[AnakChan]

Hi you season headfiers, I am tapping into your collective wisdom here with my dilemma. I bought the Ak240SS last year at can jam only to find the 380 announced a few weeks later. So here I am under the same predicament a little before the Munich Audio Show in May. I want to buy the 380cu, but I hate to find another announcement in May from AK about an AK480 or even worse an AK580. But if I wait till May, the 380cu may be gone as it is a limited edition. What do you do? If there is no announcement, I'll be happy to get the 380cu for now, but if a new model were to be announce in a month or so, I definitely want to weigh my option. Who knows, they may have 512g, streaming audio, oled, improved amp, or better yet they may install the mod that RWA has been doing. Even if half of the mentioned improvement is announce, I'll be kind of upset, wouldn't you? You really have to give it to apple as you will always know when they will release their next model.

Also, last year when I bought the 240ss, I was also told that the SS is a limited edition and AK may not make any more after the current batch Is gone. But guess what, the SS is still alive and well and available and can be bought easily online. When AK said limited edition, you really wonder what they mean. Gavin said he doesn't think AK can improve on the sound from 380cu for a few years, even if it is true, they definitely can improve on features and functions while maintaining the same sound level, right? What would you do?

 
That's really hard to predict from a consumer standpoint. Little to no info is conveyed out there. And from a business standpoint it kinda does make sense for them not to announce, otherwise everyone would just wait for the next model and not buy the SS.
 
BTW, I'm kinda in the same situation as you....AK380Cu or not? I don't have any further info either.

 

[Jalo]

Anak. you are no help  Thanks anyway.

 

[omega1]

That's really hard to predict from a consumer standpoint. Little to no info is conveyed out there. And from a business standpoint it kinda does make sense for them not to announce, otherwise everyone would just wait for the next model and not buy the SS.

BTW, I'm kinda in the same situation as you....AK380Cu or not? I don't have any further info either.

Currently I'm a ak380 duralium owner. The main reason I don't interested on ak380 cu is I hate it will change color

 

[Jazzi]

  just recieved my balanced cable from ted allen for my u12, and i was surprised by how much more power the amp is in balanced mode, i barely listen at 55 volume with the balanced cable compared to 75 with single ended, and with great mastered albums I listen now at 46 
 
what a huge difference between balanced and single ended from the amp

That's interesting,hykhleif, I also just received a balanced cable from Ted for my Empire Ears Apollo,and I don't notice any difference between balanced and SE volume.  Different strokes....

 

[spkrs01]

Currently I'm a ak380 duralium owner. The main reason I don't interested on ak380 cu is I hate it will change color

 
I think you miss the point.....
 
The Cu is far superior sonically, colour changing is just part and parcel of the Cu

 

[spkrs01]

Sean and James,
 
Just hit the Buy button on the Cu., and stop procrastinating........

 

 

[AnakChan]

   
I think you miss the point.....
 
The Cu is far superior sonically, colour changing is just part and parcel of the Cu

 
The colour change is an indicator of burn in . 
 

  Sean and James,
 
Just hit the Buy button on the Cu., and stop procrastinating........

 

 
My little pinky just can't seem to reach that "Enter" button!

 

[omega1]

I think you miss the point.....

The Cu is far superior sonically, colour changing is just part and parcel of the Cu

I've heard the cu version. Yes, the sounds has changed but imho, not too far enough to make me buy it

 

[WCDchee]

The colour change is an indicator of burn in . 


My little pinky just can't seem to reach that "Enter" button!

Stop giving us excuses and just get it

 

[AnakChan]

Stop giving us excuses and just get it

 
After what @omega1 wrote? Jesting aside, I'd have to think hard the reason being is that I already have a free demo AK380 courtesy of Fujikawa-san of Aiuto Japan (iRiver distributor). It's limited to 32GB which I don't mind as I have a 200GB microSD in it, but it's firmware is also limited to 1.18 which is a little bummer.
 
I use it mostly with the Shure KSE1500, meaning that I use the demo AK380 as a DAC only which I think is its greatest strength - I'm not a fan of AK380's amp side nor it's piggyback amp.
 
So if I buy the AK380Cu I'm not sure if I'd be using it to its max potential seeing I'll mostly using it's DAC only. Not to mention, if @omega1's assessment is accurate then it's quite a bit to spend. Mind you though, early in the AK380 thread, I've read of how some folks feel the jump from the AK380 to the AK380Cu is greater than from the AK240 to AK380. So don't know who's right. I just need to bring a spare microSD to e-earphone to compare. 

 

[Jalo]

Sean and James,

Just hit the Buy button on the Cu., and stop procrastinating........  

Gavin, how about this, you put up your 380cu and amp and we'll play a game of ping pong. If I win, the 380cu is mine, if I loose, I buy you the next AK

 

[Semuapunmau]

Gavin, how about this, you put up your 380cu and amp and we'll play a game of ping pong. If I win, the 380cu is mine, if I loose, I buy you the next AK

Gavin, go take him on...what the worst that can happens? You got a spare if you lose...and expand the the copper community

 

[WCDchee]

After what @omega1
 wrote? Jesting aside, I'd have to think hard the reason being is that I already have a free demo AK380 courtesy of Fujikawa-san of Aiuto Japan (iRiver distributor). It's limited to 32GB which I don't mind as I have a 200GB microSD in it, but it's firmware is also limited to 1.18 which is a little bummer.

I use it mostly with the Shure KSE1500, meaning that I use the demo AK380 as a DAC only which I think is its greatest strength - I'm not a fan of AK380's amp side nor it's piggyback amp.

So if I buy the AK380Cu I'm not sure if I'd be using it to its max potential seeing I'll mostly using it's DAC only. Not to mention, if @omega1
's assessment is accurate then it's quite a bit to spend. Mind you though, early in the AK380 thread, I've read of how some folks feel the jump from the AK380 to the AK380Cu is greater than from the AK240 to AK380. So don't know who's right. I just need to bring a spare microSD to e-earphone to compare. 

Ahh fair enough, the 380 actually has a very good dac section, no complaints there. Like you mentioned though the amp section leaves much to be desired..

 

[spkrs01]

Gavin, how about this, you put up your 380cu and amp and we'll play a game of ping pong. If I win, the 380cu is mine, if I loose, I buy you the next AK

 
You wish.....I am no water fish
 

 

Gavin, go take him on...what the worst that can happens? You got a spare if you lose...and expand the the copper community

 
Yong, he was a junior champion in Hong Kong........I don't bet to lose

 

[Jalo]

Gavin, there is actually another limitation to the 380/380cu line that I hope the next offering will correct, that is, the digital out on the 380 is limited to optical out. There is no spdif or usb connections. As a result, you cannot really digital out to for instance the KSE1500 except for line out. Also, if you can remember when I attempted to connect your 380cu to my Hugo there is no sound from the DSD songs and we thought at the time that the Hugo cannot do DSD. But I learned recently that is because of the limitation of the optical out. I read in the manuel that the optical out cannot output DSD signal. For that exact reason, I skipped over the Paw Gold because it does not have any digital out. So what do you say, want to put up your 380cu for the Game still? If it will help, I can even blind fold myself