Hello,   I have a Total Bithead USB DAC/AMP that I've owned and used with my Senn HD650s for years. I've been satisfied with the sound (I'm not at all a hardcore audiophile, obviously).   Recently I completed my first computer build, an mATX hackintosh running off of the ASUS Maximus V...

Thanks, that's a great recommendation, fits in my criteria nicely! I may very well go for this.

Quote:   I only use it on (dirty, nasty ;-)) USB power. Good question though.   It's not dead yet, still gets loud enough... most of the time. No longer in warranty I would assume, but I'll look into it.   Thanks guys.

OK, after a lot of searching I think I've figured out a solution I like.   The Creative X-Fi HD USB is not listed as compatible with macs (i.e. there are no drivers), but many users are reporting that it does work without any drivers, including the inputs and 5.1 optical outputs, just...

Another good avenue of research, tzjin. The ODAC seems pretty well-thought-of, so I could use that for my speakers, my Total Bithead for my headphones (like I already have), and the SPDIF converter for my TV/AV. Of course, that's three USB ports down, and would mean a lot of software switching...

Hello,   Did a search but didn't find anything specific. Short version: I need a USB audio device to replace internal sound card and serve both analog and digital audio to several components. Context   I'm building an mATX hackintosh soon. The downside to mATX hackintoshes is that...

Maybe I should contact Headroom directly, but my old Total Bithead seems to be gradually failing. It used to be that, connected to my macbook pro via USB, I only had to put the volume up a certain amount for comfortable listening. Recently, I have had to put the control higher and higher -...

Thanks for the help Zimmzio. FYI I just tried this amp's headphone out (first opportunity to do so) with the Senn HD650 and I didn't hear a great quality increase. On my dad's monstrous Panasonic home theater receiver I think I hear a huge quality increase, zero noise, etc., relative to the...

An update: the above link was to a brochure or some sort. HERE (http://207.228.230.231/manual/NAD-712.pdf) is the actual manual, and I quote: Quote: 2. PHONES A 1/4” stereo jack socket is supplied for headphone listening and will work with conventional headphones of any impedance...

Thanks for the replies so far. Zimmzio, are you saying that Grado would be a better match than Senn because NAD is usually warm sounding, or because of impedance, or what? If I do pick this up then I'd likely be looking for a good pair of bookshelf speakers to hook up to them as well, to...

Hello, I've been using a pair of stock Sennheiser HD650 headphones with a Headroom Total Bithead. I may soon be gifted a used NAD 712 Stereo Receiver (and a NAD multi-CD changer). Not as a Christmas gift or anything, just because the current owner (a family member) wants to replace it with...

Let alone post-production (e.g. photoshop curves), that photo could have been taken in a white soft box, which would be pretty standard for product photography. Mix in the headache-inducing lack of consistency from camera to screen to color profile to browser etc. etc. etc., and you've got all...

There is often a "test" or "tone" feature on the remote for your receiver that will play pure noise through each speaker, one by one, as you press the button. It allows for subjective volume matching on each speaker (raise or lower the volume while the tone is playing for that speaker). If the...

Guys, Ray has posted the official Apache details (and pics!) over in this new thread. Pretty awesome looking!

I cannot believe that nobody has posted on this thread yet, especially given the buzz over in the amps forum thread. Ray, the Apache looks terrific, both functionally and aesthetically. When I go balanced (*ahem* - that is, once I have a job and some savings), this or the B-52 will be at the...

FYI Mr. Samuels, this is my current dream amp. For looks alone, without having ever heard it. Stunning.

Hi again, glad to have been of help. I don't know how nice that mp3 player is in terms of audio quality, but most digital audio players are ok I think. Your files and your headphones are both fine by many people's standards - a range of up to 320 kbps MP3 and the MDR-V6, while not considered...

Rather than focus on terminology, I think the OP just wants to know how audio quality can improve in any sense. King-Reyes, focusing on just the headphones, you must first understand that the typical budget headphone really mangles audio. Many headphone drivers (the part of the headphone that...

Well, I cannot really tell right off the cuff as it's trapped beneath various wires; I don't see any solder on the top side of the board (where the opamp connects, I mean), so I'm hoping it's just socketed. I'll have to unscrew everything and remove the internals from the enclosure to check for...

Hi everyone, A few years back I bought a beautiful Altoids "Citrus Sours" enclosed CMOY amp from eBay. Was fun for a while. A few years back plus a couple months and it blew up. There's no right channel audio anymore and the left channel has a significant buzz to it. Well, I'm not much...

Quote: Originally Posted by gabedamien ...going to require clarification of what model you are using at the least, and a debate on semantics in all likelihood. Subtractively (i.e. "paint-mixing") black is a color, and is formed from multiple colors. Additively (i.e. light waves) black...

It suddenly strikes me that the confusion may lie in the idea of splitting the singal. In a fully balanced setup, the first split is between left and right channels; a microprocessor sends each channel to a separate DAC. Then each DAC splits the channel into two more channels - a normal channel...

Quote: Originally Posted by Kees A CD drive reads only a single positive signal from the disc. A balanced signal is ALWAYS created from a single signal, through creating the inverse signal. Either in the source or in the amp. And for the end result it does not matter where it was...

Hi Kees, If you don't hear a diff. that's fine, I haven't even heard balanced so I don't know how good it really is. But I'm pretty sure that on a theoretical level at least, you're missing something. Creating a balanced signal from an unbalanced one does not give the full theoretical...

Quote: Originally Posted by souperman haha. good point gabe. ricepicker is a little out of line, but the same can be said for RasmusseN Haha, true, true, I'm caught out. I admit to being a team black member, and concede that my statement applies equally well to RasmusseN. Sorry...