[Review] Nuforce Icon HDP - Page 6

Quote:

Originally Posted by rataplan 

considered the Maverick Audio D1 DAC but decided against it once i found out that it uses the same DAC chip as my 6th gen ipod classic (cirrus logic).

1. I went from being someone who refused to buy another iPod to the very happy owner of a 6G Nano overnight - their is nothing wrong with Cirrus Logic chips - Marantz use them and there are many, many people who adore their house sound.

2. There is more to it than the chip - implementation is everything.

(I dont own the D1, nor have I heard it - just wanted to make those points)

Quote:

Originally Posted by estreeter 

 

1. I went from being someone who refused to buy another iPod to the very happy owner of a 6G Nano overnight - their is nothing wrong with Cirrus Logic chips - Marantz use them and there are many, many people who adore their house sound.

 

2. There is more to it than the chip - implementation is everything.

 

(I dont own the D1, nor have I heard it - just wanted to make those points)

 

i've been MIA on head-fi as of late due to a new job, but after comparing my 6th gen ipod, to the ipod touch and 5th gen ipod i prefer the sound wolfson chip... i still have the 6th gen ipod. i wouldn't use my touch because i don't like the idea of not being to skip a song from my pocket.

with regard to the icon HDP i just wanted something different and i'm so glad i shelled out the dough. this thing is so awesome, just rediscovering pearl jam ten, chills with just about every song, such a classic.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ericfarrell85 

What would be the best way to connect the hdp to a 5.1 speaker/sub woofer setup (logitech g51)?

I believe this only has stereo outputs so to get 5.1 you would need a decoder.  Not sure if your speaker sut up has one or not.

Old thread... brought back to life.I figured it out! We're dealing with three different volume controls and trying to get the best sound out of the Icon. I've got the Icon HD, not the HDP. So here's what I've done on my Windows 7 system:

1. Set the media player's volume to max, turn OFF any FX or EQ.

2. Set the device volume (right-click the speaker volume and select 'playback devices', open the properties for the NuForce Icon, go the the 'levels' tab and slide the levels slider) way down... like 10% to start off

3. Turn on the Icon to 9 o'clock, when the device is standing vertically

Now turn up the device volume (step 2) 'til everything is clear sounding. It should still be pretty quiet. Now, turn the Icon up to 11 o'clock and fine-tune the device volume (step 2) from there, erring on the low-side. Now only adjust volume on the Icon from here on out and let the music play!

Everything sounds awesome once you're up around 11 o'clock. I know people complain about how low the volume is and that you shouldn't mess with the computer volume, but I completely disagree. The NuForce Icon HD sounds substantially better when the knob is anywhere past 10 o'clock. Besides, moving the volume slider on the system sounds better to me than moving the volume slider in the media player (WMP, in this case).

So the summary of my experience is that AKG K171's and a NuForce Icon HD sound phenominal together. A match made in heaven. Before hearing things through the NuForce Icon HD, I didn't think the AKG K171's could sound really, really good.

Here is another 6moons review of this nice amp/dac http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/nuforce14/hdp_3.html

And I am getting one like this very soon via Meier Audio :) (will pair it with modded Grado Sr325i and test it along my high-end Stello Dac).

I wonder if I can use a "high-end" power cable on this dac/amp? Does the adapter have a "standard" power cable connection? Please note that I have not found any photos of the power connection and adapter. I do know it has a d/c connection at the back of the device. Anyone can post or link some photos of the adapter and such?

deleted

I've got the Icon HD (not HDP) here now. I don't have a way of measuring it with any accuracy, but it looks like a Type O connector to me. It's 15V/1.6A output.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by alexdemaet 

I wonder if I can use a "high-end" power cable on this dac/amp? Does the adapter have a "standard" power cable connection? Please note that I have not found any photos of the power connection and adapter. I do know it has a d/c connection at the back of the device. Anyone can post or link some photos of the adapter and such?

Oh. It has a typical NEMA 5P to IEC C13 cable that plugs into the adapter body... the same cable that most desktop computers and monitors use.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by alexdemaet 

I wonder if I can use a "high-end" power cable on this dac/amp? Does the adapter have a "standard" power cable connection? Please note that I have not found any photos of the power connection and adapter. I do know it has a d/c connection at the back of the device. Anyone can post or link some photos of the adapter and such?

I hesitate to ask this for fear of making some kind of stupid question Hall of Shame but....Do any HDP/HD icon owners experience sub-par sound for the first 10-20 minutes of listening?  I've consistently noticed the first few songs I listen to each day sound veiled but after about 10-20 minutes, the music suddenly improves and is great from then on.  Is there some kind of "warm up" going on?  Or could my ears just be adjusting to the recording?  My Icon HD has about 100 hours so I don't think it's burn in.

Thanks for the reply but instead I bought a Meier Audio Swing amp because I got one excellent Stello dac and therefore better to go for a stand-alone amp. My next plan is to get back a Grado GS1000 (I have been listening to music through speakers for about a year, but headphones have so much other benefits). It was not my Stello dac that really changed my mind to not buy the Nuforce but I google'd and read about the Nuforce udac-2 drama.

I'm looking @ buying this amp.  I've recently been buying a lot of HDTracks audio and the only reason I can play them in their native format is because I'm using optical out, going into my pre-amp, and then to my Corda amp.  However my pre-amp, an old Yamaha, has developed some noise in the left channel, and it's definitely in the pre-amp.

To reduce the audio path to strictly optical, it looks as though the HDP would be a good choice.  It also doesn't hurt that the reviews here are good, and that Jan Meier sells it as well.

However, I've noticed some inconsistencies in the specs on the optical input.  Some of my HDTracks are 176KHz/24bit, so this has raised my curiosity as I want to be able to play them all natively.

On the website we get:

S/PDIF - Coaxial or 3.5mm Optical when inserted. Coaxial up to 192kHz/24-bit or Optical up to 192kHz/24-bit

In the PDF manual we get:

S/PDIF input: Coaxial up to 192kHz/24-bit or Optical up to 96kHz/24-bit

Does anyone here know which is correct?

Thanks,

Steve

The optical input of the HDP works up to 192kHz, but MANY OTHER PARTS of optical, such as the cable and the source DON'T SUPPORT > 96kHz.

The HDP supports 88.2 and 176.4 but not via USB.

Hope this helps,

JasonS