Update 11-11-08
> Ray Samuels Audio Mustang P-51
Info:
P-51 Mustang - Ray Samuels Audio
I received a loaner of the new Mustang P-51 portable headphone amp from Ray Samuels Audio. The impossibly small Mustang is quite full featured – lithium Ion battery built in, 3 gain settings. Smaller even that the Tomahawk. Same styling as other RSA amps, which is to say a very attractive anodized metal case. The Mustang, according to Ray, can deliver more than 2 times the amount of current that a Tomahawk can. Pretty impressive.
Headphones used for this review were the Audio Technica AT-ESW9, Kenwood K1000, and the Sennheiser PXC-350.
Build Quality: A+: Attractive metal case, properly sized metal knob, very sturdy connectors. Doesn’t get any better.
Treble: A: Amazingly smooth and musical, and yet highly detailed. Maybe not quite as extended as the iQube, but if not, very close. Slightly more extended than the Meier 2Move. The unusual instrumentation on Joanna Newsome’s “Cosmia” was very well rendered.
Midrange: A++: OK, here it comes – the best mids of any portable headphone amp EVER. Yes, this includes the iQube, 2Move, and any of Ray’s other amps. The mids on the Mustang have to be heard to be believed. I was SHOCKED. So pretty, so lush and liquid, and yet so neutral and transparent. Joanna Newsome’s harp and voice on “Cosmia” were so good I truly got shivers and goosebumps. The Mustang’s mids are nothing short of THRILLING.
Bass: A+: Full, tight, tuneful, punchy, deep bass. RSA amps all have great bass, and this one is no exception. No bloat, but lots of meat. Really nice. Just about the perfect combination of fullness, power, and control.
Neutrality: A+: Is it just a touch warm? Probably. Does this make it sound colored? NO WAY. It sounds completely natural – maybe to a level I haven’t quite experienced.
Soundstaging: A: The soundstage was deep, wide, and very well defined. It isn’t quite as good iQube in this regard, but this still will not be seen as a shortcoming.
Transparency: A+: It’s amazingly transparent – it has a jaw-droppingly open, clear, are grain-free sound. It really excels here. Music just naturally flows out of the Mustang, in a liquid, natural way.
WOW. The Mustang is a real achievement in terms of portable headphone amps, in absolute terms, let alone for one that is so small. In fact it is hard for me to accept how such a small little headphone amp can sound so very good. But it sounds EXCELLENT. In my opinion, it is the best sounding RSA portable amp I have reviewed (I have not reviewed the SR71A Blackbird, but all the others).
The Mustang takes its place at the very top of the pyramid in the world of portable headphone amps. It’s terrific, and I cannot recommend it highly enough. For the price, at this level of quality, it’s even a bargain. It was so good, it actually required a bit of re-ranking at the top of my list.
Conclusions (11/11/08)
NOTE: All new reviews have to be added to the end of the thread due to the length of this post - only the rankings will now change.
OK, so now it’s now 43 amps! Here is my view on how the amps stacked up. Note that the sum of the "Grades" I give does not always tell the whole story in how I rank them, since the whole is sometimes greater or lesser than the sum of the parts, and I am often forced to split hairs here, since the list has gotten so long. Also please note that even if these amps include a DAC, that DAC performance was NOT a factor in these rankings AT ALL. Also, for clarification, this ranking is based on sound quality ONLY, and does not take things like size or battery life into account.
1. Triad Audio Lisa III
2. Qables iQube
2. RSA Mustang P-51
2. Larocco Audio Pocket Reference II mk 2 (availability unknown - PLEASE read entire review)
3. Headamp Pico
3. Meier Audio 2MOVE (and the older MOVE)
4. RSA SR71
4. RSA The Predator
5. RSA The Hornet “M”
6. Xenos 1HA-EPC (discontinued)
7. RSA Tomahawk
7. Meier Audio XXS / Headsix
8. TTVJ Portable Millet Hybrid
8. Decware Zenhead
9. Xin Reference
9. Meier Audio Porta Corda III (discontinued)
9. Xin SuperMicro IV (current version auditioned 1/22/08)
10. ALO Double Mini3
10. Headamp AE-2
10. Graham Slee Voyager
11. Go-Vibe 7
11. Mini3
12. Leckerton Audio UHA-3
13. Portaphile V2^2
14. mSeed Spirit (discontinued)
15. Mini-Box E
15. Storm 3 (NOT B3)
15. Storm B4
16. iBasso P-1 (discontinued)
17. Visely HEA- 1
18. Microshar uAmp107
19. Practical Devices XM4
19. C&C XO
19. iBasso T2
20. Go-Vibe 6 (discontinued)
21. Xtra X-1 Pro
22. Xenos 0HA-REP (discontinued)
22. iBasso T1 (discontinued)
23. Xtra X-1 (discontinued)
24. C&C Box V2
25. Storm B3
25. Little Dot Micro+ (discontinued)
As always, this is JUST MY OPINION, but I hope it has been helpful.
