Super Best Audio Friends

For fun. Please feel free to imagine items for your own wishlist. I will incorporate them into the first post only if you can write a good two paragraphs making a compelling case.


https://santaupdate.com/

1. Fostex T50RP (Drop Fostex T-X0 II)
2. iFi Portable Roon Endpoint
3. Schiit Sabreius
4. Schiit MagnIEM or Geshelli Archel IEM
5. Schiit "Multius" and/or affordable NOS
6. Soekris DAC with DIY digital filters
7. Pi2 Design or Allo Idiot-Proof Ready-To-Go RPi/AES Streamer
8. Sennheiser HE90 Resurrection
9. Sennheiser "HD850"
10. RAAL Requisite Headphone Version of SR1A

iDSD Diablo: revel in the detail

Dressed in devilish red, iFi’s new top-of-the-range transportable DAC/headphone amp sports a powerful engine under the hood, expertly tuned to deliver an exhilarating sonic performance



Southport, England – iFi ushers in the New Year with the best battery-powered DAC/headphone amp the company has ever produced – the devilishly brilliant iDSD Diablo. Engineered to sit proudly at the top of iFi’s illustrious range of mobile and transportable devices, the Diablo is built for the purists – the true headphone enthusiasts who crave pure, unadulterated sonic performance.

With dimensions of 166x72x25mm, its size is similar to DAC/amps in iFi’s long-running, transportable micro iDSD series, with a built-in, quick-charge-compatible battery that makes it easy to move from desk to living room to travel bag. Its sleek new design and fiery red finish, however, mark it out as distinctly different.

Impressions:

https://bloomaudio.com/blogs/articles/ifi-idsd-diablo-review
https://www.superbestaudiofriends.o...io-idsd-diablo-impressions.10461/#post-333673

Apparently, there is been a series of L30s going up in flames and taking out headphones. Here is a discussion on Topping’s unofficial forum:

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/sequential-damage.19003/page-3



The scary part is that Topping has not recalled this amp yet and is refusing to cover the cost of destroyed headphones. At this point, I’m glad that I don’t own any of their devices any longer. It’s bad enough that they made an engineering mistake that is making these amps susceptible to failure caused by simple static electricity, but they are now compounding the damage by their non-reaction to this.

I've been looking for a tube tester for a while, and my options were:

• Buy an old tube tester. It would need to be calibrated, and I don't know who are the reputable sellers. Prices varied a lot -- this option is basically a crapshoot.
• Buy an Amplitrex. Good but very expensive -- about $3000.
• Build one. The two primary options I found are the uTracer and the eTracer.

I opted for the 3rd option. The eTracer is a more complete kit with well-supported software. The only issue is that I didn't own a Windows machine. The eTracer with case, power supply, an extra top plate that I needed for 211 tubes, and shipping costs $1250. I opted to buy a Lenovo laptop during black Friday sales. The combo ended up costing me <$2000 (side note: I've been a mac user since 2003 -- Windows has come a long way, and I'm preferring this machine over my mac).

Many of you know that I've been using the Sony ZX2 has a portable player for some time because of its synergies with Campfire IEMs such as Andromeda, Ara, and Solaris 2020. The slightly higher UI was perfect to tame the bass of the Andromeda, and it's organic and laid-back presentation suited the balanced armature highs, not just for the Campfire IEMs, but basically any balanced armature IEMs. I'm not necessarily a fan of the BA sound, especially in the highs, so I look for a particular kind of presentation to time its negative traits: "hashy", "prickly", etc.



The problem with the ZX2, like almost all other Sony gear (except cameras), is that Sony gave up on it. The Android on the ZX2 is so old that it can't run anything today. It's 2020, and really, I don't load up songs on portable devices anymore - it's simply too time consuming. I want stuff like Roon to work when I'm at home, or Qobuz (with its download option) when I'm on the go. This is where the Shanling M6 comes in.

I never write build quality segments in my reviews because it’s almost always fine and I’m not buying jewelry. But this iem deserves to be shamed and flogged in public for it’s build quality especially considering the price. This is a 3,000$ iem. I don’t care about bling stuff at all. But this iem is at best built like a 200$ iem. Even the casing of the iem is just kind of crude and ugly with huge logos which is really tacky IMO. The inlay on the outside looks cheap. And the casing itself is nothing compared to campfire iem’s. It all feels very cheap in comparison...



...Comparisons:

• U18t vs Andromeda 2020 (EQ)
• U18t vs B400 w CP500 tips (no EQ)
• U18t vs EDC3 (no EQ)
• U18t vs. Ara (EQ)
• Andromeda vs Ara (EQ)
• OG Solaris vs everything else (EQ)

I haven't seen much about it yet, but there seems to be a Schiit Jotunheim 2 out of nowhere. It seems to do 6W at 32 Ohms through the balanced out. Actually, here's the page description from Schiit's site: Unique technology, unrivalled flexibility, and modular design—the Jotunheim 2 sets the standard for balanced headphone amps and preamps. It’s ready for any headphone—and fully enabled to be the centerpiece of a complete desktop system.

• Early impression from @futtbutts: https://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/schiit-jotunheim-2.10345/#post-330482
• Early impression from @purr1n (SE in and SE output) https://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/schiit-jotunheim-2.10345/#post-330674
  

A not-exhaustive* guide for helping listeners get the best synergy for the HD800** I have heard various HD800 headphones. To be honest, even with extensive mods, SBAF mod, SDR mod, any combination of mod, etc, the HD800 never quite jived with my tastes. However, under good synergy and the right mods, I do find it to have very significant sonic merit and think it still does deserve its reputation and place.

Other members of this forum have commented that the HD800 does not respond to EQ well (the data definitely exists to back this line of reasoning). This is because the early reflections inside the housing, the large ribs, and mounting structure of the cups, combined with the driver's angling towards the ear and its suspended nature cause some very interesting (and measurable) effects on the FR and harmonics. I do NOT like the HD800 stock because of the FR oddities, and thus this guide, like @purr1n's original guide, will assume that a SDR mod will have been used at the bare minimum (or some similar mod). In a personal sense, @tommytakis kindly let me borrow his HD800, which had both the SBAF and SDR mod (as well as a few others), and I found this iteration of the HD800 to be the most enjoyable to listen to for me. I do not discount the other mods; just haven't heard them.

So I was on eBay shopping around for phono preamps and stumbled across something that looked like another Chi-Fi box. Upon further inspection, it appears to be made in Massachussetts by hand. There are three models right now, the

• MM-3 - $119 (currently listed at $99 right now on sale)
• MM-5 - $199 (currently listed at $179 right now on sale)
• MM-6 - $329

Now all of them are 40 db of gain for moving magnet carts for 47K + 100pF loading, however 150pF, 220pF , or 330pF available upon request.Not much change between specs, although slightly lower THD, lower noise, and closer to RIAA spec. All run on a 24V AC adapter/step down transformer.

All hand matched discrete parts. Says using NOS JFET's, although does not say what exact ones (ie, 2SK170), and if is not that, I am sure it is something similar.

Vali2+ technical measurements, Vali2 is longer in production, technical measurements for comparison may be found here.



I have long had a love / hate releationship with the Schiit Vali2. It has good tonal balance and a pleasing harmonic distortion profile. Conventional wisdom for budding tube headamp listeners was to acquire this inexpensive component, then listen long, gaining insight while saving funds until a significant ascension with more knowledge could be afforded. At headphone meets the Vali2+ has been popular with listeners, myself included. However an important note about can meets is the rather high ambient noise, which may mask low level issues.

Let me start off by thanking purr1n and SBAF for the opportunity to start this thread, as I have a great passion for what I'm going to present, and being able to share it directly with the community is awesome and makes it more meaningful. I hope you'll like what you'll see and make good use of it.

Read here for initial subjective impressions:
https://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/nectar-hive-electrostatic-headphones.9829/



I will be providing mostly measurements with limited subjective impressions pre-measurements. In a nutshell, the Hive is a great e-stat. The presentation is closer to the Sennheiser estats (HE60 and HE90) or HE Jade than the STAX headphones. This meaning they have a more tactile attack. Bass slam actually seems stronger then even the Sennheisers. I believe there were some design considerations made here with regards to diaphragm tensioning, which is quite low. The downside is that the diaphragm has a tendency to stick to the stators if the headphones are not put on very gently. The workaround is to put the headphones on first, let the pressure equalize in a second, and then plug in the headphones in. Running a lower bias can help too. If one likes the ethereal and limp STAX sound, then it is possible that the Hive may not suite them. Personally, I love their presentation. Tonally, they are bit like the HD600s. The stock pads have an 8kHz peak that emphasize sibilance. Fostex woody like pads flatten out this peak a bit.