[preproman]

Quote:

.."hey guys, going with a better Emotiva, like a UPA 200 or 500... would it be better than the a-100?
if so, why?"
 
Over kill....

 
 
No such thing....  That's my middle name

 

[zilch0md]

Quote:

No problem. Ground is already shared on the amplifiers output.

 
Quote:

Hi Anda,
 
For clarity's sake...  Which amplifier are you talking about?  (I can assume that you're talking about the amp in the subject header of this thread, but I'd rather not make that assumption.)
 
And... How do you know the ground is already shared on the amplifier about which you are speaking?
 
Thanks!
 
Mike
 
(Still waiting for a definitive answer without having to call Emotiva support, myself.  I'm not even planning on ordering this amp - just keenly curious...)
 

 
Mike

 
Quote:

It was about using an XLR to 3.5mm jack adapter, so I was talking about singleended headamps. You said it yourself in a much clearer way. Don't know anything about the Emotiva

 
Oh, that's funny!  
 
I was so hoping you were talking about the Emotiva mini-X A-100's output at the speaker terminals!  
 
Alright, I've had enough of this mystery...
 
I just sent Emotiva an e-mail that reads as follows:
 
 

Hi!
 
There's a thread at Head-Fi.org where people who own the Emotiva mini-X A-100 have been talking about how to attach a headphone to the amp's speaker terminals.  
 
Question:  When building an adapter for connecting a single-ended (unbalanced), 3-conductor headphone cable's 6.3mm or 3.5mm TRS plug to four banana plugs,
 
IS IT SAFE to short the two grounds of the mini-X A-100's speaker terminals?
 
Thanks!
 
Mike

 
When I get a response, I'll post it here and kill the dead horse I've been beating, once and for all. 
 

 
Mike

 

[kidchunks]

Although I love the sound of the a-100 and he-500, I can't get over the hiss produced by the combo. I tested the HE-500s on my NFB-10.2 and it was dead silent so I assume the headphones are just too sensitive for it. I've asked others who own the HE-500/a-100 combo and they did not hear it or found it an issue. Everyone's ears are different so I would still suggest you give the combo a try and see if it's for you.

 
I'm keeping the a-100 for my HE-6 as I find it works better for them.

 

[TwinQY]

Quote:

Although I love the sound of the a-100 and he-500, I can't get over the hiss produced by the combo. I tested the HE-500s on my NFB-10.2 and it was dead silent so I assume the headphones are just too sensitive for it. I've asked others who own the HE-500/a-100 combo and they did not hear it or found it an issue. Everyone's ears are different so I would still suggest you give the combo a try and see if it's for you.

 
I'm keeping the a-100 for my HE-6 as I find it works better for them.

Plug in an impedance adapter, cuts down on the hiss with my HE-400 (I hear it too with the mini-X, so you're not crazy!) and the impedance curve on these planars are linear enough that they don't get affected by it too much sound-wise. 

 

[rawrster]

Quote:

.."hey guys, going with a better Emotiva, like a UPA 200 or 500... would it be better than the a-100?
if so, why?"
 
Over kill....

 
Over kill would be an understatement
 
However It wouldn't be too bad if it was a HE-6 but the main function would be speakers

 

[kidchunks]

Quote:

Plug in an impedance adapter, cuts down on the hiss with my HE-400 (I hear it too with the mini-X, so you're not crazy!) and the impedance curve on these planars are linear enough that they don't get affected by it too much sound-wise. 

 
Did you build the adapter? What ohms was it? Also, glad I wasn't the only one who heard the hiss. =)

 

[TwinQY]

Quote:

 
Did you build the adapter? What ohms was it? Also, glad I wasn't the only one who heard the hiss. =)

 
I'm using the 75 Ohm adapter for the ER4P right now. I had a Westone adapter that I could adjust before (max 75 I think), and the hiss seemed to disappear with just a little bump.
 
Fantastic amp, the mini-X. Mids are crisp and transparent like with the DAC1, before I though the treble rolled off, now with some more critical listening, that's obviously not the case. They seem to extend quite a bit. A slight warmth in the bass, but it goes deep and helps bring out the texture. The best part is how they excel with separation, bringing out all that space and definition.

 

[kidchunks]

Quote:

 
I'm using the 75 Ohm adapter for the ER4P right now. I had a Westone adapter that I could adjust before (max 75 I think), and the hiss seemed to disappear with just a little bump.
 
Fantastic amp, the mini-X. Mids are crisp and transparent like with the DAC1, before I though the treble rolled off, now with some more critical listening, that's obviously not the case. They seem to extend quite a bit. A slight warmth in the bass, but it goes deep and helps bring out the texture. The best part is how they excel with separation, bringing out all that space and definition.

 
Thanks for the info and mini impression.
 
I'm going to work on building a new speaker tap impedance cable. I'll report how it goes.

 

[t0wer]

someone correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't an impedance adapter lower both the noise floor and the signal, requiring you to turn up the volume more, increasing the noise, accomplishing nothing.

 

[preproman]

Quote:

 
Fantastic amp, the mini-X. Mids are crisp and transparent like with the DAC1, before I though the treble rolled off, now with some more critical listening, that's obviously not the case. They seem to extend quite a bit. A slight warmth in the bass, but it goes deep and helps bring out the texture. The best part is how they excel with separation, bringing out all that space and definition.

 
Spot on.  And even more so with the H-6.  However, the HE-6 and the mini X is a real revealing combo as both are good at transparence.  Be carful this may seem to others as being a tad bit on the bright side.  With a good recording and a pretty good DAC.  The sound is amazing..

 

[Zoom25]

Are you guys hearing hiss when the music is turned off or even while it's playing? Also any changes with volume. I'll report back what I find once my cables get here.

 

[elwappo99]

Quote:

Are you guys hearing hiss when the music is turned off or even while it's playing? Also any changes with volume. I'll report back what I find once my cables get here.

 
I'm surprised to hear this. I don't hear any noise until about 2 oclock on mine. Is anyone using power conditioning/voltage regulation?

 

[preproman]

As kidchunks posted already.  He gets some hisss with the HE-500s.  I didn't here this hisss until he pointed it out to me.  Remember, this amp most likely has a higher gain then most headphone amps.  While I don't get this at all with the HE-6 or the HE-5LE some more sensitive headphones may be subject to a little hisss.  
 
I don't hear this at all when the music is playing with the HE-500s.

 

[Zoom25]

Quote:

As kidchunks posted already.  He gets some hisss with the HE-500s.  I didn't here this hisss until he pointed it out to me.  Remember, this amp most likely has a higher gain then most headphone amps.  While I don't get this at all with the HE-6 or the HE-5LE some more sensitive headphones may be subject to a little hisss.  
 
I don't hear this at all when the music is playing with the HE-500s.

 
Good to know. Any hiss with the LCD-2?

 

[kidchunks]

someone correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't an impedance adapter lower both the noise floor and the signal, requiring you to turn up the volume more, increasing the noise, accomplishing nothing.

May have a point, I don't think changing the impedances has an effect on the sensitivity of the headphones which causes the noise.
 
 

Are you guys hearing hiss when the music is turned off or even while it's playing? Also any changes with volume. I'll report back what I find once my cables get here.

Both, music playing and music not playing. The hiss only gets higher when you get closer to 2 o clock. Anything below and it's a steady hiss.
 
 

 
I'm surprised to hear this. I don't hear any noise until about 2 oclock on mine. Is anyone using power conditioning/voltage regulation?

 
I have mine connected to a tripplite ISOBAR but even connected it directly to the wall produced the hiss.