I don't have the LCD-1, but I have fixed similar problems with my aviation headsets and other applications, using PC-7 epoxy. It's very strong and when it works it is a permanent solution, if unsightly.

From what I read, the MkII has a stronger version of Meier's FF. FF is a pre-emphasis and de-emphasis method, something that has been used in other areas of audio, from analog tape to vinyl LPs and CDs. Yet Meier's use of it in amplifiers and DACs is somewhat novel, and I wonder why we don't see...

The common Grado headphone models (SR60 etc.) sound excessively bright with uneven frequency response & high distortion. That is the traditional "Grado voicing", some love it, some hate it. They can benefit from the 120 ohm output of the Soul, which acts like a tone control, boosting output...

Nice - giving the DA loop a test drive! And that RME is no slouch of a DAC. Let us know your impressions.

BTW, I'll add that I still have the original HD580 that I bought in 1998. Over the years I've replaced the earpads, headband pad, and cable, but everything else is still original. They still perform and measure like new, indistinguishable from the original HD600. That's the kind of quality...

Most headphones (and the Harman curve) sound too bright to me so without EQ the HD650 would be the one for me. But the 600 is a tad cleaner, so if you have EQ available, especially if it is parametric EQ implemented in DSP, then the 600 is the way to go.

You're not annoying me at all. It's an interesting discussion that could be helpful to others. That sounds like the opposite of what I've been describing: use the Soul as a DAC only, where I'm talking about using everything in the Soul except the DAC. On the Soul, if you set all the knobs to...

Yes, this is a nice feature because analog balanced XLR has 2 different standards: consumer (about 4 V) and professional (about 12 V). It enables the Soul to gain-match to either. Low gain for professional, and high gain for consumer.

Indeed, the Soul is an excellent analog preamp, the best I have heard or measured. If you have at least 6 dB of headroom with the Soul MK1, then you can get an idea of what difference the MK2 might make. Set the Soul's digital gain switch to the LOW position. This drops overall levels by 6 dB...

It's explained earlier in this thread. To summarize: First, you need a DAC that has balanced XLR output. Connect the Soul digital output to the DAC digital input. Connect the DAC analog output to the Soul's analog input. Now when you listen to the Soul as you normally would: If the Soul's...

I mentioned above why the MK2 upgrade is not for me. Before taking the MK2 plunge, you might enjoy using the Soul's external DAC loop to try different DACs and see what difference it makes. It should be fun and educational, and help you with the MK2 decision.

Same here - my usage runs about 90/10 preamp/headphone. It does seem we're in the minority.

I do occasionally use the Soul to measure other equipment with test signals (not just music), so I need it to pass high frequencies at high levels cleanly without clipping. Its built-in DAC is still among the best I've heard, and when I want that extra 1% during a critical listening session I...

To add to the discussion & comparison, I discovered by accident how good the DA converters in my Tascam DA-3000 recorder are. It uses the Burr Brown PCM1795. This recorder has a mode called "DA-AD" where it doesn't record, but activates its AD and DA converters for real-time conversion. As...

Nice detailed review. May I suggest you add it to the reviews in the gear section? https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/meier-audio-corda-soul.23528/reviews

For those who want to play with this, here's the relevant section of the Corda Soul manual page [my highlights added]. BTW, it's worth mention that when using an external DAC, FF is no longer applied to the digital signal which means you lose the low frequency headroom that you get with the...

Actually it means the opposite of this. [In this mode] the Soul is everything BUT a DAC, it's not a DAC, because it's not doing any DA conversion. The Soul applies its DSP to the selected digital source, emits that modified digital output stream to an external DAC, and listens to its analog...

If you're not sure whether you "need" it, you can use the Soul's external DAC loop to try different DACs and see what difference that makes. As I see it, the Soul has 3 parts: DSP, D/A conversion, and analog amp. Of these, D/A conversion is the only part where SOTA performance is still evolving...

It's worth mention that the Soul has an internal switch that sets the gain of its analog stage. Mine came shipped with the switch in low gain mode, which works well with professional audio devices that use +4 dBu. Consumer balanced analog audio is usually much lower, -10 dBu. The difference is...

By AIO do you mean "all in one"? This is the simplest way to use the Soul. Just connect the player's outputs to the Soul inputs. If you connect the digital output, Soul is doing everything: DSP, D/A conversion, and analog volume control, "all in one". If you connect the player's analog output to...

Whether or not he's using the digital or analog output of the A&K, I would imagine that most of any audible difference is switching the audio format from lossy to lossless (FLAC). However, the Soul does support using an external DAC and I too have found that can make a subtle difference.

The max outputs I computed above are peak values. A peak value of 114 dB SPL is plenty high enough for almost any music, even high dynamic range orchestral recordings. If average levels are 34 dB lower (which is rare), that's 80 dB in the quietest parts. I also speak from experience. I used the...

The Jazz has enough voltage to make 300 ohm Sennheisers sing even without the FF. For example, the old HD-600 hits 90 dB SPL with 0.23 V. 3.7 V is 24 dB louder, 90 + 24 = 114 dB SPL. That is more than my ears can take! At the far end of the spectrum, consider the HE-6 which hits 94 dB SPL with...

Sounds like they got it backward. The Jazz is voltage limited to about 3.7 V (though the FF can output higher voltages at low frequencies), but it has plenty of current capability. So it's not a good match for headphones having very low voltage sensitivity, like the HiFiMan HE-6. But it does...

To clarify, I don't use Spotify but just offering general advice. That is bit rate, not sample rate. Most MP3 is 44.1 kHz sample rate regardless of the bit rate. It is possible to encode MP3 at 48 kHz sample rate, but it's rare. PS: back to the topic of Corda Soul, it won't accept MP3 as...