REVIEW : Jaben's GoVibe Porta Tube Amp - Review Thread (ex demo)

Thanks for starting the thread up, it's a solid start. I'll post my impressions when I have time to give it a more thorough review.

I'll have less pics since Brooko has already done a great job with showing it off. 

This is my first tube amp, and my first real review, so bear with me.

Setup

iPod Nano -> FIIO LOD ->GVPT (the headphones connected is a pair of HD25-1 IIs)

Here is a picture with all the items I got as part of the package (also pictured is my Nuforce Icon HDP). I've already attached the rubber feet to the GVPT. I was lucky enough to have a pair of IEMs to audition as well (Feels Pro900). I'll describe my impressions later.

Technical Specs

I couldn't find any online, so I'm leaving this section blank for now.

First of all, thanks to Josh and the Jaben team for giving me the opportunity to test the GoVibe Porta Tube Amp. I've only used solid state amps before, so this is new to me. Thanks a lot!

Now, on to the review!

First Impressions

At a first glance, the unit is fairly sleek and well-built. Its design is simple and to-the-point, nothing too confusing for a user of any level.

In regards to portability, it's clearly not as portable as an E11 and the like, but is portable enough for me to take to work or any other location I'd be sedentary for a while.

In regards to initial sound quality impressions, it's a great little amp. It's certainly increased the clarity of my music connected from my iPod. It's a joy to listen to and I find myself lost in the music at times.

In regards to "hiss", I certainly hear a hiss with the 32 ohm Feels Pro 900 IEM and my 70 ohm HD25-1 IIs (particularly at the highest volume). I don't hear any hiss with the HD 650s (300 ohms).

In regards to the temperature of the amp itself, it does not go above warm, in spite of hours of usage. It's built well.

More detailed analysis

I'm fairly new to the audiophile world, so I'll describe it the best as I can. As a further caveat, I'm unsure how good the GVPT is with my Sennheiser headphones in terms of synergy.

In regards to my setup, I'm using iPod to GVPT with a FIIO LOD (highest quality v0 or 320kbps mp3s) as well as hooking up the pre-amp of my HDP to output to the GVPT, keeping the knob at 3 o'clock while the HDP is standing vertically (trying to avoid clipping) with FLAC sources.

Amp Power

• Certainly not lacking power by any means. It drives my HD650s and retains a solid amount of clarity.

Amp Sound Quality/Signature

• As tamu mentioned, the soundstage somewhat cramped, but is still much better than it would be otherwise.
• Instrument separation and vocals are solid (as Brooko mentioned, the mid-range really shines).
• Instruments and voices are natural-sounding.
• Bass has quite a bit of punch, yet does not sound unnatural.
• Highs are a tad rolled off (I really heard it in Scene 1. Moderato of Swan Lake in the crux of the song).
• As for a general sound description, as Brooko said, it's warm, rich, and sweet. Not harsh or dark by any means.

Other headphones

HD 25-1 II

Easily driven by the GVPT. I keep the volume control around 9-12 o'clock and only push it higher for songs recorded at lower volumes. It works great with it and is quite a potent portable setup. I love listening it when hooked up to my iPod nano. I find I find the most enjoyable songs are rock and folk songs. The instrument separation and the fullness of the sound make it a pleasurable listening experience.

Feels Pro 900

Driven  with ridiculous ease by the GVPT. I have to keep the volume control around 9 o'clock or it becomes unbearably loud. As mentioned before, there is noticeable hissing during dead periods. Sounds decent with the GVPT, but as a caveat, I'm not really an IEM person. It shines with relatively bass-heavy songs (some songs from Daft Punk, etc.). Those are a blast to listen t .

Also, since I got this as part of the loaner program, I'll give this a quick review.

I'm not much of an IEM person (I prefer larger headphones), but this is a solid set. As previously mentioned, the bass is great, but the mid-range is also pretty solid. The highs and soundstage are decent.  I just prefer larger headphones, but at around $60, they're a great set for the price if you're in the market for IEMs. Certainly better than skullcandy and stock Apple earbuds.

Summary

I've enjoyed my first taste of a tube amp. It's a great for a portable setup, particularly in a working environment. Thanks once again to Josh and Jaben for letting me try it. I hope the next person enjoys it as much as I do.

I have a few more pictures in this thread:

http://www.head-fi.org/t/562045/govibe-porta-tube

I would love to spend more time with this amplifier. I was very impressed when I heard it at Jabens in Hong Kong. I wish there was a loaner program or something. 

Also I think the price was a bit high to in order to make a decision to buy it immediately. 

I just had a chance to listen to the GoVibe Porta Tube at Jaben in Hong Kong and I was deeply surprised by its sound. I paired it with my own travel companions my iPhone 4 with ALAC and DT-1350 and a pair of HD650 present in the showroom and specially with the DT-1350 it was a great combination. I only had 15-20 minutes in the shop as I was on my way to the airport but that was enough to put this amplifier on my list. This amplifier is the most rich and lifelike portable amplifier I have heard with great detail and a warm-ish sound to it.

I could not find a lot of info about it here. That is probably because it was released for sale less than two weeks ago but if anyone has done some comparisons to other portable amplifiers I would love to read more about this. It is not the smallest portable amp but fully worth the extra size. 

Here are some pictures.

Just received the loaner.  First impressions.....Positive!  Seems to be doing quite well w/ the HD800 out of the box.  Need to flesh out the pairing more then will try my T50rps and some IEMs.  In case I missed it what was the rated output impedance again from 6.3mm and 3.5mm?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anaxilus 

Just received the loaner.  First impressions.....Positive!  Seems to be doing quite well w/ the HD800 out of the box.  Need to flesh out the pairing more then will try my T50rps and some IEMs.  In case I missed it what was the rated output impedance again from 6.3mm and 3.5mm?

If I may ask - is there a loaner? Is it only a US loaner program?

Looking forward to hear more Anaxilus....

I got this amp for loan last week, and here's my impression about it.

The amp comes with

 - feels iem

 - 3,5 to 3,5mm jack

 - rca to mini jack

 - ipod LO dock

 - Wall Charger

Here's my unit side by side with ALO continetnal

Physical Impression :

Build quality seems great, it handles well; i prefer this over ALO continental physically. a bit big and bulky compared to most portable amp. I'm not sure with what tube is used but it looks a bit bigger than the 6111 tube and i didn't open the unit as this is just a loan. The tube won't get hot and it just warm. As for portability, you can't use this for daily use as in if you ride bus to work; sometimes you hear the tubes moving if you walk. It got 3.5mm and 6.3mm output jack; however the 6.3mm jack in my unit is a bit loose and sometimes you lost the sound in the right channel. Battery live is arround 7 hours which is pretty good compared to continental.

For driving capabilities; they claim that it can make akg k1000 sing, when i tried this on k1000. Yes it does sound but doesn't bring the full potential of it. To reach the listenable level, you need to crack it up to almost max (arround 3 or 4 o clock). It drives everything else with no problem though.

Sound impression :

Song used :

Hotel California - The Eagles (live) - Hell Freezes Over - WAV

Source : Ipod touch 5g, sansa fuze

headphones used : AKG k701, AT esw10jpn, AT w10ltd,

This song is the one that i really remember, i listened to this song over and over again in many phones,

One thing that you may notice directly is this amp perform really well on midrange and high notes, the guitar string sounds so crisp, it sounds so realistic to me, feels like I'm listening to a real guitar and the tubes kicks in just in time when needed, it sounds great. vocal is lush and smooth, a bit congested for don's voice but still tolerable, bass is punchy but for me not really well defined, i've heard better from portables amp and in this one is just fine, i can't feel the bottom-end of the conga and is just of mid-bass. Soundstage is a let down. I feel the soundstage is very cramped by width and depth.

Separation is great on my w10ltd and just fine on my esw10jpn. I feel the sound is a bit too bright on my esw10jpn. It is a bit tiring and fatiguing on those.

Oh, i tried this amp with Senns HD600 and for me it pair wells (compared to my Audio Technica), mostly due to hd600 open design (huge soundstage) and laid back sound which balance each other very well.

Overall, i pretty much like the amp, I'm not sure about the price but if it is 600us$, I think that's a bit too high for portable amp,

Well, how does it compare to the continental?!  I thought that was going to the whole point of the post, lol.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anaxilus 

Well, how does it compare to the continental?!  I thought that was going to the whole point of the post, lol.

Me too