Monoprice Monolith Liquid Platinum Headphone Amplifier by Alex Cavalli

Discussion in 'Headphone Amplifiers and Combo (DAC/Amp) Units' started by Vtory, Apr 4, 2018.

  1. msommers

    msommers High on Epipens

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    PLEASE POST MORE IMPRESSIONS OF THIS F*CKING AMP
     
  2. lcmusiclover

    lcmusiclover Friend

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    I continue to be amazed how much better my HD-6xx sound out of this amp (running Siemens NOS E88CC, balanced output) than from the other amps I've tried with them (all SS: Bryston BHA-1, Violectric V280, Massdrop LC-X, Soundaware P1). I bought them mostly to have as a reference, since so many folks use them (or 650) as one of their 'comparison' sets in various reviews, but they never seemed that great. I got the whole '...they don't do many things very wrong', but the veil and the lack of bass impact made them seem ... lesser.

    But out of my LP they are a revelation. Much better at both ends, without damage to the mids, which were always their highlight for me.

    My ears, my chain (of course).
     
  3. Psalmanazar

    Psalmanazar Most improved member; A+

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    You should listen to or make music on a computer more then bub. Foobar2000, Jriver, and DAWs crash every day. Darkthrone cds are under 20 bucks and will give far more enjoyment than the crap you lust over should you actually pay attention to them instead of salivating like a dog over whatever hyped audio gear is shoved in your face by a marketing department.
     
  4. restrav3

    restrav3 Likes Audio-GD

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    I just realized that this is actually OT, it is related to the issue of digital volume in the previous page.

    When I'm comparing DACs, which I do a lot, I have to change the active output device quite frequently and jriver crashes a lot so I have had volume jump between a set value to max a lot and sometimes it has been quite dangerous for tweeters specially.
    But if the source is a reliable streamer or pretty much anything other than PC or you dont swap USB devices a lot disabling one and enabling another, it is pretty solid. I have to say that the digital volume solution in the Soekris DAC is so good that it has eliminated my worries about channel imbalance or any other problems that i had with analog volume controls. it is a great implementation.
    Maybe soren has done it already but if not, it would be very helpful if @soekris could expand a little on the subject of loss of information in digital domain in his implementation.
     
    Last edited: Jan 17, 2019
  5. Clemmaster

    Clemmaster Friend

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    And you should stop barking at every occasion. You sound like a dog left home too long, screaming for attention.
    Just enjoy your trash metal on your God sent Dangerous Source and let others who like mud and veil enjoy their shit on their over-hyped gear.
     
  6. lcmusiclover

    lcmusiclover Friend

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    Child psychologists suggest that the best way to extinguish undesireable behavior is to ignore it :)
     
  7. westermac

    westermac Friend

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    I think that depends upon if the undesirable behavior in question is throwing a hissy fit or pissing on the carpet.
     
  8. Elnrik

    Elnrik Super Friendly

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    I put Psalm on ignore a long time ago when I realized the-powers-that-be were perfectly happy with his severely agressive, narrow-minded, prejudiced, irrational hostility when they removed his bans time and time again.
     
  9. lcmusiclover

    lcmusiclover Friend

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    Yep, then you rub their nose in it while saying 'Bad Doggie!'
    I'm all for freedom of speech, but I'm all for the the Ignore button as well :)
     
  10. Skyline

    Skyline Double-blindly done with this hobby

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    Regarding attenuation, @runeight posted this on the...other...site:

     
  11. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    The easiest solution to attenuation, and avoid any questions of diminished sound quality, is to simply NOT use attenuation.

    Too loud? Get used to it. Take that hearing damage with pride. The upside is you'll never be woken up by random noises at night, because you can't hear them.

    Still too scared? Wear ear plugs. You can rest easy that any sense of sound quality loss is NOT because of your gear but that you were a wuss that plugged your ears.
     
  12. Jozurr

    Jozurr Facebook Friend

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    So essentially, don't use attenuation and listen as high as you can and damage your hearing, till the lowered SQ via attenuation doesn't matter. Got it.
     
  13. atomicbob

    atomicbob dScope Yoda

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    For those following the digital volume control OT part of this thread, we use Adobe Audition and even old versions of Cool Edit Pro 2 on win7 machines to run 7 KW sound systems with RME interfaces. We even use JRiver media center and foobar 2K without crashes, though we have run typical pro audio OS optimizations which are posted on nearly every DAW vendors FAQ page.

    As far as impressions, I am currently evaluating Liquid Platinum with various DACs to be the standard hybrid amp for corporate headphone oriented DAW workstations. Front runner DACs include schiit Gungnir MB A2, RME ADI-2 Pro, DM Convert-2. A few more to evaluate before deciding.
     
  14. HotRatSalad

    HotRatSalad Friend

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    Maybe just don't match up the LP with super sensitive headphones ?
     
  15. AllanMarcus

    AllanMarcus Friend

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    If the voltage from the DAC over balanced connections is double that of single ended, why not just use SE connections to the LP? Would that ultimately reduce the output to more desirable levels?
     
  16. ChaChaRealSmooth

    ChaChaRealSmooth SBAF's Mr. Bean

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    From my (limited) understanding of digital attenuation, you lose bits as soon as you attenuate the signal. Whether or not that the loss of bits is audible is another can of worms altogether.

    There doesn't seem to be a clear-cut answer to whether something like a preamp is more transparent than digital attenuation. A preamp would obviously add a slight flavor to its own to the sound, but whether or not that it's desirable is up for debate. And in audiophile circles, it seems that digital attenuation is generally avoided at all costs due to the relentless attempts at keeping things bit-perfect.

    To (somewhat) bring this back to the original topic I debated on running a spare Magni 3 I had laying around as a preamp, but ultimately decided that I was okay with staying really low on the Platinum's volume pot. It doesn't really bother me unless there's some serious channel imbalance, which there is none at the volume I listen at (I listen at a moderate level).

    Edit: I haven't got a chance to really compare to other stuff yet, but compared to the Magni 3 this amp is essentially an upgrade all-around. I do feel the soundstage is much wider (but necessarily deeper). Don't really want to post too many impressions yet since the amp hasn't been broken-in yet (the manual advises 100 hours and I definitely don't have that many on the amp yet).
     
    Last edited: Jan 18, 2019
  17. famish99

    famish99 Friend

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  18. Lyander

    Lyander Official SBAF Equitable Empathizer

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  19. nickwin

    nickwin Acquaintance

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    I would say only match it with super low sensitivity headphones is more accurate. A lot of the headphones being mentioned here are not anywhere near “super sensitive” yet the gain is still an issue for some.

    On a different note I wonder if the hd650/600 were the main hp’s used to voice this amp. Seems to be a ton of love for that combo already. Iv heard people say that Cavalli amps tend to be great with early gen hifiman headphones but the in the case of the LP, hd650s seem to be the preferred pairing. (Or is it just that everyone here has hd650s?)

    @Skyline, I find LP quite dry with HE500s, even with 60s Amperex PQs. My preference may be a ways off from the norm here, but out of curiosity, have you tried LP with Hifimans? Or any orthos? Is it possible it just has great synergy with HD6xx?
     
    Last edited: Jan 18, 2019
  20. msommers

    msommers High on Epipens

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    HD650 is very popular here. Right now it's my only headphone so moving from the MCTH -> LP seems to be a good upward-move, but I haven't seen much comparing the two other than MCTH is wet while the LP is dry...

    I'm so happy to see that LPS nervosa talk has died. And will continue that way.
     

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