Consequently, we force ourselve to not make our normal margin on the bags, and end up not being to happy about bag developing.
We're going to be looking at it pretty seriously here soon.
You should partner with a company that specializes in bags. Waterfield Designs makes some awesome bags in high-rent San Francisco.
Quote:
Originally Posted by senny-ftw
I'd like a Micro amp with in-built USB DAC - two boxes is too many. There's gotta be a way!
I would like to see one with a standard 1/4" TRS connector instead of the annoying mini 1/8" connectors. Not having to carry an adapter helps keep the package small. It would also be nice to have it able to charge from the USB connector.
These might have been mentioned but it would be nice if -
1. Headroom's reviews weren't quite so generic and were a little more in-depth (not necessarily more technical so us dummies could grasp them ). Sometimes, I have a hard time figuring out whether you guys really like a headphone or you're just saying you do because you have to sell it. I'd like to see reviews that go in depth and explore and explain the differences between similar headphones from the same manufacturer. Your pages on Sennheiser 'phones all read basically the same even though the model # and price (and presumably and hopefully) the performance is different. I'd like to see, for example, more thorough comparisons between, say, the HD 555, 595, 600 and 650. All look similar enough that a newbie might wonder if they might be selling the same drivers in progressively fancier clothing. We can't all afford to make mistakes buying these things and it would really be helpful to have at least one place to turn to for nice, thorough reviews of headphones that you know you can trust.
2. I also agree with the guy who said it would be nice to see more stuff for the headphile on a budget. It's great to see all the wonderful amps that you sell for hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars. But it would also be nice if there was something decent in the $50 range. We can't all afford amps that cost as much as (or more than) our headphones. I'd spend the money if I had it but I don't. I need budget stuff that isn't far off the mark of the higher end stuff.
Make the USB component of the DAC supports 24/96khz audio from a PC. As far as I know it only works with 48khz currently, which caused me grief as I thought I was unwrapping the perfect audio set up only to find I needed to get another USB sound device to play my 96khz FLACs.
We're going to start some serious talks about bags soon. Economically, it's a very serious problem. When you make bags the way we do, the list price is at least double what they would expect to pay for a camer bag. Our bags would last 10 times longer because the materials and workmanship is so much better, but people just don't compute a bag in their head that way. Consequently, we force ourselve to not make our normal margin on the bags, and end up not being to happy about bag developing.
I bought the bag for the Micro Stack, and also the Micro Strap with the extender. I can appreciate that the bag is nicely planned, but actually I don't think that it's a particularly "real world" solution to the problem; it only seems to work well if you do things in a particular way. Personally, I don't think that I will ever operate the stack with the AC adaptors coupled through the rubber access ports, for example. Sure, it's great for those who carry adaptors but are too lazy to take the stack out of the bag, but how many people really think like that? So the rubber ports, which must add substantially to the cost and are a nicely thought-through piece of design, strike me as completely unnecessary.
It's the same with the transparent window. This is only used for mp3 players with a display, but using an iPod usually means tinkering with the player, which is difficult through the transparent window, and also often entails adjusting the Micro amp volume control, so most people are going to open the bag either way. A simpler bag would keep the costs down and yet meet the requirement of a bag that keeps the stack safe.
(That said, I think that the Micro Strap is great!)
One other thing while I'm here ... your product shots should give a better sense of scale. I was staggered by how genuinely small and cute the Micro Stack when it arrived ... much neater than I had imagined while perusing the site.
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I bought the bag for the Micro Stack, and also the Micro Strap with the extender. I can appreciate that the bag is nicely planned, but actually I don't think that it's a particularly "real world" solution to the problem; it only seems to work well if you do things in a particular way. Personally, I don't think that I will ever operate the stack with the AC adaptors coupled through the rubber access ports, for example. Sure, it's great for those who carry adaptors but are too lazy to take the stack out of the bag, but how many people really think like that? So the rubber ports, which must add substantially to the cost and are a nicely thought-through piece of design, strike me as completely unnecessary.
It's the same with the transparent window. This is only used for mp3 players with a display, but using an iPod usually means tinkering with the player, which is difficult through the transparent window, and also often entails adjusting the Micro amp volume control, so most people are going to open the bag either way. A simpler bag would keep the costs down and yet meet the requirement of a bag that keeps the stack safe.
(That said, I think that the Micro Strap is great!)
One other thing while I'm here ... your product shots should give a better sense of scale. I was staggered by how genuinely small and cute the Micro Stack when it arrived ... much neater than I had imagined while perusing the site.
I agree, a simple bag made very well!
the MicroStrap is the best thing going over any amp out there!
most of the headphone amps out there are odd size compared to the DAP's they are mated with. the MicroAmp is a very good size base for an iPod, Zune, etc..
...go out on a limb, and change your balanced standard. Start putting 4 pin female connectors on your balanced amps, and 4pin balanced male connectors on the balanced headphones. After all, the K340 and K1000 were both that way before you made the blockhead, and it's so much simpler to have just 1 connector on a pair of headphones. You can make pigtails for compatibility.
...go out on a limb, and change your balanced standard. Start putting 4 pin female connectors on your balanced amps, and 4pin balanced male connectors on the balanced headphones. After all, the K340 and K1000 were both that way before you made the blockhead, and it's so much simpler to have just 1 connector on a pair of headphones. You can make pigtails for compatibility.
I wouldn't switch entirely - I rather like those combo jacks - a very neat arrangement. Perhaps just add a 4 pin socket as well - plenty of room on the Home and Max.
Though, a 4 pin socket gives the wrong idea to K1K users in a way - those amps really aren't designed to have enough juice for the K1K, even balanced.
I'm with The Sloth on this one. There are plusses and minuses to both systems, but the one huge advantage of the dual 3-pin setup is that it allows you to run single-ended out of the same connector. Now if you could get Neutrik (or someone) to make a 4-pin combo jack I'd have a lot harder time making a case for the twin connectors. Really I don't see the big deal though, you can just as easily make a pigtail to convert the 4-pin to dual 3-pin.
Why not just have a 4 pin connector and a 1/4" jack, if you feel so compelled. But what I did with my amp was 2 combo jacks and a 4pin, so that all options are available.
As to the K1K thing, lots of amps people use with the k1k don't have the juice tun run them right. I think most balanced amps can do a decent job with them. That said, I've never heard the k1ks, despite sitting about 10 feet from them for 2 hrs at the md meet.
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mac mini -> apogee duet -> tooleaudio balanced mosfet amp -> luxman lv-113 -> home theater direct level 3 bookshelf speakers
mac mini -> apogee duet -> tooleaudio balanced mosfet amp -> grado/headphile zebra hf1s
tooleaudio denon dvd2900 -> tooleaudio balanced mosfet amp -> grado/headphile zebra hf1s
1st gen ipod shuffle 1gb -> Altec Lansing iM616
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). Sometimes, I have a hard time figuring out whether you guys really like a headphone or you're just saying you do because you have to sell it. I'd like to see reviews that go in depth and explore and explain the differences between similar headphones from the same manufacturer. Your pages on Sennheiser 'phones all read basically the same even though the model # and price (and presumably and hopefully) the performance is different. I'd like to see, for example, more thorough comparisons between, say, the HD 555, 595, 600 and 650. All look similar enough that a newbie might wonder if they might be selling the same drivers in progressively fancier clothing. We can't all afford to make mistakes buying these things and it would really be helpful to have at least one place to turn to for nice, thorough reviews of headphones that you know you can trust.
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