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Muse Audio DAC?
Dec 17, 2009 at 6:44 PM Post #46 of 88
Power (an addendum)
Sadly, I do not have access to a pair of Sennheiser 650s at the moment (which is a shame seeing as the 650 is probably one of the most popular sets of headphones around today). So while I can’t say anything about the aural marriage between the Muse and Sennheiser, I would like to say something on the topic of the Muse’s power. I have not done tried to determine the actual amount of power consumed by the Muse during regular use, but I will say that its output is well suited for one might deem “good headphones” and little else.

The first set of headphones I tested on the Muse were my old standbys: a dirty, old, and somewhat disintegrated pair of headphones of unknown age and origin. I would post a picture of these mysterious headphones, but I would be ashamed of their pathetic condition; however, in all fairness, they are world travelers and have been to Hell and back with me (quite literally). Regardless, these headphones have impedance that is only slightly higher than a set of earbuds, and even on lower settings the Muse quite easily over-powered them.

By contrast, I also hooked the Muse up to a set of bookshelf speakers, via the dual-phono connection provided in the Muse packing, and found the Muse quite incapable of producing more than a modest whimper on even the highest volume setting.


(60W, 6 ohm impedance)

I say all of this merely to point out that the power supplied by the Muse is suited quite nicely for headphones with a decent impedance, being too much for Wal-Mart cheapies, but too lightweight for any decent bookshelf speakers (though, the DAC might work quite nicely in conjunction with a self-powered speaker set such as the Tivoli Model One/Two/Three and its accompanying subwoofer). So I suspect that the Senn 650s would be just about right for the Muse, but would be curious to hear someone else's take on this matter.
 
Dec 17, 2009 at 6:49 PM Post #47 of 88
Quote:

Originally Posted by RobertTilson /img/forum/go_quote.gif
So I suspect that the Senn 650s would be just about right for the Muse, but would be curious to hear someone else's take on this matter.


I'm expecting the Muse in about a week or so, and will pair them with Senn 580's. Are those comparable to the 650's?
 
Dec 18, 2009 at 3:13 AM Post #48 of 88
I took some time tonight to listen some music. I am impressed with the way thwMuse drives My HF2's. Famtasic for the money. still havnt really experimented with the DAC because latley my source is my I-Phone because im into the Pandora APP.
 
Dec 18, 2009 at 10:26 AM Post #49 of 88
Quote:

Originally Posted by Vandaahl /img/forum/go_quote.gif
I'm expecting the Muse in about a week or so, and will pair them with Senn 580's. Are those comparable to the 650's?


No.
 
Dec 18, 2009 at 10:29 AM Post #50 of 88
My 650s don't get past 9.30 on the Muse. Don't know what this means in power terms as I don't know how the volume is calibrated, but I suggest power will not be a problem.

Robert, I'm not sure of the relevance of trying to drive bookshelf speakers with a headphone amp. Have you been able to do this with other HP amps? Is anyone likely to want to?
 
Dec 19, 2009 at 4:20 AM Post #51 of 88
I tested the bookshelf speakers out of curiosity. Though I have to wonder why Muse Audio would ship this unit with a 1/8" to split-stereo adapter if they were not considering that the unit might be used in conjunction with some sort of speakers. Though I very well might be overlooking some more practical use.
 
Dec 23, 2009 at 6:39 PM Post #52 of 88
I got my Muse DAC today. Initial impression: disappointment. Maybe it's just my unit though: I've been trying both USB and TOSLINK as a source (from my computer) and on both the music is 'crackling' at certain frequencies (not sure I explain it well because I'm new to this, but the sound gets distorted). I tried MP3's, where I noticed the problem immediately, and I quickly switched to CD hoping somehow the Muse allowed me to hear compression problems I couldn't hear before I got the Muse, but since CD suffers from the same problem, something must be wrong with the unit, right? I assume this won't be solved by letting the Muse burn in for a while?
 
Dec 24, 2009 at 4:38 PM Post #53 of 88
I sent mine back to the Ebay seller, because I could not get rid of the noise. I must say though the seller responded to my questions very, very quickly, and I will be getting a refund as soon as he receives the Muse back. I don't think he speaks English very well, at all, but it seems to have worked out so far. He offered to replace it with a new one, but I think I'll go for something else next time.
 
Dec 24, 2009 at 11:22 PM Post #54 of 88
Quote:

Originally Posted by Vandaahl /img/forum/go_quote.gif
I sent mine back to the Ebay seller, because I could not get rid of the noise. I must say though the seller responded to my questions very, very quickly, and I will be getting a refund as soon as he receives the Muse back. I don't think he speaks English very well, at all, but it seems to have worked out so far. He offered to replace it with a new one, but I think I'll go for something else next time.


Chinese quality control... or the lack of it. Next time buy from a reputable seller
wink.gif
 
Dec 25, 2009 at 12:45 AM Post #55 of 88
I don't think the reputation of the seller has much to do with quality control. Is there even more than one seller? And how would you know who was reputable for a new product? Or do you mean don't buy Chinese at all?
 
Dec 25, 2009 at 12:46 PM Post #56 of 88
Quote:

Originally Posted by pp312 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
I don't think the reputation of the seller has much to do with quality control. Is there even more than one seller? And how would you know who was reputable for a new product? Or do you mean don't buy Chinese at all?


There are chinese sellers, who test out every equipment before sending them, for example Jeffrey Tam(aka coolfungadget) is one of them. If the factory has lousy qc, then it's a good thing if you can rely on the sellers own qc.
 
Dec 25, 2009 at 12:50 PM Post #57 of 88
Quote:

Originally Posted by devast /img/forum/go_quote.gif
There are chinese sellers, who test out every equipment before sending them, for example Jeffrey Tam(aka coolfungadget) is one of them. If the factory has lousy qc, then it's a good thing if you can rely on the sellers own qc.


But how do you know who they are until you've bought from them?
 
Dec 26, 2009 at 12:16 AM Post #59 of 88
And on which forum did it say, "Don't buy your Muse dac from Chung Wa, he's slack. Get it from Lin Fat, who tests all his before sending them."
smily_headphones1.gif
 
Dec 31, 2009 at 12:58 AM Post #60 of 88
Incidentally, where's the rest of that review a certain person named Robert promised us. Don't tell me he's slacking over the holidays.
smily_headphones1.gif
 
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