REVIEW: Meier Audio Concerto headphone amp - Page 54

Thanks for the clarification. Is there any news of a new Meier amp or dac that will be released in the near future?

Jan said that there won't be any update to StageDAC.

Concerto will be replaced, but it will still be a long wait. Won't come out anytime soon.

That was what he told me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by uelover 

Jan said that there won't be any update to StageDAC.

 

Concerto will be replaced, but it will still be a long wait. Won't come out anytime soon.

 

That was what he told me.

I basically heard the same thing, so I decided to pick up a concerto off of another member here.  

Quote:

Originally Posted by thegr8brian 

I basically heard the same thing, so I decided to pick up a concerto off of another member here. 

Nobody wants to sell their Concerto to me so I ended up picking a Corda Swing from Jan XD
 

should there be any difference in sound quality from using the low gain vs high gain on the concerto? I have a usable range of volume on either setting. obviously with low gain i'll be using the 2 - 5oclock of the volume pot, and with high gain i'll use 9 -12. was just wondering if there should be any sonic differences once the volume is matched?

The new amp is called Corda Classic and will be released in September. There's even a schematic of the front panel on the homepage.

Quote:

Originally Posted by athenaesword 

should there be any difference in sound quality from using the low gain vs high gain on the concerto? I have a usable range of volume on either setting. obviously with low gain i'll be using the 2 - 5oclock of the volume pot, and with high gain i'll use 9 -12. was just wondering if there should be any sonic differences once the volume is matched?

To my ears, there's no difference.

I'm surprised yet again though, at how loud you and many others have described, are listening through the Concerto. I know it hugely depends on the source, but for me, with the (fixed output level of the) Stagedac fed by a cd player (that bypasses its own volume control circuit when using the digital coax out), I rarely find it necessary to use the high gain.

Hey guys,

I apologize if this was answered already somewhere in this thread, I just skimmed through it.

First, whats the red voltage button on the underside of the amp for?

2nd, flipping through this thread I have noticed some discrepancies in how loud people are perceiving the amp really gets.  I am using pretty low impedance cans (Edition 8, Hd595s, Dt770/32ohm) and can tolerate max on the low gain and about half max on high gain.  Not that I listen to it that loud regularly, but I would think that an amp that comfortably powers 600 ohm cans would have blown my ear drums at that level.  Skylab had suggested somewhere in this threat to try using an mp3 player line out in case it was my source (Asus Essence ST w/o the built in dedicated amp and w/ maxed volume on windows 7 64 bit).  I did that (w/ my meizu m6) and same result.  I don't think there is anything wrong with the circuitry, because the sq otherwise is unbelievably good. I am no physicist and have limited experience with high impedance cans, but I am suspecting that higher impedance cans could deliver similar spl w/ less current.  Any thoughts?

In other news, I can't wait to listen to my soon to be arriving lcd2 rev2 with this amp.

After owning the Concerto/Stage DAC combo for almost a year, I'd say this review is spot on. It's a pleasure each time I fire them up and settle in for a listen.

Despite that, I've decided to sell this setup (along with my Denon D5000s, which sound great together). I just don't get a chance to listen as much as I had hoped. PM me if interested. 

Now that I think about it, this review is the one that sold me on purchasing the Concerto in the first place! :) 

Quote:

Originally Posted by rrahman 

Hey guys,

 

I apologize if this was answered already somewhere in this thread, I just skimmed through it.

 

First, whats the red voltage button on the underside of the amp for?

 

2nd, flipping through this thread I have noticed some discrepancies in how loud people are perceiving the amp really gets.  I am using pretty low impedance cans (Edition 8, Hd595s, Dt770/32ohm) and can tolerate max on the low gain and about half max on high gain.  Not that I listen to it that loud regularly, but I would think that an amp that comfortably powers 600 ohm cans would have blown my ear drums at that level.  Skylab had suggested somewhere in this threat to try using an mp3 player line out in case it was my source (Asus Essence ST w/o the built in dedicated amp and w/ maxed volume on windows 7 64 bit).  I did that (w/ my meizu m6) and same result.  I don't think there is anything wrong with the circuitry, because the sq otherwise is unbelievably good. I am no physicist and have limited experience with high impedance cans, but I am suspecting that higher impedance cans could deliver similar spl w/ less current.  Any thoughts?

 

In other news, I can't wait to listen to my soon to be arriving lcd2 rev2 with this amp.

Mine is the exact same experience - only use the low impedance for IEMs, everything else including Grados get listened to on the high switch. Currently, it's mainly paired with HD-650 which remain around the 12 o'clock position most of the time

sorry i missed your reply. i use them with the audeze lcd-2. depending on the headphones I guess there would be different listening volumes. I listen between 60+ - 80+ dB which I think is the normal range.

Quote:

Originally Posted by RazorJack 

To my ears, there's no difference.

 

I'm surprised yet again though, at how loud you and many others have described, are listening through the Concerto. I know it hugely depends on the source, but for me, with the (fixed output level of the) Stagedac fed by a cd player (that bypasses its own volume control circuit when using the digital coax out), I rarely find it necessary to use the high gain.

You guys, I listened to one of these with HE-500's the other day. Has to be the best **** amp you could ever buy for 300+ dollars used. It was sheer sonic bliss and it even beat out the GS-1000/Mapletree EAR combo that my neighbor has.

Considering it's a Symphony without the DAC circuit, it's going to be quite a performer competing with the more analytical Grace M902/903's. The DAC was a StageDAC.

I've always been a fan of Meier Audio ever since the CORDA 3 and the MOVE for portable usages since their portables were always hugely powered and well worth the money even if you live in the US, but I hadn't tried any of their desktop stuff.

It's a shame a lot of their stuff is discontinued, I wouldn't mind a Cantate when I start making money in the future when I'm done with school :)