burson new soloist headphone amp - Page 51

I wouldn't go there.  I have a Westone UM3X and on low gain there isn't noise at low levels but there certainly is at the end of the sweep.  If you have a noisier AC feed it might be noisy down low too.  Of course something like a LCD or HD800 are dead quiet.

Solude,

If you don't think the Burson Soloist is a good fit for high sensitivity, low impedance IEMs, then which headphone amps would you recommend?

So far none.  At least that's my experience with amps powered by an AC plug.  We'll see if my B22 changes that when it lands tomorrow but so far... the one's I've tested all have AC noise to some extent.

Wouldn't a power conditioner reduce AC noise?

I've never looked into power conditioners, so I would appreciate advice on what to look for.

This is a desktop system, so I want it to be relatively compact.

If I got a power conditioner to reduce the AC noise, would you recommend the Soloist SL as a headphone amp for a pair of IEMs?

The SL just looks to cut the output devices in half, no noise drop.  The noise is from the transformers.  Short of getting it out of the same case and away from the amplifier there really isn't much you can do that is 'good'.  Low gain, high output impedance would certainly help too.

 

It's really not as bad as I make it out to be but I don't want to sell you on it either and then find out you listen at monster levels where the hum is easy to hear between tracks ;)

You might want to listen to Benchmark DAC2-HGC, granted its one of those 3-in-1 units so you get a DAC too, but I found it to sound good with very low noise on both the HD800 and my Shure SE-535. Also it's dead quiet on the sensitive IEM's.

Supposedly its the same output stage on DAC1 series as well(they call it HPA2 apparently), but I have not heard a DAC1 or know of any products featuring just the HPA2 stage.

That's odd. All the reviews I saw said it has a Variable Output Stage and can work with IEM's just fine. In fact, I believe one reviewer said there was absolute silence. No hiss... Maybe you got a bad one or perhaps the problem is in your wiring? 

Edited by bareyb - 3/1/13 at 6:45pm

Nope.  Read this and the Conductor thread.  Transformer hum is a common thread in both.  Keep in mind I'm talking full open pot hear.  Not levels you would actually use.  And ZERO chance of hearing it with a full size can.

Huh. So really what's the problem then? I suspect almost any Amp would have some hum under those circumstances, but if it's not a real world scenario then why avoid the amp because of it? If you tried to turn the volume all the way up with IEM's on a Conductor (at highest gain) you'd blow them to smithereens. 

Edited by bareyb - 3/1/13 at 7:16pm

I only bring it up because if the amp is for IEMs alone... get a portable battery powered amp like a HeadAmp Pico.  It's a case of getting more for less if IEMs are your one and only.  A kin to buying a manual V8 to drive exclusively in rush hour traffic.  It's a great car but it's not the car I'd bring into start and stop traffic ;)

Ah. Okay I can get behind that. I agree it's way too much Amp (and money) for IEM use only. You can drive those with almost anything. 

I will be using the amp for IEMs only and would like the best sound quality possible.

It is a desktop system, so I can use either AC or battery power.

I will never listen to them at an extremely loud level.

In fact, my original question was will the Soloist SL be able to play at a low volume, since my current Musical Fidelity V-CAN II's minimum volume is very loud with my high sensitivity, low impedance IEMs.

 

So I guess the appropriate question is what headphone amp can reproduce the best sound quality for IEMs?

Any suggestions?

 

Thanks.
 

When my Conductor arrives I'll try it with some IEM's on the lowest setting and report back to you. What you'd ideally want is something that can run very low inpedances. The DACMini can be special orderered with a 1 Ohm output and I can attest to the sound quality of their all in one solution. The only problem I have with it is it's not quite enough power. In your scenario it would be more than enough.

 

So that's one data point for you. Have you gone into one of the IEM fan threads and asked them what they use? That would be a good resource too. 

Soloist continues to impress and more impressively looks an awful lot like a Dynalo according to a certain someone.

I wonder how the GS-X will compare ...