NuForce introduces $199 amp w/ headphone jack

[skullguise]

Thanks, Darthfunk, interesting news. I made up some 12ft cables, it was Cat 5e and each of the conductors was stranded (I was a little surprised). Going to get some solid core at work and make another pair, maybe 8ft, to try.

But listened to some Cowboy Junkies and Einsturzende Neubauten last night, and even this simpler DIY 12ft pair allowed some decent sounds. I drove my Silverline Preludes to some good volumes before getting the formal complaint from the better half. I have a small room, though, so it's easy to fill.

Sound-wise, still thinking it's pretty nice. Again, the mids seem very neutral, bass was good and tight, and highs seemed pretty extended, with no seeming harshness whatsoever. Still bettered for overall sound and emotion conveyed by my DIY Hypex integrated, but very good on its own.

I may get a very small set of speakers and make this a desktop amp, to sometimes use with eadphones as well. Thinking along the lines of Totem Mite, Silverline Minuet, Usher S-520, AV123 ELT525, etc. Should be quite nice!

[warpdriver]

I just got my silver model. Trying out the amp now with my NHT Classic 3 speakers. Very nice sound, hard to believe it's so tiny and it packs a good punch (enough to fill a small room)

[skullguise]

Congrats, Warpdriver...glad you like already. It's not an end-all by any stretch, but all that it does, for so little money relatively, is amazing.

I just got the replacement board today, but won't have much time until after the weekend to install it and listen.

The nice part is, I can try and re-case the old board and have 2 amps for the price of one! I have a new power supply for the main one I use, a nice Pyramid 15V 22 amp regulated PS. NuForce won't sell me an empty case, I understand why.

But if I can get it cased myself, it could be a nice secondary system. I thought I had a nice little Koa wood case from Hawaii, but can't find it....oh, well, plenty more choices.

[warpdriver]

I actually didn't have a reason to buy one....I was just curious how well this thing would work....

but since my 0404 USB is frustratingly unstable under Vista, I plan to retire the Emu. So now I'm actually planning on just using the Icon as a USB DAC and switchbox/preamp for my Dynaudio powered speakers.

I was very impressed how well it performed with my $900/pr NHT acoustic suspension speakers. I had to have the volume knob pretty high up, but it was able to fill the room with clean sound.

[shaizada]

I just picked one up from Amazon.com. Also purchased a set of Usher Be-718 bookshelf speakers so hopefully this setup would sound like I am imagining

Oh, I think I will use the icon as a preamp feeding monarchy monoblocks into the Ushers. I might even experiment with the Predator as a source....should be fun! Wonder if it might actually outperform my current speaker rig. Can't wait to see.

~G

[jaredy]

warpdrive I would appreciate some thoughts on the Icon as a DAC. I have an emu0404 usb and got this to try out for kicks. I do plan to eventually get some speakers setup with it. Anything you have to say would be appreciated. Mine should ship out in 2 weeks.

[warpdriver]

My quick and dirty trial so far reveals that it's not as good as my 0404 USB nor my Micro DAC, but you know what, it's (surprisingly) very enjoyable. The output of the Icon is very quiet, and for most purposes, my Dynaudios still sound extremely tuneful out of the Icon as a DAC/Preamp, maybe a weeeee bit more ragged in the highs. Still amazing what how well made and how much it offers for the price. So far, I think it's a keeper.

I might use it as a preamp with my Micro DAC driving it.

[jung]

Originally Posted by feverfive

Given the RJ45 speaker outs on the Icon, how could I bi-wire the RS1's?

You have to do it yourself to make biwire cables for it. Too bad it does not have standard binding posts to take bare wires. BTW, do banana plugs work on EU binding posts? The center hole is plugged by plastics.

And anyone compared Icon with Tripath amps, Sonic, Trends, KingRex, ...?

[gz76]

Usually if there's a plastic plug in the end of your speaker post, you can remove it to fit a banana plug.

[jung]

Originally Posted by warpdriver

My quick and dirty trial so far reveals that it's not as good as my 0404 USB nor my Micro DAC

How do the built in headphone amps compare, the one in NuForce Icon vs the one in E-MU 0404 USB?

[TheAnomaly]

2 questions about this bad boy:

1. how does the headphone amp compare to other, similar cost stand-alone headphone amps? i need to upgrade from the TC-7510's built in headphone amp, and if this unit does a better job of it then that would be the deciding factor in Icon vs competing T-amps.

2. to those who've heard both, how would it compare to a similar cost Onkyo integrated (TX-8211) in terms of amp performance (small space)? i'm not so concerned about either amp's ability to fill the space as much as i am interested in the sound quality.

[warpdriver]

Originally Posted by jung

How do the built in headphone amps compare, the one in NuForce Icon vs the one in E-MU 0404 USB?

I can't say for sure since I've always used the EMU as a DAC also, which is superb IMO. The headphone amp in the Icon is quite fine overall, I would put it somewhere between the Bithead and Micro amp that I own. The bass is decent but not as strong as my Micro, the highs are a bit polite sometimes.

Having said that, I'm probably going to shelf the Icon for future use because I'm going back to my Headroom stuff as my preamp. My Headroom Micro stack is superior as a headphone amp and a preamp but it should be at 3-4X the price.

[jojoarmani]

I wonder how it compares with the Pico?

[skullguise]

To my ears, the Icon is a really nice piece - for the price. In absolute terms, it's not the end-all in sound quality. But what it offers and does for $200-250 is great!

I have had mine for a while, and got the "rev2" board as well. I loaned my rev1 board version to someone to play with for a while.

It benefits from a better power supply; I overkilled it with a Pyramid 6-15V 25 amp 200 watt unit! Definitely increased bass quality and depth.

The mids on this are pretty good, fairly neutral IMO. Not as good as my Hypex-baaed integrated, but still strong.

The highs have been a matter of discussion. I'm feeling there is some speaker interaction going on, given various impressions I've read and what I've personally experienced.

The person to whom I loaned my rev1 unit posted there were no highs (obvious exageration, but his point made). I have seeme dot find the highs can vary with the speakers used. They seem to go pretty high up, but can be a little "artifical" sounding. Not so much dry, not etched; but not that great combination of smooth and air I hear from other equipment, or from some live acoustic music I've heard.

I drove the rev1 unit from a computer when I first got it. The USD section is fine, again not great IMO (there were some issues qwith USB connectivity in rev1). It MAY have been burnin, but I thought the RCA line in did a better job sound-wise than USB in; and I was playing well-recorded WAV files for computer music.

The headphone amp is very good. It had just enough oomph to drive my AKG701's to comfy levels, though they didn't shine their best with the Icon. I have been listening more to my Alessandro MS-2i's with C-Pads through my Icon rev2 (using RCA in), and that has been very enjoyable. Still some of that artifical high frequencies, but very enjoyable still.

I haven't done a head-to-head comparison of the Icon to the Pico, but my SENSE is the Pico is better. It sems to have top-to-bottom balance a little more even, with better highs, and better pinpoint imaging within the headphone soundstage. Perhaps a little better focus/transparency, the ease of picking out specific notes/sounds.

But the Pico is at work, the Icon at home.

I've perhaps been a little harsh on the Icon, but again, I'm judging on absolute terms. It is an amazing little amp IMO, and one that gets very good audio quality for not a lot of $. Combine that with the functionality it has, it's a great piece. I'm in no rush at all to sell mine!

[jojoarmani]

Thanks for the feedback on the Nuforce, skullguise. Sounds like another happy customer. I'll take it into consideration but i am still on the learning curve and still shopping...

Spending half a grand for a Pico seems insane for me at this point.