[Winston67]

Does anyone have a view of how well the Burson Soloist SL pairs with the HD650? The consensus seems to be that the Sennheisers are voiced on the darker side and I wondered whether the Burson would be a good complement or would only exacerbate the darkness.

 

[bboris77]

I just got a Burson Soloist SL Mk2 to use with my Audeze LCD2C. OMG, absolutely wow. I upgraded from Schiit Magni 3 which is a great entry-level amp, but the Soloist is just unreal. The biggest difference is the soundstage which is vastly more spacious on the soloist. Burson is definitely a more neutral amp compared to the Magni 3 which is slightly warm and a bit more closed-in sounding. I have also tried the LCD2C with my Valhalla 2 and it was pretty good in terms of timbre and soundstage (better than the Magni 3), but it simply does not have the slam and speed of the Soloist.

 

[EternalChampion]

Does anyone have a view of how well the Burson Soloist SL pairs with the HD650? The consensus seems to be that the Sennheisers are voiced on the darker side and I wondered whether the Burson would be a good complement or would only exacerbate the darkness.

As long as your DAC isn't overly dark, there's nothing to worry about.

 

[bboris77]

One quick question for the owners - I noticed that the RCA jacks do not grip the connector as tightly as on my other audio equipment. They connect solidly, but it is not a death grip like in other type of amps where you really have to push/pull hard to connect disconnect. Is this what everyone else is experiencing with these Tiffany-style RCA jacks? I think I experienced the same when I assembled my Bottlehead Crack.

 

[Winston67]

As long as your DAC isn't overly dark, there's nothing to worry about.

Thanks, any DAC suggestions that would work well with the Burson and HD650s?

 

[EternalChampion]

Btw I notice you wrote "SL". My reference was to the SL MK2 version, if that's what you meant to say. I have no idea how the original SL sounds.

Out of the three dacs that I have used along with the SL MK2 for some time and examined their workings, what is sensible for you to know has been my experience with the Asus STX II, upgraded with 3 x Burson V5 op amps.

This PC sound card is hugely versatile, an excellent performer for its price and balanced enough for most headphones out there including the HD650.
I'm using it for sending through SPDIF to the Burson Conductor V2+ or just use the same optical cable to send analogue to the amp section.

 

[EternalChampion]

One quick question for the owners - I noticed that the RCA jacks do not grip the connector as tightly as on my other audio equipment. They connect solidly, but it is not a death grip like in other type of amps where you really have to push/pull hard to connect disconnect. Is this what everyone else is experiencing with these Tiffany-style RCA jacks? I think I experienced the same when I assembled my Bottlehead Crack.

I've had the same issue with both RCA interconnect cables shipped with Burson products so far. Some of their connectors feel very loose indeed. It was funny how I touched the cable once accidentally and one connector came off completely.

 

[bboris77]

I've had the same issue with both RCA interconnect cables shipped with Burson products so far. Some of their connectors feel very loose indeed. It was funny how I touched the cable once accidentally and one connector came off completely.

Yes, their interconnect cables are very loose fitting, but it is actually the female RCA jacks on their units that appear slightly smaller in diameter than let's say Schiit products. When I plug my usual Amphenol RCA connector into the Schiit-type jack, it grips it very tightly (almost too tightly), whereas the same connector plugged into the Soloist has a slightly looser grip. It is still quite secure, but a bit easier to unplug then say Schiit Sys.

 

[EternalChampion]

One of my cables is the Audioquest Forest Coaxial. The pin has a slightly different tip from the analogue RCA and fits very tightly into the V2+. On a just smaller diameter connector the same cable might even refuse to go in completely I guess! So it doesn't make sense to blame either.

 

[EternalChampion]

Btw, I would highly advice those of you who are ready to buy the SL MK2 or have bought it already, even if you can't afford spending double the amount right away it really makes sense and you should start saving for the V2 amp! You'll get enormous improvement and the diminishing return factor does not apply in this case. To my ears it feels like an end game situation for "just" 1000 Euros for headphone amplification. There's nothing more to ask to be "fixed" IMO. Others who have gone way up on the ladder with their gear agree as well. Personally I feel like I spent my money in the best possible way...

Night-day difference between the two amps was the sub-bass reproduction and the soundstage. Oh boy, you can definitely feel the 8 watts doing their thing. Clean texture, rumbling, depth... Soundstage gets noticeably more expansive and the layering is better defined. Everything operates in a bigger space, sounds softer, more effortless. It is the whole package.

Soloist is a terrific amp, I enjoyed it for more than a year, and the V2 just takes the whole experience to a higher level

 

[Povell42]

Has anyone seen or head a comparison between their SL MK2 and the new Burson FUN? The have a similar power output and with the OpAmps in the FUN the are only $100 difference.

 

[Jthompson300]

Helll all, I have been looking at this Amp or the PS Audio Sprout 100 to pair with my Audeze LCD-XC, can anyone recommend or advise against ?

The challenge that I am running into with the LCD-XC is that they are efficient but still benefit from extra power so floor noise is a factor.

 

[Jthompson300]

So I bit the bullet and got the SL for my Audeze LCD-XC....... wow. For anyone else wondering how the XC and SL pair I must say that it’s about as close to perfect that I want to get considering how much I wanted to spend.

Compared to my IFI iCan micro SE the Soloist mops the floor with the IFI. The IFI was so harsh sounding and needed the bass boost on full but with the SL it makes me feel like I just unclogged the pipes and everything is flowing perfectly.

Edit: In High gain there is a buzzing when no music is playing which is even noticeable when certain music is playing. I should have a better power source for it on Thursday to update if it gets any better. The down side on low gain is that you lose a lot of the fullness, everything just goes hollow in comparison.

 

[dudlew]

So I bit the bullet and got the SL for my Audeze LCD-XC....... wow. For anyone else wondering how the XC and SL pair I must say that it’s about as close to perfect that I want to get considering how much I wanted to spend.

Compared to my IFI iCan micro SE the Soloist mops the floor with the IFI. The IFI was so harsh sounding and needed the bass boost on full but with the SL it makes me feel like I just unclogged the pipes and everything is flowing perfectly.

Edit: In High gain there is a buzzing when no music is playing which is even noticeable when certain music is playing. I should have a better power source for it on Thursday to update if it gets any better. The down side on low gain is that you lose a lot of the fullness, everything just goes hollow in comparison.

If I remember correctly, the sound is normal. I had questioned burson about this and was told that this is normal with their amps operating in class A. If anybody knows different correct me.

 

[Jthompson300]

If I remember correctly, the sound is normal. I had questioned burson about this and was told that this is normal with their amps operating in class A. If anybody knows different correct me.

So I changed the power conditioner and it helped a bit but when there is any silence or softer parts the buzzing can still be easily heard.

I suppose when they advertised “pitch black” they were meaning for certain cans. No biggie, I can see if I can live with the squealing buzzing before I decide to send it back.

Edit 2: the emotiva a-100 class A/B running 50 Watts to the Audeze LCD-XC has the same noise floor as the soloist SL but less detail. I guess that I am just bummed about the noise floor but everything else is great with the Soloist SL.