Schiit Fulla 2 Released

If you don't mind asking, how far do you have to crank up the volume if you pair laptop>Fulla 2>HD650? Since HD650 needs power, curious to find out how well it would drive HD650.

 

Preliminary sound opinions vs. other portables such as the GOV2? Its such a cute looking box!

 

Especially looking forward to your impression of Fulla 2 / iEMatch / Andro.

 

@zerodeefex, how well do think the amp section is doing at driving hd650's?

 

So my Fulla 2 arrived early! How often does that happen?

I'm currently listening from my Samsung Galaxy S7 edge on HD650's.

With the HD650's there is a clear improvement when running with the separate USB power plugged in. When running with just the data/power cable, ie powered from the phone port instead, there is a definite drop in SQ (for the HD650's). The bass gets looser, and the overall sense of dynamics diminishes. However, they sound quite wonderful plugged in with the separate USB power, imho. It's actually kind of fun to test this, you can insert/remove the usb power while the device is playing - You hear the sound come together when you plug it in, get murkier when you unplug, juicy when you plug in, weaker when you unplug, it's really fun and I did a bunch of this. Seriously I would not be embarrassed recommending this as a starting point and even paired with the HD6x0's.

My Senn HD598 and HD599 both sound great without the separate power. In fact really great.

I compared briefly to the magni2/modi2 stack. The stack does sound a little better for the HD650's, a touch more slam, no doubt the extra power helps. I was really enjoying the Fulla2, so I didn't get into trying to pick out the differences. The Fulla2 is quite engaging.

I really love the nuance and delicacy of the AK4490 DAC. (Disclaimer, I know some people don't give it the same love, feel it's a little bloomy in the mid-bass. I may hear a touch of this, but to my ears it doesn't detract.)

So - This Fulla2 thing is the real deal. If only I could have had one of these early on. What an amazing product, and holy crap only $99.

Edit: A couple things I want to point out that I like about this device:

1) It has a nice heft to it. Just a nice solid weight about it.
2) Comes with feet already stuck on.
3) Attractive looking
4) I like the big knob (I mean, who doesn't)

Big thanks/appreciation to @schiit for such a great product. RIP portable amp/dac market.

 

Thanks for the kind words!

One note: plugging in the auxiliary power after you have it running is totally safe, but it won't change the reporting to the computer or phone. That is, your computer or phone will still think it's a 500mA device. Again, this won't hurt anything, but if you want the benefits of 0mA reporting (like for iDevices), connect the power first, then the device.

Another note (I need to add this to the FAQ).

I/O behavior:

1. Plugging in the front 1/8" analog input will override the DAC output (the Fulla will behave as an amp for the analog input, and pass this to the headphone and variable preamp outputs.)
2. Plugging in the headphones mutes the variable preamp outputs.
3. The fixed DAC output is always available, no matter if you're using an analog input or headphones. It is unaffected by plugging in headphones or an analog source.

 

You definitely just convinced me to order one, Im4der. Great impressions!

 

For someone who only has the hd598 (and unlikely to upgrade transducers any time soon), would you recommend the Fulla 2 as noticeably better than say a laptop or iPad?

 

Just out of curiosity, if you then unplug USB power does it continue to report 0mA?

 

I did a comparo using the HD598's. First of all, I have to say I am kind of a fan of the HD598's. They aren't perfect, but the tonality is great and they are easier on my tinnitus than the HD650's. So I like them for listening when my ears feel overly sensitive.

I just compared the 1/8" headphone out from my Lenovo Thinkpad T440p to the Fulla2 (normal amp/dac operation). It's really no contest for me. My Lenovo sounds like most PC or phone sources to my ears - just not cutting it for nuance and resolve, flat sounding. I have a movement of the Brandenburg concertos (3rd movement Concerto no 4) that I know very well, and is my first goto. Classical won't stress the bass or the full sound bandwidth, but I can easily hear plankton on this recording. Music is noticeably more alive, accurate, and resolving on Fulla2.

I doubt it, because it seems to seamlessly fall back and continue playing uninterrupted from the phone power. But the power does change, and the hd650's notice it.

 

I meant report 0mA but then switch to drawing current, thus tricking the iDevice into working when it would otherwise complain that too much current is being drawn.

 

So, @zerodeefex, is Modi 4490 officially out of the recommendations vs Fulla 2?

 

Well, I received a couple of these today. Until I get home, some old HD25 is the heaviest thing I have to hand. Initial impressions are of nice build quality, other than some burrs on the volume knob on the cutout mark. Case is rock solid, though, very nice.

It does sound a little on the harsh side, I guess that's to be expected with a 4490 out of a small (though not that puny) solid state amp. However, surprisingly detailed, and certainly sounds like more than $99, that's for damn sure. It certainly sounds vastly better than the ancient M-Audio Fasttrack Pro USB soundcard that I had been using on this machine. That's a primary use case, right there.

Looking forward to trying the HD650M, some playnarz and (wish me luck) the HD800 on this thing. I suspect that on most non-bright "normal people" headphones, this is going to be a killer device for the money. The crazy I/O options alone make it stand out.

No, you're not going to want to band it to your DAP and put it in your pocket, but as a gateway drug to "proper" audio, or as a cheap desktop system where you don't want to leave an expensive amp? Yes, pretty killer. Deserves to do well.

Edit:
(..after I got home and tried some different headphones with it)

A whistle stop tour of some headphones later.. I tried some stock HD800, some HD650M and some HE-560, as well as my "daily driver" IEMs, a pair of Shure SE535

First of all, the HD800, you know this is going to hurt. Every ounce of Delta Sigma and solid state harshness available is shoved right in your face, no surprise there. This is not really a device designed with headphones like that in mind.

The HE-560 are also a bit of a terror for some people, being a bit lean, and also shouty in places. It all sounded a bit thin and a little harsh, and quite plastic. After a couple of minutes, my brain dialled in a bit, though, and I didn't mind it so much. No idea if sticking with it would have resulted in a headache after half an hour. Don't try this at home though- I'm way more tolerant of the HE-560's craziness than most people.

Then came the HD650M (Dynamat including on the magnet, de-spidered and coin modded, with some guaze over the spider hole to dial the bass back a bit). This was actually a pretty nice combo- it sounded surprisingly good. Maybe some treble-sensitive folks would prefer it without the coin mod, but I found it pretty good. Obviously, this is a power-constrained amp, so the bass isn't going to be as powerful or tightly controlled as on a more powerful unit.. but it was perfectly listenable. I think it's possibly more listenable than the Chord Mojo with these headphones (cue some screaming on Head-Fi)- and the price and form factor are certainly massive factors in its favour, too. Surprisingly resolving, though obviously not king plankton at this size and price.

Lasty, I tried my SE535, which are a triple BA design. Initially it all sounded a touch bright compared to the Mojo, but after a few minutes, my brain dialled in, and I was able to enjoy it. They tend to be a bit prone to big shifts of sound from different amps, so I wasn't too shocked. There was a little harshness/splashyness, but it was no showstopper. It'd be a fine minimal setup to throw in your carry on bag for hotel listening. I think the Mojo still sounds better with these IEMs, though- a slightly better timbre, a shade less harsh. However, at four times the price, and with all those usability gotchas, the Mojo would only be a shoe-in for actually mobile rather than just portable use, for me.



Obviously, I am a spoiled bitch, used to my Modi Multibit, which is a superlative little DAC, so any even faintly critical listening via a 4490 is going to be a tall order. However, the Fulla 2 doesn't sound bad at all. I'm guessing that the Schiitheads know what they're doing, and that this is a decent implementation. Yes, obviously a full-sized desktop chain sounds better- but damn if this isn't perfectly respectable-sounding. For the size and price, it's a great option- as long as you don't deliberately pair it with stupid/bright headphones.

I'd certainly not be ashamed to give it as a gift, or use it myself on an office machine as an obvious upgrade to the onboard sound. Oh, and it's cute.

 

For those of you using Android devices with your Fulla 2, did you need to use a specific audio player or did all audio automatically go through USB?

 

Before anything else, please introduce yourself here:
http://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/new-members-introduce-yourself.17/

And for general purpose advice, please use this thread:
http://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/the-all-purpose-advice-thread.19/

 

When you say this, do you have things like Chord Mojo in mind as well?

 

On the Samsung Galaxy 7 edge, the usb otg works with the standard android play, doesn't need a special app.