Isabellina dac / headphone amp - Page 7

I'll try to answer this for Vinnie to off his load to concentrate on the audio quality of the Isabellina .

It seems that this question has been answered before and the answer was unfortunately NO .

Of course Vinnie or other head-fiers can correct me anytime.

I am sure it will make some sound.
But I really doubt the Isabellina HPA will be powerful enough to really show what the K1000 are capable of. For that you may need to invest in a Signature 30.2.

That said, none have so far heard the Isabellina HPA so we may be wrong..

I am sorry that I didn't read all posts

I am using Signature 30.2 and very satisfied with it, so I wonder whether Isabellina HPA, which has a much better DAC than the one I used, could take my K1000 to the next level.

The K1000 need more power than my ALO Amphora, so I would think the Isabellina HPA will not drive them either.

Hi qwertgfdsa,

The guys above answered this correctly - the Isabellina HPA will not drive the K1000s to loud enough levels.

The K1000s need a home audio speaker amp (like the Sig 30.2) to come alive because they are so inefficient and need more voltage swing that what most headphone amps are designed for.

But adding the Isabellina HPA as a dac into your 30.2 will make those K1000s really sing (I use the Isabellina + 30.2 combo for my K1000s ).

Thanks!

Best regards,

Vinnie

No need to feel sorry pal. Browsing lots of pages can be tiring. I believe the question and answer was actually in another thread, something like the the impressions/review of Amphora. Of course I may be wrong .

Why not join us to have the Isabellina and make your K1000 sing in an even more beautiful manner?

Aah, I did not know (no hints in your profile ).
But then you really should get an Isabellina HPA. Use the DAC part to feed the Signature 30.2 and then into the K1000. While you for "regular" moving-coil 'phones use the built in amplifier.

All,

Just a quick note to let you know that we are making really nice progress on the Isabellina HPA.

We have a working prototype here that sounds fantastic!

We'll be using ALO Audio silver-in-cotton wiring for the signal path, and oil-impregnated V-caps for the headphone amp input. We found that this delivers the best balance of tone, detail, and dynamics. The Isabellina dac really sings together with this headphone stage

Parts are on order, and most of them have some lead-time. We hope to have all the parts within 3 weeks, and then we'll be ready to start production!

Also, the pre-order list for this first batch has grown. Looks like the pricing for the first batch (for those of you on the pre-order list) will be $2100 per unit. Remember, this price will being going up quite a bit after this first batch, so now is the time to get a great deal! Please email me to be added to the list for this first batch.

Have a great weekend, and Happy Fathers Day to all you "audio dads" out there!

Vinnie

Great Vinnie. Thanks for the update and I look forward to hearing the good news in a month's time.

Happy Father's Day.
Regards,
GreenLeo

Cool, looking forward to it. Thanks for the update. Happy Fathers Day Weekend

Vinnie, have you had an opportunity to try the V-Cap TFTF Teflon® film and tin foil audiophile capacitors in lieu of the V-Cap PIO caps? For that matter, how did the Auricaps sound?

BTW, $2,100 is a very good price guys. The Isabellina w/o a the Amphora amp retails for $2,500.

Thanks.

Can someone care to summarise the feature set of the Isabellina HPA to-date ?

1. Same DAC module as Isabellina DAC
2. Same headphone amp module as Amphora
3. Fixed or Variable output options for DAC
4. Volume control type ? ( Goldpoint Attentuator ?)
5. SE outputs (RCA) x 1 ? Possible to have 2 outputs ?
6. USB + S/PDIF + Toslink input ( front or back selector ) ?
7. Analogue input for headphone amp (Y/N?)
8. Headphone amp gain selection ? (front or back selector) ?
9. Smaller or same battery as Isabellina ?
10. Same black casing as Isabellina ?
11. Smart battery charging ?
12. Operational while connect to charger ?
13. Will this only be available via head-fi or users overseas have to order through the distributors ?
14. Options - e.g. WBT RCA jacks ? Cap choice ? Internal wiring ?, Attentuator choices ?
15. Will bigger & higher battery voltage (2 x 12V) offers more power to the headphone amp ?
16. Anticipate play time (DAC, DAC+headphone amp) ?

I am sure some of the above were clarified by Vinnie sometime ago, but I would appreciate one "full" update on the feature sets.

Thanks in advance.

F. Lo

Based on the various posts by Vinnie see some of the answers below. Of course only Vinnie can validate and complete the remaining questions.

1. Same DAC module as Isabellina DAC - YES
2. Same headphone amp module as Amphora - YES
3. Fixed or Variable output options for DAC - BUYER CHOOSES
4. Volume control type ? ( Goldpoint Attentuator ?) - Same as on the Isabella (alps)
5. SE outputs (RCA) x 1 ? Possible to have 2 outputs ? - SINGLE
6. USB + S/PDIF + Toslink input ( front or back selector ) ? - ALL THREE ON THE BACK w/ A SELECTOR SWITCH ON THE BACK
7. Analogue input for headphone amp (Y/N?)
8. Headphone amp gain selection ? (front or back selector) ?
9. Smaller or same battery as Isabellina ? - SAME
10. Same black casing as Isabellina ? - SAME
11. Smart battery charging ? - YES
12. Operational while connect to charger ? - NO
13. Will this only be available via head-fi or users overseas have to order through the distributors ?
14. Options - e.g. WBT RCA jacks ? Cap choice ? Internal wiring ?, Attentuator choices ?
15. Will bigger & higher battery voltage (2 x 12V) offers more power to the headphone amp ?
16. Anticipate play time (DAC, DAC+headphone amp) ? - 12 HOURS

Hi fkclo,

1. Same DAC module as Isabellina DAC - YES
2. Same headphone amp module as Amphora - YES
3. Fixed or Variable output options for DAC - RCA output jacks can be either fixed or variable. Customer specifies their preference (as described in the posts above)
4. Volume control type ? ( Goldpoint Attentuator ?) - Same as Isabella preamp (remote controlled Alps), continuous (not stepped).
5. SE outputs (RCA) x 1 ? Possible to have 2 outputs ? - 1 L/R set of RCA output jacks only
6. USB + S/PDIF + Toslink input ( front or back selector ) ? Back selector mini-toggle 3-way switch (located above digital input jacks) - just like the Isabellina dac
7. Analogue input for headphone amp (Y/N?) - No
8. Headphone amp gain selection ? (front or back selector) ? Fixed Gain, and the volume control is continuous
9. Smaller or same battery as Isabellina ? Uses 12V, 5Ah SLA battery and 12V SLA auto-charger.
10. Same black casing as Isabellina ? Yes, but with volume control in the center, and 1/4" headphone output jack on right side (pictures will be posted in a few weeks)
11. Smart battery charging ? Yes - features the new RWA 12V SMART board
12. Operational while connect to charger ? - You can keep the charger always connected, but the charger is only charging the batteries when the unit is turned OFF (just like the Amphora and all RWA products).
13. Will this only be available via head-fi or users overseas have to order through the distributors ? - First batch (from the pre-order list) will only be sold direct (at the discounted price of $2100 + shipping) to anywhere in the world. Pricing will be going up (exact price to be determined, but > $2500) and will be sold via Red Wine Audio, ALO Audio, and most likely through international distributors
14. Options - e.g. WBT RCA jacks ? Cap choice ? Internal wiring ?, Attentuator choices ? - The only option is for the RCA output (fixed or variable)
15. Will bigger & higher battery voltage (2 x 12V) offers more power to the headphone amp ? - No
16. Anticipate play time (DAC, DAC+headphone amp) ? - Between 12 and 24 hours of continuous use

Also:

17. Internal wiring in the signal path will be ALO solid silver in cotton (like the SE version of the Amphora has).
18. Will use OIMP V-caps for the input of the headphone amp (just like the Amphora)
19. Includes remote control (used for volume UP, volume DOWN), 12V SLA auto-charger, 6-foot USB cable, and BNC-to-RCA adapter (for the coax digital input).

NOTE: Features cannot be removed to lower the cost of the product (e.g. Question: "I only need a USB input. Can you remove the other two digital inputs and sell for lower cost?" Answer: No - everything listed above is STANDARD and the pre-order price is the lowest price.)

Hi Miguel,

We will not be using the TFTF V-caps. For the size we need, this is much too cost prohibitive. We are very happy with the performance of the OIMP V-caps in the Isabellina HPA. We have tried the Auricaps, PIOs, and a few others and as mentioned above, the Vcaps used in this design deliver the best balance of tone, detail, and dynamics (along with the ALO silver in cotton wiring in the signal path). These parts come standard with the Isabellina HPA.

Happy Father's Day,

Vinnie

Great! all questions answered and then some. BTW, have the minimum number of ten units for the initial batch been reached?