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Official Audio-gd Sparrow thread

post #1 of 723
4/14/10 at 8:38am
Thread Starter 
I just came across Audio-gd's latest offering, the Sparrow.

It's advertised as a portable unit, but... you need to plug it in the mains and it doesn't seem to have a battery. Curious that.
Still, I'm already considering it as a simple DAC/Amp to use at work.
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post #2 of 723
4/14/10 at 8:54am
It feels as Kingwa wants to kill the headphone amp/dac market
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post #3 of 723
4/14/10 at 8:57am
I think portable is a translation nuance thing, their website tries and gets most of the information across but it can be improved. I mean, you're not going to pay them at their 'China Construction Band' account either now are you?
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post #4 of 723
4/14/10 at 9:52am
Interesting...I just wonder why it doesnt use the newest Wolfson WM8741 instead of WM8740 ?
Newer one have a wider dynamic range and better THD
But this thing sure looks nice.
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post #5 of 723
4/14/10 at 10:18am
I sent a couple of emails to him a few months ago insisting that battery power is a must if he were to do a portable, he didn't feel it would sound good. This is not portable unless USB power can run it (don't think so). Why would someone buy this over a Fun for $100 more? Maybe Keebler elves?
If this had a battery, I would absolutely buy it.
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post #6 of 723
4/14/10 at 10:42am
Part of me was hoping this would have a battery so I could use it on the go but something in me knew Kingwa liked ac so much he wouldn't do battery, at least for now. Then again it's quite rare for people to have portable transports. I was asked by Kingwa if I would test it for him and I said yes, but not sure if he forgot or ran out of them or the mailman took it for himself. If it does come though I'll let you guys know how it compares to old compass, dac19mk3, and phoenix, then send it to whoever Kingwa tells me to.
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post #7 of 723
4/14/10 at 10:50am
This is not really "portable"

although it is smaller than his usual range but is significantly large from what i can see from the picture

What he need to do is to make a real portable with a small footprint that offer great sound quality for a good price
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post #8 of 723
4/14/10 at 10:50am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tim3320070 View Post
Why would someone buy this over a Fun for $100 more? Maybe Keebler elves?
It looks like cheaper than fun with some lesser functions. Am I wrong?
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post #9 of 723
4/14/10 at 11:20am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by squall343 View Post
This is not really "portable"

although it is smaller than his usual range but is significantly large from what i can see from the picture

What he need to do is to make a real portable with a small footprint that offer great sound quality for a good price
This is probably Kingwa's compromise, the smallest he can go while still using ordinary discrete components and maintaining acceptable sound quality.
Going even smaller would probably require SMT or using IC amplification and I don't think he's willing to do either.
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post #10 of 723
4/14/10 at 12:19pm
I have a D10 and find it very useful for traveling with my laptop (music and movies sound great) and TV use in my bedroom (opt out from my Dish Network receiver). I was hoping for something similar but even better sounding from Kingwa.
That said, this probably sounds very good for about $250 shipped and comparisons to the D10, Pico, etc. would be interesting.
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post #11 of 723
4/14/10 at 4:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Drosera View Post
This is probably Kingwa's compromise, the smallest he can go while still using ordinary discrete components and maintaining acceptable sound quality.
Going even smaller would probably require SMT or using IC amplification and I don't think he's willing to do either.
I understand this, but he should be more concerned with what the consumer wants. A portable amp is going to have some compromises over a full desktop, but it is portable. If I want the sound quality of a desktop, then I would purchase a desktop. If I want a portable, I want something I can take with me without having to plug it in the wall. I understand he has high standards for how his gear sounds (which is a good thing), but I would have no need for something like this unless space was very limited. Just my opinion though.
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post #12 of 723
4/14/10 at 5:05pm
Looks a LOT like the FUN. I can see it has a different transformer and just overall power supply. The diamond buffers are not modular either. Uses the exact same DAC and input modules I think. The ACSS modules are not the same.

Is the price confirmed?
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post #13 of 723
4/14/10 at 5:31pm
Seems indeed to be more transportable than portable - might make a fun travel companion though.
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post #14 of 723
4/14/10 at 5:35pm
dang it! if i hadn't already just bought a HiFiMAN EF2A, and a K.I.C.A.S. Caliente, i'd be all over this like a duck on a june bug!
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post #15 of 723
4/14/10 at 5:53pm
The man must not sleep.
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