Gear Ideas for Loaner Program (old thread)

Discussion in 'Rules, Payments, and Other' started by purr1n, Mar 27, 2017.

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  1. IUONA

    IUONA Thief that stole Bloom Audio gear

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    I second the DCA Aeon 2 (closed) and Focal Stellia.

    I’d want to hear the Stellia just for a reference, but the Aeon 2 closed would be more practical as far as things within my grasp.

    Edit: I wasn’t at all excited by the red color choice on the Aeon 2, at first, but after seeing it for a while, it’s not horrible. Could have been way worse... The folding mechanism seems elegant and hopefully is as functional and durable as they’re claiming. Plus, the apparent driver upgrades & iteration rather than total redesign (I loath companies changing things for the sake of change itself, without significant improvements) on something that was generally well received, rather than a total redesign, gives it an element of...well, an expectation that it’ll, at the very least, be decent. Historically, Dan has seemed to give a shit about making good stuff and standing by it. I’ve been impressed by his evolution from DIY dude to producing full on original designs that compete with established companies’ products. ...So hopefully he resolved whatever issues that seem to have bothered some folks, or made amends for any unmitigated dickheadedness (which I’m still not clear on, but I generally trust it when enough folks here say somebody screwed up.)

    I’d also like to add the suggestions of:

    • HifiMan Sundara (mixed but overall positive feedback from what I’ve read) Cheap, high price/performance ratio. And, I’ve never heard a HifiMan.

    • Massdrop (Drop) Collaborations, like the Koss ESP/95X Electrostat system, the Ether CX, the Beyerdynamic DT-177X (Yeah, I’ve disliked previous Beyers, but hey, maybe it’s better), the THX AAA 789.

    • I know they were previously in a loaner program & I don’t know how this works exactly, but since I’m late to the party, I’d still love to get an opportunity to hear the Focal Clear, LCD-2C, Kipsch HP3 (I haven’t heard a good bio-cellulose driver headphone since the Denon D5000, and that had issues I couldn’t get past), and Campfire Andromeda, since they seem to still represent excellent values or unique offerings in their price ranges.( If no loaner is available from the SBAF vault, I’d appreciate any members messaging me I’d they’d be willing. Direct or small scale loaners seem less likely, but I’d happily do whatever I could to insure no losses or violations of trust. I still don’t know exactly how the process works, so somebody tell me if this is out of line, please?)

    • Well modded HD800. Ive always been curious to hear this Teutonic corporate masterpiece, improved by dudes with craft supplies & sheer will.

    • IEMs under $600. Massdrop Plus (if still available in loaner program), then whatever other relatively comfortable models folks like @shotgunshane think might be good. I’ve heard good things about the UE4 being a solid universal CIEM, but there are so many companies making CIEMs and universal models of them that it’s bewildering, now. I’d love to see an effort where the community tries to narrow down the field in a few price brackets to CIEM/Universal models that are current top of the heaps in their respective brackets, then make an effort to have the top contenders into an IEM loaner program.

    Basically listing off what I want to hear that (mostly) isn’t outrageously expensive.
     
    Last edited: Nov 22, 2019
  2. Ntbm3

    Ntbm3 Friend

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    Also very interested in aeon2!
     
  3. murphythecat

    murphythecat GRU-powered uniformed trumpkin

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    verum 1. for canada users. please?
     
  4. Jinxy245

    Jinxy245 Vegan Puss

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    I'm surprised no one asked for a Bifrost 2 loaner, I'd be very interested in that. The Rosson Rad-0 seems to have a bit of interest as well
     
  5. ChaChaRealSmooth

    ChaChaRealSmooth SBAF's Mr. Bean

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    This is already in the pipeline. Hint: I sent Marv the sample I got.
     
  6. redrich2000

    redrich2000 Facebook Friend

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    I'm not eligible to participate but I would love to see the reviews from an Asgard 3 loaner tour.
     
  7. YMO

    YMO Chief Fun Officer

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    Dunno if we are ready for another IEM Loaner, but the Campfire Audio Ara looks to be an interesting one to do with it's "audiophile" turning. Then again, the price makes me want to go "gulp."
     
  8. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    on this...
     
  9. neogeosnk

    neogeosnk Friend

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    Geshelli Labs stuff, few things I've tried were A+ and they're cheap.
     
  10. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Do you know if the ENOG2 PRO is hardware balanced? (That is x2 chips). Looking for a suitable competitor for Topping D70. Otherwise I'm not really sure if we should waste time with yet another AKM based DAC. Nothing against Geshelli. As for their amps, I really don't care for another Heresy / Atom clone.
     
  11. neogeosnk

    neogeosnk Friend

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    They only use one akm chip in a balance output configuration. Think someone here might have bought the cheap one that was posted earlier this week.
     
  12. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    I'm really not in the mood for another cookie cutter AKM 4493 DAC. We'll do ENOG2PRO if someone will send me $400 personally for my time ... not to the SBAF warchest. Any takers?

    P.S. Or if somebody just buys it and sends it to me with bottle of decent bourbon, scotch, whiskey, etc.
     
  13. TheIceman93

    TheIceman93 El pato-zorro

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    Gear from the former Soviet block seems to be gaining in popularity here so this amp from Ukraine might be worth a look.

    https://rebel.audio/products/amplifier

    It looks like a GSX Mini and an Asgard 3 had a baby.
     
    Last edited: May 15, 2020
  14. Biodegraded

    Biodegraded Friend

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  15. ChaChaRealSmooth

    ChaChaRealSmooth SBAF's Mr. Bean

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    Hey all,

    Let's keep the request thread clean. For loaners, we ideally want to make sure that:
    1. We make sure that the items requested for loaner are items that the community would be interested in as a whole.
    2. That the item requested will have merit (or at least have a high probability of it). Shitting on things, while sometimes necessary, isn't what most of us like to do.
    Remember, we simply don't have the means nor the will to listen to absolutely everything. Perhaps we can if the entire staff + senior members suddenly join all the 0.01%.

    As a guideline, if you don't think that people as a whole here will enjoy what they're hearing, then don't suggest it. If it's the latest fad on HF, probably not interesting. If Marv will probably be sad about time wasted, then don't. We've never been about getting the "latest and greatest" and never will be. There are lots of examples of gear we got way after release that we found to have merit.

    That being said, if you personally have heard something that you think is interesting, then feel free to suggest it. I believe that you SBAF members are smart enough to do research and figure out if something is worthy. Do me proud :)
     
    Last edited: May 16, 2020
  16. Clemmaster

    Clemmaster Friend

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    Focal Arche?
    I can get a good price for it, but in very limited quantity (please don’t inquire...).
     
  17. Azimuth

    Azimuth FKA rtaylor76, Friend

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    I like the AKM 4493 idea. I have not seen much SMSL gear on here. It would be an interesting experiment.

    I'd be willing to let my SMSL 10th Anniversary make the rounds.
     
  18. ergopower

    ergopower Friend

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    This is an especially good suggestion now with so many working from home - desktop rig that includes an input for a decent mic. What about a Motu M2? All you need for work from home, and $170. I'll buy it if you want and ship it to whomever to start the tour.
     
  19. AllanMarcus

    AllanMarcus Friend

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    When I first joined CS I got pilloried for likening grado. I’ve moved past grados, but I’m thinking it’s time to listen again. I know marv got into some with flat pads, but I gotta say, this latest limited edition from grado is potentially smokin’

    let’s get it!

    https://gradolabs.com/headphones/limited-editions/item/124-hemp
     
  20. pure5152

    pure5152 Friend

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    Want to bump this. I think there's enough interest now that a loaner of the hemp would be pretty popular. More people deserve to hear this wonderful grado.
     
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