Leckerton Audio Slimline UHA-4 - Page 63

Sorry I don't own an E17 so I wouldn't be able to help you there. Ever since getting the UHA4 I really haven't been too tempted to upgrade. The Fiio Amps I had are long gone and I've always found them to be a bit on the dry and cold side of things.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by lee730 

Sorry I don't own an E17 so I wouldn't be able to help you there. Ever since getting the UHA4 I really haven't been too tempted to upgrade. The Fiio Amps I had are long gone and I've always found them to be a bit on the dry and cold side of things.
 

Hi lee730, thanks for the input and also felt that the E7 to be a little cold by itself but feels that E9 quite neutral and doesn't sound cold IMO.

Anyway, it will another month before I get my custom back from refitting and still have time to look around for options. If there's any more inputs, it will be greatly appreciated.

Just came across this thread and product.  Assuming the only way to make use of the UHA-4's dac section is via the USB input, how do you use USB on the go? 

Would 'a computer' also include tablets, some smartphones or players with USB output- or do you need to carry your laptop around with you?

Thanks 

I'm planning on buying a windows tablet soon!  Cheers,

Not much activity on this thread. 

Anyone compared the UHA-4 to C421, soundwise?

NB. the cans I need an amp for are Beyer DT250 (250 ohm) and Ultrasone Sig Pro.

Great. So the 421 has the edge overall with the UHA a little stronger in the bass region (without bass boost activated?)..

Do you still feel the same way a month or two down the line?

I'm finding it pretty difficult trying to decide between the two (or others) for the cans I mentioned in my previous post.

Living in a different continent (making shipping and duty expensive) and only having 'impressions' to go on, is not an ideal situation imo.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClieOS 

This is just a initial impression, as I haven't had the time to volume match and measure them all. But as far as hearing goes, I have to say UHA-4 and C421 are very close in performance. Note, I choose OPA209 in my UHA-4 instead of the default AD8610 as I want to try a new opamp. I already have several AD8620/8610 amp in my collection and OPA209 seems to be very popular and well recommended.
For now, my comparison is limited to UHA-4 vs C421 (both AD8620 and OPA2227 version) and T5. As far as presentation goes, I'll say UHA-4-209 is closer to C421-2227 than it is to C421-AD8620. It shares more of an upfront sound than it is on imaging. However, UHA-4-209 has the smoothness closer to C421-8620. Overall, it seems to be a mix of C421-2227 and C421-8620, but closer to C421-2227. The most noticeable parts for me are two: 1) UHA-4-209 has great bass impact, on par with (if not slightly better than) C421-2227 and definitely more than C421-8620. This could be just because the former two are more upfront. 2) The resolving power and imaging (and thus soundstage wise) of both C421 are ahead of UHA-4-209. Not by much, but it is noticeable. As far as T5 goes, I have to say it is trailing behind the above three closely. The deciding factor for me to say T5 is just behind the three is that it doesn't have overall transparency / openness in soundstage as the other three. For T5, everything is placed closer in. However, one thing I like about T5 that is better than the three is that it has the smoothest presentation of all. I can pair it with any IEM and it will make the IEM sound good. On the other three, they tend to want to push it over-the-top and reveal all the flaws. This kind of smoothness seems to be more common among balanced amp (T5 has BTL-ground, similar to active balanced ground). Regardless, I think T5 is still technically not as strong as UHA-4 or C421, though very close.
Taking O2 as the reference, I'll say, for now, C421-8620 is ahead, follow very closely by UHA-4 and C21-2227, then T5. Of course this might (or might not) change after I have more time with them.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClieOS 

More accurate impression will be out once I have chance to volume match everything. By then, I'll probably be writing them for my sub-$200 portable amp shootout. For now, I'll just kick back and enjoy

I just ordered my version of UHA4 with OPA-209 for the European region with a hefty $42 for shipment. Holy cow. I just realized that if you don't like the amp you can test it for 'free' for about 80 bucks. It is a high price to pay just to test something but I'm hoping it turns out well. Let's see if the DBA02 MKII's are going to be a good match.

I've used it now for 4 hours, and I must say I'm impressed. I've listened to skrillex, armin van buuren mixes, vanessa mae, black hawk down ost, faithless, melody gardot all in FLAC. I wasn't expecting the DBA's to give much more detail, but there it is. Also the harshness that I've experienced before is much better. Sometimes it can be a bit to neutral for some types of songs, and doesn't give the added emotion necessary to appreciate. But with the UHA-4 I've noticed more fullness, richness to the sound although it is neutral. The soundstage is not wide, but it is deep. Instrumental placement and accuracy is excellent in my opinion. Vocals are more detailed and less agressive now, but with no loss in reach.

The bass is more prominent but not annoyingly so, just with added detail and depth. I thought I shouldn't expect anything like this after a 50 hour burn-in since I've read this.

Makes me wonder how it's going to sound then...

That's gonna be entirely up to you. But Leckerton does have a 30 day return policy. So you really have nothing to lose but shipping costs. :)