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Apogee Groove Dac / Headphone Amp
Dec 27, 2015 at 11:00 AM Post #258 of 361
My setup is not as fancy but still extremely satisfied.
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Dec 27, 2015 at 12:00 PM Post #259 of 361
blse59 said:
  My setup is not as fancy but still extremely satisfied.
beerchug.gif

 
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^^^This was one of the BEST pairings I ever heard!
 
I brought it over to my brother, shoved it in his hands. He put it on his head, and I pressed play. He was amazed, and said in a "Finding Nemo" way, "Mine?" The Groove brings out things in the Sony that I did not know were there!
 
Dec 27, 2015 at 7:01 PM Post #260 of 361
sheldaze said:
  ^^^This was one of the BEST pairings I ever heard!
 
I brought it over to my brother, shoved it in his hands. He put it on his head, and I pressed play. He was amazed, and said in a "Finding Nemo" way, "Mine?" The Groove brings out things in the Sony that I did not know were there!
Click to expand...

 
Great pairing. Rich, bold, and crystal clear are how I would describe it so far.
 
Jan 4, 2016 at 2:00 PM Post #261 of 361
I just discovered something unusual about the Groove. If I power up my Windows 10 computer with the Groove already connected vs connecting the Groove with the USB after it has powered up, the output level is much different. In the latter case, the PC powers up with the internal sound card, then switches over to the Groove - and the Groove volume is much louder than if I powered up the PC with the Groove already connected. The volume is so loud, that it is able to clip the line in of consumer grade equipment. In order to prevent clipping, I need to turn the level down to about 50/100. 

However, powering up with the Groove already connected, and the volume is more in line with the default level of the internal sound card - and both can be run at 100/100 volume level without any clipping issues. I only know this because I have an input clip indicator on one of my amps - as well as line-level meters on a compressor which processes the signal. I was wondering why the sound was so compressed when I switched over to the Groove - but on days when I powered up with the Groove - no compression and cleaner sound (due to no compression).

it just seems strange to me that the output level would be so different depending on if the PC was powered up with the Groove or if the Groove was attached after power up. Weird, but now that I know this, I will always power up with the Groove attached.

The Groove is still my favorite DAC and it's been months since I've looked around for others. I use it primarily as a sound card to feed the sound system at a night club for karaoke. I'm still impressed with the distinctness of all the instruments - the sparkly treble - and clear bass. Granted, most of the patrons can't tell the difference. I'm also not taking full advantage of the current drive feature of the Groove since a line-in load is not as challenging as actual coils in cans. Driving my cans at the club is actually a Fiio E09K - without a docked E17K. And this is primarily so I can have a huge volume knob within a foot of the computer, rather than having to reach behind me and above my head to use the dedicated rack-mount headphone amp.
 
Jan 13, 2016 at 11:38 AM Post #266 of 361
mmxv said:
Drives the HD 650 so there shouldn't be much difference.

Headphones I've paired it with so far

- LCD 3
- LCD X
- Hifiman Edition X
- Sennheiser HD 650
- NAD VISO HP 50
- OPPO PM-3

All paired just fine.
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Got the groove last night, what a surprise! It drives HD-600 effortlessly and sounds so good! HD-598 is also singing. I am surprised it is so powerful with just USB2.0 and no battery or extra power supply.
 
I have been looking for a USB DAC/AMP solution for a long while for simpleness. I have a E17K which is pretty musical but not powerful enough to even drive the HD-598. I also have a Soundblaster E1 for travel. It is pretty powerful and sounds good for the price (I paid only 30 dollars) but not much more than that. I was looking at Soundblaster E5 but not sure if it sounds good enough. Now I am really glad I find the one I was looking for, the GROOVE. Now I would like o find ta easy way to play flac/wav files from NAS. A laptop is sometimes not so convenient when I am not working with a laptop.
 
Mar 11, 2016 at 2:55 PM Post #268 of 361
I am thinking of a cheap DIY solution to use Groove with iphone and a battery. what I plan to do is go get 2 micro USB cables, I will cut both and make a micro-USB to micro-USB cable, at the same time, I will take the USB-A plug, and connect the 2 wires for 5V power supply to the micro to micro cable I just made. 
 
In that way I have a Y cable, one micro goes to my lightning-microUSB adaptor on iphone, the other microUSB on Y side goes to Groove, and the USB-A goes to battery pack. What do you think?
 
Mar 22, 2016 at 3:13 PM Post #269 of 361
I've seen this solution on Youtube, and it works. It most ceertainly voids the warranty. I've also hooked to Groove directly to my Moto X 2104 with an OTG cable - and it also works - it just sucks the battery 3x faster. I've since switched phones (and carriers), but haven't tried it on my new phone.
 
Mar 22, 2016 at 3:43 PM Post #270 of 361
roy2001 said:
  I am thinking of a cheap DIY solution to use Groove with iphone and a battery. what I plan to do is go get 2 micro USB cables, I will cut both and make a micro-USB to micro-USB cable, at the same time, I will take the USB-A plug, and connect the 2 wires for 5V power supply to the micro to micro cable I just made. 
 
In that way I have a Y cable, one micro goes to my lightning-microUSB adaptor on iphone, the other microUSB on Y side goes to Groove, and the USB-A goes to battery pack. What do you think?
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I'm planning to try this instead:
 
http://www.apple.com/shop/product/MK0W2AM/A/lightning-to-usb-3-camera-adapter
 
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