[bmtran]

Picked up a refurbished Sansa Fuze on woot today, and I've been looking into amplifiers to use with it. I'm looking for something portable, but something I really don't like is when there's a large mismatch between the size of the DAP and the amp when they're stacked. that said, I'm looking for a portable amp that's slightly bigger than the fuze and will stack with it well. I currently own a headroom bithead, but I feel like it's a bit too big to to use with the relatively diminutive fuze. I was looking at the iBasso D4 and the T3 as well, though the T3 seems a little too small (but it's super portable) as well as the FiiO E7.
 
Any ideas?

 

[Max F]

What headphones are you using.  You may not "need" an amp at all.  The Fuze sounds great by itself although it does have problems driving my full sized HD650s.  But I don't go out in public wearing those bad boys.

 

[bmtran]

Oh, I definitely don't "need" an amp. I just want one

 
And on that note, I'd be using it with either Sony MDR-V6, Sennheiser HD555, Shure e2c, or a future (possibly near-future) set of custom IEMs.
 
Now that I think of it, I think I have a cmoy that i built back in high school laying around somewhere. Maybe that'll do the trick.

 

[kmhaynes]

I've used both the iBasso T3 & T4 with my Fuze and while it's not the exact size as the Fuze, it's not too small for it.  The T3/4 gives room for your headphone & cable jacks not to stick out too much from the amp -- I used 90 degree jacks on my interconnect.
 
I wasn't impressed with the E7 as just an amp -- not much signal boost at 100%.  The DAC portion was excellent, but the amp needs more juice, IMO.

 

[mythless]

Depends on your price.  I would say the Pico Slim is the perfect size for it, the Pico Slim is actually a bit thinner in width, but they stack nicely if you can find the proper strap/band size.

 

[bmtran]

Quote:

I've used both the iBasso T3 & T4 with my Fuze and while it's not the exact size as the Fuze, it's not too small for it.  The T3/4 gives room for your headphone & cable jacks not to stick out too much from the amp -- I used 90 degree jacks on my interconnect.
 
I wasn't impressed with the E7 as just an amp -- not much signal boost at 100%.  The DAC portion was excellent, but the amp needs more juice, IMO.

Thanks for the help. I was worried the T3 & T4 would be a little too big, but I get what you mean about hiding behind it and keeping the cords from sticking out too much. Unfortunately, I'll be using an LOD if I did use it with an amp, so I'm not sure if it'd work out right.

 
Quote:

Depends on your price.  I would say the Pico Slim is the perfect size for it, the Pico Slim is actually a bit thinner in width, but they stack nicely if you can find the proper strap/band size.

Pico Slim looks real nice. But the price is a little up there for me right now, and the wait time is a definite minus.

 

[sashava]

Anybody tried Audio-Technica AT-PHA10?
Fits the size,fits the price - they use tech.solution similar
to Rocoo(charge pump?no output cap)

 

[RASeymour]

I'm waiting on the Arrow and that appears to be close in size.

 

[bmtran]

I've decided on either the iBasso T3 or the NuForce Icon Mobile. I really like the size of the NuForce; it's just slightly larger than the fuze in all dimensions. However, I've heard on multiple occasions on this forum that the T3 blows the NuForce out of the water when it comes to sound quality. However, the only place i see the buy the T3 is from the iBasso website which charges $22 shipping to the US which leaves it at $135 whereas the NuForce sells on amazon for $79 with free shipping. That's a 70% price increase. Obviously, this is a hifi forum, so price is not an object to a lot of the people on this site, but I think I'm gonna keep with the cheaper option for my portable setup.
 
So I'll be placing an order for the NuForce Icon Mobile by the end of the weekend.

 

[bmtran]

Received my Icon Mobile, and it sounds good! I also LOVE the size, and something unexpected is that it has the same texture on the backside that the fuze does, so they mate together really well. I'm also enjoying the DAC function, which is great, because it's not even something that I was really looking for. I haven't been exposed to the greatest of equipment or anything, but to my ears, it sounds great, and it lets me use higher impedance headphones with my fuze.
 
so yeah, mission accomplished! thanks for everyone's help!

 

[MrProggie]

The Headstage Arrow fits well with the Fuze. It got the same thickness, but is a bit larger in area.  Perhaps 20-25% larger.