TXCO is an upgrade to the DAC circuitry--I believe it reduces jitter. I did get the TXCO on mine, but can't say how it compares to the non-TXCO version.

Quote: I unfortunately can't comment from my own experience on the 15.32 vs a CD player--I no longer own a CD player. I've also never heard the Marantz. A quick Google search suggests the CD63SE is a pretty good value in DACs... though technology has improved over the years. Take a look at...

I think mine is at roughly 200 hours now... been too lazy to bring it home at night/on weekends, haha. Maybe I'll bring it home next weekend to speed up the burn-in a bit.   At work I'm listening to 320kbps MP3s on the coax out from my Cowon D3. Can't tell any difference between the OS and...

Got my 15.32 today :) Super fast shipping--it arrived from China before my Cowon D3 s/pdif cable which shipped from California 2 days before the 15.32.   Took a few tries to install the drivers--it didn't like the USB ports on my laptop, but works fine from the powered port on my second...

In theory they're competitive units... Just different flavor to the DAC portion. From what I've been able to gather, reading about the 11.32, the 15.1, 12.1, etc. I expect the 15.32/Wolfson DAC to be warmer, more musical. The 11.32/Sabre DAC is supposedly uber-detailed, more neutral but perhaps...

I just ordered a 15.32 :) Once I receive it and burn in for a while, I'll post a short comparison to the original Compass.

This is all very interesting, but the purpose of this thread isn't to bash Sennheiser. Let's get back on-topic? Bang for the buck now versus then, industry wide.

I agree they're overpriced, but think saying at what price they'd "definitely" make a profit is conjecture without seeing what their actual material and labor costs are. Also, keep in mind that sales of older designs like the HD600 provide revenue to fund R&D on new products. If they didn't...

Quote:   $120 adjusted for roughly 20 years of inflation = $200 today.

Quote: The HD600 is definitely an example of a company charging what it thinks it can in a limited market. Sennheiser is large enough that they're able to mass produce items, and yes their development costs are nonexistent on older products. But an HD600 for $100? I'm skeptical... I'm...

Quote:   Agreed, the limited demand does keep prices up... but are prices inflated that much? Have to keep in mind that a smaller market/lower quantities make for higher manufacturing costs, and longer time to recover development costs.   Or are you saying that there isn't as much of...

Haha, oops. Sorry folks.

Seems like most of you agree that there's little room for analog to improve in terms of the technology itself... but what about bang for the buck? That's the main point of this thread... in fact I think I'll rename the thread accordingly.   The discrete op amps for example... When the...

Quote: Agreed, we are culturally programmed to continually want something different/new/better. I refer to it as Disposable Society. But that's not the only reason to upgrade.   For example, I chose to upgrade from the D1 to the Compass for improved sound quality. The D1 was a great...

Surely some of the Head-Fi gurus have held onto older gear, and can compare to newer stuff?