[Scrimstar]

If I use this as an input DAC for an amp, will there be problems, like short circuiting? This is current flow, where amps are usually voltage increments. 

Using HD600s and DT880 600OHM, Schitt Vali 2.

 

[Apogee Don]

  If I use this as an input DAC for an amp, will there be problems, like short circuiting? This is current flow, where amps are usually voltage increments. 

Using HD600s and DT880 600OHM, Schitt Vali 2.

No, it wouldn't short-circuit an amp - with the output plugged into an amplifier it's basically just acting as a line-output. For best results turn the volume on the Groove up as high as possible without overloading the amplifier's inputs.

 

[zomvid]

.

 

[sheldaze]

  Can anyone comment how does the Groove handle BA IEMs?

http://www.apogeedigital.com/knowledgebase/groove/multi-driver-balanced-armature-iems-with-groove/

 

[zomvid]

 
http://www.apogeedigital.com/knowledgebase/groove/multi-driver-balanced-armature-iems-with-groove/

Thanks.

 

[FutureHegemon]

I've had my Groove for about a week, and I don't think I could love it any more than I do. I primarily got it for my laptop at work because the HP out sounded awful. It's my first DAC or amp, and it really makes me love listening to music much more than I already did. I find that it's almost I ever want to do whenever I can. This little guy inspired my to get a new 1TB portable drive to bring ALAC files with me to work, as well to rehab my old macbook to use it as a listening machine at home. I even hooked it up to my AV receiver and streamed HQ Spotify and ALAC through my tower speakers, and it sounds awesome. 
 
It sounds great with my B&W P7s. When I first listened to my ie80s with it, this little guy revealed the mid-bass hump that I'd read about but had never bothered me before. I guess the extra power left it with nowhere to hide, but the well-documented tape mod fixed that problem.
 
I'm sure a lot of this just stems from my having only ever used the HP outs for all my listening previously, but I feel like this little machine has brought an enormous amount of joy into my life in our week together. The first time I listened to it, I literally got shivers all over my body. I felt like I got high from music. When I had a couple of questions about the unit, Apogee customer service blew me away also. 
 
I know I'm gushing and probably sound ridiculous. I just freakin' love this thing!

 

[Kerwin515]

I've had my Groove for about two months now and I love it.  It's also my first DAC/Amp that I'm using to drive a set of LCD-XCs.  But now, I've been reading up on the Geek Out v2 and it's piqued my interest.
 
Are there any here that own both?  I'd like to know your thoughts.

 

[sheldaze]

  I've had my Groove for about two months now and I love it.  It's also my first DAC/Amp that I'm using to drive a set of LCD-XCs.  But now, I've been reading up on the Geek Out v2 and it's piqued my interest.
 
Are there any here that own both?  I'd like to know your thoughts.

I had the Geek Out v2 - it was certainly more detailed, and quite good. But in my opinion, it was only good through the balanced output into a headphone capable of balanced input. I disliked vigorously the single-ended output of the Geek Out v2.
 
And, I'm keeping the Groove - sold the Geek Out v2. Why? Groove does something unique, to my ears. While the Geek Out v2 is more like a desktop system, shrunk down, and it can be bested by a real desktop system. So that's what I did - moved onto real desktop systems. I'll repeat though, there's something special about the drive mechanism used in the Groove. You can read about it on InnerFidelity.

 

[Kerwin515]

  I had the Geek Out v2 - it was certainly more detailed, and quite good. But in my opinion, it was only good through the balanced output into a headphone capable of balanced input. I disliked vigorously the single-ended output of the Geek Out v2.
 
And, I'm keeping the Groove - sold the Geek Out v2. Why? Groove does something unique, to my ears. While the Geek Out v2 is more like a desktop system, shrunk down, and it can be bested by a real desktop system. So that's what I did - moved onto real desktop systems. I'll repeat though, there's something special about the drive mechanism used in the Groove. You can read about it on InnerFidelity.

 
Thanks, for the input, sheldaze.  What exactly about the single-ended output of the Geek Out v2 was off-putting? How did it sound compared to to the Groove?

 

[sheldaze]

   
Thanks, for the input, sheldaze.  What exactly about the single-ended output of the Geek Out v2 was off-putting? How did it sound compared to to the Groove?

It sounded rough to me - too much treble, etch, something just was not right.
 
The thing is, read the reviews in the Geek Out v2 thread(s), and look for the statements about its sound when people finally hear the balanced. I might have one in that thread too, where I was kind of blown away by the sound from the balanced.
 
I would just not bother to compare the sound from single-ended against the Groove, because I could not listen to the Geek Out v2 for very long in single-ended. It became tiresome quickly, and this was while listening on the non-fatiguing HD650 headphones.

 

[jjheadphones]

x

 

[sheldaze]

  @sheldaze
 
Would you recommend the Groove over O2/ODAC, Schiit-stack for someone who is only going to be using it with the HD650? It's hard to find people who have compared all three with this particular headphone. I've read that it's particularly suited to the HD650s. I was hoping to get your opinion since you're one of the few people who have written about it. If it's an AC power issue, do you think a powered hub would change things?

I haven't heard the O2/ODAC. There is a local member who much preferred the Schiit stack over it - less to do with sound quality and more to do with topology. In the Modi 2 Uber, he was able to bypass a power issue because the Modi is truly powered from A/C wall power. Only the USB chip is powered (or was powered - today it is also powered by A/C wall power) from USB, while the entire DAC is powered by USB in the ODAC. He similarly found he was able to run his headphones more cleanly via the Magni 2 Uber, which also has an upgraded power topology versus the original Magni or even the Magni 2.
 
But regarding your specific case, I'll have to get back to a listen of the Apogee Groove. I'll compare my Magni/Modi stack a little tonight. It has been a long while, and I've heard much more high end product (and become much more discerning of recent). The convenience of the Groove is very appealing - I just do not recall its signature, so I'd like to refresh a little.

 

[Sam21]

Can someone tell me which DAC chip this unit uses ? 
 
is it ES9018, ES9016, ES9010 or ES9023 ?

 

[Aerotec]

Just found out I won a HD650/Groove combo from Sennheiser UK at the recent CanJam event in London. Can't wait for it to arrive!

 

[saintkrusher]

If Groove manage to drive HD800s?