NSFW: SuperBAF Best of 2015 Golden Schlong Awards

BW is only dead in it's current form.

Look folks, the amp was originally intended to be a small, modest amp that would offer a small taste of the EC house sound and would have shipped with a wall wart. With Marv coming on board and really hammering home the flagship "best amp" strategy, the little red top that could became a cracked out, ridiculous amp with some hard to source parts and one hell of a power supply (like a really f'ing good power supply). This was not sustainable and I'm sure a lot of you are heartbroken

It looks like it might come back fully realized as a balanced, single chassis amp with more of the crazy design decisions. With the move to balanced, the last real complaint I could see people having is gone. This is it if you're looking at a solid state amp. I'm hoping they can get it in at $3000 or less as a direct competitor to the best of the best.

CEE TEE and I discussed rankings for EC amps. I'll be editing the original post later today or tomorrow. The current lineup on the website really is phenomenal.

Probably G. M if you count price. It's outdated. Newer, better SS amps are hitting.

 

Given the wait times on GSX2, have someone build you a Dynahi (VG). I would have a hard time giving the GSX2 a VG given it's lack of ability to play with neutral or brighter headphones. I actually prefer some individual's Dynamid builds (balanced Dynalo) or perhaps even the original GSX over the GSX2.

I just changed Ether-C from S to M, sort of grudgingly. I dam 99% sure that people have been hearing different ones. The Ether-C's I've heard were early ones at the SchiitShow. It's likely Dan changed the formula on the C by RMAF. It's the formulation of the Ether-C has been improved (and I have reason to believe so), then Dan can send one to us.

My official impressions of the Ether (non-C open) are based on the latest units I've heard at ChangFest 3 / Brooks Berdan meet and @PoochZag's. Through the Force, I sense with a good amount of certainty that Dan has gotten his shit together with the Ether.

My early impressions of Ether, which differ slightly from current impressions, were based on the units I heard at CanJam where Dan told me that there were some inconsistencies because they were prototypes. In fact I told Dan that the unit at the Schiit Rag / Yggdrasil table sounded much worse (brighter and nasty) than the one at another Schiit table or ones at other vendors' tables. I did that so Dan could withdraw / exchange that unit with one that sounded better.

 

Dynahi is the better amp too. I'd put it at G or VG depending on your tastes. Of the KG stuff I'd rank:

Klone ≈ Balanced dynahi > gsx mk2

Edit due to realizing the rankings were based on my opinions. Changing them based off notes some folks gave me when I did a mini Klone tour.

 

M? barf.
think we are talking flavors of shit here based on "different formula Ether-Cs".
sure, I never heard Ether-C anywhere before RMAF, but based on Hands & I listening to at least 3 different rigs of Ether-C (at schiit table, at Cavalli table, at some other table) at RMAF nothing we heard could equate C to M.
S all the way.

the fact Dan has to pay HF to remove all user postings stating Ether-C are S or overpriced speaks volumes IMO.

 

Bass control: balanced dynahi, copperhead, ragnarok, BW

Staging: BW, balanced Dynahi, copperhead

Resolution: copperhead, BW, Rag, Klone

Removal of treble grain: all of them (Dynahi still has a little)

Hell, the $1000-1500 target copperhead sounds like the GSX MK2 with better bass control, higher resolution and no treble grain/etched treble. If you're after the MK2's definition of "ruler flat" then the copperhead is a much better amp.

If you're looking for pure technicalities, the balanced dynahi, Rag, BW and Copperhead are better with the Copperhead being the "best" for the people who love the signature of the MK2.

The dynalo was awesome a long time ago. Running it in a balanced configuration with a better power supply improved it quite a bit, but that wasn't enough for it to really be on par with the current crop of higher end amps.

 

Revised KG ranking after reviewing my notes and some impressions from Marv and Christian

Klone: G
Balanced Dynahi: VG
GSX MK2: M (esp for price)
GS-1 with improved dynalo boards: M/maybe G

There's this thing called search. It's a really new technology but I bet it'll be big someday.

 

First of all, I changed your title because it's funny. Second of all, how many liked posts did you have? I can fix that. That's easy to accidentally bork up and it might have been my fault on accident.

Feel free to blow up, though. It seems like a super healthy response to dumbassery on the internet.

 

Done. First post updated. Some minor changes.

 

I checked the edit log for your account. You should have exactly the correct amount of likes right now. The reduction was a fat finger.