[HeadphoneAddict]

I am listening to the 70 hour Amphora with BOTH my woodied recabled D2000 and APS v3 cabled Edition 9 connected at the same time, and the Amphora doesn't flinch at all with two low impedance phones at the same time. My Single Power Square Wave XL cannot do this without the sound being affected negatively. But the Amphora's sound does not change when I am listening to one phone and plug a second one into it - it is rock solid.

The Amphora is so good with the Denon and Edition 9 that I am this close " " to canceling my interest check about selling my Edition 9. With Diana Krall "Live in Paris", while the modded D2000 gives me a spot in the audience that is farther back than the Edition 9 with the performance seeming to be in a larger venue, the Edition 9 portrays the vocals and mids in an engaging way that the D2000 simply cannot approach. I just don't need both sets of closed cans... do I? What a dilemma, huh?

 

[veloaudio]

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeadphoneAddict /img/forum/go_quote.gif I am back home tonight from a 4 day spring break trip, and got to listen with my ES3X again. I have to be honest that I am noticing the background hiss to be a little more pronounced than I recall hearing right out of the box, regardless of whether with a nice DAC via line-in or via iMod (or with no source connected). I wasn't noticing very much hiss at all on my spring break with the IE8 or Phonak Audeo in the hotel room (and none with full size cans), but my Westone ES3X and Livewires 124dB/mw customs do need the Shure volume attenuator with the volume knob rolled only about 2-3 mm to wipe out the background hiss. I'll have to run out to my car to get my Westone 3 later to try again and listen for hiss. I only hear the hiss between songs or when paused and not above the music, but I can see how it can get to you knowing it is there with very sensitive IEM. I am thinking that I might want to send a spare attenuator to Ken to install internally on the 1/8" jack. Then I can open the bottom of the amp and set it and leave it alone without looking at it or losing it. But the sound quality of my Edition 9, modded Denon and ESW10 with the Amphora is so good that I may consider the amp even just for those alone. In my living room rig where I plan to have the Amphora, IEM are not practical because I need a 6-10 foot cable, and my 4-foot APS V3 extension and 4-foot Cable pro panorama are too heavy for using with iEM. At the moment the only dynamic amp in the living room rig next to my Woo GES is a head-direct EF1 which has poor channel balance at low volumes with IEM, too high gain for IEM, and at zero volume the music still comes through with IEM - so the Amphora is a big step up from that. I'll admit that if high sensitivity IEM will be the ONLY thing you listen to with the Amphora, that you likely will want to get a volume attenuator or a P-S adapter. But not all IEM demonstrate a bothersome level of hiss with it - It is mostly an issue with my customs, and 95% of the time I use the customs on my laptop rig with a small DAC/amp combo or with my iMod as a portable. However, when traveling with it at my bedside or at a desk, I may want to use it with IEM more. So, it can be an issue in those cases - but I have found no other issues of concern other than this so far. You mileage may vary.

Thanks for the comments. I've tried the Amphora with my ER6i's and I don't remember the hiss being there (which I will admit is wierd). Although I only listened with them for a brief momment. My only other headphones are my W3000. I'll do some more listening tonght after work.

I feel that I should mention that I only have maybe 10 hrs on the Amphora but it does sound really good. Warm and detailed like my Isabellina.

Ken, can you comment on the hiss? Maybe Vinnie could chime in too?.

 

[Vinnie R.]

Quote:

Ken, can you comment on the hiss? Maybe Vinnie could chime in too?.

Hi Veloaudio,

With very high sensitivity IEMs, you definitely want to use the low gain setting (gain switch in the downward position). There are some IEMs that are just so sensitive (e.g. 124dB) that they will pick up on the noise floor of the amplifier (or the noise from the source). There are also some IEMs that are not super sensitive and quiet at low gain.

And then there are headphones like the K702s, HD650, Denon D5000, Grados, Ultrasones, etc. that are dead quiet with the Amphora (even on the high gain setting).

Hi HeadphoneAddict,

Interesting point about the Shure volume attenuator. This is probably lowering the sensitivity of your ES3Xs and that is why it is removing the background noise...

Quote:

only hear the hiss between songs or when paused and not above the music, but I can see how it can get to you knowing it is there with very sensitive IEM.

It sounds like it is low-level noise (again, such sensitive IEMs are picking up on the noise floor) and not an issue when music is playing...

Please keep us posted.

Best regards,

Vinnie

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vinnie R. /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi Veloaudio, With very high sensitivity IEMs, you definitely want to use the low gain setting (gain switch in the downward position). There are some IEMs that are just so sensitive (e.g. 124dB) that they will pick up on the noise floor of the amplifier (or the noise from the source). There are also some IEMs that are not super sensitive and quiet at low gain. And then there are headphones like the K702s, HD650, Denon D5000, Grados, Ultrasones, etc. that are dead quiet with the Amphora (even on the high gain setting). Hi HeadphoneAddict, Interesting point about the Shure volume attenuator. This is probably lowering the sensitivity of your ES3Xs and that is why it is removing the background noise... It sounds like it is low-level noise (again, such sensitive IEMs are picking up on the noise floor) and not an issue when music is playing... Please keep us posted. Best regards, Vinnie

That is exactly what it is doing - we've known for a long time that they will lower sensitivity and hiss with minimal affect on the sound when SMALL volume adjustments are used. The sound quality can be affected more audibly if the volume attenuator is used primarily as a volume control to change it from loud to quiet, and such, but with these tiny adjustments it just lowers the sensitivity enough to cut the hiss very effectively.

With fairly sensitive full size cans like ESW10 and RS-1 or Edition 9 and D2000 hiss is not a problem.

 

[KB]

The Amphora was officially added to the ALO website


Regards,

 

[veloaudio]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vinnie R. /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi Veloaudio, With very high sensitivity IEMs, you definitely want to use the low gain setting (gain switch in the downward position). There are some IEMs that are just so sensitive (e.g. 124dB) that they will pick up on the noise floor of the amplifier (or the noise from the source). There are also some IEMs that are not super sensitive and quiet at low gain. And then there are headphones like the K702s, HD650, Denon D5000, Grados, Ultrasones, etc. that are dead quiet with the Amphora (even on the high gain setting). ...snip... Best regards, Vinnie

Hey Vinnie,

The specifications I've seen on the L3000 drivers is that the sensitivity is ~104 dB/mW which is close the Denon D5000. When I got home I performed a few experiments to pinpoint the noise. First with just my w3000's and the Amphora and this is definitely where the hiss is coming from. However, great news is that I must have been really tired or hearing things last night because the hiss is very minimal.

I've been on a big bluegrass kick lately and with the Amphora instrument placement is spot on. The sound is very rich with amazing presence. A very good extension of the Red Wine Isabellina.

All this and my Amphora has only 15 hrs of burn-in

-Matt

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

I have 106 hours on the Amphora now, and tonight I tried the Grado RS-1 again.

The Amphora is most definitely better with the RS-1 after some burn-in than it was out of the box. The iMod/Pvcaps/Mustang no longer has the slight lead that it held previously with RS-1. (this is still with the flats that I installed on the RS-1 back on the first day). With some pianos the Amphora is actually now ahead with the RS-1.

The goal is 200 hours of burn-in per KB. It will get charged tonight when it reaches 110 hours, then I'll continue burn-in tomorrow morning and maybe even see how long the battery lasts before it dies. I have not let it run more than about 24 hours before charging it, just to be sure it wouldn't die while I was out and about. I am doing much of the burn-in and listening with my Macbook > iBasso D10 optical > mini-RCA > Amphora, since the iMod doesn't last more than 14 hours on a charge while the D10 charges via USB and can stay topped off.

The sound signature and soundstage between these 2 sources is actually very similar when using the same lossless music (diana krall live in paris for example), with maybe about 1dB more output volume when I switch from the D10 to the iMod as source. I am not about to do a D10 vs iMod review, but the iMod is clearly above the quality of line out from a normal iPod. The D10 with native 24/96 files via optical does pull away by a small margin, but the iMod with Vcaps is pretty darn nice, especially with the Amphora.

 

[fkclo]

It is really itching reading the impressions from you early birds.

I hope I do not need to wait too long to have mine in my home

Thanks a lot for sharing the impressions. Very useful.

Regards,
F. Lo

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

I didn't get to do the battery test today because I took the Amphora to meet Blutarsky for a quick listen. With the APS v3 cabled woodied HF-1 he also likes Amphora better than the RSA P-51 Mustang. He felt it was smooth and transparent (shoulda asked if he thought it was creamy), while the P-51 he felt was brighter and more aggressive.

But he thought the TTVJ Portable Millett Hybrid was on a similar level of great sound or enjoyment. I tend to agree that the TTVJ is phenomenal with Grados, but it is a little too bassy with A900 or D2000 or Edition 9, and he didn't get to try the TTVJ with those (he just wanted the TTVJ for his Grados anyway).

I wish we'd had more time to compare them, but I was delivering the HF-1 and TTVJ to him (among other things) and picking up his O2 Mk1 for myself in trade, with my wife impatiently waiting out in the car. So, we had to keep it short.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

The Amphora ran for over 38 hours on a charge with music playing at normal levels with the Denon D2000, before running out of juice this afternoon. And it now has over 150 hours on it and sounds very refined and transparent.

Will update again later!

 

[Alwayswantmore]

Hi all, good to see very favorable comments on the Amphora...

I was the first Headfier to hear unit 000 at the Charlotte meet. I also own an Isabella with headphone jack.

I was extremely impressed with the Amphora, as I am with my Isabella.

I had never heard the word creamy used to describe audio, but being a several year owner of Red Wine gear I still got it. RWA designs backed by battery power make for an effortless presentation of sound. So creamy works for me.

I had a chance to hear a number of phones during the 4-5 days I had the unit. My top reference phone is the AKG K1000, and my 2ch RWA rig drives crystal clear Omega Alnico single drivers, so for me the K702/701s were my run away favorite of the cans I heard. But in turn they are likely the closest sonic signature to my reference transducers mentioned above.

Again, happy to see the warm reception for the amp.

Best wishes to all. Kent

 

[Alwayswantmore]

One comment on hiss: I own Ety 4P IEMs, which as Vinnie mentioned are very effecient. These driven by my Isabella have some hiss. Of the other phones I tried with the Amphora (included several at home in my dead quiet listening room), I did not notice any background noise.

Again my time with the Amphora was limited, but RWA's battery power supplies are noted for producing very black backgrounds. So if you are getting hiss, make sure the gain switch is set to low.

Also check the cable / power cord runs from your sources to minimize upstream noise.

For the record, I never tried my Etys on the Amphora. K

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

The Amphora has almost 190 hours on it now, and I am really enjoying it. I have been listening to my woodied recabled D2000 with it on and off all day long, and they just sound so transparent and unlike a closed can right now.

I like Zimm's loaner Amphora enough that I paid for and had my own Amphora shipped out today. This is basically going to replace my EF1 that was in my living room rig next to my Woo GES (The EF1 had replaced the DV336i because it had better synergy with D2000 and RS-1). I have my whole living room rig centered around my PS Audio Digital Link III and Woo GES, with the EF1 looped out of the GES as an after thought.

So I've come up with a whole new plan for my rig out there. I elected to not get the iMod dock version and just use my DLO Homedock HD with my iMod and Amphora, which will charge my iMod or iPod. I'll feed the DLO RCA out into the Amphora 1/8" input (ALO SXC mini-RCA). And I'll feed the PS Audio Digital Link III into the Amphora's RCA inputs. Then I can easily switch between my iMod or DL3. I have several digital sources to pick from - the Airport Express, DLO dock optical out, Samsung DVD/CD, or my Macbook Pro.

I'll use my Isomax XLR>RCA transformer to take the XLR out of the DL3 and feed the signal to my Woo GES which has a pair of RCA inputs but no XLR. I can feed the Amphora's pre-amp out into the GES's other set of inputs. Then when listening to the GES I could also switch that amp between listening to the iMod through Amphora or listening to the PS Audio (either through the Amphora or bypassing it).

So, I can lay on the couch listening to any of my cans, and with my iPhone I can control my iTunes library playing through the Airport Express, or use the DLO remote to control the iMod.

Should be sweet.

 

[digihead]

Larry - what do you think of the amphora synergy with the ATH esw10jpn? Was considering this as an office rig. Also, I read some comments about a technical sound issue when using the imod and the dock? Any insight? Have you tried the Es3x with an attenuator? Also, did you have your amphora built with an attenuator built in to the 1/8 output as you mentioned earlier? Sorry for all the questions. Inquiring minds want to know.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Quote:

Originally Posted by digihead /img/forum/go_quote.gif Larry - what do you think of the amphora synergy with the ATH esw10jpn? Was considering this as an office rig. Also, I read some comments about a technical sound issue when using the imod and the dock? Any insight? Have you tried the Es3x with an attenuator? Also, did you have your amphora built with an attenuator built in to the 1/8 output as you mentioned earlier? Sorry for all the questions. Inquiring minds want to know.

1) The Amphora and ESW10 synergy is great. No doubt they will sound good with it for you.

2) I have never had a sound issue, or clicking or popping with the iMod and built-in dock.

3) I have tried the iMod with iMod LOD>RCA with no pop/noise issues, except for a brief moment when the hibernating iMod was powering up and the Amphora just came off charging, where the volume knob had a quiet popping as I rotated the knob up and down. But only for about 3 seconds and once the iPod via iMod cable was powered up the knob would not repeat the noise.

I don't have a non-iMod LOD-RCA to try. And this amphora has a built in dock without the 1/8" input, so I can't try any of my non-iMod LOD-mini cables till mine arrives this weekend. With the iMod Blackgates LOD>RCA feeding the Amphora, there is very little change from using the built-in dock. At first I wanted to say slightly more bass and slightly less transparency with the cable having the blackgates in it, but after switching back and forth 5 or 6 times I find the differences very minimal.

4) I posted my thoughts earlier in the thread about the ES3X with attenuator and the sound is great. I decided not to permanently mod my Amphora with an internal attenuator on the 1/8" plug. Since the ES3X and Livewires sound fine with the external attenuator and all my full size phones have been recabled with a 1/8" plug, I don't need the attenuator permanently in-line with my full size cans. I do not need the attenuator with the Senn IE8 or W3. Although there is a slight hiss with them at the level of what I get from my macbook headphone out, they are useable without it (the W3 slightly more hiss than the IE8). The attenuator does help them go silent, so it is useful. The hiss was not a deal breaker, so I went through with the purchase that I had planned since my first 24 hours with the Amphora.

5) I am shipping my Westone 3 to Vinnie today, and he will listen to the background hiss, and send them to Ken Ball to listen to as well. I told him to expect another 2-3dB of hiss with the ES3X or Livewires, vs what he hears with the W3. I didn't want them to spend $400 on a sensitive IEM for testing, when I have so many here that I can live without W3 for a few weeks.