[coredump]

Well Lawrence asked me to ship the main board back for a replacement. I assume the main board is the bigger one in the back. I've asked if he can just give me a refund. I really don't want to wait another month or two for this to get straitened out. I'm not even sure of the best way to ship a circuit board to China but I'm sure it will cost a lot.

 

[souperman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pincellone /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm not sure he disagrees with me. Perhaps he didn't have the chance to try the 3X LME49720 combo. It is indeed the best one for me... By the way, although the specs look the same, I've never compared the LM4562 with LME49720. Some people say LME49720 is just a renamed version of LM4562, BUT I wouldn't be 100% sure. If you've already tried LM4562 and have a chance to get a few LME49720 give them a try. You might be surprised...

Sorry, but I couldn't really find your take on what the LME49720 other than they are the best. Mind giving me a low-down on the sound signature of the LM47920's? Warm, cold, analytical, sound-stage, bass, highs, etc...

 

[thundercatslair]

Quote:

Originally Posted by coredump /img/forum/go_quote.gif Well Lawrence asked me to ship the main board back for a replacement. I assume the main board is the bigger one in the back. I've asked if he can just give me a refund. I really don't want to wait another month or two for this to get straitened out. I'm not even sure of the best way to ship a circuit board to China but I'm sure it will cost a lot.

He told me to do the same. I looked under the board and there was a huge glob solder and some of the PCB was ripped. Mine would turn off at random too and the right channel was distorted badly. I hope he sends me a new one that will work, if not aw well, at this point I'm honestly not expecting much.

 

[coredump]

Well it's good to know I'm not alone. I think both of ours came out of the same batch. How did you ship it back? I guess I'll try USPS. It should be about $37. I priced UPS and FedEx once and they were about $90.

I didn't see anything odd on mine but some of the resistors were soldered on the back and squished between the case and PCB board.

 

[kmel]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pincellone /img/forum/go_quote.gif By the way, although the specs look the same, I've never compared the LM4562 with LME49720. Some people say LME49720 is just a renamed version of LM4562, BUT I wouldn't be 100% sure. If you've already tried LM4562 and have a chance to get a few LME49720 give them a try. You might be surprised...

Let's quote BrassTeacher on diyAudio.com:
Quote:

I actually e-mail the tech people at National. They said yes, the only difference is the number stamped on the outside. BT

 

[Headdie]

Does the ZERO DAC Head Amp can be used to power directly difficult 'phones like DT880, K601 or K701 ? Would it be enough or just a bad compromise ?

 

[mADmAN]

i have my ZERO powering a 250ohm DT990 and i keep the volume at slightly more than 9 o'clock.

which is loud according to my colleagues......

 

[Penchum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by thundercatslair /img/forum/go_quote.gif He told me to do the same. I looked under the board and there was a huge glob solder and some of the PCB was ripped. Mine would turn off at random too and the right channel was distorted badly. I hope he sends me a new one that will work, if not aw well, at this point I'm honestly not expecting much.

Quote:

Originally Posted by coredump /img/forum/go_quote.gif Well it's good to know I'm not alone. I think both of ours came out of the same batch. How did you ship it back? I guess I'll try USPS. It should be about $37. I priced UPS and FedEx once and they were about $90. I didn't see anything odd on mine but some of the resistors were soldered on the back and squished between the case and PCB board.

Well, I'm pretty distressed about you two guys Zeros.

I hate to put additional pressure on him, but, if he's getting Zero's from the factory that have QC problems, he'd better make damn sure he catches the problems and gets feedback to the factory, not ship them internationally like a crap shoot.

Sorry, I'm just upset.

I hope you guys will insist he "make good" on the problem, like not only fixing them, but giving you some Opamps or something to compensate for the one way postage you are out. He has done this voluntarily in the past, but I've lost track because we've had less bad units up to now (yours). Also, if sending the entire unit doesn't cost more, and you'd feel safer doing that, he should let you, so you can insist he bench checks them before sending them back. Thats just my 2 cents worth, but it seems logical.

These problems aside, the Zero is a fantastic little unit, and I just hope you both get to experience that. If not, I understand completely and I'm sure everyone here would understand too. Good luck and keep us posted.
Thanks!

 

[Penchum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Headdie /img/forum/go_quote.gif Does the ZERO DAC Head Amp can be used to power directly difficult 'phones like DT880, K601 or K701 ? Would it be enough or just a bad compromise ?

No compromise, it will drive any headphones up to 600ohms, with ease. Remember, even in the review it was driving 300ohm Senn HD-650s with total ease. It has a lot of clean power.

 

[Penchum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kmel /img/forum/go_quote.gif Let's quote BrassTeacher on diyAudio.com:

Thanks for the clarification. While I like the LM4562 in everything except the highs, I'll most likely never go back to them. I always felt the LT1364 had similar properties, minus the excessive highs, so it was a natural replacement.

 

[Henmyr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by souperman /img/forum/go_quote.gif So I guess you disagree with pincellone that the LME49720 works best everywhere?

My impression of them was that they were just a tad boring to listen to. I tried 3x LME49270 also, and it worked quite well for dt990 but made the dt880/ms2i to boring. They are rather neutral but just a bit to the cold side, analytical, good air and details, very hifi sounding. I didn't find it very euphoric at all though.

A cold very slightly boring sound is not the best for dt880 or ms2i.

LT1364+LT1361 carry a lot of emotion, but still manage to sound very hifi. I really liked the LT1028 in the dac when I tried it, but I haven't got a definite answer yet to if it is safe to use it (it gets VERY hot).

EDIT: Just tried LT1469(dac)+LT1361(amp) and I like the sound. LT1469 is very smooth, but still clear, very musical.

It ties the music together very good and does not focus on presenting the different musicians, but rather the whole group.

In the dac while LT1361 in the amp.: LT1364 vs LT1469 is a bit like DT880 vs HD650. DT880 is very airy, while HD650 "fills" this air with music, which makes the sound thicker. LT1364 is very airy while LT1469 fills the air. LT1364 presents the different musicians, while LT1469 presents the group as a whole. Both are very enjoyable.

 

[souperman]

Sorry if this has been asked before, but Lawrence is shipping mine tomorrow. How long did it take for it to be delivered? About 8 days? Thanks.

 

[Penchum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by souperman /img/forum/go_quote.gif Sorry if this has been asked before, but Lawrence is shipping mine tomorrow. How long did it take for it to be delivered? About 8 days? Thanks.

Sound right to me. 6-8 days, depending on customs.

 

[sorcer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kmel /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yep... the ZERO takes it all. It tried Professional instead of Consumer S/PDIF format... works well too.

Thanks. I need to find an inexpensive transport for one or more of these newer formats, I think (along with CD).

I started a thread - "inexpensive transport for new HP system" -but no one has posted there, just 45 readers

Can anyone point me to a place to learn more or see if there are cheap transports for these formats?

Thanks.

 

[strologu]

Ok, somebody should be disappointed about the Zero..so am i

I've tried it extensively, all the week-end, after 100 hours burning-in.
First of all, all the right i-tunes setting, then i've tried optical spdif directly from my macbook: horrible, it was like listening a jitter's greatest hits..
Then i've tried 2 different usb/spdif transport: the first was a cheap one purchased on ebay, and it was the same jitter fest, and then the Trends Audio UD10.1, a clearly better transport.
Found the right transport i've hooked the Zero with a Belden digital cable.
Listening to a lot of records, previously ripped on my HD, the listening session was not so nice: the Zero was performing just a little bit better than the macbook's headphone output! It was better, obviously, but not that better to justify the presence of a transport, a dac, cables and batteries (the one needed by the Trends Audio), instead of a simple cable plugged in (the one of the headphones). The music with the Zero hooked to the Trends Audio had more transparency, detail and solidity, but not enough for me.
I've tried to switch from one output to the other several times, and at the end..my zero will go on ebay tonight..
Conclusion:it's not a bad unit for the price you pay, less than 150€ in Europe, but i'm not satisfied with his quality, i was looking for something better.