FreeBlues
100+ Head-Fier
I may have finally gotten as close to perfection as one can get with portable audio. My rig has been evolving for a while now and the final "missing link" has been uncovered.
Enter the 5.5g iMod and, more specifically, the portable vcap. For the uninitiated, the new iMods require a set of external capacitors, external to the iMod itself. Audio Line Out (ALO) puts these caps into the dock connection to the iMod, although they are small enough as to be undetectable, at least to me. Compared to a standard iPod with a dock connector, the iMod is a significant step up. Imaging, depth, soundstage, clarity, frequency extension, these are all vastly better on an iMod. If I had to put a number, I’d put the improvement at about 30% over a regular iPod with a dock connector (the step from the regular headphone out to a dock connector with amp is greater still).
As good as the iMod is, the vcap is an enormous additional step. The vcap is a separate box with 2 gigantic capacitors, nothing more. It has an input for the dock connection from the iMod and output connectors, both mini and RCA. Okay, it’s another large box and can make your rig even less portable – you have an imod, vcap and amp, but if you’re willing to carry the load, the sonic payoff is more than worth the effort!
My system is about as good as I can get it and is very sensitive to changes. Along with the iMod (all files ALAC) I have Jumbo Cryo X Silver cables from ALO, both dock and amp connections, a PRII (upgraded) and UE-11 IEMs. Yeah, it’s an over the top system, but I listen 2 to 3 hours every day (at the gym) and having as good a sound as I can get is important.
So, what does the vcap add? A lot! All the above things I said about the iMod apply to the vcap, and more. In particular, I am blown away by the increase in depth. Musicians are now not only standing across a wide space in my head, the stage they are playing on has taken truly 3d dimensions, front to back. The music has an amazing amount of additional clarity – I’m hearing details is songs I’ve literally been listening to for over 30 years, all this without trying very hard. The bass, already quite good, has become tighter and lower at the same time. UE-11’s can almost be called bass heavy, but the proportion is better and much more natural with the vcap in line. Mids and treble, the really strong suit of the PRII, just go forever and have gotten even better. Clear, relaxed, transparent and so sweet.
The biggest difference is how much more “musical” the whole system is. It’s not harsh, bright, bloated or slow. It has both weight and clarity. Everything seems so much more effortless. I hear things without trying, I get lost now in the music where before I was just a spectator. True story, I almost fell off the treadmill yesterday while listening, I’d forgotten what I was doing and where I was!
Since I’ve added all these various components incrementally I’ve been able to hear the effect each individual component adds to the system. The line out to portable amp was huge, as were the UE-11’s. the iMod was a big step, clearly better and more important than, say, a different amp. The vcap addition has really brought it all together, the improvement is every bit and perhaps even a bit more than the upgrade from iPod to iMod.
Finally, one last word about Ken at ALO. Not only is his service as good as it gets, order on Thursday, product arrives on Monday, he answers email instantly and, most important to me, gives me honest, realistic opinions on what he thinks a product will do in my system.
Overall, highly recommended.
Enter the 5.5g iMod and, more specifically, the portable vcap. For the uninitiated, the new iMods require a set of external capacitors, external to the iMod itself. Audio Line Out (ALO) puts these caps into the dock connection to the iMod, although they are small enough as to be undetectable, at least to me. Compared to a standard iPod with a dock connector, the iMod is a significant step up. Imaging, depth, soundstage, clarity, frequency extension, these are all vastly better on an iMod. If I had to put a number, I’d put the improvement at about 30% over a regular iPod with a dock connector (the step from the regular headphone out to a dock connector with amp is greater still).
As good as the iMod is, the vcap is an enormous additional step. The vcap is a separate box with 2 gigantic capacitors, nothing more. It has an input for the dock connection from the iMod and output connectors, both mini and RCA. Okay, it’s another large box and can make your rig even less portable – you have an imod, vcap and amp, but if you’re willing to carry the load, the sonic payoff is more than worth the effort!
My system is about as good as I can get it and is very sensitive to changes. Along with the iMod (all files ALAC) I have Jumbo Cryo X Silver cables from ALO, both dock and amp connections, a PRII (upgraded) and UE-11 IEMs. Yeah, it’s an over the top system, but I listen 2 to 3 hours every day (at the gym) and having as good a sound as I can get is important.
So, what does the vcap add? A lot! All the above things I said about the iMod apply to the vcap, and more. In particular, I am blown away by the increase in depth. Musicians are now not only standing across a wide space in my head, the stage they are playing on has taken truly 3d dimensions, front to back. The music has an amazing amount of additional clarity – I’m hearing details is songs I’ve literally been listening to for over 30 years, all this without trying very hard. The bass, already quite good, has become tighter and lower at the same time. UE-11’s can almost be called bass heavy, but the proportion is better and much more natural with the vcap in line. Mids and treble, the really strong suit of the PRII, just go forever and have gotten even better. Clear, relaxed, transparent and so sweet.
The biggest difference is how much more “musical” the whole system is. It’s not harsh, bright, bloated or slow. It has both weight and clarity. Everything seems so much more effortless. I hear things without trying, I get lost now in the music where before I was just a spectator. True story, I almost fell off the treadmill yesterday while listening, I’d forgotten what I was doing and where I was!
Since I’ve added all these various components incrementally I’ve been able to hear the effect each individual component adds to the system. The line out to portable amp was huge, as were the UE-11’s. the iMod was a big step, clearly better and more important than, say, a different amp. The vcap addition has really brought it all together, the improvement is every bit and perhaps even a bit more than the upgrade from iPod to iMod.
Finally, one last word about Ken at ALO. Not only is his service as good as it gets, order on Thursday, product arrives on Monday, he answers email instantly and, most important to me, gives me honest, realistic opinions on what he thinks a product will do in my system.
Overall, highly recommended.
