Ferrum OOR / HYPSOS Headamp Review: Girl You Know It's True

Discussion in 'Headphone Amplifiers and Combo (DAC/Amp) Units' started by purr1n, Dec 27, 2023.

  1. Yethal

    Yethal Facebook Friend

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    @purrin Did you play around with the voltage output settings on the PSU?
     
  2. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Yes. Forgot to mention that I set it to 26V while using with the Gungnir A2 as the DAC and using the Audeze LCD-R and LCD-X. 26V I found to be a good spot. I tried higher with the Yggdrasill LiM but just bad source match no matter what.

    For those reading unfamiliar, 24V is the base. Lower voltages will sound more relaxed.
     
  3. Wilewarer

    Wilewarer Almost "Made"

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    I got a little curious and looked at their shop, and apparently you can do this if you buy a splitter from them. Lets you power two of their things, or things from other people, if you follow their directions for how not to blow things up. Which is more extra still, but at the point where someone's in for $5000 or so to them for the DAC and amp and power supply, what's another couple hundred bucks, really...?

    The thing is that I didn't see this mentioned on any of the product pages for the Amp, DAC, or power supply itself. I guess it was an afterthought? Maybe that makes sense, if they introduced the amp first and didn't have the DAC for a while... but it's still a bit odd, because you're right, the ability to power an entire stack from it really seems like an important selling point.
     
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  4. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    I didn't even think the LAuX separation was that great. Maybe more separation on dynamics, but on planars I got more thump but mushier layering.
     
  5. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Just finished lunch with the family. It's going to be hard to go back to the local K-BBQ place in town (or anywhere else in Texas). It's hard to beat quality meat, proper marinade, and proper dipping sauces.
    IMG_1568.jpg

    Anyway, I just wrapped up the H2, H3, and H4-20 sum distortion surfaces from a few posts prior:
    https://www.superbestaudiofriends.o...iew-girl-you-know-its-true.14059/#post-422226

    Below are the THD / THD+N overlays (the overlays are inspired by @atomicbob). This is super duper interesting from an academic standpoint because the THD+N is much worse than the THD. This is when we need to be smart scientists in interpreting the data instead of being measurement fascists or extremists.

    Going back to post #15, there are two causes to the noise:
    1. AC mains hum and its harmonics
    2. Rise in the noise floor (power supply related?) peaking at 500kHz (with still a sizeable rise up to the 90kHz measurement bandwidth)
    I wouldn't worry about either. I'd rather take that rise in noise floor than see a spike or two say at 225kHz and 450kHz from a switcher. As for AC mains, just wait for a power failure (I am very used to this living on a reef island in an area with high winds), and we will realize that we are inundated with hum... when the power goes off.

    Ferrum OOR/HYPSOS
    THD and THD+N
    ezgif-5-897c40a3fd.gif
     
    Last edited: Dec 28, 2023
  6. Ksaurav402

    Ksaurav402 Friend

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    This splitter is great. I use Hypsos to power my SU-6 and Ultra Rendu using this splitter as both these devices need same voltage
     
  7. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    I actually liked the Monoprice LAu X with @rhythmdevils Audeze LCD-X mod specifically and cannot actually attest to it for other orthos. I hear you guys though. Sure it's a bit murky and I didn't make anything of the separation either way, but the combo clicked for me. Anyway, is there a thread for LAu X impressions. Free absolutely free to crap on it there: https://www.superbestaudiofriends.o...mplifier-from-monoprice-by-alex-cavalli.8287/
     
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    Last edited: Dec 28, 2023
  8. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Ferrum should have added an extra power socket on the back of the Hypsos that is already $1200. An extra $250 for a splitter would piss me off. Seriously, how much money do you guys have?

    By the time I'm done with it all, I've either got my 445 custom EC (with boutique Monolith interstages and tweaked "advanced" OPTs, a DNA Supernaut (with boutique Audio Note OPTs), or x2 Tyr monobocks (ortho or ribbon duty).
     
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    Last edited: Dec 28, 2023
  9. Ksaurav402

    Ksaurav402 Friend

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    Haha…that’s true but I bought a used unit with splitter. New one is out of my budget.
     
  10. ColtMrFire

    ColtMrFire Writes better fan fics than you

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    Trust but verify.
     
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  11. willc

    willc Friend

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    oor.jpg
    thx789.jpg

    Bruh
     
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  12. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    Umm, why hasn't anyone pointed out that, despite measurements not being everything, these measurements do clearly look like total shit?

    How does stuff like this sell and at these prices? It's an embarrassment that anyone has recommended this amp over... most of the magni range.
     
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  13. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    So you're saying it's two wrongs trying to cancel each other out?
     
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  14. Clemmaster

    Clemmaster Friend

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    Like you said, measurements ain’t everything. This amp does sound really good with Susvara, which is what has been the most common recommendation.
    I didn’t care for it much with Utopia and Atrium.
     
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  15. Lyander

    Lyander Official SBAF Equitable Empathizer

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    Honestly I hesitate to keep pointing things that stand out cuz I sometimes end up spewing things out the wrong end but given how this amp has been well-received by some, I was wondering whether or not there'd be a reveal about how "crap factor" being higher might not be fully damning as it was in the case of the Modius E + Cinemag trafo combo; odd-order harmonics were dominant there (primarily in the low end, now that I think about it).

    But in hindsight yeah D2 and D3 are remarkably low while "crap factor" creeps higher than both. Damn, missed that.

    Was this ever confirmed to be high open loop gain? I'm an idiot and can't figure stuff out from looking at internals.
     
  16. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    To be clear, the fact that it gets so much worse going to H4-H20 is very, very bad. I generally am okay with mediocre measurements but a rise in H4-H20 is not something we can pave over. Hell, this is like, basic music theory.

    The further from the fundamental you get, the "worse" the distortion sounds. A little H2 is pleasing and acceptable. H4+ being that bad is really, really bad. One of the few "oh f**k this is a deal breaker" measurements. I generally am tolerant but, very truthfully, I can already tell I'd take the Topping over this amp.
     
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  17. Lyander

    Lyander Official SBAF Equitable Empathizer

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    I forgot to clarify, I wrote my last post poorly. Meant: "the way you described this makes it sound like it would be an amplifier that people who don't know that 'wire with gain' doesn't exist would call 'wire with gain'". Agreed on the phrase usually being ascribed to treble stabby gear, I tend to avoid stuff that earns that moniker.

    At least Topping gear is (usually) inexpensive.
     
  18. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Wire with massive open loop gain (and corresponding massive global feedback?) :)

    Evidently the Oor uses a discrete operational amplifier design. Operational amplifier (discrete or chip) means massive voltage gain (and massive feedback to correct a lot of shit). There was a craze in the late 70s or early 80s for low THD, hence the use of opamp in many higher end amplifiers.

    ---

    FWIW, the high H4-H20 in the upper mids (90kHz bandwidth) is likely the result of the rise in the noise floor. If there are higher order components, they would be buried. Because we are summing so many components, the end result THD+N / SINAD for this bandwidth is like 50db.
    upload_2023-12-28_16-25-29.png

    Now whether this is bad or not is another question.
     
    Last edited: Dec 28, 2023
  19. willc

    willc Friend

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    There are a lot of them for sale used and open-box because this is sus, except when used with the Sus. Marv just said what most owners who sold it or people who returned it knew. Maybe some people will like it and some people won't. This needs to be said be because if not, no one will know, and everyone will think it's awesome. It's too sus that everyone on the Internet is saying its awesome when no one heard of Ferrum before. What did Marv call it and people got mad at him? The Audio-Industrial-Internet-Shill Complex or something.
     
  20. ChaChaRealSmooth

    ChaChaRealSmooth SBAF's Mr. Bean

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    Another couple hundred bucks that I'd rather spend taking my family/friends/girlfriend out, that's what. Or on whiskey. Or cigars. Or heck, more CD/vinyl albums. I really despise this attitude of "oh well I'm already spending 5 grand, what's another couple hundred." That kind of justification leads to people overspending or buying really dumb shit they don't need.

    As far as the amp itself goes, other than the measurements not looking good I can't say much about the amp since it's clearly not for me. I hate planars and an amp for planars that's ass with dynamics is the last thing I want.
     
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    Last edited: Dec 28, 2023

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