[emelius]

excellent...saves me a call (& them a tongue lashing)...

cheers...

 

[Stoney]

I checked on availability of Perreaux headphone amps from Audio Advisor, while I was ordering a gift today. I was told that they still don't have the new version 0.5 shipment.

I don't know if this is a problem with Perreaux, or simply with getting shipments out of New Zealand (the latter was my impression when I spoke with AA a couple of weeks ago).

I'll let you know if I hear anything... I am told I'll receive and email when they are in stock. Couldn't hurt to order now, though, to get in the queue.

 

[TUBEBO]

The Perreaux has arrived at AA. I received an email saying my order shipped out today. I also checked AA's web site and it now says one day to ship for the SXH-1. It's shipping 2 day FED-X so I should have it by the 24th. I'll post my take on it's sound after a few days of break-in and some extended listening over the holiday weekend. I'm really "amped up" (pun intended) to get my hands on this puppy!
Also, thanks to Sovkiller for sharing the update email he received from Perreaux.
Happy Holidays to all!

 

[emelius]

i was told that they were likely to be selling the new revisions to new customers but they weren't yet able to "upgrade" mine from 0.3 to 0.5...so i just asked if i should just check back in two weeks or so & they said yes, two weeks (in other words they don't know when exactly the new parts will arrive in the mail)...i'm not yet to the point where i'm goin' to demand a new one

...

 

[purk]

I also need to upgrade mine. The hum is there....and I'm getting very annoy of it. The Perreaux is collecting dust b/c of my wonderful sounding PPA!!

Purk

 

[Sovkiller]

Quote:

Originally posted by TUBEBO The Perreaux has arrived at AA. I received an email saying my order shipped out today. I also checked AA's web site and it now says one day to ship for the SXH-1. It's shipping 2 day FED-X so I should have it by the 24th. I'll post my take on it's sound after a few days of break-in and some extended listening over the holiday weekend. I'm really "amped up" (pun intended) to get my hands on this puppy! Also, thanks to Sovkiller for sharing the update email he received from Perreaux. Happy Holidays to all!

Well let us know when you receive it, and if they in fact fix the problems or not....I hope they do....even whne for now I'm very pleased with the PPA, I couldn't forget the Dinky Knob, the "first love" is always remembered, it was the first amp that really make my CD3000 sing.....now with the PPA we have an Opera....let's see how the discrete buffers are going later....

 

[Stoney]

Can you PPA owners articulate how the PPA differs in sound from the Perreaux? I know the latter's sound somewhat, but not the former.

 

[Sovkiller]

Well IME the PPA has more muscle, and is better in the bass extension, the high end is very similar though (mine has BB 637/627, maybe with ADs others will differ, but IME and IMO both OPamps sounded very similar with the CD3000 in the highs at least) also the PPA is a more versatile amp, as you can customize the bassboost to your needs, the soundstage is a little different, the Perreaux, has a deeper soundstage, while the PPA is a little bit more in your face, let's say, if the PPA seats you in the first row with a huge lateral soundstage, the Perreaux will seat you about 7-10 rows back with a narrower one....
IMO the differences are very subtle, and if I just could find an external bassboost for the Perreaux, or just boost the bass a little bit with some tweak, I would not look to any other amp for the CD3000, but just I found the bass a little shy for the kind of music I listen to, others may find it right...it is a very nice amp, I would like to compare it with more expensive amps, to see how it will perform....IMVHO it is a very nice amp, regardless of the price....

 

[Stoney]

Quote:

the soundstage is a little different, the Perreaux, has a deeper soundstage, while the PPA is a little bit more in your face

This helps, because I am fond of a more distant perspective, particularly with headphones.
Quote:

IMO the differences are very subtle, and if I just could find an external bassboost for the Perreaux, or just boost the bass a little bit with some tweak, I would not look to any other amp for the CD3000

Good to know that they are close, especially because the Perreaux seems much cheaper. As for bass, I will be using the HD650, which is rather balanced to my ear, compared to the CD3000 which I find bright; so the Perreaux may be a great match for the HD650s.

My personal view is that a deeper soundstage and a more distant perspective can be signs of a more resolving amp with less tendency to force detail. An amp that is closer in perspective may in some cases be over-etching transients and details. Of course, this isn't always true, but in the context of opamp-driven headphone amps, I find myself having perhaps a stronger negative reaction to brightness and etched detail.

Of course, my main source (a Sony SCD-XA777ES) is a bit on the bright side, a bit of hardness in the treble. I may modify it eventually (clock and better opamps if not a FET or tube output stage). My Merrill TT with ET II arm, AQ 7000nsx, and Vendetta phono stage actually sounds damn close. Perhaps updating my Vendetta to a "C" version may make it more musical (if John Curl is still doing mods... doubt it. He's a friend, but I haven't raised the subject in years).

 

[Sovkiller]

Quote:

Originally posted by Stoney My personal view is that a deeper soundstage and a more distant perspective can be signs of a more resolving amp with less tendency to force detail. An amp that is closer in perspective may in some cases be over-etching transients and details. Of course, this isn't always true, but in the context of opamp-driven headphone amps, I find myself having perhaps a stronger negative reaction to brightness and etched detail.

I do not feel one is more resolving that other in the details dept, both sound very nice and detailed to me, and I do not feel any of the two are forcing anything, but I have the feeling that the PPA is a little more effortless and fluid amp, that why I said it has more muscle, IMO it tends to drive with more authority (or maybe I like it better, keep in mind always the preference) of course given the difference in price, the Perreaux is very hard to beat, both are good choices, I can't customize the bassboost in the Perreaux, so I chose the PPA, but the Perreaux is my list for the near future, for an small bedroom setup....and maybe with an smaller headphone, Etys or Shure maybe....

Quote:

Of course, my main source (a Sony SCD-XA777ES) is a bit on the bright side, a bit of hardness in the treble. I may modify it eventually (clock and better opamps if not a FET or tube output stage). My Merrill TT with ET II arm, AQ 7000nsx, and Vendetta phono stage actually sounds damn close. Perhaps updating my Vendetta to a "C" version may make it more musical (if John Curl is still doing mods... doubt it. He's a friend, but I haven't raised the subject in years).

Mine is also a Sony, and I agree that a more warm source will not harm, and will sound more pleasant and relaxed, but so far I'm satisfied with the sound I get from it, let's see for how long.....

 

[Sean H]

Quote:

Originally posted by Stoney This helps, because I am fond of a more distant perspective, particularly with headphones.

Hi Stoney- I am more fond of a distant perspective as well. It's one reason why I like the HD650's so much, which I am ga-ga over.


Quote:

Good to know that they are close, especially because the Perreaux seems much cheaper. As for bass, I will be using the HD650, which is rather balanced to my ear, compared to the CD3000 which I find bright; so the Perreaux may be a great match for the HD650s.

And it definitely is indeed. The Perreaux/HD650 combo is like a pair of twins- if you like the sound of the HD650's the Perreaux is cut from the same cloth. It's a very synergistic pair.

Quote:

My personal view is that a deeper soundstage and a more distant perspective can be signs of a more resolving amp with less tendency to force detail. An amp that is closer in perspective may in some cases be over-etching transients and details. Of course, this isn't always true, but in the context of opamp-driven headphone amps, I find myself having perhaps a stronger negative reaction to brightness and etched detail.

The Perreaux is definitely cut from the more resolving and less forced detail cloth. Same scenario as the HD650's again, detail is all there, hihgly resolved, but lacking forwardness and etching.

Quote:

Of course, my main source (a Sony SCD-XA777ES) is a bit on the bright side, a bit of hardness in the treble. I may modify it eventually (clock and better opamps if not a FET or tube output stage). My Merrill TT with ET II arm, AQ 7000nsx, and Vendetta phono stage actually sounds damn close. Perhaps updating my Vendetta to a "C" version may make it more musical (if John Curl is still doing mods... doubt it. He's a friend, but I haven't raised the subject in years).

I'm using the Ack! dAck!, a filterless and non-oversampling DAC with battery power supply, and it sounds (again) much like the Perreaux and the HD650's in terms of presentation and balance. Much like analog. Your analog rig would be VERY interesting to hear with the Perreaux/HD650! I've got a hankering to try the Emmeline XP-7 for it's battery power design and how that might work with my battery powered DAC, but I've got to tell you the Perreaux/HD650 is excellent.

 

[Orpheus]

just got mine a couple days ago. it was "fixed" by audio advisor with what looks like a change of 4 resistors. anyway... sounds fine. but i have three questions:

1. about the original reports of humming--is the humming with low impedance phones constant volume?--or does it increase as you turn up the volume?
2. without any inputs, nothing connected at all besides the power, can you hear some buzzing at maximum volume with some low impedance phones? i dunno, it goes away completely if i plug in my preamp. strange. must be some kind of grounding issue.
3. and lastly, the gain of my amp is really low. usually with most head amps i use i don't have to turn the volume knob past 12:00, else risk ear drum rupture. but with this amp, i had to turn up my preamp more than normal, plus turn the volume knob like 2:00 with hd600's and full-turn for my 600ohm dt770's. is this unusual? i'm thinking perhaps audio advisor's mods did something to the gain, cause i remember reading somewhere that a sample amp was quite loud.

anyway... plugged into my preamp, and with no music playing, the thing is dead silent with the volume turned all the way up. and the low gain is still okay for me--though i think people that like loud music probably can use a little more gain. power seems plenty though, cause with the preamp turned up, it puts out quite a bit of power. pretty good amp. mine came with these signed print-outs of test graphs made from this very amp. (all perreaux products come with these?) anyway... the graphs looks incredible... if they are accurate, this amp sure measures very good. the thing is practically flat from 5hz to 60khz (+/- 0.2 db!!!) and beyond! very low distortion looks like, and very low noise. i doubt many amps less than $1000 can produce measurements this good. the measurements were done with a 60ohm dummy load i think it said.... so, i assume this amp would be great with those low impedance headphones like the sony cd3000 and grados.
Quote:

Well IME the PPA has more muscle, and is better in the bass extension, the high end is very similar though (mine has BB 637/627, maybe with ADs others will differ, but IME and IMO both OPamps sounded very similar with the CD3000 in the highs at least) also the PPA is a more versatile amp, as you can customize the bassboost to your needs, the soundstage is a little different, the Perreaux, has a deeper soundstage, while the PPA is a little bit more in your face, let's say, if the PPA seats you in the first row with a huge lateral soundstage, the Perreaux will seat you about 7-10 rows back with a narrower one....

well... according to the graphs provided with my unit, the sxh1 is pretty damn flat. can't get any better than that. i have never seen a test graph that perfect. so, if you think the ppa has more bass, perhaps its bass is hyped, not that the sxh1 has less than it should.

 

[Stoney]

The Perreaux SXH1 hum is heard at zero volume and does not change with volume. You may or may not also hear additional hum or buzz at higher volumes, depending on how the unit is connected and grounded, but this is independent, and is nothing wrong.

You should connect your headphone amp directly to a tape out from your preamp, rather than the main out. The tape outputs do not go through the volume knob, and so are higher in level and also may sound a tad better. This will also address your loudness issue to some degree.

Measurements of an amplifier routinely show a flat response. This is nothing special. It is how the unit handles dynamic music that matters. The power supply is drawn down, harmonics distortion occurs, transients may be emphasized by distortion or ringing, and more. The result of all these dynamic effects is what determines whether an amp is bright or dark, detailed or veiled, muffled or sharp. Ignore the measured curve... it tells you nothing other than the designer has some basic competence.

 

[Sovkiller]

Quote:

Originally posted by Orpheus just got mine a couple days ago. it was "fixed" by audio advisor with what looks like a change of 4 resistors. anyway... sounds fine. but i have three questions: 1. about the original reports of humming--is the humming with low impedance phones constant volume?--or does it increase as you turn up the volume? 2. without any inputs, nothing connected at all besides the power, can you hear some buzzing at maximum volume with some low impedance phones? i dunno, it goes away completely if i plug in my preamp. strange. must be some kind of grounding issue. 3. and lastly, the gain of my amp is really low. usually with most head amps i use i don't have to turn the volume knob past 12:00, else risk ear drum rupture. but with this amp, i had to turn up my preamp more than normal, plus turn the volume knob like 2:00 with hd600's and full-turn for my 600ohm dt770's. is this unusual? i'm thinking perhaps audio advisor's mods did something to the gain, cause i remember reading somewhere that a sample amp was quite loud. anyway... plugged into my preamp, and with no music playing, the thing is dead silent with the volume turned all the way up. and the low gain is still okay for me--though i think people that like loud music probably can use a little more gain. power seems plenty though, cause with the preamp turned up, it puts out quite a bit of power. pretty good amp. mine came with these signed print-outs of test graphs made from this very amp. (all perreaux products come with these?) anyway... the graphs looks incredible... if they are accurate, this amp sure measures very good. the thing is practically flat from 5hz to 60khz (+/- 0.2 db!!!) and beyond! very low distortion looks like, and very low noise. i doubt many amps less than $1000 can produce measurements this good. the measurements were done with a 60ohm dummy load i think it said.... so, i assume this amp would be great with those low impedance headphones like the sony cd3000 and grados. well... according to the graphs provided with my unit, the sxh1 is pretty damn flat. can't get any better than that. i have never seen a test graph that perfect. so, if you think the ppa has more bass, perhaps its bass is hyped, not that the sxh1 has less than it should.

Here are the PPA graphs, from tangent website, I love the Perreaux do not misunderstood me....both are very good amps.

 

[Orpheus]

thanks.... from the graphs, it looks like the ppa and perreaux have similiar low-end extension... but the perreaux extends much higher. the ppa frequency response graph is kind weird though... it just drops off at a certain point. probably due to the measurement device, not the amp i think. but anyway, both seem to measure very well.

but still, anyone know the answers to my questions #2 & #3? i really want to know.