my burson soloist 3 generates a noise(maybe ground ?!?!) but when i put my hand on the case all noise is gone. the noise is so faint that it is bearable but I was hoping someone could help help me find a solution ?
Burson Soloist 3X Performance Head/Pre Amp - 8Wpc XLR with MUSE72320 volume control
- Thread starter raoultrifan
- Start date
Has anyone of you tested/used the Soloist as pre-amp for active speakers? And to be even more precise, have you compared the pre-amp performence against some other headphone amps with pre-amp functionality?
What kind of improvement did you find in low gain power amp mode?
Does anyone know what the actual gain ratios for the Soloist are, in low, medium, and high gain modes? For example, is the "low" setting the same as "unity gain", where if I have a 3V input from my DAC, it (the gain stage) outputs 3V?
Or is it perhaps less than unity gain, effectively attenuating the signal from my DAC?
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BMGRO
New Head-Fier
Not sure if anyone has had that issue before but wanted to share my two cents on the latest warranty replacement I got for the 3X. Bought it sometime after it's launch in 2020. Couple of months ago it started making a weird buzzing noise that was inherent to the PCB. It didn't introduce static into the actual outputs but the device itself was emitting the noise. Placing it on mute made the sound pause along with the LED screen flashes.
I contacted Burson support about it and after a bit of back and forth (had to send them a video recording to really get the message across) they advised the front PCB with LED screen was the one at fault. They sent me a replacement PCB + screen from the main factory in China.
Since it is sent from China, had to first settle duty + tax on arrival in the EU which held me up a bit more. Replacement was really easy. One thing of note is the rotary encoder that the new PCB came in was a linear one and not a step-in one which was a bit annoying.
Long story short, after fitting the replacement in (about 10 minutes of work to disassemble/assemble) the annoying sound was gone and the noise floor was ever so slightly lower than what it was before.
Overall, I am happy with the support, especially considering it is international support and wanted to share in case anyone else has had this issue before.
Cheers!
I contacted Burson support about it and after a bit of back and forth (had to send them a video recording to really get the message across) they advised the front PCB with LED screen was the one at fault. They sent me a replacement PCB + screen from the main factory in China.
Since it is sent from China, had to first settle duty + tax on arrival in the EU which held me up a bit more. Replacement was really easy. One thing of note is the rotary encoder that the new PCB came in was a linear one and not a step-in one which was a bit annoying.
Long story short, after fitting the replacement in (about 10 minutes of work to disassemble/assemble) the annoying sound was gone and the noise floor was ever so slightly lower than what it was before.
Overall, I am happy with the support, especially considering it is international support and wanted to share in case anyone else has had this issue before.
Cheers!
BMGRO
New Head-Fier
I tried it with my Klipsch The Fives and loved the way they sounded. Not too big of a difference but certainly noticeable. Speakers I have are warm and definitely not neutral if the DSP setting for bass compensation is on but the amp did make the sound cleaner. Compared it with my old HD-DAC1 prior to selling it. Have to say the Burson performed better but I had the ADI-2 as DAC hooked to the Burson whereas I used the internal DAC chip on the Marantz so not sure it is a very good comparison. I also compared the tube amp I have as a preamp to my monitors. I would say it sounded best from the tubes but I am very partial to the sound they produce. Used a Cayin HA-1A MK2 as the preamp. Tubes are not stock on it. Using Amperex Bugle Boys both on the 12AU7 and EL84 slots.
Ok y’all, comparison time!
I had the pleasure of owning the Burson Soloist 3XP and Kinki THR-1 at the same time (just sold the 3XP), and I thought I’d share my findings of these two amazing amps.
First of all, my setup. I went balanced into the 3XP from the Gumby and single ended into the THR-1 (both of which were warmed up with tons of time to burn in). I did this because while I couldn’t seem to hear a difference between inputs in the THR-1 (it’s a single ended amp), I heard a noticeable improvement going balanced into the 3XP. The Gumby is said to have a better sound out of the balanced out anyway, so I figured I would have both amps sounding their best. I used the Arya through the balanced outputs of both amps, and the Verite Open single ended. I’ll explain more why later.
So first, I’ll share my findings with the Arya. I went balanced because the THR-1 has an unusually high output impedance of around 51 ohms balanced and 100 ohms single ended (according to the soundstage network measurements), so 50 is where the Arya easily sounds it’s best between the two. I found the sound to be overall very layered, with extremely impactful bass, and a very smooth and euphonic sound. This has its benefits and it’s detriments. I don’t hear the same level of detail I hear with the 3XP, nor the blackness of background, but instead I’m treated to a very cohesive and engaging musical experience. The soundstage is a very nice size, and voices sound very alive and forward in the mix. The 3XP, on the other hand, gave the Arya Stealth a super clean and natural sound, with tons of presence in midrange instruments. It’s as if you can really hear the body of each note being played. One track I listened to was “Hold On” by Tom Waits. The left ear has a guitar playing a strumming pattern that you can feel as well as hear on the 3XP. It’s definitely closer to the ear, but it’s alive and solid in its presentation, whereas the THR-1 gives it more distance and smears over some of the fine details of it. It’s part of the musical landscape, not an attraction. I’d say that things that sound thin and super-delineated with the 3XP have a more weighty, blurry, and euphoric sound with the THR-1. The same was true for “Time” by Hans Zimmer. With the 3XP, each instrument was the focus, held in a smaller stage but with much greater precision and body. The THR-1 had more bass (too much bass for this track in fact) and more stage, but it presented everything a little more as a whole and not a collection of instruments. I’ll say that the 3XP was more thrilling in this track, but bigger, and more smooth and laid back with the THR-1.
Things remain largely the same with the VO, with the caveat that the VO is now using the 100-ohm output single ended from the THR-1, which matches its damping factor much better than the near 0 output impedance of the 3XP. So the sound with the VO is a little dull and subdued with the 3XP. Overall it still retains that squeaky clean, natural sound, but it’s just a little dark, and soft. The THR-1 brought voices to life in the VO, in a way I hadn’t heard from them before. It’s really shown me the importance of impedance matching. The same things were true: the THR-1 had a bigger stage, more layered sound, more impactful bass, and a more cohesive overall picture. Listening to Mark Knopfler’s “Laughs and Jokes and Drinks and Smokes,” the voice was clearer and more present with the THR-1, but with the 3XP, instruments, while being a bit darker, had that same sense of body and solidity as they with with the Arya. I enjoyed the presentation of the THR-1 more. It just gave the VO’s more vibrancy and openness. It also gave the VO’s their characteristic 3D sound I kept hearing about, with tons of bass punch and presence.
I’m the end I’m actually selling both, because I found the Ampsandsound Forge to do everything both of these do, but better, and with two different output impedance options. But I can summarize my findings like this…I’d go with the THR-1 for great (not exceptional) detail, big bass presence, wide open and layered soundstage, and the option for higher impedance headphones to get some magic without having to use tubes. I’d get the 3XP for that clean, detailed, studio like sound, with a thinner, more accurate representation of instruments that have more body and presence. They trade blows, and cost about the same, but with very different sounds. In the end, I didn’t notice any loss of detail with the THR-1 until I put it side by side with the 3XP, and didn’t notice the 3XP was missing any bass impact or space until I heard the THR-1, so really you can’t go wrong with either!
I had the pleasure of owning the Burson Soloist 3XP and Kinki THR-1 at the same time (just sold the 3XP), and I thought I’d share my findings of these two amazing amps.
First of all, my setup. I went balanced into the 3XP from the Gumby and single ended into the THR-1 (both of which were warmed up with tons of time to burn in). I did this because while I couldn’t seem to hear a difference between inputs in the THR-1 (it’s a single ended amp), I heard a noticeable improvement going balanced into the 3XP. The Gumby is said to have a better sound out of the balanced out anyway, so I figured I would have both amps sounding their best. I used the Arya through the balanced outputs of both amps, and the Verite Open single ended. I’ll explain more why later.
So first, I’ll share my findings with the Arya. I went balanced because the THR-1 has an unusually high output impedance of around 51 ohms balanced and 100 ohms single ended (according to the soundstage network measurements), so 50 is where the Arya easily sounds it’s best between the two. I found the sound to be overall very layered, with extremely impactful bass, and a very smooth and euphonic sound. This has its benefits and it’s detriments. I don’t hear the same level of detail I hear with the 3XP, nor the blackness of background, but instead I’m treated to a very cohesive and engaging musical experience. The soundstage is a very nice size, and voices sound very alive and forward in the mix. The 3XP, on the other hand, gave the Arya Stealth a super clean and natural sound, with tons of presence in midrange instruments. It’s as if you can really hear the body of each note being played. One track I listened to was “Hold On” by Tom Waits. The left ear has a guitar playing a strumming pattern that you can feel as well as hear on the 3XP. It’s definitely closer to the ear, but it’s alive and solid in its presentation, whereas the THR-1 gives it more distance and smears over some of the fine details of it. It’s part of the musical landscape, not an attraction. I’d say that things that sound thin and super-delineated with the 3XP have a more weighty, blurry, and euphoric sound with the THR-1. The same was true for “Time” by Hans Zimmer. With the 3XP, each instrument was the focus, held in a smaller stage but with much greater precision and body. The THR-1 had more bass (too much bass for this track in fact) and more stage, but it presented everything a little more as a whole and not a collection of instruments. I’ll say that the 3XP was more thrilling in this track, but bigger, and more smooth and laid back with the THR-1.
Things remain largely the same with the VO, with the caveat that the VO is now using the 100-ohm output single ended from the THR-1, which matches its damping factor much better than the near 0 output impedance of the 3XP. So the sound with the VO is a little dull and subdued with the 3XP. Overall it still retains that squeaky clean, natural sound, but it’s just a little dark, and soft. The THR-1 brought voices to life in the VO, in a way I hadn’t heard from them before. It’s really shown me the importance of impedance matching. The same things were true: the THR-1 had a bigger stage, more layered sound, more impactful bass, and a more cohesive overall picture. Listening to Mark Knopfler’s “Laughs and Jokes and Drinks and Smokes,” the voice was clearer and more present with the THR-1, but with the 3XP, instruments, while being a bit darker, had that same sense of body and solidity as they with with the Arya. I enjoyed the presentation of the THR-1 more. It just gave the VO’s more vibrancy and openness. It also gave the VO’s their characteristic 3D sound I kept hearing about, with tons of bass punch and presence.
I’m the end I’m actually selling both, because I found the Ampsandsound Forge to do everything both of these do, but better, and with two different output impedance options. But I can summarize my findings like this…I’d go with the THR-1 for great (not exceptional) detail, big bass presence, wide open and layered soundstage, and the option for higher impedance headphones to get some magic without having to use tubes. I’d get the 3XP for that clean, detailed, studio like sound, with a thinner, more accurate representation of instruments that have more body and presence. They trade blows, and cost about the same, but with very different sounds. In the end, I didn’t notice any loss of detail with the THR-1 until I put it side by side with the 3XP, and didn’t notice the 3XP was missing any bass impact or space until I heard the THR-1, so really you can’t go wrong with either!
I’m selling my Soloist 3X Performance. I’m listing it here, but I’d also like suggestions of some other free audio websites so that I can maximize exposure.
Helderfb
Head-Fier
burson 3xp shutting down by itself. Anyone had this problem? It happens when I'm listening to a phone, it suddenly turns off and on by itself, as if there was a power failure. I use Burson 3XP + Composer
Is it getting to hot? I do not have problems even with several hours playtime at 30C room temperature, but maybe it could be a problem like that?
Or have you tried a different charging circuit at home? Maybe there are to may devices using the same one?
Composer and Soloist are using the same 3A charger, you could also try to exchange the 2 and check if it still happens with the soloist
Helderfb
Head-Fier
Os desligamentos ocorrem principalmente no início, depois que aquece não ocorre. Ele desliga com a fonte normal, desliga com o supercharger. Liguei na tomada e desligou novamente. O sinal de áudio vem do computador via USB para o compositor e do compositor via XLR para o Solista 3xp.
Vou continuar os testes, vou torná-lo o mais puro possível e emparelhá-lo com outro DAC...
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gibby
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Hi all,
I'm thinking about getting a Chord Qutest DAC and the Burson Soloist 3x. Hopefully someone can help me with a few questions below.
How warm or hot does the Soloist normally run?
Does anyone use the remote for volume control, does it work well or have you experienced any issues with it?
I'm thinking about getting a Chord Qutest DAC and the Burson Soloist 3x. Hopefully someone can help me with a few questions below.
How warm or hot does the Soloist normally run?
Does anyone use the remote for volume control, does it work well or have you experienced any issues with it?
Even on hot summer days (30C room temp) it does not get to hot even with 12 hours of play time. Yes, it is class A and is hot, but it never shuts down.
My experience is that it's getting hot and rather quickly. I recall touching it and I quickly needed to take my hand back. So it was more then 50'C (I'm home barista and usually when the milk pot is too hot to put hand on it's about 50-55'C). After about 5 minutes from switching it on it's already warm. For comparison I just bought Enleum Amp-23R and it's slowly getting hot to the point that I can still lay my hand on it (after two hours). But I must say that in summer I have 28-32'C in room (attic). Enleum in shop where the air conditioner was on was slightly warm. So I suppose that it depends on your room temperature.
Remote is fine. I don't like it's buttons to be so loose (like you can make rattler out of it) but it is ok for usage.
I have both the Qutest and Soloist 3x and it's nice paring. Still I prefer Topping D90 (AKM) because it's a bit more punchy, sharper and on XLR Soloist has more headroom for more demanding cans.
Remote is fine. I don't like it's buttons to be so loose (like you can make rattler out of it) but it is ok for usage.
I have both the Qutest and Soloist 3x and it's nice paring. Still I prefer Topping D90 (AKM) because it's a bit more punchy, sharper and on XLR Soloist has more headroom for more demanding cans.
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