Airist Audio Heron 5 Loaner Program (and Black Friday Sale!)

Got mine today!

Got mine Wednesday, of course, this is a pretty bad weekend to spend much time listening, it's a family frenzy in the Doctorjazz household-Thanksgiving at the house yesterday, over to my sister's today, more family at Chez Doctorjazz tomorrow, not a whole lot of listening time. Very nicely built unit, have to say, feels solid, sleek, is attractive. Quick listening does have it sounding really nice with my HEK, and right now have my Pioneer HDJ-2000 plugged in (I like these...), good, rich, solid sound, have to say. Not sure if the unit has already been burned in (I'm the first in my group to get it), so I"m leaving it plugged in and playing all the time. Hopefully get a chance to report back some more at some point (when there are no more little kids and 99 year old elders roaming around my house)..

For some reason I missed that this had units touring Europe. I'd love to give it a try after @Takeanidea, he's at my house right now, so he knows where I live and can vouch for my DAC and music collection, as well as my character. I have experience with a good deal of DACs and have handled plenty of high end equipment, so know how to treat the good stuff. I am currently participating in the Lotoo PAW5000 dap tour (it's lovely).
 
I've got 4 DACs on hand to test the Heron 5 with and a substantial collection of music from mp3 to DSD and all sorts of bitrates in-between. My primary headphones for listening will be the HD600. I have a LH Labs X-Infinity and a Feliks Audio Elise for amplification comparisons.
 
Thanks for the opportunity!

Thank goodness I didn't have to have anyone vouch for my character

Well he's obviously crazy because he's so hooked on audio gear, other than that he can pass for a fairly reliable guy in an otherwise chaotic town in South east England

[VIDEO]http://youtu.be/gibwhO1HAGk[/VIDEO]

OK, time for me to say goodbye to the Heron 5, have to box it today and send it off to the next person on the tour. Really nice to have a chance to check it out in my home, but I really didn't have that much of a chance to listen to it, bad timing for the most part. Much family business over the Thanksgiving holiday limited free time, my PC/REgen/Geek Out Special Edition was giving me problems (really Windows problems which took as week to figure out-shout out and thanks to @M-I-K-E-Y and Jody @jbr1971 for helping me get that fakakta Windows/JRiver issue corrected), so, I spent some time this morning before reboxing listening and comparing to my MicroZOTL2, using my HE-1000. To make a long story short, they are both fine amps, the Airist is built like a tank, but I think the ZOTL has more detail, is more visceral and exciting. Having said that, the Airist has a certain analog ease to it that is seductive, sort of warm, cozy, like a fuzzy comforter. It does have a "rightness" to it, for lack of a better description; a cohesiveness that is very relaxed and appealing. An analogy that sort of gets this is of a Lexus' soft, smooth, quite ride, compared to a Porsche's exciting kind of ride (Airist being the Lexus, natch). I can also see that matching gear may make a difference here...I sold my Q701, but I can imagine that maybe being a better match for the Airist, or something like the Senn 800, things that are said to be hot on top. I did find it a pleasant, comfortable listen, nice sense of space, but in the end (and being used to the ZOTL sound probably plays a roll), I'd stick to my ZOTL. The Airist did have a nice, warm, cozy feel to it, and was very enjoyable to listen to, but I mostly missed the detail and punch of the ZOTL. I do thank Airist very much for the opportunity to do the audition and be part of this tour.

@doctorjazz - looks like I'm up after you... and if I'm correct I'll be getting the amp tomorrow. Yippee!
 
I'll be comparing the amp to a few DIY offerings - Cavalli's EHHA Rev A (an embedded hybrid amp that is dc coupled) and The Wire, which is based on the concept of a wire with gain - it has vanishingly low THD. Both are excellent amps, so we'll see how this compares.

doctorjazz said:

To make a long story short, they are both fine amps, the Airist is built like a tank, but I think the ZOTL has more detail, is more visceral and exciting. Having said that, the Airist has a certain analog ease to it that is seductive, sort of warm, cozy, like a fuzzy comforter. It does have a "rightness" to it, for lack of a better description; a cohesiveness that is very relaxed and appealing. An analogy that sort of gets this is of a Lexus' soft, smooth, quite ride, compared to a Porsche's exciting kind of ride (Airist being the Lexus, natch). I can also see that matching gear may make a difference here...I sold my Q701, but I can imagine that maybe being a better match for the Airist, or something like the Senn 800, things that are said to be hot on top. I did find it a pleasant, comfortable listen, nice sense of space, but in the end (and being used to the ZOTL sound probably plays a roll), I'd stick to my ZOTL. The Airist did have a nice, warm, cozy feel to it, and was very enjoyable to listen to, but I mostly missed the detail and punch of the ZOTL. I do thank Airist very much for the opportunity to do the audition and be part of this tour.

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Doctorjazz, I was just starting my review and I realized you pretty much summed up exactly what I was going to say. I listened with my Q701 and indeed it was a great match. It takes off the piercing treble and adds a layer of warmth. I normally listen with an O2, and it doesn't address any of the AKG's flaws. The Airist addresses all the flaws in the AKG. The Airist even seemed to add a little soundstage, although its likely that I'm just noticing it more because the treble is subdued. The pitiful Q701 bass wasn't helped much, but I've never been a bass head anyway. Interestingly it didn't do much to cut down on the fatigue I get from the Q701's. I've never heard an Anaxilus modded HD800, but this would be an awesome amp for the stock HD800. I've never been very impressed by the HD800, but I believe it is mostly due to amp matching issues. It needs a well matched amp even more than AKG's do. Just browsing through the Airist website, the founders seem to be people who would do their research before starting a project. I'm curious if the Airist wasn't built using the ideas/specs/etc of amps that paired well with the HD800. It's likely the most popular flagship ($1000+) in the world. It also seems to be one of the most amp sensitive headphones as well. They might have seen a big need and went after it.

The good:
1. The build quality. It's not an extremely polished amp, but it's definitely solid. The only accessory is the power cord and even it feels like it belongs on a $2k amp. Also, the pot is pretty sweet. It dominates the front of the chassis and has a lit red line to signify the level.
2. The sound. This is a very warm sounding solid state. It's just what AKG fans (and presumably Sennheiser fans) have been looking for. It isnt a "tubey" sound, but it still manages to be warm. Also, keep in mind, this is still a solid state amp. The differences between this and my O2 are much smaller than the differences between this and a typical tube amp.

The bad:
1. The price! Obviously this is the elephant in the room. There are a lot of very good amps in the "less than $2000" range. In fact, there are only a handful of amps that don't fall in that range. Airist is risking a lot attempting to sell $2k amps. My best guess is that they have another cheaper amp in the works. If this amp was $750-$1250 it'd be a great value! At $2000, it's asking a lot. Even the $1500 BF special is slightly overpriced.
2. Features. It is missing a lot of features. The most unfortunate is the lack of a balanced output. Most in the market for a high end amp are probably already running a balanced setup. This is a fairly major oversight. RCA outputs, a true gain switch, etc. are also missing. Although, those wouldn't be a deal breaker for me.
3. Style. It's not an ugly amp, but it is fairly plain. I like the design, but it doesn't scream expensive. Some amps get away with being plain because they are cheap. This isn't a cheap amp.

Wrapup: This is a great amp! If some of the more expensive to produce parts (chassis, power cord, etc) were made a little cheaper it would be even better. At $1k I'd forgive the balanced output and simple chassis. At $2k I'm a little hesitant to commit to the Airist. If you have an HD800 or AKG give this amp a listen. If it's the perfect fit, the price may be forgivable.

Thanks to Airist Audio for giving me a chance to listen to the Heron 5! I love your amp and I wish you the best in the headphone business.

Yeah, as I said, I had just sold my Q701 (and an HD650, looking to trim the collection down a bit), and it seemed to me the voicing would work well with the Q701, or the HD800, though I didn't have that to audition it with either, just going off the descriptions of it, particuarly the treble, that I"ve read.
I'm not sure balanced is a deal breaker, but it would be nice to have. It does, if done properly, mean doubling the internal components, which would double the cost (I have the CEntrance Hifi M8, which has a "fake" balanced output, meaning it has a connector that allows you to connect a balanced heatphone to it, but it is not balanced internally. Wish I'd realized that when I got it, but, oh well).
It isn't a great match for my HE-1000...looses detail, air, space, but is smooooooooooth.....my MicroZOTL2 does much better in terms of detail, instrument depth, imaging, soundstage, etc.
Pretty much seems we hear it the same way, @ktmracer12345.

Well I sent the Airist Audio 5 Hero to the next lucky person. I enjoyed the time spent with it but would like to dismiss the some assumptions. First of all it's not a good match for the Sennheiser HD 800 at all, there is not enough power to drive it at normal levels. However when I tried to reach to the max level there was a sudden surge of 6 dB at the end of the volume scale, and that produced a fantastic sound really powerful, that's good not only drive but generate an exciting sound from the Sennheiser. It's very strange, i.e. reported that the manufacturer and that they work they are checking on it.

I also spent time listening to the off-season LCD –X, that was a much better parent since the LCD X is much easier to drive. I listen to my usual tracks, and I was surprised by the refined sound coming from the headphones, much more musical in fact been my Mjolnir Balanced Headphone Amplifier. The high notes sounded more silvery and the low notes had more plushier sound.

The build quality is excellent, there are no screws to be seen and the whole case slightly curved -edge design that really appeals to me.

I also listened to the Heron 5 with the Sennheiser IE 800, and that was a much better match. I was listening to one of the latest recordings of the Wagner opera Das Rheingold, and the entrance of the gods to Walhalla, never sounded more powerful.

So in short it seems to me the Heron 5 is a better match for more efficient headphones. Just to prove my point, I listened to a few tracks with my Sony MDR-Z7; and again the pairing proved to excellent, the Heron 5 had no problem driving it.

Although at the highest volume the Heron 5 sounded really good, I preferred both the Mjolnir (with the HD-800) and the Sony PHA-3 (MDR-Z7); first the Mjolnir can drive almost any headphone (I also listened to the HE1000 and it was excellent), the PHA--3/MDR-Z7 has the tighest bass control.

The Good:
- Build quality
- Truly rich audiophile non-fatiguing sound

The Bad:
- Price
- Not enough power to drive less efficient headphones (high impedance)
- No balanced output

I want to thank Airist for letting me sample their amp, with the right pairing it is certainly produces a truly first class sound!

sergiodasilva said:

Well I sent the Airist Audio 5 Hero to the next lucky person.

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I just received notice that the amp has arrived at the house.  I can not wait to get home to begin running it thru its paces...
 
I will let everyone know what I think in a couple days.
 
Thanks to Airist Audio for making this loaner program available.

Just took delivery of the amp. 
Look forward to getting in some long sessions over the next week.

dmhenley said:

Just took delivery of the amp. 
Look forward to getting in some long sessions over the next week.

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I forgot to mention one thing with that amp. I only put about ten to twelve hours on it and it looked new when I got it. You might want to let it burn in a bit. I didn't glance at the instruction manual until I was boxing it up to send off, but it claims it needs some burn in time. You'll love the amp though. I'm already missing it.

ktmracer12345 said:

I forgot to mention one thing with that amp. I only put about ten to twelve hours on it and it looked new when I got it. You might want to let it burn in a bit. I didn't glance at the instruction manual until I was boxing it up to send off, but it claims it needs some burn in time. You'll love the amp though. I'm already missing it.

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Thanks for the heads up!
I was thinking I would let it run while I'm working today before I get into listening.