Anyone using the TTVJ Slim ?

[estreeter]

Hi All,
 
     I'm afraid the 'Reviews' flagged by Head-Fi's search engine are just threads discussing the amp rather than actual impressions, and the Slim doesnt seem to get a lot of keystrokes. There are a couple of impressions over at Headfonia, but I think Skylab's reviews of Todd's earlier portable amp effort may have dampened enthusiasm for the Slim. There was a flurry of excitement around the Pico Slim and the RSA Shadow, significantly less so for the TTVJ Slim.
 
    Happy to hear from anyone who owns/has owned this amp - I wont be trying to drive orthos with it, so I'm more interested in your overall impressions of the sound than its ability to drive big cans. I like the form factor and the layout (line-in at the rear, headphone out at the front), but sonics are top priority.
 
Thanks,
 
estreeter

 

[Gilles De Rais]

Hi estreeter,
 
fellow resident of Australia here (Sydney) and owner of a TTVJ Slim. I use it with Ortofon Eq-7 and Beyerdynamic T50p. My thoughts? The most capable portable amp I have used (others include Headroom Micro, Corda HeadSix, Nuforce Mobile Icon, Mini-Box D). Bought it early last year in preference to a Headstage Arrow & Pico slim (timeline for delivery too elastic) a RSA P51 Mustang, ALO RX and Meier Stepdance (their respective sound signatures didn't quite jell with my preferences, though I could have probably lived with them).
 
I find that it significantly improves instrument separation over a straight ipod and similarly gives more cohesion and definition at both treble and bass extremes over an ipod. (G3 64gb Touch w/lossless files). Where it really scores with me, however, is in its PRaT - it is remarkablely easy to follow the pace of virtually any instrument through the TTVJ Slim. As a Naimee/Flat Earther this is pretty important to me, far more than things like soundstage. This to me is best shown by comparison to the Headroom - big soundstage (especially with the crossfeed switched on) but yet somehow diffuse and amorphous, which really drags the tempi. If I was going to sum up the diffs, the Headroom sounds like American hifi, wheras the TTVJ sounds like British stuff. 
 
The amp lends itself well to all kinds of genres - I have very catholic tastes and may move from Miles Davis Agharta (awesome fusion almost jazz-metal-funk) to Espers II (folktronica) to Squarepusher to Dead Can Dance to Beatles to New York Dolls to Shostakovich to Bach to Neu! etc. Ain't found anything to trip it up.
 
Headfonia has a new review of portable amps http://www.headfonia.com/the-usual-suspects-12-portable-amps-compared/ which I think gives a reasonable summary of this toy and its competitors.
 
Purchase from TTVJ was easy and quick.
 
regards,
 
Giles

 

[estreeter]

Thank you so much for that, Giles - your impressions are so much more detailed than anything else I have read about this amp. As I said, the threads marked as 'Review' are a bit of a joke.
 
Now all I have to do is find the cash for this, the WA6 and the Ms-PRO : I can then die happy
 
 

 

[Gilles De Rais]

Quote:

Now all I have to do is find the cash for this, the WA6 and the Ms-PRO : I can then die happy
 
 

In this hobby (which I think of as a sub-cult of the broader hifi church) no-one dies happy...maybe poorer, but never happy...
 
regards,
 
Giles

 

[Kunlun]

Thanks Giles, I'm trying to decide between the ttvj slim and the arrow. I saw the headfonia multi-review, it sounds like the arrow is smaller and a little cheaper, but the ttvj has a better overall sound, particularly in the treble.

 

[estreeter]

Quote:

Thanks Giles, I'm trying to decide between the ttvj slim and the arrow. I saw the headfonia multi-review, it sounds like the arrow is smaller and a little cheaper, but the ttvj has a better overall sound, particularly in the treble.

Please read ALL the posts about the Arrow, particularly Skylabs. I'm not trying to dig up old ground, but I think you need a bit of background. By contrast, I have never seen anything other than positive feedback on Todd's products.
 

 

[Kunlun]

Hmm, I remember reading that there was some drama as the guy behind the Arrow had gotten caught copying some code from another maker of amps.
 
I take it you feel like this is the reason not to buy from this guy? Is there another issue I haven't heard about?
 
 
Well, the TTVJ Slim seems as though it would be a better product in some ways, I'd like to hear more from people who have it.

 

[estreeter]

Kunlun, I cant get into specifics because a lot of it is old ground, but it goes beyond the issue you have mentioned. Please track down those old threads before you order anything.

 

[estreeter]

Hmm, maybe its not all 'old ground' - this was posted yesterday:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/546701/is-there-any-other-way-to-reach-headphonia-headstage-s

 

[pekingduck]

I love mine and I use it exclusively with my JH13's. Sound signature is lovely, very tube-like but not overly warm. Mids are full bodied, treble is a clean and smooth, and bass very tight.
 
Also love the digital volume pot for precise control with no channel imbalance and hiss. A BIG plus for IEM users.
 
Some minor quibbles: (1) Soundstage could be bigger (2) The LED is too bright (3) The on/off thump is a bit annoying
 
I prefer the TTVJ Slim over the Pico Slim with the JH13's.

 

[Kunlun]

Awesome PekingDuck,
 
Anyone else have ttvj slim experiences?

 

[adktitan]

I had one with DAC. Sold it, and I regret it. I will be buying another soon. It was great. Matched very well with both my iphone on the go, and iMac at home. The service from TTVJ is great as well. 

 

[estreeter]

Quote:

I love mine and I use it exclusively with my JH13's. Sound signature is lovely, very tube-like but not overly warm. Mids are full bodied, treble is a clean and smooth, and bass very tight.
 
Also love the digital volume pot for precise control with no channel imbalance and hiss. A BIG plus for IEM users.
 
Some minor quibbles: (1) Soundstage could be bigger (2) The LED is too bright (3) The on/off thump is a bit annoying
 
I prefer the TTVJ Slim over the Pico Slim with the JH13's.

Isnt on/off thump potentially damaging for sensitive IEMs like the JH13s ? Not really a concern for me, as I will be driving fullsize phones, but it may be for others.
 

 

[adktitan]

Quote:

Isnt on/off thump potentially damaging for sensitive IEMs like the JH13s ? Not really a concern for me, as I will be driving fullsize phones, but it may be for others.
 

one could always plug something like the jh13's in after they turned the amp on and unplug them after the music has ceased before deciding to power down...just a thought...if it's a concern...

 

[Gilles De Rais]

Hi estreeter,
 
What may I ask are the full-size phones you'll be using the amp with?
 
While I'm a great fan of the TTVJ there is no way I'd use them to drive a mid to high impedance headphone (greater than 32 ohms). Amongst my many phones are AKG K271mk11 (55 Ohm impedance) and Beyer Dt880 (2005 model 300ohm impedance) both of which can be driven by the TTVJ slim, but not satisfactorily to my ears. For both of those really its desktop amp or nothing. As you are getting a Woo that should be fine for these types of phones
 
With some of these phones I suspect that portable amps can't really deliver the current necessary for good driver control (just my thoughts, but I feel it does explain why some users complain about the pointlessness of portable amps with particular phones). I know every (and I mean every) mobile amp manufacturer claims that these puppys will drive anything and sure they will increase the volume, but with little control (especially at the extremes) or dynamic subtlety.
 
Now with IEMs I find that impedance is less of a factor - the eq7s are 40 ohms and there are no problems driving those with the TTVJ, nor has there been any issue with the Ultimate Ears and Etymotics lying around the place.
 
Just some thoughts to consider.
 
regards,
 
Giles