[JMCIII]

Quote:

Originally Posted by PiccoloNamek Hmm. Moderately old thread. But I have to post as well. I swore I'd never buy a headphone amplifier. I swore I wouldn't. I said I wouldn't need one, that I would never have a use for such things. But now I have. And it's all your fault. I got the Total Bithead partially because I need (heh) an amp, and partially because my laptop's sound is out, and I need sound to edit audio files. My credit card has a hole melted in it now, thanks to you guys. I picked priority overnight shipping from HeadRoom and just can't wait until tomorrow (well, technically, it is tomorrow!) I hope this thing rocks. Good thing my paycheck arrives soon, too.

Ah, you won't regret it. I'm willing to bet that once you get it, and once you begin to hear what it can do, you're gonna kick yourself for not getting it sooner. It rocks.

Keep us informed.

 

[PaulRivers]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JMCIII Ah, you won't regret it. I'm willing to bet that once you get it, and once you begin to hear what it can do, you're gonna kick yourself for not getting it sooner. It rocks. Keep us informed.

Just to provide another point of view, I really like "full, rich" sound, and I've found the Total Bithead's sound to be the opposite of that. Because of this, I've found I prefer my laptop's sound card sound. Of course - I also don't own any high impedance headphones, so perhaps buying an amp wasn't the best idea.

 

[JMCIII]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mercuttio Well... we'll just see. I think I need to pick up some IEM or a better portable phone before I start getting into the precious metal cables. Every time I get a paycheck, my frothing demand to try out an Etymotic increases.

OK, times almost up, have I tempted you enough yet.

Come on, you know you want it, you even know you need it, so go ahead, make the buy. It'll make you happy. Don't you trust me?

 

[JMCIII]

Quote:

Originally Posted by PaulRivers Just to provide another point of view, I really like "full, rich" sound, and I've found the Total Bithead's sound to be the opposite of that. Because of this, I've found I prefer my laptop's sound card sound. Of course - I also don't own any high impedance headphones, so perhaps buying an amp wasn't the best idea.

I would use the term neutral myself, but you're correct, it isn't full & rich. If that's the sound you're looking for, I'd recommend looking elsewhere. But if you want to hear exactly what both the music and the headphones sound like, the TBH is your amp of choice.

Oh, and it works wonders with my AKG K 81 DJ's, which, by the way, are not high impedance. Works great with my K 601's too.

 

[Sammich]

Reading this thread has been nice. I've been considering the bithead, but based on various comments (like PaulRivers) I have become unsure as to whether the Bithead would substantially improve the sound quality on my hd595s. But it sounds pretty universal (with few exceptions) that this is the amp that gives the sound I'm looking for.

 

[PiccoloNamek]

Ok, so it arrived today. It sounds good. Great, actually. Much better than my laptop's onboard sound. But there is one serious problem. The unit picks up a LOT of interference from any kind of electronic device. I can't have it anywhere near my laptop without hearing a constant "bzz... bzz... bzz", and I can't get it anywhere near my iPod without hearing a constant, high-pitched, squeal. This is very, very bad.

I've been using it with my Shure E4Gs, and I would like to say that the sound seems to have more bass punch, but I'm sure it's just the placebo effect. But then again, I'm a skeptic about these things, so I might be suffering from the nocebo effect.

The crossfade button doesn't make any difference at all with any kind of music or headphones. Or perhaps I just can't tell.

I might have to send it back. The interference is just unacceptable. I have the unit about two and a half feet from my laptop (it isn't connected) and it is still picking up interference from it.

Edit: So, I've figured out two things. The interference from my laptop seems to be coming from my wireless card, and the interference from my ipod seems to be coming from the screen. If I put the amp and the iPod back to back, the squeeking stops. Blocking the effects of the wireless card will be more difficult.

 

[Sammich]

I've heard about people having Bithead problems with interference from wireless devices before. Haven't seen anything to say if there's a way to fix it.

 

[ComfyCan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by PiccoloNamek Ok, so it arrived today. It sounds good. Great, actually. Much better than my laptop's onboard sound. But there is one serious problem. The unit picks up a LOT of interference from any kind of electronic device. I can't have it anywhere near my laptop without hearing a constant "bzz... bzz... bzz", and I can't get it anywhere near my iPod without hearing a constant, high-pitched, squeal. This is very, very bad. I've been using it with my Shure E4Gs, and I would like to say that the sound seems to have more bass punch, but I'm sure it's just the placebo effect. But then again, I'm a skeptic about these things, so I might be suffering from the nocebo effect. The crossfade button doesn't make any difference at all with any kind of music or headphones. Or perhaps I just can't tell. I might have to send it back. The interference is just unacceptable. I have the unit about two and a half feet from my laptop (it isn't connected) and it is still picking up interference from it. Edit: So, I've figured out two things. The interference from my laptop seems to be coming from my wireless card, and the interference from my ipod seems to be coming from the screen. If I put the amp and the iPod back to back, the squeeking stops. Blocking the effects of the wireless card will be more difficult.

Weird; I never had any conflicts using wireless and the Bithead simultaneously. What kind of wireless card/adapter are you using?

Crossfeed is one of those things, in my experience, that takes a bit of time to appreciate. On some tracks, it's impact is more noticeable than on others. I like it, but primarily because I find it reduces fatigue when listening over a long period of time (which I do daily). The only time I don't use crossfeed is when I'm listening to some movies or DVD-A's where crossfeed detracts from the "surround" experience--it all depends on the recording though.

 

[PiccoloNamek]

I'm using a Belkin wireless G card. The crossfeed seems to have a more noticable effect on my SR-60s. It is very subtle, but it is there. I'm not sure if it really alters the sound signature other than that, though. I can't really test this thing out until I get some really high impedance phones.

 

[JMCIII]

Quote:

Originally Posted by PiccoloNamek Ok, so it arrived today. It sounds good. Great, actually. Much better than my laptop's onboard sound. But there is one serious problem. The unit picks up a LOT of interference from any kind of electronic device. I can't have it anywhere near my laptop without hearing a constant "bzz... bzz... bzz", and I can't get it anywhere near my iPod without hearing a constant, high-pitched, squeal. This is very, very bad.

Call Headroom and let them know. They are a good company to deal with, and they may be aware of this problem and have a fix, or, they may deem your unit broken and send you a working replacement.


Quote:

The crossfade button doesn't make any difference at all with any kind of music or headphones. Or perhaps I just can't tell.

As was explained above, this feature is one that some people notice right away, and some take a bit before it becomes evident. it is muisc dependant.

Quote:

I might have to send it back. The interference is just unacceptable. I have the unit about two and a half feet from my laptop (it isn't connected) and it is still picking up interference from it. Edit: So, I've figured out two things. The interference from my laptop seems to be coming from my wireless card, and the interference from my ipod seems to be coming from the screen. If I put the amp and the iPod back to back, the squeeking stops. Blocking the effects of the wireless card will be more difficult.

As I said, call Headroom, give them all this information, and I'm sure they'll have an answer for you. They are there to help. Great customer service.

 

[PiccoloNamek]

HeadRoom says I can expect interference from wireless activity and iPods. Oh well. I found a longer USB cable and I've managed to isolate the unit from the wireless card, so I'm not hearing the static any more, so all is well.

The guy told me I should let my amp burn in a little more. Hehe. I didn't know solid state components needed to be burnt in.

The crossfeed effect is becoming more and more noticable on my Grados now that I know what I'm looking for. The soundstage seems to expand out of my head to slightly outside my ears. It just sounds wider and less closed-in. Nice.

 

[JMCIII]

Glad they were able to help, and that you found a solution as well. Sounds like alls well with your headphone world. Congrats.

 

[afobisme]

crap, i was thinking about buying a total bithead too

can someone fill me in... if the total bithead is a USB2.0 powered soundcard, isn't your notebook the DAP? why would you need to have the ipod?

 

[Nick Christy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by afobisme crap, i was thinking about buying a total bithead too can someone fill me in... if the total bithead is a USB2.0 powered soundcard, isn't your notebook the DAP? why would you need to have the ipod?

Would you like me to post a pic of me at the gym with my notebook strapped to my waist to answer that , or would you just accept the answer "because the ipod is smaller" ?

 

[Nick Christy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sammich Reading this thread has been nice. I've been considering the bithead, but based on various comments (like PaulRivers) I have become unsure as to whether the Bithead would substantially improve the sound quality on my hd595s. But it sounds pretty universal (with few exceptions) that this is the amp that gives the sound I'm looking for.

Makes a BIG difference on my 595's. Soundstage, bass, instrument separation. More definition and more impact.

I think there may be better amps but its a big enough difference to be well worth the money, PLUS its an upgraded sound card and a Headphone splitter too. Battery life is amazing.

I've had no interference problems at all on mine, it's always worked seamlessly.

Great little amp.