The All Purpose Advice Thread

Discussion in 'Advice Threads' started by purr1n, Sep 26, 2015.

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  1. Vansen

    Vansen Gear Master (retiring)

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    @imackler I have a few bluetooth speakers, including the Riva Turbo X, and my all around favorite is the the Anker SoundCore: http://a.co/eWoq7AP

    The Riva Turbo X is way too bass heavy and veiled for normal roam around the house activity and is a little too much for my apartment. The Riva S, that I've yet to hear, is supposed to be a bit more neutral and I believe is considered to be okay-ish by @zerodeefex and @CEE TEE, but I could be wrong. The Riva X starts to sound a lot better after about 100 hours, loosing some of the bloat and developing a bit more neutrality. I use my X in the tasting room at work on a daily basis and even my non-audio leaning coworkers mention that it sounds a lot better now. The Riva X is a decent speaker for outdoors and large rooms, but a no-go for house work in my eyes. Overall for the X: meh.

    The Anker SoundCore just all around wins. At $37 you can knock it into the dog's water bowl and not feel heartache. It's not bassy at all, but does have a little bit of a punch. It's very clear with vocals, which makes it great for podcasts and audio books. For the price, I love the tonality, but it's not going to wow you. It's great in small rooms such as the bathroom. The battery is claimed at 24 hours, but I suspect it's closer to 30. I never have to worry about the battery dying.
     
  2. merelyme

    merelyme New

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    Hi guys, I need a quick word of advice. I will be spending about 6 months abroad soon and don't plan on bringing my heavier audio gear (dac/amp). So I am looking for a mobile solution to drive my hd650. I was thinking of GOV2. But I don't like running music out of my computer and prefer to use my iPad as source (don't ask why, I just find it stressing to keep a laptop running in quieter hours, for reading, etc). So it would need to be the GOV2+ which already is a significant investment. I am wondering if at this price point it would still be the best solution. Do you guys have any ideas? Another dac/amp or perhaps go instead for an easier to drive headphone that can be run directly from the iPad? If the latter, does anyone have experience running the Elear directly from an iPad? Thanks for you thoughts!
     
  3. gixxerwimp

    gixxerwimp Professional tricycle rider

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    @merelyme I only have the original iFi micro iDSD to drive my HD650 (modded) and I quite like the sound out of it. My ears aren't as good or fussy as others here, but I did a comparison with various Schiit amps last week and couldn't hear a difference between the iDSD's amp section and a Valhalla 2 when using the iDSD's DAC. About half the features are fairly usable (adustable power output, iEMatch, XBass) and it'll play pretty much any format. The XBass is particularly good for getting a bit more sub-bass out of the HD650s when you feel like it, without boosting the mid-bass at all. I use it as a portable solution at home out of my iPad and am pretty happy with it. Because of the new "Black" version, the original silver model is now reduced to US$399 on Amazon, and there's this "Open box. Tested." one on eBay for US$325. At those prices I'd say it was a pretty good deal. There was a used GOV2+ Infinity on eBay that just got snapped up by another SBAFer, but this HFer has a used GOV2+ for sale at US$275. I haven't heard the GOV2 but it's spoken well of here. The micro iDSD would be good if you might need a compact desktop DAC/amp/preamp or DDC (USB to S/PDIF) in the future.
     
  4. Arok

    Arok New

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    Thanks Josh!

    What do you mean by laid back? In the sense that instruments sound less impactfull, with less oomph so to speak, compared to other amps? I pretty much like everything of my actual system apart for a bit too much bite at high frequencies. Maybe the garage amps can mitigate this, while the vali from your description sounds like will not do much for the problem.

    Being new to tubes, bear with me.. do different tubes change the basic character of the amp a lot? Or do they add only a little bit of flavor, but if the amp is bright, bright it remains?
     
  5. JoshMorr

    JoshMorr Friend

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    Laid back to me means the opposite of forward or in your face. Too laid back cans can sound recessed and less impactful. I dont think you will find to garage amps too recessed, just a bit more so in comparison to the vali2.

    Tubes are flavoring in the dish - lots of tubes are just a dash of salt or pepper, altering the dish a little bit this way or that. Other tubes can be like squirting siracha all over the dish, and completely changing the flavor. Some amps respond greatly to tube rolling, others less so. Both the garage amps and the Vali 2 are hybrid amps and tubes are more tweaks to the overall sound.
     
  6. spwath

    spwath Hijinks master cum laudle

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    So, what do I do with one speaker? I just reconed the coaxial Altec 602a, but I just have one. Any thoughts of what to use it for?
    [​IMG]
     
  7. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    Slap that bridged Magni of yours on the back to make it a self-powered speaker o_O
     
  8. spwath

    spwath Hijinks master cum laudle

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    But still leaves me the problem of- What do I do with one speaker.
    And I wouldent trust my magni with a 15" two way system. Then it might have issues.
     
  9. CEE TEE

    CEE TEE MOT: NITSCH

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    @merelyme, the HD650 out of the GOV2+ balanced (3.5 TRRS cable) is a good travel/portable desktop system. Recommended. More powerful balanced and helps open up the 650.
     
  10. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    OR GO2A with a cheap USB battery and a Y cable :)
     
  11. GanGreinke

    GanGreinke Friend

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    Do you have a suggestion for a cable that works for the iPhone? I have been looking for a Y lightning cable, and I couldn't find anything.
     
  12. philipmorgan

    philipmorgan Member of the month

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    Add an enclosure, battery, amp, and raspberry pi streamer for world's coolest "portable" Airplay speaker?
     
  13. spwath

    spwath Hijinks master cum laudle

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    That is actually a really tempting idea. A Bluetooth speaker.... that uses a 1950's altec woofer. I'm actually incredibly tempted to do that. It would be incredibly stupid, but so cool.....
     
  14. Kattefjaes

    Kattefjaes Mostly Harmless

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    Aren't those the two important criteria? |\/|
     
  15. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    Add a microphone and big handle so you can turn it into a megaphone.
     
  16. Dino

    Dino Friend

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    There have been bigger portables.

    [​IMG]
     
  17. CEE TEE

    CEE TEE MOT: NITSCH

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    Not the same, but we all want one... back-to-the-future.png
     
  18. spwath

    spwath Hijinks master cum laudle

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  19. gixxerwimp

    gixxerwimp Professional tricycle rider

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    I think the quality of the advice in this thread is starting to go downhill rather quickly.
     
    Last edited: Jan 8, 2017
  20. merelyme

    merelyme New

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    @gixxerwimp @CEE TEE @zerodeefex Thanks I will look into the iDSD and GO options!

    Any input on whether hd650 out of one of those is better than Elear directly out of an iPad?
     
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