Vorzuge VorzAMP PURE II

After reading so much and so little about this beast I decided to take a leap of faith and purchase, when I saw it of the forum for a respectable price it was an opportunity not to be missed.
 
Sound Impressions
 
I had a rough idea what I was expecting to hear when I first plugged this thing in, maybe the reason I felt a touch underwhelmed by my initial experience. Sure it didn't do anything wrong but there wasn't anything to justify what I was hearing was any better than other portables I've owned. So after plugging in to variable sources I eventually found some amazing synergy between a family member's iPhone 5 and the Vorzuge wow. I started hearing details with more life nuances becoming more apparent, I then decided to take the next step and order a better interconnect. Once I plugged the triple hybrid mini jack in all became clear this amp was hear to stay. (Cable use was a mix of pure silver, mundorf- silver 1 % gold and pure copper) . Shortly after I received my Dunu 2000 I soon realized this was a match made in heaven. All impressions will made be using the following set up: Vertere Pulse D-Fi usb > Meridian Explorer > Hybrid interconnect > Vorzuge Pure ii > Dunu 2000 (Online streaming via Grooveshark)
 
 
Bass: I will start with the bass as I feel it will be the shortest part of the write up. Controlled and well extended not overly dominate but defiantly present. The bass does a great job of staying out of the rest of the frequency's but adds a warmth to the midrange which is great as it adds to the overall experience. 
 
Mids: I love the midrange this little baby pulls out of my earphones. It's simply gorgeous I've yet to hear an amp so smooth and forgiving yet has every subtle detail portrayed and presented in each note. I don't think the amp really adds any coloration to the overall sound it just takes whatever its given and pushes its best out of it. There is a certain buttery effect to the presentation but it never feels like your missing out on any details, the transparency is top notch. I will add with the right source iem and interconnect this thing will definitely bring the most out of your set up I simply keep rediscovering my music all over again as cliche as it sounds I don't care I'm a man in love.
 
Treble: The treble shares similar traits to the midrange with its sheer smoothness and extension. It's quite an interesting treble it almost as if what you knew what treble should sound like but didn't until you've heard this. I won't comment too much on this area as I truly feel the Dunu 2000 are a limiting factor in this assessment due to it's slightly rolled off bright treble. Timber is presented very nicely with a beautiful lingering decay which is not too fast and not too slow.
 
Soundstage: Accurate I can't really understand how the pure ii does it ? On the one hand I almost feel it shrinks the soundstage of my earphones but at the same time it makes the positional cues of instruments so much more vivid and accurate. Imaging is very good the texture is amazing as you listen you can hear the integrate layers of the music.
 
Conclusion: This is a state of the art piece of equipment and if your in the market for a new portable amp I highly recommend you take a look at this amp. It's worth noting if you do purchase the amp I recommend getting it straight from Vorzuge themselves as they don't seem to be very responsive to warranty claims by people who have purchased via third party sources. I have had a few issues with the amp but every time I have inquired the support team have been a lot less responsive after finding I purchased the amp externally, in fact i'm still awaiting a response I will update with accurate information once they have got back to me. Update response back is due to it being bought 2nd hand any repairs will cost a nice tidy sum so just forewarning for anyone looking to purchase second hand.

 
I'm such a newb. Pretty sure I should have uploaded image for the PURE II from Vorzüge's website. I used the one I took. I hope that doesn't wreck this review. Coincidentally (and also quite obviously) this is my first time adding a new product. And, I tried posting this before, but got it by mistake, into the PURE I box. MODS: feel free to kill me or the old thread.
 
Anyways, onto the review:
 
I did my best not to effuse about the PURE II at ohm image. I think I got away pretty clean. I did not get away from the PURE II though. And though I have several camera lenses to shoot rather meticulously for some relentlessly hounding magazines, I cannot get away from my desk, from Bruce Springsteen, or from the PURE II. Currently, I have the 600Ω Beyerdynamic DT880 headphones on. The PURE II runs them just fine on low gain at 50-75%. Near the end: about 90%, it starts to thin out. That's why there is medium gain.

And I listen to music at levels that average slightly below 80dB, measured. I have this thing about protecting my hearing. Even if I didn't, I am confident I could blow my ears with the combination of the DT880/600 and PURE II in very high fidelity. 
 
But PURE II is a better portable headphone/earphone amp. I'm surprised. It outperforms the old PURE by a margin both measurable and audible. It outperforms every portable amp I've picked up, ever, when paired with difficult to drive low-Ω multiple-armature IEMs with intense impedance swings. The Earsonics SM2, for instance, puts most portable amps and players out of sorts, dropping stereo levels to -55dB. At best, they kick out -69dB. The PURE II does -79dB, which really helps. SM2 is somewhat of a dark-sounding earphone. Opening its stereo image helps bring back cymbal splash and sense of space.
 
But enough of that. This thing has a obvious smooth, melty signature. Neither is over done. Details expand to all sides and to the front and back in all frequencies. Not a one steps too far ahead of the other. Detail is retrieved extremely well- but not to an etchy-sketchy effect. It's not that PURE II sound neutral. It's not that it sounds natural. It's that it just sort of melts out of the way. I've begun using an iPod 5 from 2005. Why? Because my ears have developed this thing for a slightly softer sound signature. But when I'm doing trance and progressive, I go back to the DX50 or iPod nano 6G. The latter can't handle my earphones perfectly. The former does a very good job. But both audibly benefit from adding PURE II into the mix. DX50's audible hiss goes bye bye. The forced congestion along the borders of midrange/bass, which riddle the iPod when paired with certain person earphones: gone. PURE II is the great equaliser of equipment. 
 
I'm sure more sound signature oriented reviews will pop up. I'm in it for the way the PURE II melts away without leaving a trace. If I want that old iPod sound, PURE II. If I want that harder-edged Cirrus sound, PURE II. If I want my music to sound as close to the recording as possible through the most ridiculous of earphones out there, PURE II and my favourite source. 

And yes, it works great with other portable headphones as well as low-current high-impedance headphones. The only problem is its battery life. The old PURE did 26-30 hours on a charge. The new one gets 9-11 hours, volume depending. That surprised me at first. Generally, I'm a battery-life-and-resolution-trumps-all sort bloke. It's hard to still fit into that mould. PURE II has me putting up with shorter listens and thrice weekly charges.
 
If this is indicative of what Vorzüge are up to, this is the company to watch.