Can someone recommend some tubes for me?  I'm looking for a sound that has:    - powerful bass - warm, sweet midrange with perhaps a bit of "girth" or "thickness" - not harsh, cold, or analytical - more euphonic than neutral - but not too laid-back or too smooth (I thought the Shuguang...

I just bought a Little Dot MK VI and was wondering what they changed in the "+" version?  Do the two amps use the same tubes?

It's got a howitzer of a headphone amp.  It has a generally powerful sound that fills out the crucial lower-midrange area.  There is some slight midrange edge (in a good way) that gives guitars crunch and growl.     If you listen to mostly girl with a guitar stuff, you'll be able to find...

I've been enjoying this little DAC for a few weeks now. I first became interested in it after Stereophile gave it a Class A recommendation. For a while it was it by far the cheapest Class A source component they had on their list. Recently I decided to order one—and let me warn you here that...

First, I'm not sure if this post is against the rules of this forum.  If it is, please remove it!   I did read the rules post but I didn't see anything specific on this.   I am wondering if any DIYer has a bit of free time and wouldn't mind helping me mod my Yaqin SD-CD3. I am not...

  Yeah I'd agree that a better amp would make it sound better.  I have two requirements that make rule out a lot of amplifiers though: 1) small form factor and 2) lower-midrange centered sound with smooth, relaxed treble.  Any suggestions?  I was thinking of the Rega Brio R but not sure it...

Now that my KEF LS50s have about 50 hours of burn-in, I wanted to give some brief impressions.     First a very short bit of introduction: The LS50s were created by KEF to celebrate their 50th anniversary. They were Stereophile's Product of the Year in the 2013.  They are listed at $1500.  ...

I've been using the SoX oversampling plugin for foobar lately at 192khz and very high.  Love the sound - 3D and super smooth treble.  Just wanted to share the info in case anyone wanted to try it.  

 

Zool, can you extract the version of the firmware that you are using?  I'd like to hear it as well.  

It's really good.  Only negative I can think of is that the sound doesn't have the "weight" of some other different voiced DACs.  There's a sense of lightness to it that you may love or hate or be indifferent to.  But it's great at just about everything else.  Terrific smooth treble extension...

  Well I just had a laugh looking back at this post from a month ago.  I turned the bass boost on for half a second and immediately turned it off.  No need~!

 So, I generally don't believe in burn-in, but the sound of the speakers changed drastically in the first 30 minutes of them being on.     One thing I am noticing: the horizontal axis response is much more forgiving than the vertical axis.  If you are standing above the speakers, they lose...

  Well, I FINALLY got a hold of the LS50s.  Right now signal chain is: Arcam irDAC -> NAD D 3020 -> LS50   I can't believe I was worried about them being thin.  The first thing I noticed is the bass .   With the NAD 1050 USB DAC, I actually thought there was too much bass.  The Arcam is...

If you've purchased a recent version of the NAD 1050, you owe it to yourself to hear it with the original firmware (the firmware that was likely installed in the glowing reviews when it first came out).   http://www.head-fi.org/t/675359/nad-d-range/30    (bottom and next page)   If anyone...

  I installed the original firmware kindly provided by Frenchwah and hear an immediate, gross, difference.  It's a totally different piece of equipment.  It's like going from Grados to Sennheiser's.  I'm trying hard to wipe the smile off my face now actually.  Now this is the thick, viscous...

That's some really useful info.  I can't find the old firmware anywhere online, but NAD's firmware updater tool has an option where you can grab the firmware from the device into a file.  Is there any chance you could do that?  

 I got my cherry green WASD today and it seriously kicks some ass.  Despite the 80g, they don't feel heavy to me.  I don't think they are heavier than typical throw-in rubber dome keyboards.  Only the shift key on this particular keyboard is slightly heavy.  Other than that, it's perfect.  Feels...

SPDIF and USB can sound drastically different or the same depending on the gear.  There is no "better".  Just listen to both and decide which you like better.

I've been listening to my NAD 1050 for 2 weeks now and wanted to offer a very brief impression/review.   In short, the NAD sounded completely the opposite of how it is commonly described, both in this thread, as well as in reviews elsewhere on the web.  To me, it did not sound warm, dark...

  I have fond memories of Klipsch (didn't know they were American) as their ProMedia 2.1's were my first speaker system.   Continuing the English trend, I also have a pair of Cambridge Audio Aero 2's coming in.  I became intrigued by these after they got Hi-Fi Choice's highest award for...

  Cool that sounds like it might be more of a typewriter feel which is what I like.  I think I'll go with the Greens.     EDIT: I ended up going with the company's signature scheme, like the minimalist look.  

Anyone have a custom WASD keyboard that wants to share their layout?  I'm designing one and am looking for ideas :)

Hmm I wasn't aware that there were cherry green's.  I had settled on blues because I like the click with some resistance, but it seems the greens are like blues with more resistance?  Has anyone tried both blues and greens?

Whoa that's the first time I've seen WASD keyboards, that's neat!