Review: ALO RX Amp (Quite Possibly the Perfect JH13 Amp) - Page 4

Agree 100% jp11801, and I still have the Rx at the top of my 'wishlist' per my thread : it makes sense for me as I would only use it in a bedroom/office scenario, but many seem conditioned to believe that amps will just keep getting smaller while retaining great sound quality : clearly, there has to be a limit to that. For use on the go, I prefer the amp built into my Sony, but the iPod never leaves home. Like many here, I'm still waiting for definitive feedback on the Onkyo transport - failing that, a portable amp looms as my best option.

why are you waiting for the Onkyo transport? check out the Wadia iPod for about the same price as most of the high-end portables here. it's an amazing piece of kit, the first (and only?) to draw a direct digital signal from the iPod.

it is the first, but there are others. the onkyo version also interfaces with a computer unlike the wadia. the onkyo also was a smaller footprint!

Absolutely agree. While the photo with the Shadow makes the Rx look large in comparison, it really is very compact. It is thin enough that I can slip in in my pocket in tandem with the iPhone.

I've been in touch with Matt MacBeth, one of the Rx's codesigners, and he says that he's getting a run time of over 40 hours with IEMs. Not so bad...

estreeter, sorry for the off topic question but I didn't even know of the Onkyo transport... Can this feed the signal to a headphone amp or is it more complex? Does it need to feed through a DAC?

I'll do a little more digging...

This is my first amp and I can't compare to the others but I must say the battery life is pretty darn good. I can go for days without charging.

I'd really like to hear your take on that. But the hiss issue concerns me. I think the Shadow scales well withe the JH13 Pros.

hey HONEYBOY,how does it pair with the ie8?does it improves anything with it?and what are you connecting it to?this is very interesting amp and it will also be my first although it is a little pricey.
on another note,can it drive full size CANS like senn. HD600?

Spud. there is an extensive thread on the Onkyo here:

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f7/onk...nsport-440571/

The idea is that you take the digital stream from the iPod into your DAC (or DAC/amp) and on to whatever amp you would normally use. Having optical out, at a retail price significantly cheaper than the Wadia, is a big plus for me. We are all eagerly awaiting Vinnie from RedWine Audio to post his impressions on the difference between this transport and his Wadia - I dont think too many others would be as familiar with the sound potential of the iPod as the man who created the iMod.

Many thanks for the link, it sounds like quite an exciting product especially considering the price. They are going for as little as £125 here, just got to get my head round how to feed the headphone amps. Now for some bedtime reading........

Hi midoo1990!! Unfortunately it doesn't do much for the IE8s at this point. I use the amp with an ibasso cb03 LOD and touch 2G and I'd be hard pressed to say if there's any change/improvements over the HP out. In fact, I prefer the way the IE8 sounds out of the sony X1060 to that combo. It seems as though the X introduces its coloration which I notice right away, however the X + IE8 sounds more airy, smooth and refined to my ears at this point. If there are any changes they're too subtle for my untrained ears. As I had mentioned in another thread the amp is low on hours(roughly 26hrs now) so it's certainly too early to be making judgments.

The only other earphones I've used with the amp are some recabled triple fi 10 and man I tell you I couldn't believe the drastic improvement it made to those phones over just listening to them directly out of the X despite its low hours. Vocals had more body and articulation. Better display of realism, soundstage expanse, separation and airiness ... the phones just came alive. I was very impressed and at the same time sad that The IE8 doesn't respond in such a manner. However these phones are very finicky. Even headphoneaddict with all the gear he has could only find two amps; the Amphora and an op amp rolled D10 that really made the IE8 to shine. If you're thinking of an amp for the IE8 I'd say go down the safer route of an ibasso D10 and/or possibly the D4 with hiflight topkit. I'll be investing in a D4 soon and am waiting to see how this amp would match with the incoming apuresoundsound recabled hfi 780.

With regards to power my hunch is that this little bad boy would be able to drive just about anything out there. Even with the gain on 1 this thing has more power than I'll ever dream of checking out. As Ken described to me via PM you can increase the gain by removing the front plate with a 1/16" allen tool kit and move the switch under the board to the right.

mmmm,interesting,thank you mate,i just wanna get an amp for curiosity and to see what people describe as night and day difference when connected via LOD and ipod,but i wont invest in it unless i get another iem or pull the plunge on full size CANS.

While the Onkyo may have a bit more versatility, I would'nt be so quick to place it on the same level as the Wadia dock for possible SQ. Wadia has produced a few World class DACs over the years, so I would think it would be safe to assume some "trickle down" technology found its way into this "entry level product". This is not to slight Onkyo , only to point out that it is being compaired to a product from an audiophile digital specialist company.

They have produced a number of good DACs, sure, but the 170i is not a DAC. There are, hypothetically, ways to make one digital transport better than another, but the difference is extremely subtle at best.