[russdog]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JMCIII You move too fast on too little knowledge, given you've never used one yourself...Here's a thought, why don't you buy one for yourself, try it out, and let us know if you encounter any problems?

Here's another thought: I have read multiple reports from people who have this product and who report ongoing interference problems with it. Some of them have resorted to wrapping it in tin foil. I do not think they are lying. I think they are telling the truth about their experience. So, why would I want to buy something that does that to people? I wouldn't. I will stick to products that do not feature a design that makes them susceptable to RF interference. For me, that's a better thought than buying a product with known design flaws.

But it's perfectly fine with me if you love yours. I'm not trying to say that your experience isn't real too. I'm sure you're telling me the truth as you know it to be. I'm glad that your happy with yours. But, based on the problems others have had, I'm not interested in it. And I think it's a good thing if posts around here report both sides. Love-fest threads are nice, but they should not mislead people. There should be room for mentioning the shortcomings too.

 

[warpdriver]

I have had zero noise issues with three different iPods and my Thinkpad laptop, with both a 2005 Airhead and a 2006 Bithead

 

[gtp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by russdog Here's another thought: I have read multiple reports from people who have this product and who report ongoing interference problems with it. Some of them have resorted to wrapping it in tin foil. I do not think they are lying. I think they are telling the truth about their experience. So, why would I want to buy something that does that to people? I wouldn't. I will stick to products that do not feature a design that makes them susceptable to RF interference. For me, that's a better thought than buying a product with known design flaws. But it's perfectly fine with me if you love yours. I'm not trying to say that your experience isn't real too. I'm sure you're telling me the truth as you know it to be. I'm glad that your happy with yours. But, based on the problems others have had, I'm not interested in it. And I think it's a good thing if posts around here report both sides. Love-fest threads are nice, but they should not mislead people. There should be room for mentioning the shortcomings too.

Yah, I get cell phone interference sometimes with my Total Bithead, but I also get the same or worse interference with my Pimeta, my Cmoys, my GoVibe, my TV, my car stereo, my clock radio...damn Nokia!

The Total Bithead does have its faults, but I do not consider the RF susceptibility to be one of them.

 

[JMCIII]

Quote:

Originally Posted by russdog Here's another thought: I have read multiple reports from people who have this product and who report ongoing interference problems with it. Some of them have resorted to wrapping it in tin foil. I do not think they are lying. I think they are telling the truth about their experience. So, why would I want to buy something that does that to people? I wouldn't. I will stick to products that do not feature a design that makes them susceptable to RF interference. For me, that's a better thought than buying a product with known design flaws.

"Known design flaws"

Where did that come from? It's only a design flaw if ALL products experience it. Not all Total Bitheads do. In fact, from reading the posts on this an other threads, most don't. Maybe, just maybe, there are extenuating circumstances that are causing the hum/noise/whatever?

Quote:

But it's perfectly fine with me if you love yours. I'm not trying to say that your experience isn't real too. I'm sure you're telling me the truth as you know it to be. I'm glad that your happy with yours. But, based on the problems others have had, I'm not interested in it. And I think it's a good thing if posts around here report both sides. Love-fest threads are nice, but they should not mislead people. There should be room for mentioning the shortcomings too.

No lovefest here. ALL opinions are welcome. That's how we learn. All I'm offering is just my experiences using both the old and new models. Do I hope to force you to buy one. No way. It's your money, so you get to make your choice. But, given your tone, not having any real life experience with the TBH means that all you are doing is passing on second hand (reliable maybe, but still second hand) information.

Please don't misunderstand this post as an attempt to be snotty/make fun of you/call you out/ect. That's not, nor has it ever been my position. Your opinion is as welcome as any other. I just have a problem with anyone who passes judgement on a product without ever having used it personally. That's all. So, are we OK?

 

[TomH]

The 2006 Total Bithead is nearly perfect when used within its design limitations. A particularly good combo with the HD595 and lossless or high BR MP3 out of a laptop - very satisfying with no glaring flaws.

I've had no interference (EMI) issues with mine. I did notice it will not accept line level inputs from my dedicated sources without clipping, and runs out of steam at high levels with higher impedance (300+ohm) cans. But that was not what it was designed for, hence sentence #1. IMHO a brilliant product well designed, manufactured, and supported.

 

[PiccoloNamek]

Quote:

I've used both back to back with my iPod with no (repeat that - NONE!) noise issues.

Hey, me too! The probably only arises when I put them face to back. Putting them back to back, there is no noise, even in high gain mode. It isn't a big deal to just flip my iPod around the other way, (so that the back, and not the screen, is facing the TBH) so I don't consider this a problem like I do the wireless interference.

 

[Mercuttio]

Tinfoil? Are you crazy? I'd like to SEE said reports.

I live in NYC, the land of interferance, and had NO problem with mine. Ever.

 

[PiccoloNamek]

I have a tinfoil barrier between my wireless card and the TBH. Wrapping the Bithead itself in foil has no effect at all on interference.

This, however, does. I'm kind of pissed it has come to this, though. I can still hear the static buzzing through it when I use IEMs.

Lucky, I bought this primarily as a DAC for my job at the church, and they reimbursed me for the cost, so I'm not out any money. Phew.

 

[russdog]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JMCIII "Known design flaws" Where did that come from? It's only a design flaw if ALL products experience it.

That's just not true. Not all Ford Pinto's burst into flames, but they all had the design flaw. Whether they burst into flames depended on the circumstances. The design flaw left them vulnerable to it, and left their owners at the mercy of circumstances. Same thing here: BitHead owners are at the mercy of their circumstances.

I'm not trying to make happy BitHead owners unhappy. If a BitHead works for you, that's great. But there's no reasonable way to deny the design flaw. Even HeadRoom staff have acknowledged this to customers. Which means that HeadRoom staff people are not trying to mislead people, and that's a good thing. I respect the fact that they tell customers the truth. I'm surprised only that they haven't taken steps to shield their devices better. For all I know, maybe they're working on it now so that the next generation will be better.

 

[warpdriver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by russdog That's just not true. Not all Ford Pinto's burst into flames, but they all had the design flaw. Whether they burst into flames depended on the circumstances. The design flaw left them vulnerable to it, and left their owners at the mercy of circumstances. Same thing here: BitHead owners are at the mercy of their circumstances.

I believe you are making a lot of noise for the sake of making noise.

I consider it a serious design flaw IF
- it's a safety hazard (your Pinto example) for even a small percentage of installations.
- there is no recourse (not in this case, read their return policy). Headroom is reasonable and should take care of you if you find you have problems.
- it happens exceedingly with a large percentage of installations (I've only read few people may have reported problems, it's far from being as prevalent as you are implying)

So because a few people had problems, it's suddenly a product to be avoided at all costs? Be reasonable here.

 

[Asr]

So I got my Bithead in yesterday. Let me repeat that. YESTERDAY! ZOMG! I ordered it Monday and got it in the NEXT DAY with FedEx Express Saver! I mean holy crap how did HeadRoom do that?! I know I'm just 2 states down from HeadRoom but that's just insane!

Here are 2 pics:

I unpacked the box like a raving madman I was so excited! Then I plugged it into my laptop with the K701, fired up some music...and then got disappointed. Not that the sound was bad, it was leaps and bounds better than the headphone jack. But the computer's volume sliders were all the way up, the Bithead's volume was maxed out, and it was only moderately loud out of the K701.

Does it not have the juice for the K701? Because I tried the 40-Ohm AD2K and 60-Ohm PMX 70 Sport too and those were much better.

 

[PiccoloNamek]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Asr So I got my Bithead in yesterday. Let me repeat that. YESTERDAY! ZOMG! I ordered it Monday and got it in the NEXT DAY with FedEx Express Saver! I mean holy crap how did HeadRoom do that?! I know I'm just 2 states down from HeadRoom but that's just insane! Here are 2 pics: I unpacked the box like a raving madman I was so excited! Then I plugged it into my laptop with the K701, fired up some music...and then got disappointed. Not that the sound was bad, it was leaps and bounds better than the headphone jack. But the computer's volume sliders were all the way up, the Bithead's volume was maxed out, and it was only moderately loud out of the K701. Does it not have the juice for the K701? Because I tried the 40-Ohm AD2K and 60-Ohm PMX 70 Sport too and those were much better.

Lift up the flap and move the switch to the left. This will engage high gain mode, which will increase the volume you can hear. (And the noise, too.)

 

[Sammich]

Asr: Even with the gain switch turned to "high" it still isn't loud enough? I've also heard of people getting additional juice out of it by combining the USB plug and the battery power at once.

Just bought one from Ricksome, I'm excited to get it. I don't expect I'll have the same problem as you are since my hd595s are pretty easy to drive.

 

[Asr]

Totally forgot about the gain switch. I'll have to give that a try when I get home.

 

[ComfyCan]

Asr,
Flipping the gain switch will, hopefully, give you much improvement (it did for me).

If not, the problem is probably that you have too much experience with superior sources.

I still love the Bithead, but it's a compromise solution for me that I only use when travelling, using my laptop as my music/dvd source. It cannot compete with my MicroStack in terms of SQ, but it beats the heck out of my laptop's soundcard, and I'm not about to lug my MicroStack with me on most business trips.