This is a review of the headphone amp FUN, by Burson Audio Company from Melbourne, Australia. I would first like to express my gratitude to the Burson Audio for sending me the Fun for test and fun.
After I already favorably reviewed the Burson's Play where it became my favourite daily companion, I was still wondering how much of its sound signature is a property of the dac and how much of the amp section alone. All dacs are supposed to sound equal, neutral and transparent, but some dacs are more equal than others
Generally I divide all my audio gears in two groups - for daytime and nighttime listening. While the engaging, agitating and upfront sound signature of the Sabre dacs might be prefered for the daytime listening, late at night, sitting relaxed in the comfy armchair with the glass of wine, Sabre’s upfront sound signature might not be for everybody’s taste. Actually it could sometimes even get on my nerves. At night I prefer somewhat more relaxed and smoother sound signature, which some other dac chips might offer. The Play incorporates the mobile version of the Sabre’s ES9018 dac chip, which is already succeded by newer ES9028 and ES9038. Probably at the time I am writing this, there are already ES9048 and ES9058 on the way. Also many of the modern dacs offer a choice of digital filters to tailor the sound to your liking, which the Play doesn’t have.
Therefore I was much looking forward to the Fun, which is a headphone amp alone, allowing you to connect the source of your choice, different dacs allowing you to play with different digital filters, or connect some other sources like your DAP or even a TV.
The Fun is a powerful dual mono Class-A headphone amp, built as a tank, which pumps a respectable 2.1W on 32 Ohms, and 330mW on 300 Ohms.
It costs $299 in the basic version featuring NE5543 X 2 op-amps and $399 in the upgraded version with the V6 Single x 2 op-amps. Interestingly, if you order the basic version for $299 and separately order the V6 Single x 2 for $70, it will cost you a little bit less. I haven’t tried the V6 Vivids, but tested the Fun both in the basic setup and with the V6 Classics.
From the connections, there are mic-in and mic-out, which I understand is a mic-through, RCA-in (2V) and RCA preamp out, and last but not least on the front plate one AUX stereo 3.5mm input. Now this is the most confusing part, because on the Burson Website there isn’t a word about it. At the moment of my writing it lists the inputs as follows:
Inputs: RCA (2V RMS line level), Mic Input
However you can find mentioning the AUX input in the FUN’s manual, which can be downloaded on their website.
This front AUX input is very handy which allows you connecting many mobile devices like phones and daps, while still having some desktop dac connected to the back of the FUN through the RCA line in.
Differences Play - Fun:
Both the Play and the Fun use custom made high speed, low noise powers supplies. When you turn on the Play there is a whining sound which goes away after a while. I was explained by the kind Burson’s techs that „the new power supply design is based on high speed switching power supply. When the machine first power up, the switching frequency is still low and you can hear some of it. But once after said 10 seconds the power supply warm up and fully charged the working frequency will go up to 170K which you should not be able to hear them.“ Well, while the Fun uses the same switching power supply, there is absolutely no noise at the power-up! It is dead silent right from the beginning even if you turn on the volume to the max.
The Play uses digital volume control with 99 steps. It has a nice feel, and it shows the digits on the display. The Fun has an analogue volume control with completely different feel to it. It has a nice resistence with much better micro-adjusting and completely different volume development.
The Fun has, I guess, a lower gain, because you have to turn the volume knob much further to get the same loudness as with the Play. With the Play using high sensitive headphones you might already hit the limit at the 20 volume setting.
The Fun gets warm, but much less so than the Play which gets really hot. This is probably because the Play uses more op-amps than the Fun.
Now, to the most important thing, the sound.
How does it sound:
It was definitely more difficult to review the sound of the Fun than the Play. It took me much longer to get my opinion. After throwing many familiar hi-rez tracks into it, listening for days through different headphones, it was a strange feeling. Does the Fun add more bass? No. Does it add some sparkling treble? Nope. Does it give you the wow effect after the first few listening? Also no. Hmmm....It took me some time to figure out what is going on here. The Fun is tremendeously neutral and transparent amp. It adds no coloration, it doesn’t manipulate the sound in any way, it doesn’t sound euphonic, nor bright, neither analytic nor warm. It is like looking through the cleanest window. When I firstly connected the Play to the Fun, I couldn’t detect any difference. AB-ing through the tracks, level carefully matched, I couldn’ be quite sure which one was I listening at the moment.
Than I connected the FiiO’s X5II dap which uses PCM1792A chip and the sound was completely different. It sounded like amplified X5II. Nothing added, nothing substracted. After connecting a range of sources there was always the same feeling, the neutrality. At the end I have connected the Chord Mojo to the Fun, and there it was. Familiar Mojo’s transparency and smoothness which I generally prefer over the Sabre glare. Comparing now the Play and Fun it was obvious how much the sound differed. While Fun with the Play as a source sounded almost the same, the Fun with the Mojo sounded like an amplified Mojo.
What would I like to see:
Maybe a mixture of the Play and the Fun would be a deal breaker. It could be called PLUN or FLAY. Basically the Play with additional analog line-in added, with one simple switch on the front to change between the internal dac (like in the PLAY) and external analogue source (like in the FUN).
End thoughts:
While I highly valuate and appreciate the Play, my preference goes to the Fun. The Play is still remarkable bang for the buck, it makes perfect sense if you want a quick plug & play solution. If I have a short break during the day which I want to spend with the music, I just connect the Play and start listening right away. If I want a more audiophile listening experience with some higher-end dacs or sources like sacd player, then I will certainly use the Fun.
The Fun is a stellar performer deserving clear 5 stars. Already in the basic version it is a bang for buck. Adding Burson’s V6 Vivid or Classic opamps transforms it to even higher league. Mine will continue singing with the V6 Classics.
After I already favorably reviewed the Burson's Play where it became my favourite daily companion, I was still wondering how much of its sound signature is a property of the dac and how much of the amp section alone. All dacs are supposed to sound equal, neutral and transparent, but some dacs are more equal than others
Generally I divide all my audio gears in two groups - for daytime and nighttime listening. While the engaging, agitating and upfront sound signature of the Sabre dacs might be prefered for the daytime listening, late at night, sitting relaxed in the comfy armchair with the glass of wine, Sabre’s upfront sound signature might not be for everybody’s taste. Actually it could sometimes even get on my nerves. At night I prefer somewhat more relaxed and smoother sound signature, which some other dac chips might offer. The Play incorporates the mobile version of the Sabre’s ES9018 dac chip, which is already succeded by newer ES9028 and ES9038. Probably at the time I am writing this, there are already ES9048 and ES9058 on the way. Also many of the modern dacs offer a choice of digital filters to tailor the sound to your liking, which the Play doesn’t have.
Therefore I was much looking forward to the Fun, which is a headphone amp alone, allowing you to connect the source of your choice, different dacs allowing you to play with different digital filters, or connect some other sources like your DAP or even a TV.
The Fun is a powerful dual mono Class-A headphone amp, built as a tank, which pumps a respectable 2.1W on 32 Ohms, and 330mW on 300 Ohms.
It costs $299 in the basic version featuring NE5543 X 2 op-amps and $399 in the upgraded version with the V6 Single x 2 op-amps. Interestingly, if you order the basic version for $299 and separately order the V6 Single x 2 for $70, it will cost you a little bit less. I haven’t tried the V6 Vivids, but tested the Fun both in the basic setup and with the V6 Classics.
From the connections, there are mic-in and mic-out, which I understand is a mic-through, RCA-in (2V) and RCA preamp out, and last but not least on the front plate one AUX stereo 3.5mm input. Now this is the most confusing part, because on the Burson Website there isn’t a word about it. At the moment of my writing it lists the inputs as follows:
Inputs: RCA (2V RMS line level), Mic Input
However you can find mentioning the AUX input in the FUN’s manual, which can be downloaded on their website.
This front AUX input is very handy which allows you connecting many mobile devices like phones and daps, while still having some desktop dac connected to the back of the FUN through the RCA line in.
Differences Play - Fun:
Both the Play and the Fun use custom made high speed, low noise powers supplies. When you turn on the Play there is a whining sound which goes away after a while. I was explained by the kind Burson’s techs that „the new power supply design is based on high speed switching power supply. When the machine first power up, the switching frequency is still low and you can hear some of it. But once after said 10 seconds the power supply warm up and fully charged the working frequency will go up to 170K which you should not be able to hear them.“ Well, while the Fun uses the same switching power supply, there is absolutely no noise at the power-up! It is dead silent right from the beginning even if you turn on the volume to the max.
The Play uses digital volume control with 99 steps. It has a nice feel, and it shows the digits on the display. The Fun has an analogue volume control with completely different feel to it. It has a nice resistence with much better micro-adjusting and completely different volume development.
The Fun has, I guess, a lower gain, because you have to turn the volume knob much further to get the same loudness as with the Play. With the Play using high sensitive headphones you might already hit the limit at the 20 volume setting.
The Fun gets warm, but much less so than the Play which gets really hot. This is probably because the Play uses more op-amps than the Fun.
Now, to the most important thing, the sound.
How does it sound:
It was definitely more difficult to review the sound of the Fun than the Play. It took me much longer to get my opinion. After throwing many familiar hi-rez tracks into it, listening for days through different headphones, it was a strange feeling. Does the Fun add more bass? No. Does it add some sparkling treble? Nope. Does it give you the wow effect after the first few listening? Also no. Hmmm....It took me some time to figure out what is going on here. The Fun is tremendeously neutral and transparent amp. It adds no coloration, it doesn’t manipulate the sound in any way, it doesn’t sound euphonic, nor bright, neither analytic nor warm. It is like looking through the cleanest window. When I firstly connected the Play to the Fun, I couldn’t detect any difference. AB-ing through the tracks, level carefully matched, I couldn’ be quite sure which one was I listening at the moment.
Than I connected the FiiO’s X5II dap which uses PCM1792A chip and the sound was completely different. It sounded like amplified X5II. Nothing added, nothing substracted. After connecting a range of sources there was always the same feeling, the neutrality. At the end I have connected the Chord Mojo to the Fun, and there it was. Familiar Mojo’s transparency and smoothness which I generally prefer over the Sabre glare. Comparing now the Play and Fun it was obvious how much the sound differed. While Fun with the Play as a source sounded almost the same, the Fun with the Mojo sounded like an amplified Mojo.
What would I like to see:
Maybe a mixture of the Play and the Fun would be a deal breaker. It could be called PLUN or FLAY. Basically the Play with additional analog line-in added, with one simple switch on the front to change between the internal dac (like in the PLAY) and external analogue source (like in the FUN).
End thoughts:
While I highly valuate and appreciate the Play, my preference goes to the Fun. The Play is still remarkable bang for the buck, it makes perfect sense if you want a quick plug & play solution. If I have a short break during the day which I want to spend with the music, I just connect the Play and start listening right away. If I want a more audiophile listening experience with some higher-end dacs or sources like sacd player, then I will certainly use the Fun.
The Fun is a stellar performer deserving clear 5 stars. Already in the basic version it is a bang for buck. Adding Burson’s V6 Vivid or Classic opamps transforms it to even higher league. Mine will continue singing with the V6 Classics.