I tried/owned all of those. My favorite was the TH900.
Same amp section in both. The two differences are the Conductor 3X GT adds a DAC section. Then changes internal layout to compensate for that DAC.
If you like sound stage I could recommend the Hifiman HE1000 v2 Stealth ... there is a copy of it that is circulating in Europe as a test as we speak... so far the guys that are testing it are liking what they are hearing... its going to be priced at $1999 vs the $3500 for the HEK1000se ... but some are saying it sounds better than the standard v2 and the se... the original HE1000 v2 also at $1999 has an amazing soundstage and it pairs well with the Burson if you decide to upgrade the opamps to the Sparkos and a set of the Standard opamps vs the vivids... if you need the Stealth version your best bet is to write Hifiman and request a set before they release it... I don't think dealers here have it yet...
In the 3XGT or 3GT range the amps are only different due to the X being XLR ( double mono amps ) vs the non XLR ( single ended ) as they wanted the output power to match on the XLR/SE outputs... so the SE output on the 3XGT is not as powerful as the SE only version... the 3XGT at the SE output is 5 watts... the 3GT is SE only and its output is 10watts .... so if your not using balanced cables but want the extra power your paying for its the 3GT with 10 watts... for balanced fans its the 3XGT with 10 watts XLR and 5 watts SE outs... both have different locations for the opamps so pay attention if you opamp roll..
Yes, I forgot that there are two version of the Conductor GT and you've highlighted their differences perfectly.
No... XLR units have mono block (left and right) and SE units have Stereo single ended .... its the X versions that have dual mono block (left right)
Ah I see.
Does it have 4.4 headphone output?Props to @Guipnox for making me aware of this. I've become a bit of a Burson fanboy in the past few months - my two main SS amps are a Conductor 3XP and a Timekeeper 3ir, both of which I absolutely love.
The Conductor now has a big(ger) brother - the 3X GT. Looks a lot like the Soloist 3X GT with the red volume knob:
Specs are impressive:
Measurement Package Content Input impedance: 40 KOhms Conductor 3X GT (R-181X) Frequency response: ± 1 dB 0 – 58Khz Remote Control THD: <0.0015% Power Cable Output impedance (Headphone Amp): 0.5 Ohm USB Cable Output impedance (Pre Out / DAC Out): 1 Ohm / 25 Ohm 24V / 5A Power Unit Conductor 3X GT Info Inputs: 2 x XLR line-level input, 2 x RCA line-level input,USB, Optical Toslink, BlueTooth 5.0, microphone Weight: App. 5 kg Outputs: 1 x XLR/RCA Pre Amp/Line-Level DAC Out, 1XSubwoofer Pre Amp, 1 x 6.3mm & 1 x XLR Headphone Jack Dimensions: 255mm x 270mm x 70mm DAC Spec XMOS USB Spec Channel Separation: 142 dB @ 1KHz, 135 dB @ 20KHz Desktop OS: Windows XP, 7, 8, 10 Mac OSX THD+N: 0.0005% @ 1KHz, 0dBFS Desktop OS: iOS* , Android (OTG support) COAX & Toslink / SPDIF : up to 24bit 192K PCM Support: PCM ≤ 768kHz @ 16, 24 or 32bits Native DSD: Native DSD 64 / 128 / 256 / 512 Bluetooth Input Bluetooth 5.0 aptX HD (Qualcomm CSR8675) DSD over PCM: DoP64 / DoP128 / DoP256/Dop512 Impedance (Headphone Jack) Power XLR / SE Signal to Noise Ratio Separation 16 Ohm 10 / 5W 112db 99%
32 Ohm 8 / 4W 110db 99% 100 Ohm 3.8 / 1.9W 111db 99% 150 Ohm 1.3W / 650mW 110db 99% 300 Ohm 640 / 320mW 109db 99.50%
Lots of power from the balanced output, and a pretty darned impressive amount from the SE jack. A couple of interesting features I like:
- 2 XLR inputs
- 2 RCA inputs
Not for my own use case, because I like the onboard DACs on my Bursons, but it's a nice feature to have. Timekeeper has one RCA input, which is all I need (only external source I use is a phono stage), but it's cool that you seem to be able to plug a balanced DAC into the GT if you want. The Conductor 3XP has no analog input. Which is fine, it's my bedside setup and my wife would shoot me in the face with a bazooka if I tried to put a turntable in the bedroom.
The other nifty feature is a dedicated sub out. As much noise as I've heard lately around headphone+sub listening, this little feature is pretty cool.
If anyone ends up with one of these, I'd be curious how they like it. Looks like list price is $2999, currently on sale for $2699.
No, that's 1/4".
4.4 is normally associated with a balanced output (not on all manufacturers, like ifi ) and the balanced output on the Burson is full size 4 pin XLR... so if you plan on utilizing a 4.4mm balanced headphone cable you would need to get a 4.4mm to XLR adaptor.. ddhifi makes a nice one... you could use that adaptor and just keep it plugged into the burson and you would be set for 4.4mm balanced output https://www.amazon.com/Balanced-Adapter-Traditional-Desktop-Earphone/dp/B094ZT75PJ
