ALO Pan Am desktop/portable headphone amp/DAC: Impressions and Reviews - Page 5

I have been feeding my dragonfly DAC into the Pan Am. That way, I can do quick A/B tests by simply unplugging the 1/8 inch and plugging in my IEMs into the dragonfly. I did also try AB testing between the Pan Am DAC and the Dragonfly. In both instances, the Pan Am has little or no impact in the bass, while the dragonfly punches substantially. The difference is dramatic. The Pan Am sounds nice across the spectrum, but very weak in the bass. I allowed the Telefunken tubes  to burn in for around 20 hours before doing the A/B tests. The stock tubes have had little or no burn in, but with both tubes, the bass is quite disappointing.

Did anyone try installing ASIO driver like this one? Available for both Windows and Mac users

http://www.usb-audio.com/download.html

Quote:

Originally Posted by FatmanSize48 

What's the impedance of your IEMs?

I've been using Westone 4 and UM3X IEMs with the Pan Am which are 31/56 ohms respectively. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by FatmanSize48 

Shizgeo in his (amazing!) interview stated that the Pan Am worked best with 50-600 ohms. Most other reviews I've read seem to back up this point, and said that the Pan Am underperformed with lower impedance headphones. Do you have any other headphones to use with them？

not currently. But I do plan on getting the LCD-2 sometime next year. I currently live in an apartment with uni students, so open ear cans are useless. I've ordered an Heir Audio 8.A, but that is not above 50ohms. 

If the bass response of the Pan Am is not better with the 8.A, I the amp will have to work hard as a (pretty cool looking) desk ornament until I get my own place in Vancouver and the Audeze cans next year. 

I noticed the specs of the Pan Am were a little odd when I checked them out the other day: 40hz-30khz. Does anyone know why ALO would choose to drop the last 20hz or the audio spectrum? I thought it had something to do with the tubes, but I checked other tube amps such as the woo-audio tube amps, and many of them go far below 20hz. 

After much umming and ahhing I had to search high and low for a setup that matched the musical leanings of my home hifi (that I will sadly have to leave behind as I move halfway across the world :()

Impressions with the DT770 Pro are:

- Tighter bass amped than un-amped

- Even larger soundstage

- Super compact, plays nicely with Windows 8

Quote:

Originally Posted by GarySaville 

I noticed the specs of the Pan Am were a little odd when I checked them out the other day: 40hz-30khz. Does anyone know why ALO would choose to drop the last 20hz or the audio spectrum? I thought it had something to do with the tubes, but I checked other tube amps such as the woo-audio tube amps, and many of them go far below 20hz. 

Many other amp makers list their specs as +/- 3dB or -3dB.  The ALO Pan Am is listed as +/-1 dB.  So, unless you can see the frequency responses plotted out on a graph, you cannot totally understand the differences.   Keep in mind that a 3 dB drop in audio is half the sound energy being output. So, ALO is listing the spec where the amp is essentially ruler flat or down by not more than one third. That does not mean that the Pan Am cannot output 20Hz, it just means its rolled off a bit, which is not unheard of for a tube amp.  The Pan Am may very well measure similar to an amp rated on a 3dB slope 20-30KHz at +/-3 dB the other amp could be down by half power at 20Hz. 

anyones pan am have the left socket too close to the inner socket cutout in the housing causing the tube to lean up against the cutout in the housing?  if you put the tube cover on it forces the tube to sit in crooked, and it doesnt just sit in, but snaps in, unlike the right tube.

kinda poor machining for a $600 device.

was planning to complain but dont know if i should.

Quote:

Originally Posted by max pl 

anyones pan am have the left socket too close to the inner socket cutout in the housing causing the tube to lean up against the cutout in the housing?  if you put the tube cover on it forces the tube to sit in crooked, and it doesnt just sit in, but snaps in, unlike the right tube.

 

kinda poor machining for a $600 device.

 

was planning to complain but dont know if i should.

Yes, mine is the same. The circuit board is skew and as a result, the tube on the left hand side of the unit touches the chassis. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by GarySaville 

Yes, mine is the same. The circuit board is skew and as a result, the tube on the left hand side of the unit touches the chassis. 

Hmm...me too. I considered sending it back, but....it's just too darn enjoyable. It doesn't detract from listening at all, so I guess it doesn't really matter much to me. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by FatmanSize48 

Hmm...me too. I considered sending it back, but....it's just too darn enjoyable. It doesn't detract from listening at all, so I guess it doesn't really matter much to me. 

I won't be parting with mine either, though it is getting sidelined for while since I only have IEMs and I do not think the Pan Am is suitable for IEMs. I plan on buying the Audeze LCD2 or 3. Several reviews I've read have praised the match, so I'm going to hold-on to the Pan Am.