New Leckerton UHA-6S MKII Portable Headphone Amplifier Announced (Update User Impressions Added... - Page 77

Thanks for the replies.

I was quite surprised upon receiving the leckerton as I was expecting it to be larger than what it is. It is only slightly deeper than my 4s, about the same width and is shorter. It is definitely reeks of quality. And is a work of art to behold. I got the regular aluminum look and it almost reminds of a small whiskey flask.

Same here, I was expecting it to be larger but was happy it was the size that it is. I'm very very happy with it and I think this will be my amp for a while.

Those are extra features that you can use via your PC, a DAP such as iriver as a transport etc. The amp section will still kill your former arrow setup so you'll be getting a nice upgrade regardless. Personally the amp section is the only reason I bought the unit. Everything else is just icing on the cake. Even if it only had the amp section to be honest it would still be worth its price tag for the sound quality and build quality you get :).

Edited by lee730 - 12/12/12 at 1:11pm

So do you have the UHA-4 too?   I asked Nick at Leckerton about the SQ differences between the 4 and MKII and he said:

" The amplifier section in the UHA-4 is very similar to what's in the UHA-6S.MKII, although the UHA-6S.MKII version outputs slightly higher power."   I realize that while the "Hawaiian Fat Cat with Red Hair"(LOL)  says the MKII is significantly better in SQ from memory, (his UHA4 is MIA).   I'd like to see if someone who has both could do a mini review of both units side by side.
 

I am sorry I only have the mkii.

My amp arrived! I just charged it and started some listening last night. There's a really nice improvement in texture and detail on a lot of my tracks when I stream through USB. This is my first external DAC/amp, so it's good to learn that there was indeed lots of room for noticeable improvement compared to the iPhone DAC.

 

I hope you won't mind a noob question, but I'm just looking to confirm something. I'm using my Grado 325is, which are quite low impedance, but higher than most IEMs (which a lot of people seem to use with their Leckertons). I can only turn the volume up to about 7:30 or 8 o'clock when streaming out of the computer, as anything more would be too loud. I haven't tried the gain switch yet, but it's in the position that should be low gain. I'm glad there's lots of power if I get a bigger set of cans in the future, but I can barely move the volume knob without exceeding the reasonable range. Is this normal and OK?

 

This is exciting! Now to start thinking portable digital sources!

I have a pair of 325is's as well, this is normal. I used to listen to this out of the Schiit Lyr lol. But yea, that's normal, no worries. 

About the same here on my Heir Audio 8a's, it depends on the track sometimes it is fine other times it is too high.

It's a noticeable upgrade soundbear ;). Not only that the digital pot takes away from the clarity of the amp section. The UHA6 is a lot better IMO. Mine is up for sale if you want it ;).

I'm excited to have bought a leckerton product at the point that I did, I'm also excited to see what is to come in the future.

So...it's been a couple weeks now that I've had this and continue to be VERY impressed.

The sound quality is of course great, and I look forward to trying different opamps to tweak the signature. That's a great feature, to be able to get a "New" amp any time you want by swapping a couple chips!

I also am still impressed in a daily basis by the build. This thing just reeks of high quality- everything about it just feels beautiful and sturdy like bulletproof jewelry if that makes any sense.

Also worth noting I've been getting crazy good battery life. Granted, I am only using low gain and only the amp section, but still..wow. Any time I use the DAC it's powered by the laptop so I can't really comment on battery there.

Good stuff, all-around.
Edited by thegrobe - 12/13/12 at 7:41pm

I use to think Ibasso set the standard in the portable amp/dac market but I've been bitten in the arse by their quality a few times.  Noisy volume pots, quality control can be hit and miss, not too mention releasing that piece of crap the T5 was.  To their credit, the ability to customize their amps to a specific sound has done an incredible job of making my Ultrasone edition 8 listenable and in fact, quite incredible at that. However, I must say that this Leckerton amp/dac out of the box with my RE-272's is out of this world, amazing.  It makes me forget about upgrading to customs or even bigger, full-size setups (for the time being).  It's does what it's supposed to do: provide a clean signal with great definition and depth.  Leckerton has won my favor.

Well, some cat told me the Tralucent T1 is even better, so I think I'll get that!  

I've been going back and forth a lot on how I want to handle my headphone upgrade path. I currently have a pair of Shure SRH-940s, and have access to some Shure SE535 IEMs from time to time that a buddy owns. I own an iPod Classic and in the near future the Pure i20 dock. I would like to use my headphones both at home and at work. At home I have a growing collection of 24/96 downloads on my desktop PC. I was considering getting the Leckerton for the following uses:

 

1) At home in combination with a toslink cable from my PC into the Leckerton's DAC for my 24/96 and other files.

2) At work with the Pure i20 dock and toslink cable to feed the iPod into the Leckerton

3) On the go with a line out from the iPod into the analog input of the Leckerton

 

I am aware of the USB DAC capabilities as well for PC use, but it would be nice to experience the 24/96 files at full resolution. Maybe if I get an iDevice in the future with USB out capabilities that would be a good application...

 

Is it worth getting the Leckerton (or any other amp) for the uses described above, especially uses 1 and 2? If there's not much gain to be realized from tapping into the iPod digital signal via the Pure dock, maybe I should just get a separate USB DAC and headphone amplifier? I also didn't know if anyone here prefers using a dedicated USB DAC from a PC versus an SPDIF feed into the Leckerton.

 

Long story short, does the Leckerton seem like a good idea for my needs, or am I trying to accomplish too much with "one box"? Buying something like the O2 amplifier + ODAC would be around the same price as the Leckerton with the O2 being less portable. Portability isn't as much of a concern- primarily carrying it back and forth to work and home- but I am open to options and suggestions :)

 

Thanks for your help everyone!

-Tyler

Also curious about the DAC section via SPDIF connection. How's the SQ of the MKII vs. the ODAC? There was some commentary about the MKII USB connection as being just ok, but with SPDIF at 24/96 (comparable to the ODAC USB) interested to hear your SPDIF impressions, connections i.e., laptop > MKII (SPDIF) vs. laptop > ODAC > MKII, ODAC > O2, etc. I can connect the DAC with my laptop's optical output or USB port/powered USB 3.0 hub so have some flexibility in setup. Usage would be 60% with DT880/250 and 40% with CK10/SE535/Clip-ons. Thanks.