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REVIEW: Audio-GD C-2C Headphone Amplifier - Page 2

post #16 of 65
4/3/09 at 10:46pm
It doesnt seem as if the C2C is much better than Compass. Skylabs impressions regarding comparison with EF1 is somewhat similiar to my observation of Compass vs EF1 although I give the nod to the Compass especially with the EF1 in stock configuration. Although skylab is using a mullard tube i havent been able to get my hands on yet
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post #17 of 65
4/4/09 at 12:19am
Nice and to the point review. Annoying about the shipping damage. I'm glad we now have a good idea of where the C2C sits in the scheme of things. I agree now is a very good time to be interested in head-fi gear.

The C2C throws distinctly more soundstage and has more detail than the Compass, most notably (for me) with HD-600s or 650s. Also, at least one person has noticed an improvement with a balanced connection. I'm awaiting a duplicate pair of cables in XLR to what I have in RCA to test this myself.
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post #18 of 65
4/4/09 at 4:26am
Thanks Skylab for the review. I guess right now I'm convinced that my next upgrade will be replacing the Compass with the upcoming DAC19MK3 and C2C unless someone can convince me that this move is unwise!
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post #19 of 65
4/4/09 at 12:37pm
Great review, Skylab! BTW, did you also receive a Compass to review? If so, would be interested in your views on how the amps compare with your 600 ohm beyers. If not, are there any C-2C nuances when paired with the DT880 vs. DT990?
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post #20 of 65
4/4/09 at 4:46pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks! I did not get a Compass to review (nor do I really want to - the $399 is so good I would encourage people to go for that). The C-2C worked with all 3 of my 600 ohm Beyers quite well - no problems.
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post #21 of 65
4/4/09 at 7:20pm
I'm so disappointed with these stories of Amps arriving damaged.

The way my Compass was packaged, it had large styrofoam custom cut to make sure the Compass had no movement in the packaging. So if Skylab's C2C and other people's Compass arrived damaged, I can only imagine that it's from Customs. I don't know why Customs believes China is trying bomb the US with headphone amplifiers. I've ordered a few things from Audio-gd so far and all looks great. Maybe customs in Boston is far more aware that Audio-gd is in fact not a terrorist organization bent on the destruction of US by throwing headphone amps at us.

Although in the Compass thread, one owner witness a DHL employee just throwing a package into the truck!

Good review Skylab! Yeah sure seems headphone amps are just appearing left and right and at affordable prices also.
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post #22 of 65
4/4/09 at 9:54pm
Thanks Sky.......great job on the C2C. What model Denon CDP did you use I don't see it listed in your sig ?


Peete.
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post #23 of 65
4/4/09 at 9:58pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks! With the 100 hour factory burn in, and the 120 hours I put on before I even started the review, And the additional 100-ish during the review period, I can't imagine much additional change, but ya never can tell...

Oh and the Denon is the former top-of-the-line universal player, a DVD-5900.
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post #24 of 65
4/4/09 at 10:02pm
I found while the C2C changes with burn-in, it's more subtle, and doesn't change the sound tonally at all. A good power cable made more difference in my experience.
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post #25 of 65
4/4/09 at 10:25pm
Thanks Sky...the 5900 is a decent performer indeed. The mod community love that model !

Have you tried the SONY with it yet ?

Peete.

PS: Curra had wondered this....how far will this amp scale with source improvements ? Right now it's showing improvement with better transports and dacs inserted (not that the 5900 is no slouch in this department). I'll be testing mine out with the RE1 balanced outs in the coming weeks so hopefully that will provide another boost in resolution and transparency...who knows where it all makes sense to stop at (considering the price point). Then again is price a factor in determining what should be used and what shouldn't be ? Seems we are starting to blur some lines not crossed before ? What do you think ?
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post #26 of 65
4/4/09 at 10:40pm
Nice one mate. Thanks for all your impressions.
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post #27 of 65
4/4/09 at 11:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skylab View Post
Thanks! I did not get a Compass to review (nor do I really want to - the $399 is so good I would encourage people to go for that). The C-2C worked with all 3 of my 600 ohm Beyers quite well - no problems.
Sounds good. BTW, where are you on the volume knob with the 600 ohm beyers? I don't have an SPL meter, but I'm listening around 9 to 9:30 on my Compass 9dB gain setting with DT880/250s.
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post #28 of 65
4/5/09 at 10:03am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pricklely Peete View Post
Thanks Sky...the 5900 is a decent performer indeed. The mod community love that model !

Have you tried the SONY with it yet ?
I did not try it with the Sony, for 2 reasons. First, it's logistically challenging in my system to do so. But more importantly, I prefer the sound of the 5900. I have owned both since they first came out, so 3-4 years at least. When the were current production, both players were Stereophile Class A Recommended Components, and both originally sold for about $2,000 list. The Sony's one strength over the Denon, and the reason I kept it, is that its SACD playback is better than the Denon, I feel. But I prefer the Denon when playing CDs, and of course the Denon plays DVD-A which the Sony does not.

Quote:
Originally Posted by techfreakazoid View Post
Sounds good. BTW, where are you on the volume knob with the 600 ohm beyers? I don't have an SPL meter, but I'm listening around 9 to 9:30 on my Compass 9dB gain setting with DT880/250s.
Yep, with my 600 ohm Beyers it was the same, about 9-9:30 for me, depending on the song.
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post #29 of 65
4/5/09 at 12:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Currawong View Post
The C2C throws distinctly more soundstage and has more detail than the Compass, most notably (for me) with HD-600s or 650s. Also, at least one person has noticed an improvement with a balanced connection. I'm awaiting a duplicate pair of cables in XLR to what I have in RCA to test this myself.
A lot of (true) balanced DACs work better with their XLR output rather than RCA so this probably accounts for the difference. I don't think that performance of the C2C with XLR should really be different from RCA.
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post #30 of 65
4/5/09 at 9:12pm
Thanks for the reasoning behind the choices...that wasn't at issue as I'm well aware the SONY does DSD better than the Denon would, which is why I asked...no biggie.

Truth be told I prefer DVDA or did prefer it over SACD but that no longer matters all that much since both have been dumped from the official parent company support rosters along with major label support.

I'm not trying to nit pick Sky...just curious how the SACD side of things sounds (using that well regarded ES SONY) through the C-2C since my hi rez source bit the dust last year.

That's all.

Peete.
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