[d4nim4l]

Long time head-fi lurker ... just ordered myself one with remote and the -7 dB low gain mod at the suggestion of several posters.  I thought it might be of interest to those considering purchase that audio-gd is apparently having a 5% off sale for new years: "And now order will has the New Year Discount,quote to you".  I don't have nearly as much gear for comparison as many in this thread (sennheiser hd595 ,hd600, shure se530, headroom total airhead), but I will post my impressions nonetheless.

 

[BleaK]

Quote:

Long time head-fi lurker ... just ordered myself one with remote and the -7 dB low gain mod at the suggestion of several posters.  I thought it might be of interest to those considering purchase that audio-gd is apparently having a 5% off sale for new years: "And now order will has the New Year Discount,quote to you".  I don't have nearly as much gear for comparison as many in this thread (sennheiser hd595 ,hd600, shure se530, headroom total airhead), but I will post my impressions nonetheless.

Looking forward to it, thinking about getting one for myself so all impressions are welcomed!

 

[DarknightDK]

Just received my NFB10SE last week and its still burning in but it sounds absolutely fabulous with my LCD-3. The sound is very detailed with an extremely black background. The 10SE is a truly competent performer and imo, can beat DACs/amps costing many times its price. Highly recommended.

 

[DarkWolf]

Where does it say that, I didn't seem to see it? Does he say how long that will last, and does it apply to products that are already on "promo" pricing? Man, I'm really interested in this thing. I'm so frustrated that work is so slow right now! (And I really need to audition one first i think..)

 

[d4nim4l]

Quote:

Where does it say that, I didn't seem to see it? Does he say how long that will last, and does it apply to products that are already on "promo" pricing? Man, I'm really interested in this thing. I'm so frustrated that work is so slow right now! (And I really need to audition one first i think..)

All of the information I have regarding the sale is what i copy/pasted from my quote, I didn't see anything about it on their webpage.  They applied it to the price of my nfb-10se, which is on promo pricing, so I would assume it applies to everything.

 

[YoengJyh]

Quote:

Where does it say that, I didn't seem to see it? Does he say how long that will last, and does it apply to products that are already on "promo" pricing? Man, I'm really interested in this thing. I'm so frustrated that work is so slow right now! (And I really need to audition one first i think..)

No need to audio them, JUST MAKE YOUR ORDER NOW! You WON'T Regret!

 

[DarkWolf]

Well, I'm sure it would be an upgrade.. I just can't afford to do it right now. When I "can" afford it, I will still want to try one out side by side with my current gear. As it is, my HE-5LEs are doing pretty well out of the TA1100 that can be had for $150-200. For $570 or so shipped, it needs to be a pretty big leap. It was hard enough getting the 5LE's a few months ago, and they wiped the floor with my 325i, so that was definately worth it.
 
No one 'local' has contacted me though..

 

[sphinxvc]

Quote:

Well, I'm sure it would be an upgrade.. I just can't afford to do it right now. When I "can" afford it, I will still want to try one out side by side with my current gear. As it is, my HE-5LEs are doing pretty well out of the TA1100 that can be had for $150-200. For $570 or so shipped, it needs to be a pretty big leap. It was hard enough getting the 5LE's a few months ago, and they wiped the floor with my 325i, so that was definately worth it.
 
No one 'local' has contacted me though..

Ask Frank if there's still room at his place for the upcoming NJ minimeet in January.  For transportaton: I think another Frank (handle:deadears) is coming down from the MA/CT area.  I'm sure there will be a 10SE, and better gear there.
 

 

[leesure]

There will most definitely by one at the NJ mini meet...I know because it just arrived at my house yesterday.  I was surprised at its size and heft...not a desktop system. . The unit arrived in fine condition.  The packaging was 1st rate.  The unit looks well built with a clean layout and well thought out topography.  The inclusion of a DAC out with XLR as well as RCA jacks make this a terrific product for someone with an all-digital flow but who wants both headphones and loudspeakers.
 
I burned it in for 24 hours before I sat down to listen this evening. Let me preface this by saying it was with MUCH anticipation that I began my audition. I really hoped this would be a giant killer and a potential replacement for my Bifrost/Lyr combo.  
 
I started out with the HE-500's in balanced and quickly found the sound hard and edgy.  There was a good sense of space, but vocals took on an unpleasant glare. Recordings I consider good produced a lot of sibilance, while bright recordings were unlistenable. I tried switching thru the various filters, but none of them altered the edge I was hearing.
 
The LCD-2's (r1) have a reputation for being dark (a somewhat false impression, IMO) so I switched to those (also balanced) to see if it was more tame...it was, but not enough.  Female vocals still actually had me reaching to turn the volume down as that glare was still prevalent.  
 
I took the LCD-2's back to the Bifrost/Lyr (Mullard) combo and found it much more pleasant.  The glare was gone without sacrificing any of the detail resolution.  The soundstage may have been slightly more compressed, tho.  I preferred the bass on the Lyr as well.  Was the Lyr looser and less controlled? Maybe, but the 10SE seemed to dry and taut by comparison. 
 
Now this is all at 24 hours and I've heard A-GD likes more burn, so take these comments as you will.  I will continue to burn it for the next few days and see if the glare turns to smooth clarity.  I'll post again at 100 hours. 
 
Those who wish to decide for themselves should plan to visit Frank I's house on Jan 28th where I'll have the (by then well burned in) 10SE, the Schiit combo and the (far superior to both) Red Wine Audio AE balanced Isabellina all lined up for your listening pleasure. 

 

[YoengJyh]

Really? I found that the vocal is not as "live" too. I thought it was because of the LCD2 signature.
 
You must have a recording song in 24bits then only you could feel the different via filters.

 

[DarknightDK]

Quote:

There will most definitely by one at the NJ mini meet...I know because it just arrived at my house yesterday.  I was surprised at its size and heft...not a desktop system. . The unit arrived in fine condition.  The packaging was 1st rate.  The unit looks well built with a clean layout and well thought out topography.  The inclusion of a DAC out with XLR as well as RCA jacks make this a terrific product for someone with an all-digital flow but who wants both headphones and loudspeakers.
 
I burned it in for 24 hours before I sat down to listen this evening. Let me preface this by saying it was with MUCH anticipation that I began my audition. I really hoped this would be a giant killer and a potential replacement for my Bifrost/Lyr combo.  
 
I started out with the HE-500's in balanced and quickly found the sound hard and edgy.  There was a good sense of space, but vocals took on an unpleasant glare. Recordings I consider good produced a lot of sibilance, while bright recordings were unlistenable. I tried switching thru the various filters, but none of them altered the edge I was hearing.
 
The LCD-2's (r1) have a reputation for being dark (a somewhat false impression, IMO) so I switched to those (also balanced) to see if it was more tame...it was, but not enough.  Female vocals still actually had me reaching to turn the volume down as that glare was still prevalent.  
 
I took the LCD-2's back to the Bifrost/Lyr (Mullard) combo and found it much more pleasant.  The glare was gone without sacrificing any of the detail resolution.  The soundstage may have been slightly more compressed, tho.  I preferred the bass on the Lyr as well.  Was the Lyr looser and less controlled? Maybe, but the 10SE seemed to dry and taut by comparison. 
 
Now this is all at 24 hours and I've heard A-GD likes more burn, so take these comments as you will.  I will continue to burn it for the next few days and see if the glare turns to smooth clarity.  I'll post again at 100 hours. 
 
Those who wish to decide for themselves should plan to visit Frank I's house on Jan 28th where I'll have the (by then well burned in) 10SE, the Schiit combo and the (far superior to both) Red Wine Audio AE balanced Isabellina all lined up for your listening pleasure. 

Thanks for your initial impressions. I had received my 10SE 2 weeks ago and it's sounding better by the day. I think to do a proper comparison/review, you'll have to burn it in for at least 250 hours before the sound stabilizes. Also, it's important to choose the right filter setting. After much comparison between filters, I find filter 5 the best with the most balanced and neutral sound. I look forward to more impressions of the 10SE compared with the Lyr/bifrost combo and the RWA AE after the burn-in period 

 

 

[tim3320070]

AGD gear in anything but harsh or with glare (my biggest complaint in any audio equipment)- give it more time. This is a very common theme. If this does not change for you, my guess is something is wrong with your unit or it's setup. I run this unit with a relatively bright DT770/600 and love the sound, not harsh to my sensitive ears. Also, my ears hear no difference between filters, or so subtle as to not matter.

 

[leesure]

IMHO, 250 hours is ridonculous.  But I'll be sure to give it its due burn...as I said, I plan to leave it burning 24 hours a day for a while.  
 
As far as something being wrong with my setup, it's about as simple as possible. ALAC files via MacBook Pro>optical cable>NFB-10se>'phones.  Same setup for the Schiit combo. 
 
I have another pair of experienced ears coming over tomorrow to see if he agrees. 

 

[Currawong]

Quote:

IMHO, 250 hours is ridonculous.  But I'll be sure to give it its due burn...as I said, I plan to leave it burning 24 hours a day for a while.  
 
As far as something being wrong with my setup, it's about as simple as possible. ALAC files via MacBook Pro>optical cable>NFB-10se>'phones.  Same setup for the Schiit combo. 
 
I have another pair of experienced ears coming over tomorrow to see if he agrees. 

It does seem crazy, but this is what a few of us observed a couple of years ago. We'd all bought some HDAMs to use in another DAC, and the sound with them changed over the first 350 hours. This just from heat -- with or without playing music. By this, I mean there were periods of weird tonal changes. Unless it has changed, they run all their products for at least 100 hours to ensure they don't fail, so another 250 hours will settle anything. I haven't experienced weird tonal changes with any of the newer gear, but I did have a Fun sound harsh out of the box, something which disappeared after it had been left on a week. However, if it still sounds harsh, then check that your computer's OS isn't screwing up the digital audio output by re-sampling it as this will sometimes result in audible distortion.

 

[DarknightDK]

Here's a pic of the NFB10SE with my rig.