The All Purpose Advice Thread

Just got a Phonitor e in. Have Beyerdynamic T70 headphones. Phonitor is being returned because of shipping damage. Looking for advice on a replacement amp. Budget of $1100 with some ability to stretch

I'm liking about half of what I hear from the phonitor. I agree with the reviews, bass is looser than any other SS amp I've had through here, similar to Bakoon HPA-21 which I disliked. Soundstage is more wide than deep. Both opposite of what I like in an amp. I prefer my amps tight with a larger more separated stage, depth more important than width. My brain is calibrated for lean headphones, trying to add some bass to my system with minimal flab. Lean is ok. I'm listening to mostly electronic: experimental soundscape and ambient. Low bass is more important than mid bass.

Black Diamond in @Hands comparison thread describes my taste near perfectly, appreciate that resources page. Is it new?
http://www.superbestaudiofriends.or...ith-nerd-and-four-hot-amps-a-comparison.2456/
I don't have DIY skills nor do I see them pop up much in the used market. There much similar out there?

 

So few options:

1) Rubber band trick - works only if the screw threads aren't totally gone
2) Super glue trick - clean out as thoroughly as possible before using the glue. A bit 50-50 IME, I guess a totally clean screw improves chances.
3) Dremel slot trick - if the screw is exposed, Dremel a slot into it and use a flathead. This works the best IME, but is very dependent on the screw being exposed.

 

If you have a Dremel, use it to make a notch on the Phillips head, then use a flat head screwdriver and try to unscrew it with the notch. If that doesn't work, you can always drill deeper so the Phillips screwdriver can go deeper into the screw and has more grip to turn it. Best of luck!

 

OK guys, I've narrowed it down to: ZMF Atticus (i'd say 'eikon' too, but the description on the website makes it seem like i'd like atticus better), Mr Speakers Aeon, and Paradox Slant (i'm not quite sure why Slant vs regular paradox etc but again, i FEEL like i'd like Slant the best). I have no idea about them musically. But if someone could suggest something that is:

• AS mentioned before, highs (not too sibilant) and upper mids is important.
  • I listen to early prog-rock and pre-prog music like blues rock, folk rock, psychadelic rock etc.
• Not too much sub bass
• Details and imaging
• Fast, "musical" (whatever that means) and with a "bite"
  • Guitar and drums need to "bite". idk how to express this in scientific terms but this is what i'm hoping to hear.

The last two points are, likely the most important.
So far here's a few points (non musical):

• Paradox is a LOT cheaper. but you know...like 2 months between "order" and "i have it".
• I can actually buy mrspeakers LOCALLY, which IS a big plus (returns, repairs etc) that is often overlooked. Also, i can actually try it out in-store (which i will do sometime this week).
• I like that ZMF is heavy as hell, somehow that's an attractive quality to me...don't ask why.

 

Hello everyone,

I am looking to change my Soundblaster ZxR setup for a DAC + headphone amp setup.

Usage :
- headphone : HD800
- speakers : powered, self amplified Eclipse Edifier Luna 2.0 (uses a regular 3.5 jack)

Source :
- PC via USB (main usage is Spotify, Youtube, video games...I don't have a high end audio source)
- DAC : likely a Schiit Bitfrost Multibit aka Bifrost Multibit

What I would like :
- to use either the headophone OR the speakers
- that when the speaker are in use, the headphones stay silent (the reverse is easy to achieve as I can power down the speakers)

What I consider so far :
- Schiit Asgaard 2 (not sure if I need a tube AMP)
- Schiit SYS (to act as a switch, using it without using the volume control as advised in the FAQ)

I wonder if the SYS is mandatory...
Any reco on that setup ?

 

i'd stay away from the MrSpeakers (for reasons Marv outlined above and others) and think about Atticus or Slants. i heard the Atticus and they're v good. I owned the Slants a long time ago and really liked them too. i might sway towards the Atticus if you want things like bite, which dynamic drivers tend to give you more of, though i'm generalizing a bit. Atticus also sounded faster to me. i don't think you'll go wrong either way but yeah i'd lean Atticus if i were you. or like @Marvey said, a HD6x0 or hd580 for modding, and then you'll have a clear upgrade path since that phone scales with better and better amplification.

 

@Jubijub

Your ZxR card has toslink out, I have the same card and that's what I use. Toslink is a very good way to get audio out of a PC because it eliminates the risk of electrical noise coming from your PC.

With the ZxR toslink out I can either use it as normal and play games, watch films and youtube etc (with creative sound effects). Or I can listen to music using Foobar2000 and route the signal directly to the toslink port without any interference from Creative or Windows drivers.

My whole chain is ZxR --> Toslink --> Theta TLC --> Coaxial --> Theta Gen Va --> DNA Sonett 1 --> Modded HD800

Just a different way to set it up and maybe something to consider.

 

I've heard both. To me the 99 Classic had an unacceptable lower midrange suckout that made male voices sound hollow and weird. I have seen no corroborating impressions online so maybe it's just me. This was also pre-larger ear pads on the 99 Classic. But if those don't improve things I would say that headphone is unusable flawed.

 

Since I have ventured out of the Schiit universe with my Pioneer M-22 purchase and been very happy with it, I am wondering if there are some better options for a tube preamp than Freya. Requirements would be control via a remote and it must sound noticeably better than Freya. Balanced inputs would be nice (but not required) since I think Yggdrasil is better via XLR out than SE out. Budget? Let's go with $3.5K or less. A preamp that uses 6SN7 tubes would be great since I have a bunch of those tubes.

Thoughts?

 

So the Saga is better than Freya? Could you describe in more detail how they differ sonically?

Suppose I wanted to color the signal more. What are you thoughts on the PrimaLuna line? The Dialogue Premium sounds great if you believe Kevin Deal...

 

You are correct, but that doesn't solve my problem. I forgot to state that the PC would be running both Windows and Linux, and I want sound on both. Linux does support USB1 and USB2 DAC, but has no drivers for ZxR.
I plan to sell the ZxR basically

 

Do you mean Craig Uthus? I suspect that custom work by him would extend well past my budget. I am looking for something with tube sound that would match well with my Pioneer M-22 and 98dB efficient speakers.

A little bit of preamp gain is okay with the Pioneer M-22. Freya, in passive mode, let's me play at full volume with the Pioneer M-22 without it making my ears bleed. I don't need a lot of gain and 10dB would be better than the loud 14dB I get from Freya. Freya's gain in tube stage mode is not bad with the M-22. It is too much with Vidar.

 

Yea see, i WANT to go with Eikon now rather than atticus, cuz of what people say about the bass and the lack of uppermids(?) in Atticus, mostly. BUT, all in all the Eikons will cost me $2000 whereas Atticus will be about $1500 (note: Aeon is $1200). Here's a final question for you guys: Given my hatred for too much bass, and my music taste (things like Pink Floyd and Dire Straits) would you say Eikon is worth $500 more? Note: i REALLY did NOT like the whole bass/warmth thing that the LCD series did for example, i found the whole bass region too overpowering.

Again, Paradox is mightly tempting due to cost, but oh man, 3-4 weeks lead time is insanity

And finally: At any rate, I'll be trying out mrspeakers sometime later this week or next week. Can someone compare the sound of say LCD's and/or Aeon with Eikon and Atticus? (since LCD and Aeons are the two TOTL headphones i have access to in a store to readily listen to).

 

@Marvey did you spend much time with Freya in Passive mode? I haven't used tubes in my Freya for a couple months as I leave my Schiit on and like the reduction in heat. Too me, Passive is the most transparent, then JFET, which can be fun or weird depending on associated gear/msuic, and Tubes which sound great, round out the sound and add some immediacy and warmth to the sound. They also give the biggest sound stage.

 

Marv, which Jensen Transformer box are you referring to, in that specific config?

Is that the Jensen "PC-2XR", and if so, how would I go about connecting it, between a Gungnir Multibit/Yggdrasil and into a Saga... since it has a weird 13-pin connector, (that I'm not familiar with) on one end?

 

You shouldn't have to mess with the dip switches on the back. They are for different grounding configurations. You can read up on them in the user manual on their website.

The only things you need to concern yourself with is XLR in->RCA out.