I received my unit today, and all I can say is
Equipment used was:
Source: Laptop playing through iTunes and/or Foobar lossless and/or 128-256 AAC or mp3, iPod nano
DAC: Keces DAC-151 (when used as JUST an amp)
Interconnects: ALO Au/Ag, Turbodock
Headphones: UM2, RP21, DT770, SR80 (my buddy wasn't around to use his RS2's)
Songs used:
Rise Against – Prayer of the Refugee
Guster – Satellite
Joe Budden – Three Sides to a Story
Nouvelle Vague – Too Drunk to F**ck
Superbus – Radio Song
Pepper – Zicky's Song
At the Drive In – Arcarsenal
Beatnuts – No Escapin This
Chiodos - Prelude
James Freeman and Orchestra – Black, Black, Black is the color
Julius Airwave – Marina
Radical Face – Welcome Home
Kid Koala – Fruit Belt
Randy Travis -Three Wooden Crosses
Le Tigre – Decepticon
United States of Audio – Back to the Basics (2003)
Xenakis – Metastaseis
Wu-Tang – One of These Days
30 Seconds to Mars – The Kill
Operator Please - Two for My Seconds
I was supposed to get it at the Jam, but work prohibiting me from going meant this was delayed a week or so as I was to pick it up in person and meet Wilson. He's really a great guy, and holy crap is the shipping fast, lol.
Oh yeah, pics:
Pardon the last pic, I for whatever reason couldn't get a good focused pic.
Build quality
Seeing as how this unit is a prototype, the finish is flat black and nothing is as "finished" as how it will be when sold as finished product. But, even as it sits, I actually REALLY LIKE the matte finish with silver lettering. But as it sits, it's pretty nice.
Ergonomics
Since the amp is a little bigger than the Petite(about the size of a Hornet), the jacks are far enough apart from each other where you can use whatever you want, as there's sufficient room. Unlike on the Petite, for the input, you were limited to smaller/thinner plugs.
The gain switch on the front is pretty neato. It's a LITTLE close to the power switch, but nothing bothersome, just something that's noted. The bass dial is what's neato. You don't have another knob to bulk things up, it's a dial, and works great, no feeling of clutter, considering the amp is so small...and unlike some amps out there, the gain switch doesn't seem to affect SQ. It doesn't push the limits of it's batteries and voltage swing, lol. It keeps things realistic.
Also, the Magnum has a wallwart, unlike the Petite. My batteries actually died when hooked up via USB when I was playing music for a couple hours, so I don't think there is a USB charging circuit. If there is, it's probably just not implemented on my proto. But it's right under the USB port, and there's no clutter, great location.
Treble
Wow, they're crisp AND smooth. The iQube and Voyager are the only amps that best this little box. Unsure of the modifications to the circuitry to implement the bassknob and gain switch, but this amp is a LARGE step up from the already good Petite. It has no harshness, or unruly jagged edges, just smooth tone. It does however, sound a LITTLE on the dry end of the spectrum, but still very well controlled and extended.
Midrange
FORWARD is what best describes this range. With Grados, it gives you a VERY forward feeling. I think it adds the right amount to DT770's to lessen the "dreaded" recessed midrange. And like the treble, it has a tad bit of a dry sound. Women vocals are VERY nice on this amp. It synergizes best with DT770's and my Grado's though...
Bass
Having an adjustable bass knob on this makes it very nice. I like ebing able to tailor my bass. I don't like EQ, but I like to fine tune the bass if I'm able to. The bass with it all the way down sounds VERY close to a Hornet's bass. With it up, it sounds like an LisaIII's bass. It has a SMOOTH organic sound. Also, the bass knob is very similar to the LISAIII in that it doesn't really do A TON, rather, it accentuates it. No bloat at all here. I actually like to listen with it at about 50%. The bass lacks the LAST BIT of oomph and depth that the Diablo, iQube and Voyager have, but it's nothing HUGELY noticeable, but coming directly off of those, you'll notice.
Neutrality
Here's where this amp exceeds. Its somewhat dry and clean sound doesn't do ANYTHING to the sound coming out of it. With the bass knob off, it's SQ reminds me of the Indigo DJ. It has a DEAD NEUTRAL, sterile sound. Although, not as sterile as the DJ, it's still fairly flat. But, IMO, it's not quite as engaging with no bass added when using Grados.
DAC section
It doesn't lose a bit of punch or anything when plugged in via USB. Also, I had it plugged in the wallwart and there was still nothing added hiss or hum wise. The DAC is actually pretty damn respectable. Although it's no match for a dedicated DAC, it does a GREAT job none the less, and I'm now debating bringing my Keces unit with me to Vegas for the simple fact it's another unit I need to carry for my 6 week trip...however, I probably will bring it anyways for the hotel room, lol.
In Summary
I feel this amp is a GREAT buy. The bass knob makes things great for bassheads, and if bass isn't your thing, don't use it. Again, no bloat, just SMOOTH accentuated bass when using the dial.
It's a SMALL amp, so portability is awesome. It doesn't have the problem of the petite where the jacks are too close, so it makes it even better for me since alot of the plugs I have are larger than the neutriks that would only fit on the Petite. Since I work out of town, I HATED bringing my Keces unit and hooking it up, only to unhook it at the end of the week. I hated having the horrible SQ out of the HP jack on my laptop....now I have a good solution/middle ground.
The amp is definitely step up from the Petite, in all respects. It doesn't have the warmth the Petite has, but I feel the cleaner sound, the addition of the wallwart, and bass knob make for a better amp.
REVIEW: GoVibe MAGNUM USB DAC/AMP
Linear Mode
