I got myself the HRT head streamer today. Since i already own the Udac i thought this was an interesting product. Small size and it can even cope with some Hd800s and Lcd2s from what i have read.
Build quality and first impressions.
Well compared to the Udac the buildquality of the hrt is much worse then the nuforce one. Plastic ends and the printing which indicates sampling rates etc is not very accurate. The white main case is aluminium and the logo and color looks good though.
Headphone jack feels solid so i don´t think this will be an issue.
The overall package is also very light which helps to keep the impression to a rather low level when you pick it up for the first time. Even though its cool that they put all this tech inside this small case and with its low weight. But for me who listens to music at the computer and computer only ( stationary ) it would be nice with some more weight just to make it feel more sturdy.
Drivers and software
Both of the dac/amps are plug n play. There is really nothing more to say to it. Just plug it in and select the device in your audio software or OS environment.
I run foobar200 ( ofc ) with wasapi plugin and it works just fine.
The downside with this seems to be with flash, lets say Youtube for example. I noticed this a roughly a year ago with the nuforce and its the same problem with the Hrt. The sound is just buzzing and crackly with a lot of interference. I don´t know if this has to do with the dac bin connected through USB or if its something with my OS ( win7 ultimate 64 ) but i don´t remind me having the same issues with the pro-ject dac box Usb which i had wired through Toslink. I contacted my local store from where i got this bout this issue since im a big fan of youtube and tend to spend to many hours there..I just need it to work properly..Its very disturbing. so we just have to wait for the turnout on that one.
Looks and in/outputs
Well they both look rather good. If the streamer was built better i would prefer the looks of it compared to the Udac.
For connections both has bus-powered USB to get the juice and also for the digital input. The Udac got RCA-out for using it just as a normal external dac ( this does not bypass the volume knob ) Both devices uses normal 3,5mm jacks for the headphones.
Sound quality
How do they sound then?
Well i find them very similar sounding with the HRT being a bit more clear in the high freq range and with better control and finesse as well. The HRT which does not have a volume knob on the device itself has no noise and no channel separation even at low volume. This is a know problem with the Udacs although my sample has very low of the channel separation even at low volumes but it´s there if you listen really low. The HRT manages the volume through the Os so i can adjust the volume with my media keys on my keyboard which is very convenient.
they both pack a rather good punch when it comes to volume. I rarely have to go more then about 50% of the total volume scale
Pros and cons:
HRT +
Size
Sound quality is very good indeed.
No hiss or noise what so ever
digital volume control
sampling rate 24/96 khz
plug and play
HRT -
Rather cheap build quality.
USB input only
Seems to work bad with flash applications.
low weight ( might be a + for some people though )
Nuforce +
Very solid build quality.
Good sound for the price ( you might find them very cheap these days )
Rather free from hiss and noise even at very high levels of volume.
Nuforce -
Bad volume knob.
"only 16/44khz"
does not work very good with flash applications but it is better then the HRT in this regard.
Not as good sound quality as the HRT. It is not bad by any means but the HRT is just more clear and has more control over the high range.
I hope this will help some of you out there that maby is looking for a first amp or something on the go with a laptop. My reference headphones for this test is my old trusty AKG k242HD and Shure Srh 840. None of them are very heavy on the amps but the AKGs need more power the the shures. This was not a problem at all with both products mentioned above.
The HRT Head streamer is a very good product and it does it job very well. With the cans i got today i see no need for me to upgrade my source since its very capable of producing clear sound with good punch. And the size is very nice as well ( even though its cool to have a big rig, this is very handy for people who want clean desktops with no clutter )
