jmmtn4aj
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Oct 11, 2006
- Posts
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So about 10 hours ago I received the Supermacro III V6s which I won in Afrikane's portable rig giveaway. For the past few (about 6) hours I have been listening to the amp using my A700, MS1, and the UM2 I won from the same giveaway, and I think I have an idea of what the amp is capable of.
Previously my headphones were driven via the headphone-out of a 1990s AV receiver, the Denon AVC-3530. The headphone out is extremely high impedance, I believe the figure given in the manual used the kilo-ohm units, instead of ohms.
First, a few pictures
[size=medium]Build[/size]
The Xin Supermacro has the odd ability to seem so fragile and yet so tough. The switches are extremely tiny, giving the impression that they may snap off any moment, and yet the brushed metal metal is tough and unyielding. Although the back plate appeared to be bending in the middle due to the pressure exerted by the springs in the battery compartment, it seems flat as a runway now with the two knobs tightly screwed in.
All the white specks in the photos are specks of dust. Even after a year's use by Afrikane, the case is almost completely scratch and blemish free, with the only apparent signs of wear in the front panel around the switches. Other than that, the case would otherwise appear new.
The knob has a feature Dr Xin calls 'damped volume knob'. Basically it just refers to the tightness of the knob which prefers it from turning up or down whilst in your pocket. What's interesting about this feature is that it's adjustable. With an allen key one can adjust how tight the knob is, or even remove it if he feels he does not need it. The resistance to rotation also contributes to the feeling of toughness and quality the amp exudes.
[size=medium]Sound-related features[/size]
The amplifier comes with 4 switches in front in addition to the power switch.
Power switch:
The power switch itself is an interesting piece of work. It has three resting positions, top, middle, and bottom. The top position is the 'on' position, the bottom position is the 'off' position. The middle position is an automatic off function and is the cool bit. Depending on how fast the user switches from 'on' to 'auto-off', the amplifier will either automatically off after 60mins, or around 30 minutes. Switching from 'off' to 'on' then after 3 seconds, to 'auto-off' will yield to longest auto-off time, 60 minutes. Switching from 'off' to 'on' then within 3 seconds, to 'auto-off' will yield an automatic-off time around half of 6 minutes.
The power switch is also the on/off indicator and does this with a built-in LED. When it is on it glows red, when it's low on battery or off, the indicator goes off.
First switch- Impedance:
This switch toggles a built-in impedance of 75ohms on or off. Doing this allows the use of low impedance phones with the amplifier while having ample room on the volume pot, as well as supposedly improving sound quality for others. According to the manual, it should make the ER4P sound equal to the ER4S. the manual also states that the amp doesn't create background hiss and so the switch need not be used for this reason. I agree that the amplifier doesn't create background hiss- I've tried it, however it does reduce or completely eliminate the hiss created by the source. I discovered this when using it with my iPod 4th gen, a particularly noisy source when compared to my EMU 0404 with a custom breakout cable.
Second switch- gain switch:
This simply raises the gain from 5dB to 10dB.
Third switch- Bass boost:
I believe this increases the low end frequencies by several decibels.
Fourth switch- crossfeed:
Turns crossfeed on and off
[size=medium]Sound[/size]
This SM3 is stock, and thus comes with the AD8397 opamp. I haven't even opened the front panel of the amp to inspect the internal circuitry, so nevermind opamp rolling.
The first thing I noticed when I plugged into this amplifier and started putting on some great music [size=xx-small](Red Hot Chili Peppers - Stadium Arcadium, Frou Frou - Details, Sherwood - A Different Light, Rammstein - Mutter/Reise Reise, Radiohead - OK Computer, Propagandhi - Potemkin City Limits, Dream Theater - Train of Thought/Octavarium, 30 Seconds to Mars - A Beautiful Lie, PANIC! at the disco - A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, Mozart - Mozart: Requiem (The Süssmayr Version and the Original Unfinished Version))[/size] was the bass. First the quantity, then the quality.
The bass is absolutely fantastic. I thought that the A700 bass was a little overbearing driven by the AVC3530, and thus my headphones of choice became the MS1. After listening to the SM3, I can safely say that the problem wasn't too much bass in the 3530, it's that the bass just sucked. The SM3 bass is tight and punchy, offering clarity and quantity without sacrificing the already-recessed mids in the A700. It made the dance beats in PANIC!'s album very much a treat to listen to
This, by the way, is with the bass boost switch set to 'off'
The second thing I noticed after about ten minutes was the clarity, specifically in Sherwood's album. In that album some tracks have a tendency of sounding congested due to the instruments and vocals masking each other out. In particular I focused on the track 'Middle of The Night', not in the least because I absolutely lover that track The greatly increased overall and bass clarity offered by the SM3 helped to clear quite a bit of that feeling of congestion.
Lastly, I noticed the increased quality of the higher frequencies. The A700s were extremely sibilant with the 3530, and while some of that sibilance still remains with the SM3, tracks with lots of emphasis in the treble, specifically rock pieces, have become much more enjoyable to listen to, not to mention much less fatiguing.
I can't comment on soundstage because I've never been particularly good with aural positioning, but the instruments definitely don't sound like they're coming out of a single point now that's for sure
The crossfeed function sounds much better than the software options I've tried, specifically that plugin for Foobar. With the UM2s it really did sound like I was listening to a pair of speakers, better even, since my current speaker setup is a mere 50cm or so from my head, with each speaker pretty much angled into each ear, instead of having their paths crossed just in front of my head like they should.
The gain switch seems to do nothing except increasing volume for a given position on the volume pot.
Bass boost switch just amplifies the lower frequencies a little more, and I don't use it because I'm not a fan of overly coloured sound.
[size=medium]Conclusion[/size]
I love it.
Unfortunately this very noticeable increase in sound quality has reminded me that there is still much in terms of sound quality to be found out there, especially in the form of really expensive headphones
To those who say the Ax00 series of headphones don't respond that much to amplifying.. you haven't tried listening to them with my AV receiver and then the SM3! I still believe that my MS1s have the superior mids and treble, but the better clarity and instrumental separation offered by the A700s has made the ATs my new favourite cans.
All I can say is.. I hope my on-the-way Gilmore Lite LE sounds better than this! I would hate to have heard and received something better even before receiving the amp that I lusted after, saved, then ordered and waited for so long
Previously my headphones were driven via the headphone-out of a 1990s AV receiver, the Denon AVC-3530. The headphone out is extremely high impedance, I believe the figure given in the manual used the kilo-ohm units, instead of ohms.
First, a few pictures
[size=medium]Build[/size]
The Xin Supermacro has the odd ability to seem so fragile and yet so tough. The switches are extremely tiny, giving the impression that they may snap off any moment, and yet the brushed metal metal is tough and unyielding. Although the back plate appeared to be bending in the middle due to the pressure exerted by the springs in the battery compartment, it seems flat as a runway now with the two knobs tightly screwed in.
All the white specks in the photos are specks of dust. Even after a year's use by Afrikane, the case is almost completely scratch and blemish free, with the only apparent signs of wear in the front panel around the switches. Other than that, the case would otherwise appear new.
The knob has a feature Dr Xin calls 'damped volume knob'. Basically it just refers to the tightness of the knob which prefers it from turning up or down whilst in your pocket. What's interesting about this feature is that it's adjustable. With an allen key one can adjust how tight the knob is, or even remove it if he feels he does not need it. The resistance to rotation also contributes to the feeling of toughness and quality the amp exudes.
[size=medium]Sound-related features[/size]
The amplifier comes with 4 switches in front in addition to the power switch.
Power switch:
The power switch itself is an interesting piece of work. It has three resting positions, top, middle, and bottom. The top position is the 'on' position, the bottom position is the 'off' position. The middle position is an automatic off function and is the cool bit. Depending on how fast the user switches from 'on' to 'auto-off', the amplifier will either automatically off after 60mins, or around 30 minutes. Switching from 'off' to 'on' then after 3 seconds, to 'auto-off' will yield to longest auto-off time, 60 minutes. Switching from 'off' to 'on' then within 3 seconds, to 'auto-off' will yield an automatic-off time around half of 6 minutes.
The power switch is also the on/off indicator and does this with a built-in LED. When it is on it glows red, when it's low on battery or off, the indicator goes off.
First switch- Impedance:
This switch toggles a built-in impedance of 75ohms on or off. Doing this allows the use of low impedance phones with the amplifier while having ample room on the volume pot, as well as supposedly improving sound quality for others. According to the manual, it should make the ER4P sound equal to the ER4S. the manual also states that the amp doesn't create background hiss and so the switch need not be used for this reason. I agree that the amplifier doesn't create background hiss- I've tried it, however it does reduce or completely eliminate the hiss created by the source. I discovered this when using it with my iPod 4th gen, a particularly noisy source when compared to my EMU 0404 with a custom breakout cable.
Second switch- gain switch:
This simply raises the gain from 5dB to 10dB.
Third switch- Bass boost:
I believe this increases the low end frequencies by several decibels.
Fourth switch- crossfeed:
Turns crossfeed on and off
[size=medium]Sound[/size]
This SM3 is stock, and thus comes with the AD8397 opamp. I haven't even opened the front panel of the amp to inspect the internal circuitry, so nevermind opamp rolling.
The first thing I noticed when I plugged into this amplifier and started putting on some great music [size=xx-small](Red Hot Chili Peppers - Stadium Arcadium, Frou Frou - Details, Sherwood - A Different Light, Rammstein - Mutter/Reise Reise, Radiohead - OK Computer, Propagandhi - Potemkin City Limits, Dream Theater - Train of Thought/Octavarium, 30 Seconds to Mars - A Beautiful Lie, PANIC! at the disco - A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, Mozart - Mozart: Requiem (The Süssmayr Version and the Original Unfinished Version))[/size] was the bass. First the quantity, then the quality.
The bass is absolutely fantastic. I thought that the A700 bass was a little overbearing driven by the AVC3530, and thus my headphones of choice became the MS1. After listening to the SM3, I can safely say that the problem wasn't too much bass in the 3530, it's that the bass just sucked. The SM3 bass is tight and punchy, offering clarity and quantity without sacrificing the already-recessed mids in the A700. It made the dance beats in PANIC!'s album very much a treat to listen to
The second thing I noticed after about ten minutes was the clarity, specifically in Sherwood's album. In that album some tracks have a tendency of sounding congested due to the instruments and vocals masking each other out. In particular I focused on the track 'Middle of The Night', not in the least because I absolutely lover that track The greatly increased overall and bass clarity offered by the SM3 helped to clear quite a bit of that feeling of congestion.
Lastly, I noticed the increased quality of the higher frequencies. The A700s were extremely sibilant with the 3530, and while some of that sibilance still remains with the SM3, tracks with lots of emphasis in the treble, specifically rock pieces, have become much more enjoyable to listen to, not to mention much less fatiguing.
I can't comment on soundstage because I've never been particularly good with aural positioning, but the instruments definitely don't sound like they're coming out of a single point now that's for sure
The crossfeed function sounds much better than the software options I've tried, specifically that plugin for Foobar. With the UM2s it really did sound like I was listening to a pair of speakers, better even, since my current speaker setup is a mere 50cm or so from my head, with each speaker pretty much angled into each ear, instead of having their paths crossed just in front of my head like they should.
The gain switch seems to do nothing except increasing volume for a given position on the volume pot.
Bass boost switch just amplifies the lower frequencies a little more, and I don't use it because I'm not a fan of overly coloured sound.
[size=medium]Conclusion[/size]
I love it.
Unfortunately this very noticeable increase in sound quality has reminded me that there is still much in terms of sound quality to be found out there, especially in the form of really expensive headphones
All I can say is.. I hope my on-the-way Gilmore Lite LE sounds better than this! I would hate to have heard and received something better even before receiving the amp that I lusted after, saved, then ordered and waited for so long
