[elton7033]

Just had audition today, let me drop mini impression. I tried CA1000 use as preamplifier and stand-alone setup.
Listening gear Noble Sultan Damascus and TH900.

Please note: the result/impression may vary with different setup. Below are as-is impression i got during demo.
As Preamplifier, i use RCA to 3.5 to connect from SP2000 and P6 Pro.
The output sound overall is okay, quite transparent, i could still recognize R2R sound from P6 Pro but not clean.
From SP2000, there is some noise, i still can recognize the tone of SP2000 here.

As stand-alone with Sultan, you will be greet by familiar sound/AK house sound tuning. The sound is gentle, round, clean.
SP2000 sound more vivid compare to CA1000. For its price range, i would say DAC perform quite well.
Now, speaking some feature that caught my attentions:
- Crossfeed, really good work as advertised, i would like to see this feature carry to AK next flagship
- Replaygain, haven't really tried it but also i want to see this feature in next release
- LDAC, Double-tap to wake

As stand-alone with TH900, CA1000 can deliver good dynamic, in term of power, i would say as good as C9.
Some issue i encounter, the touchscreen sometimes not register during navigation. I need to go back or hold the screen and press harder.

seems its not better than the sp2000 then, but more power for more demanding iem its always better.

 

[LabelH]

seems its not better than the sp2000 then, but more power for more demanding iem its always better.

Yes, in term of SQ i still prefer SP2000. CA1000 however has advantages in term of power and versatility like 4.4

Additional thought on CA1000, i think having physical gain control is better and display control is read-only. So it's convenient to switch gain when display off.

 

[vonBaron]

How close is CA1000 to SP2000SS in term of SQ? Where is this phisical gain swith?

 

[LabelH]

How close is CA1000 to SP2000SS in term of SQ? Where is this phisical gain swith?

I would say the tuning is similar but the presentation are different. I use SP2000cu, which have brighter and more vivid presentation than CA1000.
CA1000 has smoother presentation. I'm not good at detail describe.. hope other who hear can also chime in

Physical gain switch is just an idea, it's not available on CA1000, but i thought it would be nice if they include it. Like when i testing from IEM to HP, i need to switch back and forth the gain.

 

[Nostoi]

Impressions of CA1000 vs M17 eagerly sought...

In addition, for those who speak Japanese:

 

[vonBaron]

I'm curious how CA1000 compare to Fiio M17.

 

[BlueA]

Does it bypass battery mode when connected to USB charging ?
Will improve a lot its lifetime.

 

[Nostoi]

I'm curious how CA1000 compare to Fiio M17.

Will be comparing with my M17 hopefully in next day or so. Perfectly happy with the M17, but curious to demo the CA1000.

 

[Nostoi]

Can anyone tell me how much 15Vrms translates into Mw (@32ohms)? @JasonNYC

 

[dadracer2]

I think it is about 7000mW....

 

[Lumithium]

It is "condition no load". I am guessing it's not going to get that high at 32Ohms. That number is most likely only be achievable at 300Ohms and 32Ohms would quite a bit lower.

But if CA1000 can do 15Vrms at 32Ohms, that would be 7.03W.

 

[vonBaron]

When it will have Roon support?

 

[LegioSeptimo]

@JasonNYC, Will never reply that question, I´m afraid. They only display "Condition Non Load" and keep plain silence about details.

 

[LegioSeptimo]

Will be comparing with my M17 hopefully in next day or so. Perfectly happy with the M17, but curious to demo the CA1000.

Waiting with high expectation....

 

[rustydabear]

Will be comparing with my M17 hopefully in next day or so. Perfectly happy with the M17, but curious to demo the CA1000.

I am very interested in hearing about this comparison as I am ready to pull the trigger on one of these soon