My audio connective trail and setup:
16 & 24-Bit WAV lossless files,
Foobar2000 with WASAPI event output,
Digital optical toslink cable,
Gustard DAC-X10 (with a HiFi Tuning internal fuse) connected to a custom solid core silver power cable,
custom pure silver XLR cable/Oyaide Neo d+ class B XLR cable,
all connected to a custom Russ Andrews Yello power mains extension with a Supra gold plated UK mains plug with a gold plated AMR fuse inside.
Hi guys.
Maybe not many people bought this amp or maybe it was discontinued quickly and replaced by a newer model, I’m not sure but I just have to review this thing!
Please note: this amp originally had a fixed moulded EU Schuko plug but I re-terminated it fitting a gold-plated UK plug and a AMR gold-plated 13 amp fuse.
I did not change it’s 1x TL072CP dual opamp.
It's been burned in for 100 hours minimum, I mainly listed to them with my custom pure silver XLR cables.
In case you don't know, Lake People make Violectric amps and they generally get very good reviews but this is the first Lake People amp I have heard. I have not heard a Violectric amp before but I've tried a few amps and I generally prefer solid state amps.
This amp is tiny, a bit bigger than the palm of my hand.
But it’s build quality is top drawer, excellent fit and finish. A full metal enclosure with a simple design, you can open the top metal cover to change it's opamp.
It doesn’t easily move around as it is of a decent weight and has good rubber feet.
The volume control dial is grippy and you can make small adjustments.
It’s annoying that it does have a fixed power cable and that it has 1 pair of balanced XLR inputs but only single ended unbalanced 6.3mm jack port.
But at least there are 2 of them.
The newer and current Lake People headphone amps have IEC ports for power but they don’t make many amps that have 4 pin XLR headphone ports, which is annoying.
Come on guys, sort it out.
“If you build it, they will buy it” : )
Sound.
Holy moley!
This little amp is very capable and powerful, VERY! A great achievement from such a small piece of kit.
It handled the following headphones with such ease:
Focal Elear,
Fostex TH7,
Audio Technica ATH-R70X (made in Japan version),
HiFiMan HE-400,
Beyerdynamic T90 Jubilee and T70P,
Sennheiser HD 580.
The volume dial never reached the 12 o’clock position, such was the loudness and power it delivered!
It sounds absolutely fantastic!
It is warm sounding but fast, airy but intimate.
It’s very lively and punchy, like the Elear cans funnily enough.
It has amazing bass with great slam and impact, great texture and definition, there’s a smoothness to it.
The mids are brilliant, there’s meatiness to them.
The vocals sound excellent too, great realism and authenticity to them. Female or male singers.
The highs are detailed with good sparkle and clarity, it’s not a bright or harsh sounding solid state amp.
It is also dead silent, no noise or humming during use. Inky black backgrounds, as they say.
It’s not as spacious as the SMSL SAP-10 but this amp gives so much life and energy to your cans, so much. That is a very important factor and you just know it can drive a huge majority of cans too.
Even though it is single ended, it may just be my favourite amp I have ever heard. Maybe more so than the Beyerdynamic A1 amp, it is definitely more powerful that's for sure.
A true joy to use, I definitely want to try more Lake People and Violectric amps in the future.
I highly recommend it, if you can find one that is.
16 & 24-Bit WAV lossless files,
Foobar2000 with WASAPI event output,
Digital optical toslink cable,
Gustard DAC-X10 (with a HiFi Tuning internal fuse) connected to a custom solid core silver power cable,
custom pure silver XLR cable/Oyaide Neo d+ class B XLR cable,
all connected to a custom Russ Andrews Yello power mains extension with a Supra gold plated UK mains plug with a gold plated AMR fuse inside.
Hi guys.
Maybe not many people bought this amp or maybe it was discontinued quickly and replaced by a newer model, I’m not sure but I just have to review this thing!
Please note: this amp originally had a fixed moulded EU Schuko plug but I re-terminated it fitting a gold-plated UK plug and a AMR gold-plated 13 amp fuse.
I did not change it’s 1x TL072CP dual opamp.
It's been burned in for 100 hours minimum, I mainly listed to them with my custom pure silver XLR cables.
In case you don't know, Lake People make Violectric amps and they generally get very good reviews but this is the first Lake People amp I have heard. I have not heard a Violectric amp before but I've tried a few amps and I generally prefer solid state amps.
This amp is tiny, a bit bigger than the palm of my hand.
But it’s build quality is top drawer, excellent fit and finish. A full metal enclosure with a simple design, you can open the top metal cover to change it's opamp.
It doesn’t easily move around as it is of a decent weight and has good rubber feet.
The volume control dial is grippy and you can make small adjustments.
It’s annoying that it does have a fixed power cable and that it has 1 pair of balanced XLR inputs but only single ended unbalanced 6.3mm jack port.
But at least there are 2 of them.
The newer and current Lake People headphone amps have IEC ports for power but they don’t make many amps that have 4 pin XLR headphone ports, which is annoying.
Come on guys, sort it out.
“If you build it, they will buy it” : )
Sound.
Holy moley!
This little amp is very capable and powerful, VERY! A great achievement from such a small piece of kit.
It handled the following headphones with such ease:
Focal Elear,
Fostex TH7,
Audio Technica ATH-R70X (made in Japan version),
HiFiMan HE-400,
Beyerdynamic T90 Jubilee and T70P,
Sennheiser HD 580.
The volume dial never reached the 12 o’clock position, such was the loudness and power it delivered!
It sounds absolutely fantastic!
It is warm sounding but fast, airy but intimate.
It’s very lively and punchy, like the Elear cans funnily enough.
It has amazing bass with great slam and impact, great texture and definition, there’s a smoothness to it.
The mids are brilliant, there’s meatiness to them.
The vocals sound excellent too, great realism and authenticity to them. Female or male singers.
The highs are detailed with good sparkle and clarity, it’s not a bright or harsh sounding solid state amp.
It is also dead silent, no noise or humming during use. Inky black backgrounds, as they say.
It’s not as spacious as the SMSL SAP-10 but this amp gives so much life and energy to your cans, so much. That is a very important factor and you just know it can drive a huge majority of cans too.
Even though it is single ended, it may just be my favourite amp I have ever heard. Maybe more so than the Beyerdynamic A1 amp, it is definitely more powerful that's for sure.
A true joy to use, I definitely want to try more Lake People and Violectric amps in the future.
I highly recommend it, if you can find one that is.
