF with alot of experience with Wells Audio headamps. After you get some more experience and relative listening time, you should review that Milo.
     
  17. Woland

    Woland Friend

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    You have great gear - I'm listening to the same amp and a similar DAC right now, and they're very little different to my 5-10x as expensive fully-balanced setup. What makes a huge difference over my earlier times with this DAC/Amp is better headphones than the HD6xx. Or maybe just headphones that are better matched to the Vali 2.
     
  18. Woland

    Woland Friend

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    I strongly agree with the wisdom of most of what you're saying and yet disagree with step 2. My experience of dongles is that they're playing to wishful thinking. The wish is to have a decent setup, small and cheap. In practice, I did not find they're substantially better than what is built into a Macbook, iphone dongle or other higher end consumer electronics. They're facing the same hurdles to performance notably running off 5 volts. Most of the benefits they get - like bypassing the mixer - can be gained without dongles by using software (eg Audirvana).
     
  19. k4rstar

    k4rstar Britney fan club president

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    Yes and no. I don't know what dongles you've tried with what devices. This may be too advanced for this thread or even this forum but much of the final sound relies on the transport which includes the software (playback and operating system). A dongle plugged into an iPhone is a fairly consistent baseline of performance, although with each successive iPhone and iteration of iOS the sound gets worse. Likewise with Macs, the latest M1 Macs sound hilariously bad from their USB and line out ports compared to my 2008, 2009 and 2012 units running older versions of macOS. The M1 MBP sounds loud and clear through its headphone jack, but also lifeless.

    No one in the computer/smartphone world cares about sound quality, and this is a sad reality. Yes I can say the Helm Bolt dongle does not really sound much better than the 3.5mm line out of my 2008/2009 Mac's, when Apple really cared about audio quality from a hardware and software perspective, but it sure does sound a lot better than the HP jack on my 2015 MBP or Thinkpad. They can also impart pleasurable flavor differences which can sometimes make the difference. If you get good results with your onboard audio, by all means stick with it. The idea of needing external boxes and doo-dads and cables to listen to headphones is something concocted and perpetuated by the delusional. Step 1 remains the most important in our 6 step program.
     
  20. Azimuth

    Azimuth FKA rtaylor76, Friend

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    I think you are giving people too little credit here for saying what you said is too advanced.

    Yes, different iterations of USB sound different, even with the same computer and different OS can sound different in the way the audio is handled. I don’t agree that USB is somehow getting worse and that nobody making smartphones or computers care about audio. You only list Apple devices anyway, which are only a small share of overall computers out there.

    Dongles are not prefect and severely limited, but can offer more voltage amplification. I will agree that a Helm Bolt is a decent option, but still leaves a lot to be desired. It is simple and easy to use and I like it more for better amplification factor over the DAC quality. LG put ESS chips in their Android phone, but then had the same op amp driven low voltage output and sounded bright and shrill.

    Mostly dongles will work as a DAC/Amp in a computer in a pinch, but may only be slightly better than what is there. There are better options for sure.

    I sill believe that not all USB is bad and more about the device than the port, or OS. Those things still have to deal with whatever in on the input of the device. Amenero and Unison is a step in the right direction, even XMOS solutions are improving, but those require more parts and stuff to be excellent. I prefer my TOSLINK output over most any USB connection. However there is only a more minor improvement on som DACs, but always at least some improvement over USB.

    Most of it is nervosa anyway.
     
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