[captouch]

Quote:

Is it normal that the case of NFB-12 is not grounded? According to my multimeter the case and the audio connector grounds are at either 50 or 85 VAC w.r.t. to powerline ground, depending on which way the powerplug (non-polarised europlug) is connected, or at 140 or 0 VAC when the unit is off. When touching the unit I get a buzzing sensation that you usually get when touching metallic laptops that are not connected to grounded outlets, for example. Touching the unit and the ground at the same time would probably give you an unpleasant zap, even though the current shouldn't be dangerous. So do the other NFB-12 owners get a buzzing sensation when moving your finger on the case? Make sure it's not grounded trough any of the other connections. I'm quite sure the case should be connected to the powerline ground according to most safety regulations.

I would write to Kingwa/Audio GD to see how it should be, but I recall earlier in the thread that someone (unless it was you also) mentioned about this buzzing.
 
Would it be dangerous to just manually ground the case with a wire to see if that resolved the buzzing?
 

 

[IsoOctane]

Quote:

I would write to Kingwa/Audio GD to see how it should be, but I recall earlier in the thread that someone (unless it was you also) mentioned about this buzzing.
 
Would it be dangerous to just manually ground the case with a wire to see if that resolved the buzzing?
 

No it wasn't me earlier, just recently got mine.
 
Took a look inside, the ground pin of the power socket is not connected to anything, doesn't look like it's meant to either, so no wonder the case isn't grounded. The ground of the device is thus floating, not sure how the voltage is getting coupled onto it, but I hope a single short in the transformer or some capacitor won't make the casing go live.
 
Safety aside, the buzzing is a bit annoying, maybe I'll switch from optical to coaxial to get the unit grounded. Though grounding through audio cables is usually not the best idea...

 

[captouch]

Quote:

No it wasn't me earlier, just recently got mine.
 
Took a look inside, the ground pin of the power socket is not connected to anything, doesn't look like it's meant to either, so no wonder the case isn't grounded. The ground of the device is thus floating, not sure how the voltage is getting coupled onto it, but I hope a single short in the transformer or some capacitor won't make the casing go live.
 
Safety aside, the buzzing is a bit annoying, maybe I'll switch from optical to coaxial to get the unit grounded. Though grounding through audio cables is usually not the best idea...

Should get mine in a couple of weeks - will report if mine does the same.
 
Guess it's risky/questionable to just ground the case to the ground pin to avoid any risk of going live???
 

 

[Omnirai]

Hi guys - portable guy here wanting to start on a home rig. I have nothing atm, looking to get a DAC/AMP hybrid as the first component of my chain. Budget is probably $300 - looking between this and the Matrix Mini-i atm. Any comparisons between the 2 I can look at? This thread is fairly daunting to read through in its entirety.
 
Some concerns with versatility - I have not settled on my headphone as of yet. Will these sound good with most choices or are they picky about what headphones they are paired with? Until I get my cans, will these greatly improve my experience with IEM listening at home (Ortofon e-Q5 if it matters)? Can I plug my speakers into these to improve the sound? Some of the cans I'm looking at are AKG K70x, HD600/650, DT880 and perhaps the new Hifiman HE-300 dynamics. Assuming I want to break up my purchases, ultimately will it be wise to go for these first? Apologies for the multitude of questions, complete newbie on home rigs here. Much thanks!

 

[HeatFan12]

Quote:

Here are my listening impressions after 10 days of owning the NFB-12:
 
 
 
>>>>>>>> SNIP <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

 
 
Great review and great read Johnny...
 

 

[Hawaiiancerveza]

Errr... I know I'm stepping out on a whim about this but.... could the NFB-12 be a good dac for the HE-5LE? Actually I meant the HE-500... its said that the Filo 11E can run it... it sounds similar to the hd650... 

 

[eclipes]

How does the NFB12 sound as a dedicated dac. I'll looking for more of a dac upgrade but hate the designs of music streamer and vdac

 

[turimbar1]

These cans are very versatile, they sound good out of low efficiency orthos and high resistance moving coils alike. They really do have a good a good amount of power. They can drive the fostex t50rp (ortho) way past any reasonable volume, and do it well. It is NOT the schiit Lyr, they do not have those dynamics and pure power, but for a dac/amp they are plenty powerful. This DAC/AMP is very forgiving with headphones, I have yet to hear any sibilance with any headphone I have tried, also no review I have read has complained of improper pairing with a given headphone. Not to say these are perfect, but they do not offend. They are not as detailed as the higher-end dedicated DACs and the amp section is not as good as many dedicated amps, but you cannot buy a good DAC and a good AMP for the price of the NFB12 (that I know of). So this is a good way to get into "rigs" as it does both well, can drive almost any headphone well, and is about the price of a good AMP or a good DAC (but it does both!).
 
They make iems sound better too. The dac on this really is something else, but, I am not sure whether it can beat out dedicated DAC's at this price range. 

 

[eclipes]

I am just wondering how the dac in the NFB12 compares to the Udac2, how much of an improvement will I be expecting?? The price is tempting for sure, still don't know if I should pull the trigger for the NFB12

 

[JohnnyLightOn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeatFan12 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Great review and great read Johnny...

 
Hey thanks for the very nice feedback, HeatFan12! 

 
 

 

[Omnirai]

Quote:

These cans are very versatile, they sound good out of low efficiency orthos and high resistance moving coils alike. They really do have a good a good amount of power. They can drive the fostex t50rp (ortho) way past any reasonable volume, and do it well. It is NOT the schiit Lyr, they do not have those dynamics and pure power, but for a dac/amp they are plenty powerful. This DAC/AMP is very forgiving with headphones, I have yet to hear any sibilance with any headphone I have tried, also no review I have read has complained of improper pairing with a given headphone. Not to say these are perfect, but they do not offend. They are not as detailed as the higher-end dedicated DACs and the amp section is not as good as many dedicated amps, but you cannot buy a good DAC and a good AMP for the price of the NFB12 (that I know of). So this is a good way to get into "rigs" as it does both well, can drive almost any headphone well, and is about the price of a good AMP or a good DAC (but it does both!).
 
They make iems sound better too. The dac on this really is something else, but, I am not sure whether it can beat out dedicated DAC's at this price range. 

Thanks for the input, from what I'm hearing I pretty much can't go wrong with these at the price. Considering pulling the trigger soon, unless I read anything about the Matrix competitor being 100$ better...
 

 

[cheaphifi]

Anyone noticed that the NFB-12 has now the ABILITY TO CHANGE FILTER SETTINGS like the NFB-5 but with jumpers not with an external switch ?
 
Look here : http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/Headphoneamp/NFB12/NFB12EN.htm
 
it can be a cool feature for modifying the sound signature of the NFB-12..

 

[captouch]

Quote:

Anyone noticed that the NFB-12 has now the ABILITY TO CHANGE FILTER SETTINGS like the NFB-5 but with jumpers not with an external switch ?
 
Look here : http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/Headphoneamp/NFB12/NFB12EN.htm
 
it can be a cool feature for modifying the sound signature of the NFB-12..

That's cool, can hardly wait to get mine (ordered and shipped).  But those graphs and descriptions don't mean much to me - not sure how to interpret them.  Anyone know what these options translate to in layman's terms?

 

[Hawaiiancerveza]

So the NFB-12 is good enough to drive and play the LCD-2 and HE-500 well?  I know I read that they can drive the HD650 and they are hard to drive.  The LCD and HE are both easier to drive but will they sound good?  If there is anyone who has the NFB-12 and tried them on the 2 orthos please fill me in.  

 

[raptor84]

Quote:

That's cool, can hardly wait to get mine (ordered and shipped).  But those graphs and descriptions don't mean much to me - not sure how to interpret them.  Anyone know what these options translate to in layman's terms?

 
Seconded this. No wonder there were so many jumpers included in the package