Aune S17 pro

[Temudschin]

For this reason, I've been having problems with the amount of sleep lately

That's the beauty of our hobby.....sometimes you just lose track of time

I've had the same experience recently with my HD 800s. I usually use them together with my Elise. Tube amps and the HD 800s are a really good combination! It is actually my perfect combo so far, but yesterday I switched back to the S17 and was surprised at how good the soundstage is.

The S17 still surprises me!

 

[DP42]

Yesterday LPs like:

...AND JUSTICE FOR ALL - Metallica
13 - Blur

music that theoretically should not play on the HE1000
they played at a volume of about 60-65dB with Aune so dynamically, resolved and layered that I couldn't tear myself away

especially on AND JUSTICE FOR ALL I heard layers of the mix that I had no idea about before

in one word - satisfied, this amplifier really does the trick with these headphones when listening at low volume

For this reason, I've been having problems with the amount of sleep lately

ps. actually there was supposed to be only one song from ..AND JUSTICE FOR ALL, but it turned out to be so addictive that I played it in its entirety, an album I have already heard dozens of times

So, you now like the S17 pro with the HE1000? I thought you previously posted an issue with highs being cut off on the HE1000 with this amp. Did the amp improve over time, or is it just working well with certain genres? I recently purchased the V222 which has great slam, but lacking a bit of layering and depth compared to the MJ3 I had previously. The V222 also has rolled off highs. Wondering if the S17 pro would come close the MJ3 in this regard, or should I be looking for for an amp that is more expensive than either the MJ3 or S17 pro?

 

[MaxMini]

Sorry, but I have to come back briefly to the Mentor vs S17 Pro comparison.

I very much respect @Ichos opinion expressed here. However, I received a comment from another reviewer who discussed both amplifiers, so let me quote to shed additional light on this issue.

I quote:

How it (Mentor) compares to Aune S17 Pro?

@Soundnews:
S17 PRO doesn't provide as much power and it gets considerably warmer. Some even reported that it might move from 100mA to 50mA bias due to overheating (arriving at 69 degrees Celsius). Mentor never went past 40 degrees Celsius, even after 48 hours of non-stop music playback. Mentor provides more power, more headroom, a wider soundstage, a slightly tighter grip over headphone drivers (especially with planar headphones) and it is also by a hair more technical sounding (clearer, faster, having a better timing). The Mentor is also more expensive, so that shouldn't be a surprise. The only thing which people might prefer on the S17 PRO versus the Mentor via regular dynamic/planar headphones, would be its warmer/sweeter tonality vs the serious & transparent nature of the Mentor.

 

[MaxMini]

So, you now like the S17 pro with the HE1000? I thought you previously posted an issue with highs being cut off on the HE1000 with this amp. Did the amp improve over time, or is it just working well with certain genres? I recently purchased the V222 which has great slam, but lacking a bit of layering and depth compared to the MJ3 I had previously. The V222 also has rolled off highs. Wondering if the S17 pro would come close the MJ3 in this regard, or should I be looking for for an amp that is more expensive than either the MJ3 or S17 pro?

I like it very much, when listening at low volume, almost all the music sounds phenomenal, still retaining its fanciful character, less lifelike, but very addictive.

With the best produced music, you can turn the volume knob "to full", and then the real power of sound and realism appears.

 

[Ichos]

Sorry, but I have to come back briefly to the Mentor vs S17 Pro comparison.

I very much respect @Ichos opinion expressed here. However, I received a comment from another reviewer who discussed both amplifiers, so let me quote to shed additional light on this issue.

I quote:

How it (Mentor) compares to Aune S17 Pro?

@Soundnews:
S17 PRO doesn't provide as much power and it gets considerably warmer. Some even reported that it might move from 100mA to 50mA bias due to overheating (arriving at 69 degrees Celsius). Mentor never went past 40 degrees Celsius, even after 48 hours of non-stop music playback. Mentor provides more power, more headroom, a wider soundstage, a slightly tighter grip over headphone drivers (especially with planar headphones) and it is also by a hair more technical sounding (clearer, faster, having a better timing). The Mentor is also more expensive, so that shouldn't be a surprise. The only thing which people might prefer on the S17 PRO versus the Mentor via regular dynamic/planar headphones, would be its warmer/sweeter tonality vs the serious & transparent nature of the Mentor.

Exactly on par with what I have written many times.

 

[Erick Muller]

Try this, I always think it has a pretty 3-dimentional sound, especially the drums.



(My third favourite track after Supper's Ready and Stairway.)

Thanks for the recommendation will listen to it once I get back home.

This song usually gives me good soundstage but it's pretty much forced because it's kind of a spatial audio test track of sorts, with regular music, I kind of get it sometimes but not reliably so and it's just some instruments.



There's other aspects of the soundstage, like depth that simply do not happen to me a lot, which leads me to believe that it's my DAC which is holding my setup back.

 

[Erick Muller]

Exactly on par with what I have written many times.

I guess that Mentor would pull ahead with more demanding headphones, specially hard to drive planars like the Tungsten, Susvara, 1266, etc., in any head to head comparison because of the extra power that Mentor has, but in a sense, given the market segment that the S17 is placed, it's perfectly fine.

 

[Ichos]

I guess that Mentor would pull ahead with more demanding headphones, specially hard to drive planars like the Tungsten, Susvara, 1266, etc., in any head to head comparison because of the extra power that Mentor has, but in a sense, given the market segment that the S17 is placed, it's perfectly fine.

Each to his own.

 

[Majuto]

I have relatively easy access to the HD800S, but it's not mine, but I can always take it out on loan from my father and I loan him my headphones in return, it's really cool to have a dad that shares your same enthusiasm for this hobby, I wish I could take on loan his two channel system tho but that's a tad more difficult.

The HD800S is definitively the more open sounding headphone I've had the pleasure of listening to, as well as the most competent sounding, I do have to EQ it somewhat specially with a really heavy bass shelf in order to make it more enjoyable to my ears, but the problem that I have with soundstage as often described, I have a hard time having that out-of-the-head experience and the sound expanding beyond the headphones as many people often describe typically for this kind of very wide sounding category of headphones, I'm always very aware that I'm listening to a pair of headphones and not, or at least not fully or close to something like a well put together stereo speaker system, it can sometimes happen to me with very specific parts of a limited range of songs, but it's not something that I would consider to be a consistent experience in my case.

Next week I'm going to be getting a Cayin RU7 and I plan to use it on my S17 to see if I can get some of that R2R goodness and maybe I will finally experience what people describe what soundstage really is, at least I hope to. I already tried feeding my Yuki to my S17 and it didn't gave me the results I wanted or expected, it wasn't that enjoyable tbh, I also got the opportunity to try out the earmen angel, at first it sounded great to my ears but yesterday that I got another chance to listen to it, I was not that impressive, probably need I little bit more time with it, it probably needs some burn in also, I'm not sure but it hasn't convince me yet, it sometimes has the ability to sound like a dedicated desktop HP amp like the S17 and truly impressive, specially for a portable device, and others is just another portable amp/dac not much different to the typical Fiio stuff but more expensive, hope it improves with time.

About Dacs a small comparing.
I'm listening acoustic Bela Fleck with Aune s17pro Gustard R26 Dac and Teac Nt-505 dac part with Akm 4491? chip and imo the differences in soundstage are minimal. Maybe the dac change isn't a revolution in soundstage anyhow. Otherwise Gustard sounds a bit more balanced and is a bit clearer in very complicated music. All in all the differences are quite small compared to big differences in headphones and amps imo.

 

[DP42]

Will have an S17 here tomorrow, will be able to compare directly with my V222, will give a short review after some testing.

 

[Erick Muller]

About Dacs a small comparing.
I'm listening acoustic Bela Fleck with Aune s17pro Gustard R26 Dac and Teac Nt-505 dac part with Akm 4491? chip and imo the differences in soundstage are minimal. Maybe the dac change isn't a revolution in soundstage anyhow. Otherwise Gustard sounds a bit more balanced and is a bit clearer in very complicated music. All in all the differences are quite small compared to big differences in headphones and amps imo.

Well I have an entry/enthusiast level DAC for that matter, you have significantly better DACs(and expensive) than what I have currently, in theory the difference between your two DACs is not going to be much, maybe a slightly different sound presentation.

Btw are you doing any upsampling on your Gustard R26 with something like HQPlayer?

 

[gadus]

I guess that Mentor would pull ahead with more demanding headphones, specially hard to drive planars like the Tungsten, Susvara, 1266, etc., in any head to head comparison because of the extra power that Mentor has, but in a sense, given the market segment that the S17 is placed, it's perfectly fine.

I have dca expanse,
Headphones are definitely hard to drive,
I really like their combination with s17,
I also have ferrum oor+hypsos which is technically better than the s17, but the s17 has a tonality that is very flattering to the expanse,
I should mention that I have a super transparent and detailed and very 'technical' dac (crane song solaris)
So it's all about synergy...

 

[Erick Muller]

I have dca expanse,
Headphones are definitely hard to drive,
I really like their combination with s17,
I also have ferrum oor+hypsos which is technically better than the s17, but the s17 has a tonality that is very flattering to the expanse,
I should mention that I have a super transparent and detailed and very 'technical' dac (crane song solaris)
So it's all about synergy...

I'm very happy with my S17, that's why I have a really hard time deciding if I even want to upgrade, the only reason I would do so is for the ModHouse Tungsten and mostly out of fear of the S17 not having enough juice to power them to my satisfaction, but that's literally my only concern with this amp, maybe the MJ3 or the Mentor or the Gustard H26 or the Oor are "better" than the S17, but in any case that just means throwing more money a this hobby for ever decreasing marginal gains on sound quality and performance.

 

[Majuto]

Well I have an entry/enthusiast level DAC for that matter, you have significantly better DACs(and expensive) than what I have currently, in theory the difference between your two DACs is not going to be much, maybe a slightly different sound presentation.

Btw are you doing any upsampling on your Gustard R26 with something like HQPlayer?

With Gustard mainly Qobuz hi res, no upsampling.
I had earlier Music fidelity V-series very basic dac and liked it a lot. Then I mainly listened with loudspeakers anyhow and it's of course a bit different.
Teac is a bit sad story because it's network card broke down after about three years of use. Now it continues as an alternative dac only and usb network player, if needed, without streaming option.
Both these dacs have good vol adjustments, which are very useful with my older Aune.

 

[AntonNZ]

I've asked ChatGPT (new 4th version) to analyze at least 5 reviews for each headamp (Aune S17 pro, Schiit Mjolnir, Flux Mentor) and to provide some summary. And I'm not sure what are the "additional features" parameter.
I also asked what parameters were completely guessed and partially guessed. Partially guessed are: Soundstage, Resolution, Instrument separations, holography, dynamic driver control, and planar driver control. I have no idea why Schiit Mjolnir 3 is so cheap but you can adjust the price yourself

Personally, I would order Flux today if they were available. I checked like twenty thousand million times - out of stock.
@Ichos, @Currawong, I wonder how you will rate the AI results, are they accurate?

ChatGPT:
Sure, here's a detailed comparison of the Aune S17 Pro, Schiit Mjolnir 3, and Flux Mentor headphone amplifiers based on multiple reviews and forum discussions, including Head-Fi.org. The comparison table includes ratings from 0 to 10 for various audiophile characteristics.

Amplifier Comparison​

Characteristic	Aune S17 Pro	Schiit Mjolnir 3	Flux Mentor
Build Quality	8.5	9	9.5
Output Power	8	9.5	9.5
Sound Quality	9	9	9.5
Transparency	8.5	9	9.5
Soundstage	8	8.5	9.5
Bass Response	8.5	9	9
Midrange	8.5	9	9.5
Treble	8.5	9	9
Ease of Use	8.5	9	8.5
Resolution	8.5	9	9.5
Instrument Separation	8.5	9	9.5
Holography	8	9	9.5
Dynamic Driver Control	8.5	9.5	9
Planar Driver Control	8	9.5	9.5
Additional Features	8	8.5	9

Unique Features​

• Aune S17 Pro:
  • Compact design with a high-quality DAC
  • Known for detailed sound and a clean signal path
• Schiit Mjolnir 3:
  • Fully discrete design with tube-like characteristics
  • Balanced and single-ended outputs
• Flux Mentor:
  • Dual Mono Class-A design
  • High output power suitable for demanding headphones
  • Relay attenuator for precise volume control

Price Analysis​

Prices were calculated with a 15% tax and an additional $100 USD handling/shipping fee. Here are the estimated costs in NZD:

• Aune S17 Pro:
  • Price: $699 USD
  • Total (including tax and fee): $939.85 USD ≈ $1500 NZD
• Schiit Mjolnir 3:
  • Price: $849 USD
  • Total (including tax and fee): $1176.35 USD ≈ $1880 NZD
• Flux Mentor:
  • Price: $1299 USD
  • Total (including tax and fee): $1683.85 USD ≈ $2690 NZD

Cost to Performance Summary​

• Aune S17 Pro: Offers a very good balance of sound quality and features for its price. It's particularly well-suited for users who want a detailed and transparent sound without breaking the bank.
• Schiit Mjolnir 3: Provides excellent output power and dynamic range, making it a great choice for those looking for versatility and high-quality performance across different headphones, especially for those who value a touch of analog warmth.
• Flux Mentor: Positioned as a high-end option, the Mentor delivers exceptional sound quality and build, with powerful performance that excels in resolution and holography. It's ideal for audiophiles who demand the best and are willing to invest accordingly.