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iBasso T5 - A newly designed small portable. Specifications. - Page 8

post #106 of 151
12/19/11 at 6:40pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by AVU View Post

I feel like this product may have been rushed to market.

 

Ibasso's a great company - I have and love the T3D, and have owned the T3 and the D4 previously and loved them both.

 

But what's with these stripes?  And the rubberized battery door that wont stay closed no matter what you do, so it's always sticking out?  And the inability to charge the unit and listen to it at the same time?  

 

Being fed from seriously good sources, I consistently preferred the T3D to the T5, and was shocked and embarrased for thinking so, but you have to go with your ears.  I'm going to go back to the Pico Slim, if I can find one - best iem amp I've ever heard, and I've owned the RSA Shadow, the Pico Slim, the iBasso D4, iBasso T3, iBasso T3d, Meier Corda HeadSix, Cmoy, and a few desktops.

I would email iBasso. I can charge and listen and find it better than the T3D. 
 

 

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post #107 of 151
12/20/11 at 8:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Audiophile1811 View Post


Quote:


How long did it take to ship?

 


UPS Worldwide Express Saver: Shipped on Friday, arrived on Monday.

 

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post #108 of 151
12/20/11 at 11:13am

popcorn.gif definitely going to follow this thread to see if AVU's impression changes with time or with a new unit. I too loved the T3.

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post #109 of 151
12/20/11 at 2:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Saintkeat View Post

popcorn.gif definitely going to follow this thread to see if AVU's impression changes with time or with a new unit. I too loved the T3.



Sorry, I wish I could provide some good entertainment, but I sent mine back to ibasso for a refund.  I think something must have been wrong with mine, because I just thought the sound was awful.  Ok, not awful, but not as good as the T3d, which just didn't make any sense.

 

Additionally, the little rubber door is a horrible design flaw.  They started doing this with cameras years ago, and it's a horrible idea there too.  Theoretically, you push it in, it snaps shut, the port is sealed against dust and dirt, all good.  But practically, the smaller these seals are, the closer the tolerances are, and it's not metal, it's just cheap plastic, so you can't guarantee tolerances to that scale. So mine, for instance, would simply never go back in, no matter how much fussing I did.  So I had this amp with a plastic doohickey hanging off the side.  To make matters worse, the paint right above the port scratched right off while I was trying to push it in.  Paint coming off because it brushed against my FINGERNAIL?  That's a pretty poor paint job.  

 

Whatever, as I said before, I've loved ibasso amps in the past, so I have nothing bad to say about them in general.  A hi-flight modded D4 with 9.6v batteries was my first good dac/amp, and it was seriously on par with a desktop.  My T3D has endured infinite abuse - including my removing the case last year and just running around with a bare circuit board now to save space and weight, and it's worked perfectly and sounded fine.  

 

I did a big test of portables that I never wrote up, but tried the pelican PB2, the RSA Shadow and the Pico Slim, and I eventually came to the exact same conclusions as the guy at www.headfonia.com , so I figured there was no reason to duplicate his excellent write up.  

 

http://www.headfonia.com/the-usual-suspects-12-portable-amps-compared/

 

Conclusion: Shadow if your iems need warmth (maybe UE references), Pico Slim if they're already bass-heavy (JH 13 or 16). 

 

Since the T3 was maybe 75% the performance at 25% of the cost, I had hoped that the T5 might be 100% the performance at 50% the cost.  Someone is selling one in long island, and if I can't find a sale on a pico slim (which I stupidly sold a few months ago), I might buy his T5 and try again.  But I have a feeling mine was just a bum copy.  

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post #110 of 151
12/20/11 at 3:10pm

I really don't know which iBasso dac/amp or just amp to get. Anyone with suggestions? Been looking at the D4, D6 Fer-De-Lance and P4 Warbler. Got Shure SE535 on an iPhone 4.

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post #111 of 151
12/20/11 at 3:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by LostMySelf View Post

I really don't know which iBasso dac/amp or just amp to get. Anyone with suggestions? Been looking at the D4, D6 Fer-De-Lance and P4 Warbler. Got Shure SE535 on an iPhone 4.



P4 - do it now.

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post #112 of 151
12/20/11 at 4:39pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by estreeter View Post



P4 - do it now.



Explain why.

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post #113 of 151
12/22/11 at 12:25am

Thanks for the update AVU!

 

I'll be loving my PB1 long time.. Gonna look for more conclusive reviews on the T5 till I get to hear it in person. Was just at the iBasso dealer today and they didn't have the T5 yet.

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post #114 of 151
12/22/11 at 1:49am

Just bought mine! biggrin.gif I Hope it's a good copy.

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post #115 of 151
12/22/11 at 9:06pm
Finally received my T5 via the stupid EMS (they are forwarding it between two processing centers while I am living in between the two places mad.gif ).

Anyway, I am a happy T5 owner as far as my first impression goes. I was looking for an ultra-portable that can be my 'mini-StepDance' on long travel with minimum gears and I am happy to report that T5 is exactly what I want. There must be something about the BTL grounding that makes it sound quite similar to StepDance's active balanced ground. Though not quite as good, it is pretty close. biggrin.gif
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post #116 of 151
12/22/11 at 9:29pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by ClieOS View Post

Finally received my T5 via the stupid EMS (they are forwarding it between two processing centers while I am living in between the two places mad.gif ).
Anyway, I am a happy T5 owner as far as my first impression goes. I was looking for an ultra-portable that can be my 'mini-StepDance' on long travel with minimum gears and I am happy to report that T5 is exactly what I want. There must be something about the BTL grounding that makes it sound quite similar to StepDance's active balanced ground. Though not quite as good, it is pretty close. biggrin.gif

Wait until you get more time on it. I found that everything refined and got better. 
 

 

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post #117 of 151
12/27/11 at 10:12am
Thread Starter 

Using the Grado HF2. Playing very well with the T5. Much like I hear with other phones, open and layered. 

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post #118 of 151
12/27/11 at 3:28pm

I got mine today!biggrin.gif First, this thing is the size of a stick of Juicy Fruit. Seriously it's tiny, but that's a good thing since it looks adorable. The looks and the quality are great and it packs a good amount of power, more than enough for my Coppers. Well I guess I'll just have to let it burn-in from here.frown.gif

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post #119 of 151
12/27/11 at 8:22pm

Gah, beautiful amp but the black coating around the power switch is already peeling off.  Argh!

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post #120 of 151
12/28/11 at 11:12am

A/B testing the T5 w/Ipod and T/5 with CLAS, much harder to notice the difference in instrument separation.  Also, unlike the pico slim, the T5 didn't produce the sharp sibilance that I experienced with my W4's.  This amp is a winner, and I'll be returning the CLAS.  The sound may not be as "accurate" but it certainly is fun and lively.


Edited by Uchiya - 12/28/11 at 11:14am
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