[TiKli]

I ordered my S17 at the end of November from the German distributor in Austria. The volume control is already the new version and works perfectly. However, after about 2 hours I reach the 69°C limit, at room temperature 23°C even with additional 15 mm rubber feet. The problem is the air congestion under the appliance. I have now simply placed a 12V 50 mm fan, which is supplied with 5V-USB from the Fiio R7, behind the S17. You can't hear the fan and the result is remarkable, as the temperature no longer exceeds 60°C.

 

[fededige]

Hi everyone! Happy new year!
I just got my unit from Austria (I’m in Italy).
I’ve only tried for a couple of hours, only through 4.4 mm with Hifiman Arya Stealth.
My DAC is a Topping E50 powered by P50 PSU. My headphones have been calibrated through GRAS mic, so there’s an IR based eq correction and crossfeed going on the digital chain.
It took around 1 hour to reach 59º and it didn’t exceed that temperature (yet).
It doesn’t seem having the volume issue.
Although when music is not playing, trying to change the volume make annoying and scary click on the headphones. Anyone experienced this? Is this normal?
Soundwise, I will need more testing before telling my full impression.
One thing I noticed, but it could be due to lack of burn in, was that eqing was less evident than Topping A90 Discrete (my previous amp).

 

[Giangi]

Hi everyone! Happy new year!
I just got my unit from Austria (I’m in Italy).
I’ve only tried for a couple of hours, only through 4.4 mm with Hifiman Arya Stealth.
My DAC is a Topping E50 powered by P50 PSU. My headphones have been calibrated through GRAS mic, so there’s an IR based eq correction and crossfeed going on the digital chain.
It took around 1 hour to reach 59º and it didn’t exceed that temperature (yet).
It doesn’t seem having the volume issue.
Although when music is not playing, trying to change the volume make annoying and scary click on the headphones. Anyone experienced this? Is this normal?
Soundwise, I will need more testing before telling my full impression.
One thing I noticed, but it could be due to lack of burn in, was that eqing was less evident than Topping A90 Discrete (my previous amp).

"Annoying and scary click on headphone" absolutely not normal. Sono italiano...

 

[fededige]

"Annoying and scary click on headphone" absolutely not normal. Sono italiano...

It’s not loud at all, but I can hear like volume steps, only when not playing back.

 

[fededige]

errata corrige:

I figured out what was causing the clicks changing the volume. It's not the amp! Something in my digital chain into Audio Hijack app that wasn't happening with A90 Discrete (weird), so everything seems fine. Still trying to figure out the eq thing. S17 pro definitely sounds better than A90 Discrete: finally that thing veil is gone, but still don't know why I struggle hearing eqs. Anyone? Is this a burn in thing?
One thing is sure I can hear more of 3D details rather than 2D as it was with A90 Discrete.

 

[Erick Muller]

I was about to post the same. I'm tweaking my system to get the best from it and thought that, since I'm using a volume control in the preamp, it's silly to use one in the amp as well - why introduce more resistance to the signal path when its not necessary. I set the S17's volume control to max and not only does it get around the issue with the control but it delivers all the power and sounds amazing.

Obviously one has to be more careful as there's potential for very loud cracks and bangs if you have a dodgy connection but I certainly felt that it sounded better.

I LOVE the sound this thing makes, it's better than I could have imagined.

Is it fine if I do this with an SMSL SU-8S DAC that does it's preamping in the digital realm?.

As a note to everyone here, I noticed that this amp absolutely requieres that you run them for at least a week with high impedance headphones like a SEN 650 on high gain and in the 100ma mode, this amp absolutely requieres the work out in order to get the full warm and lush tube like sound. I did burn them in when I first got the amp almost two months ago but only using low impedance headphones for this initial burn in, the sound did improve after a couple of weeks but it was revelatory when I plugged in my 650s and then noticed that the amp got warmer in it sound after a week or so of only using the 650s because it was so goddamn enjoyable what I was hearing coming from those cans plugged into this amp and everything that I plugged in after that was also getting the tube like treatment.

On another note, does anyone know if this amp will be able to run the Modhouse tungstens sufficently well? I asked Ryan because I'm planning in buying a pair from him, but he wasn't that sure the S17 might be able to get sufficient headroom for these power hungry, monster cans of his.

 

[Simon Patten]

Welcome to this lovely place.

Is it fine if I do this with an SMSL SU-8S DAC that does it's preamping in the digital realm?.

I don't see why not, my DAC is doing the same. The idea is to keep the signal path as clean as possible so effectively removing one of the volume controls should help. If it weren't for the volume control issues with the S17 it might be better to set the DAC's volume control to max and use the S17's control to avoid any loud pops or bangs and feed it with a nice powerful signal but my ADI-2 has quite a high output so I need to reduce the volume there to stop over-driving the amp, therefore setting the S17 to max works best here. Try it both ways and see if you can hear a difference.

As a note to everyone here, I noticed that this amp absolutely requieres that you run them for at least a week with high impedance headphones like a SEN 650 on high gain and in the 100ma mode, this amp absolutely requieres the work out in order to get the full warm and lush tube like sound.

I'm a big believer in burn-in and not doubting you but I haven't heard that anywhere else? My cans and IEMs are low impedance and I use the S17 in high gain and 100ma modes (I'm lucky, mine has never gone over 60 degrees) so I can't test it but if it has made yours sound even better, good for you.

On another note, does anyone know if this amp will be able to run the Modhouse tungstens sufficently well? I asked Ryan because I'm planning in buying a pair from him, but he wasn't that sure the S17 might be able to get sufficient headroom for these power hungry, monster cans of his.

This beast will drive almost anything so if you have any doubt, use a balanced cable with a 4.4mm plug and you should be fine - I keep meaning to hang some small speakers off mine to see if it will even drive them.

 

[Simon Patten]

Hi everyone! Happy new year!
I just got my unit from Austria (I’m in Italy).
I’ve only tried for a couple of hours, only through 4.4 mm with Hifiman Arya Stealth.

I suggest leaving it on for a couple of days playing music and burning in, this thing likes to run hot so let it get nice and toasty to help everything settle in. I hope you're as pleased with it as most of us here are, it's an amazing amp.

My DAC is a Topping E50 powered by P50 PSU. My headphones have been calibrated through GRAS mic, so there’s an IR based eq correction and crossfeed going on the digital chain.

Tell me/us more about this headphone calibration? I haven't come across that.

It took around 1 hour to reach 59º and it didn’t exceed that temperature (yet).

Same here, even after an evening of listening at high gain and 100ma, we're lucky. Less so with the volume issue here but I've worked around it.
I'm glad you got your clicking sorted out.

 

[sendler2112]

If you don't that much level, I found that low gain sounds much better.

 

[Simon Patten]

If you don't that much level, I found that low gain sounds much better.

Thanks, I hadn't played with that yet but I think you're right, there is a difference and I think I prefer it too.

 

[Erick Muller]

Welcome to this lovely place.

Thanks Simon, it does seem like a nice place indeed.

I don't see why not, my DAC is doing the same. The idea is to keep the signal path as clean as possible so effectively removing one of the volume controls should help. If it weren't for the volume control issues with the S17 it might be better to set the DAC's volume control to max and use the S17's control to avoid any loud pops or bangs and feed it with a nice powerful signal but my ADI-2 has quite a high output so I need to reduce the volume there to stop over-driving the amp, therefore setting the S17 to max works best here. Try it both ways and see if you can hear a difference.

I'm already trying it that way with my SEN HD650 which seem to be the most problematic to drive of my headphones so far in this amp, the problem that I'm having with them is that I'm hearing some crackling noises now and then, specially when I'm listening at load volumes and some heavy metal like slayer and the like, I also put the amp on low gain and the crackling is still there, but not as much as before. Don't know if that's an HD650 problem or the S17 is distorting, will try with other headphones to see if it helps.

I'm a big believer in burn-in and not doubting you but I haven't heard that anywhere else? My cans and IEMs are low impedance and I use the S17 in high gain and 100ma modes (I'm lucky, mine has never gone over 60 degrees) so I can't test it but if it has made yours sound even better, good for you.

I have a few curious observations about the temperature stability about this amp, for the most part it hasn't been a problem for me, even with my SEN HD650 at high gain, 100ma mode at almost full tilt, I can barely get my amp at 65 degrees. But I have fine two cases which don't make sense at all that drive this amp's temps to the roof, the first one was the long XLR cable from that comes with the focal clears connected to them and the amp(and this also happened with my radiance too), the amp would always get to 69 and reset to 50ma in less than an hour of playing music, at high gain, 100ma mode at relatively high volume, but couldn't get it even past 80% of it's total volume because I was afraid I might damage the clear's drivers(I think I heard the clear's drivers clipped a couple of times lol!!!), but if I used the other shorter cable and run it balanced both the clear's and the radiance, temps remain stable and never reach 69. A weird one indeed

The other weird case was with my koss kph40's running balanced with a 4.4mm cable that Zeos recommended for them, using a didi hifi XLR adapter(I'm using the adapter because when I connect and disconnect any headphone through the 4.4mm balanced jack it made some noises that I didn't liked at all), this mofos are the one's that drive the temps of this amp through the roof faster than anything else in my collection by far, don't know why, these headphones are 60ohm and I think 111dB sensitivity so in theory they shouldn't do this, and I'm running them at low gain, 100ma mode engaged and maybe at 50-60% of the total volume and they still do this regardless.

But to the point!, after I use my hd650s on this amp for more than I week, I noticed that it got warmer in it's sound, like noticeably warmer, maybe I didn't burned it in enough this amp and the load that the sen's put on the amp was enough to get them where they're supposed to be in sound wise? Who knows!!!

This beast will drive almost anything so if you have any doubt, use a balanced cable with a 4.4mm plug and you should be fine - I keep meaning to hang some small speakers off mine to see if it will even drive them.

I sure hope so, because in theory this amp is super mega powerful for the price and it is indeed, but what got me worried is that Zeos said that the S17 couldn't drive properly the tungstens in it's review of those headphones, granted, he had at the time older, even harder to drive drivers, but still, worrisome that I might had to get another amp in order to drive the tungstens if I pull the trigger on those.

Honestly, I'm waiting on the DS review of them to see if they gotten any better efficiency sense.

 

[cobrabucket]

Hey folks. I have ordered my S17 Pro and it should be here before too long.
I did want to mention that while trying to secure one, I heard from 2 different vendors that the distributor is going to have a price increase.
The rumor is it could go up to $899.
Not sure when this is going to happen, but I have started to see some of these at that price on AliExpress.




Glad I got in when I did!
I can't wait to hear this one.

 

[fededige]

I suggest leaving it on for a couple of days playing music and burning in, this thing likes to run hot so let it get nice and toasty to help everything settle in. I hope you're as pleased with it as most of us here are, it's an amazing amp.

Tell me/us more about this headphone calibration? I haven't come across that.

Same here, even after an evening of listening at high gain and 100ma, we're lucky. Less so with the volume issue here but I've worked around it.
I'm glad you got your clicking sorted out.

Sure! That's the microphone system used to measure my headphone frequency response. Once measured, the result hasn’t been normally eq with minimum phase filters: it was used an Impulse Response based eq inversion in the phase domain, so that even peaks and dips phase angles of my headphones are corrected. The software I've been involved developing as a beta tester is Acustica Audio Sienna: it collects hundreds of headphones eq curves correction you can use on your headphones.

 

[sendler2112]

Sure! That's the microphone system used to measure my headphone frequency response. Once measured, the result hasn’t been normally eq with minimum phase filters: it was used an Impulse Response based eq inversion in the phase domain, so that even peaks and dips phase angles of my headphones are corrected. The software I've been involved developing as a beta tester is Acustica Audio Sienna: it collects hundreds of headphones eq curves correction you can use on your headphones.

That ear looks like it protrudes into the headphone way more than a human ear. Like it would even contact the screen over the driver before the pads could seal. Here is the MiniDSP EARS. The white is entirely fleshy rubbery. Just started learning how to use it today.

 

[fededige]

That ear looks like it protrudes into the headphone way more than a human ear. Like it would even contact the screen over the driver before the pads could seal. Here is the MiniDSP EARS. The white is entirely fleshy rubbery. Just started learning how to use it today.

It has been used mini DSP too for comparing avarage curves, but actually mini DSP is way less precise than GRAS system.
I mean, mini DSP is fun to use to begin calibrate headphones but it’s like comparing a Fiat Panda to a Ferrari lol.