2007 Micro Amps and Micro DACs

[leftnose]

Hi Tyll,

Thanks for the info. I currently have a MicroDAC that I've been thinking of pairing with an amp. Will the new amps have the same footprint and be stackable with the old products?

Thanks,
Richard

[noseallinit]

Tyll,

have you got any pictures of the Micro Portable Amp that you can share with us?

I have only seen some fuzzy pics from the meet. it would be nice to be able to see the front and backside of it.

thx!

[Tyll Hertsens]

Originally Posted by Salt Peanuts

Tyll - can you share with us what kind & how many digital inputs Micro DAC/Ultra Micro DAC will have?

There's a coax on a mono-mini plug; toslink with a full sized optical connector; and a USB mini-B connector for computer. Also on the back is our 5-pin DIN power input connector. On the front is the digital input selector switch and power switch.

Originally Posted by noseallinit

it has the one Mini Analog Input on the front? and then the USB, Optical and Coaxial on the back? any other Line Input or Output?

Yup, mini line in on the front. No input switching! You plug in the line in and it disconnects the digital and connectes the line in. On the rear the toslink and coax digital come in the same jack, so it's one or the other, and if you have a digital in and the USB in it has a preference which one it selects....sorry I can't remember at the moment. On the back there is also an extra volume controlled line out so you can hook it up to computer speakers. Front has both crossfeed and gain switches, line-in, headphone out, and volume control.

Originally Posted by noseallinit

which has better SQ? the new Micro Portable Amp or the old MicroAmp w/ Desktop Module? the new internal Micro Portable DAC or the old 9 Volt MicroDAC?

Their pretty close, but the Desktop module is a tad better. Can't afford the current to run a diamond buffer portably, but we do force a little bias on the 8397 in the Micro Portable so it's running class-A most of the time unless you've got pretty high impedance headphones.

Originally Posted by noseallinit

what can we expect with the trade in program?

AFAIK our normal trade in program will still be in effect, I'm not sure what it is, you can just call in or email sales@headphone.com.

You asked some other questions, Nose, and I'm having, and going to have, a hard time getting to them for the next week or two. If Jamey doesn't get to them first I'll get to them when I'm back in the office regularly.

Originally Posted by carlosgp

Will be possible to use the Micro Portable Amp internal dac with an external amp?

Only through the heaphone jack output...which is pretty good, but I know it's not the answer you want. Sorry.

Originally Posted by jamfan16

Are there any plans for packages and pricing? If so, would they be available at the same time the amps go on sale?

We don't have particular plans at the moment, but I'm sure there will be packages. What would you like to see in one?

Originally Posted by Wakeride74

It seems some of the portables are moving towards Li-ion batteries that will power for 30hrs or so. Is this something that HR is trying to implement with the new portable line?

Yes. We are using Li-ion batteries in the new Micro and Desktop Portable. We've talked a lot about battery life with these products and the consensus is that 10-20 hours is about where we want to be. What ends up happening is we put together the unit and then turn up the biasing to make it sound better, we stop turning up the biasing when we hit the point when we're down to the minimum desired battery life.

Our assumption is that you don't really need more battery life than your player has. My feeling is most players get about ten hours, so 15 hours is a pretty safe number. But I think we're still open to adjustment here; I'd love to hear how you guys would want your amps dialed in? More battery life, but slightly reduces sound quality? Other way round? Where would you draw the line on battery life?

Originally Posted by MASantos

Tyll, I know very little about circuit design, but how is it possible to fit the max circuitry inside one of those little boxes? Is it exactly the same?

Once you get the power supply out of the box, you can go from full sized gear to our Desktop sized box. Then once you get rid of a lot of the connectors and switches you can fit it into a Micro. Remember that we use surface mount parts that are about 2mm x 5mm for resistors and caps, and about 6x6 mm for the chips, so the whole Max circuit is only maybe 5 cm x 5 cm. The bigger problem is heat...we lucked out, the Max circuits are within the limits of the unvented enclosure----it does get toasty warm though.

Originally Posted by jinp6301

is there going to be a sale for the old microdacs?

Just kind of depends on how much we have in stock when the new ones come out. Also, we think people are going to remain pretty interested in picking up the old Micro DAC as there isn't a portable one in the new line-up. So I guess it's somewhat unlikely we'll have a sale...but we really won't know untill the time comes.

Originally Posted by bradman

Concerning the micro portable, will the LyPo battery be user replaceable or will the micro have to be shipped back for battery replacement? If it is going to be user replaceable, will the battery be a custom design for the amp or an off-the-shelf item? And, as another poster has already asked, I'd be interested to no about playing times with and without the dac module and if the dac can be switched off to save power when it is not being used.

I think we'll have to do the replacing of batteries, but I'm not in the loop on that one, Jamey would have to clarify. I'll get the details on playtimes soon...lot's of questions about that. Sorry the DAC can't be switched off. It's mostly an issue of how many switches can fit on the thing, and that we use pretty expensive switches. But I've heard that comment a couple of times now, and I think it's a good one to keep in mind for the future, thanks.

Originally Posted by leftnose

I currently have a MicroDAC that I've been thinking of pairing with an amp. Will the new amps have the same footprint and be stackable with the old products?

Yes. They're exactly the same enclosure and bezel.

I'll try to get some pictures up for you, Nose.

[jar]

What is the output on the new micro DAC? I assume still a stereo mini jack.

[noseallinit]

Originally Posted by Tyll Hertsens

You asked some other questions, Nose, and I'm having, and going to have, a hard time getting to them for the next week or two. If Jamey doesn't get to them first I'll get to them when I'm back in the office regularly.

On the back there is also an extra volume controlled line out so you can hook it up to computer speakers.

Our assumption is that you don't really need more battery life than your player has. My feeling is most players get about ten hours, so 15 hours is a pretty safe number. But I think we're still open to adjustment here; I'd love to hear how you guys would want your amps dialed in? More battery life, but slightly reduces sound quality? Other way round? Where would you draw the line on battery life?

I'll try to get some pictures up for you, Nose.

thanks Tyll! I'm not going anywhere anytime soon, I hope.. q:O)>

it's sounding like a killer amp and so very appealing to me!

I was thinking I wanted a line level ouput(hoping it had one) if I got it with a DAC inside but now I'm thinking I may like the idea of this volume controled line out more so. what is HR reasoning behind putting in a volume controled line ouput over line level? most computer speakers do have a volume control but I'm not sure about many battery powered portable speakers. it would be nice to have some portable speakers with this amp.

I would much rather have battery life that is just a little bit longer than an iPods battery life and get better SQ. you can answer this for me but I am thiking that having the amps battery life extend a little past the life of a iPod will allow the amp to peform at it's best until the end of the iPods.

q:O)>

[SiBurning]

Originally Posted by Tyll Hertsens

Yes. We are using Li-ion batteries in the new Micro and Desktop Portable. We've talked a lot about battery life with these products and the consensus is that 10-20 hours is about where we want to be. What ends up happening is we put together the unit and then turn up the biasing to make it sound better, we stop turning up the biasing when we hit the point when we're down to the minimum desired battery life.

Our assumption is that you don't really need more battery life than your player has. My feeling is most players get about ten hours, so 15 hours is a pretty safe number. But I think we're still open to adjustment here; I'd love to hear how you guys would want your amps dialed in? More battery life, but slightly reduces sound quality? Other way round? Where would you draw the line on battery life?

Any way you could offer 2 or 3 customized settings? Some people only need 2-3 hours, others might want 30 hours.

[Jamfan16]

Originally Posted by Tyll Hertsens

We don't have particular plans at the moment, but I'm sure there will be packages. What would you like to see in one?

Personally, I'd maybe like to see a good, sealed headphone package. I'm thinking: Micro Portable w/ DAC option, Beyer DT770 (250 ohm), Micro Bag, and a baseball cap.

[Jamey Warren]

Hello Friends,

The new HeadRoom Portable Micro Amp is now available for sale.

[Dept_of_Alchemy]

Originally Posted by jamey

Hello Friends,

The new HeadRoom Portable Micro Amp is now available for sale.

Whoa. Looks great.

[mrarroyo]

Jamey, two/three questions:

1. Can the DAC be added later? If yes, how much?
2. Does the pre-amp out (back panel) allows me to use the output of the DAC to feed a signal to another amp?

Thanks.

[bradman]

And a further question. I see from the Micro Portable Web page that the battery is supposed to last 20 hours. I'm assuming that figure is DAC free. How long will the battery last if the Micro is purchased with the DAC?

[Jamfan16]

...and yet more questions.
1) Is the estimated availability still Sept/Oct?
2) I see that the battery is 7.4VDC. Will the AC adapter provide more than that when plugged in?
3) Tyll stated that the DAC is comparable to the Micro DAC and the amp is comparable to the current Desktop module. Is this still about right?

[Jamey Warren]

Originally Posted by mrarroyo

Jamey, two/three questions:

1. Can the DAC be added later? If yes, how much?
2. Does the pre-amp out (back panel) allows me to use the output of the DAC to feed a signal to another amp?

Thanks.

1. WE haven't talked about it officially but I'm going to have to assume yes. I'm not sure how much at the moment but my best guess is that it would be about $50 more to do it later.

2. Yes it does but it is not a fixed level output, you would need to get a good level by using the volume control. It is intended to be used as a speaker output for your desktop speakers.

Originally Posted by bradman

And a further question. I see from the Micro Portable Web page that the battery is supposed to last 20 hours. I'm assuming that figure is DAC free. How long will the battery last if the Micro is purchased with the DAC?

That is actually a pretty conservative estimate. With the DAC running, it's more like 25 hours of playtime. Without it, probably closer to 30.

Originally Posted by Jamfan16

...and yet more questions.
1) Is the estimated availability still Sept/Oct?
2) I see that the battery is 7.4VDC. Will the AC adapter provide more than that when plugged in?
3) Tyll stated that the DAC is comparable to the Micro DAC and the amp is comparable to the current Desktop module. Is this still about right?

1. Yes
2. No, the amp will always run off of the batteries.
3. I'd say that's pretty close.

[PFKMan23]

Originally Posted by jamey

1. WE haven't talked about it officially but I'm going to have to assume yes. I'm not sure how much at the moment but my best guess is that it would be about $50 more to do it later.

I assume that means $50 on top of the existing $199 upgrade?

[rumatt]

Originally Posted by jamey

The new HeadRoom Portable Micro Amp is now available for sale.

Can USB power be used to charge the battery? Or can the dac/amp run off of USB power, to avoid draining the battery?


Thanks!