I found no difference in the s/q after 100 hours or 300 hours; it came out of the box magnificently and has not varied one iota.

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A large part of the problem is that my full size headphones (701s and Denon 2000s) were recabled by Moonaudio and have a very weighty Furutech 1/4"
plug. That plus the weight of the Grado 1/4-1/8 adapter is the root of the weight issue.

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Maybe you could ask Skylab how the PICO sounded vs his Meier Cantate?

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Yah, I velcro'd my mini usb amp to the lid of my laptop a while back. It works, and then I can use the velcro on the amp to attach it to my ipod too.

Can anybody who uses the Pico with Beyerdynamic DT990 cans post their feelings on the synergy of the two? So far I've only come across one person who uses the DT990s with the Pico. Thanks in advance!

I've spent some time with a Pico comparing to my SR71 using a MicroDAC as a source and RS-1 headphones.

I have to say the Pico is an impressive little piece of technology. It's well built and sounds very decent. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a simple solution to computer as a source audio, and a nice pocketable portable amp.

With that said, I have some quibbles. These are all IMO with only four hours of evaluation....so don't hurt me....

Another forum member mentioned this to me, but I didn't think much about it until I experienced it myself. Even the low gain setting seems a little hot for IEM use. Using my UE5c's, the slightest twitch past the "ON" position started to provide music a little louder than I prefer.

As far as sound, the Pico did sound good with my Grados....and the amp is obviously warmish, but what got me was the soundstage and presentation of bass.

Since I discovered Yuin PK-1's, my entire concept of bass has changed. At that time I used HF-1's mostly, and discovered that the HF-1's had plenty of bass, but it's not as impactful and tight as the Yuins. At that time, I tried RS-1's (again) and found that they do have a bass presentation similar to the PK-1's. Since then, I am literally addicted to that type of bass presentation.

When comparing the Pico and SR71, I discovered that the Pico is like the HF-1's, and the SR71 more like an RS-1. The Pico is warm, fun, slightly fuller and has plenty of bass composed of texture....but it doesn't have the defined impact I hear from the SR71. The SR71 is far more neutral than the Pico and there was something about the Pico's presentation that tweaked me the wrong way while listening (which I still can't adequately describe). The SR71 also handily beat out the Pico on soundstage which is something you don't squander when you're a Grado user. This part of the comparison seemed so obvious that I would be surprised if lots of other users felt otherwise. The Pico definitely seemed more forward with a comparitively compressed soundfield.

As I moved to certain Rock (such as ACDC), my perception of the differences became more difficult...but with slower stuff (folk, blues, alt. country) with lots of space between notes, the SR71 provided a more enjoyable presentation to my ears.

Normally, I would never post these types of impressions on a new amp...but word on the street has been that what I hear now is what the Pico will remain.

I also have to agree that you won't believe how small the Pico is until you see it in the flesh.....

So, would you say that the PK-1s would make a good combination with the Pico?

I'm listening to my Pico + PK1 combo right now, and I love it. I've been enjoying it tremendously for the few weeks I've had both. Great detail and extremely engaging. I've enjoyed it much more -- maybe because it's my work setup and I'm just listening, not analyzing -- than my current home setup.


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Yes...but not the best I've heard. But if you own PK-1's and think they sound thin, this amp may help...at the expense of some of those minor quibbles I mentioned.

I find that the Pico is not completely silent on my laptop. My computer is an Asus Z71V. There's a tiny, tiny amount of low-level hiss that I can hear with the AD2000. It's so low that I could almost think I might be imagining it, but no, it's definitely there.

Tested of course at High gain with volume maxed out, connected but no music playing.

But if it is connected to your computer then it is your computer and not the Pico.

Er yeah, that was kinda my point - USB noise that the Pico picks up, I should've mentioned that. Disconnected, I can't hear this ultra low-level hiss.

So cmon now ASR, whats the story on the ad2000/pico synergy?

NO COMMENT

Patience is a virtue and details will come to those who wait...

I'll just add though that comparing the AE-2 in my CD-based system against the Pico w/ laptop (FLAC over ASIO) is actually kinda fun.

I've also saved notes of the AE-2 with my former Arcam FMJ CD33 because that CDP used the same DAC as the Pico (though the AD797 and OPA2134 were in its analog output stage, crap!).

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Can you please try running laptop off batteries?