[Pete7]

For the last 4 months, I've been using my desktop set-up with a Corda Cross-1. I originally got it because it seemed like my ears got fatigued pretty easily and quickly, so I thought crossfeed might be a viable solution. Tonight I removed the Corda Cross-1 out of the signal chain, and I'm pretty amazed at what I'm hearing. There's more clarity, detail, soundstage,and an overall fuller sound. What's more my ears don't seem to be any more fatigued than with crossfeed. What I'm curious about is how much the original signal is degraded by a crossfeed unit. Crossfeed being a way to relieve ear fatigue seems like a placebo effect in my case.

 

[fjf]

I don't use it. Don't like it, don't need it to relieve any fatigue. I agree with you.

 

[Sovkiller]

I use it, like it and honestly there is absolutelly no degradation to talk off, unless a defective unit, of course it changes the freq spectrum, but that is part of the trade, but degradation nope!!! About the soundstage, of course it "collapses" (or better IMO improve) the soundstage, as it bleed with a time delay from one chanel to the other...

 

[Pete7]

Not saying that I don't like it. Just not sure if it's worth the trade-off.

 

[sacd lover]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pete7 For the last 4 months, I've been using my desktop set-up with a Corda Cross-1. I originally got it because it seemed like my ears got fatigued pretty easily and quickly, so I thought crossfeed might be a viable solution. Tonight I removed the Corda Cross-1 out of the signal chain, and I'm pretty amazed at what I'm hearing. There's more clarity, detail, soundstage,and an overall fuller sound. What's more my ears don't seem to be any more fatigued than with crossfeed. What I'm curious about is how much the original signal is degraded by a crossfeed unit. Crossfeed being a way to relieve ear fatigue seems like a placebo effect in my case.

I totally agree with you. I think crossfeed screws up the sound much more than the crossfeed helps.

 

[Sovkiller]

The xfeed messed up the sound no more than any different headphone you can try, or a different amp, or any change of tubes in a tube amp, or an OP amp in an op amp based amp....all of the above change the freq spectrum curve in one way or the other, and sometimes even more....and many people here has multiple headphones and amps, and tubes....with the difference that they do not offer a more natural presentation of the music at all...I do not think that two geniuses as Tyll and Jan could be both wrong, sorry but it is hard to believe that someone could get the subtle differences the xfeed produce, becasue they are indeed subtle, as an excuse to avoid its use, and consider it a useless device....sorry to disagree one more time...

 

[fjf]

Soundstage collapses and low frequencies seem to almost disappear. The thing I don't understand is: why?. It may take a while, but one can get used to the two-channel separation, and then your brain makes a three-dimensional image with the sound and you hear everything on place. And the sound is, somehow, richer, fuller.

 

[Sovkiller]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fjf Soundstage collapses and low frequencies seem to almost disappear. The thing I don't understand is: why?. It may take a while, but one can get used to the two-channel separation, and then your brain makes a three-dimensional image with the sound and you hear everything on place. And the sound is, somehow, richer, fuller.

You will not get a brain setup for that, believe me, there is a wall in the center that will not let you feel that (the brain) you need a bleeding from one channel to the other....

BTW Soundstage is supposed to collapse a little bit, but very subtle effect, about the bass, man you have a problem there for sure if it disapears, that unit has some porblems...

 

[taoster]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sovkiller You will not get a brain setup for that, believe me, there is a wall in the center that will not let you feel that (the brain) you need a bleeding from one channel to the other.... BTW Soundstage is supposed to collapse a little bit, but very subtle effect, about the bass, man you have a problem there for sure if it disapears, that unit has some porblems...

there is no problem with the rig. It's the fx of the x-feed. The soundstage does collapse and bass impact can be reduced. Atleast that is how it is on my pcorda, ha-2 and prehead

That said I still have it normally turned on by default. I prefer it on than off.

 

[Sovkiller]

Quote:

Originally Posted by taoster there is no problem with the rig. It's the fx of the x-feed. The soundstage does collapse and bass impact can be reduced. At least that is how it is on my pcorda, ha-2 and prehead That said I still have it normally turned on by default. I prefer it on than off.

Believe me it is not, the xfeed is not supposed to work like that, all I can say is that I had three different standalone xfeed units, one original from Meier, that I recently sold, and two DIY from Jan's generous offer, and hooked into my system non of them give you that loss of bass that you are mentioning, and I have used the HD600 with it as well as my CD3000. But the standalone unit has compensation for the bass and highs freqs, along with the three levels of xfeed, not sure if the amp internally had this kind of compensation, but I'm assuming that Meier is not that bad engineer as to leave this end loose in their amps...

BTW that compensation is only to be use given the differences between output impedance of the source and input impedance of the amp, but given that Corda amps has it fully integrated inside the amp, I could see that you may not need it, as they will be perfectly matched at least at the input side...

I have also the curves of the RMAA analysis, done by Neil, the member who did my DIY ones, and there is no such of loss of bass neither, done of the two of them...and on his two as well...

 

[recstar24]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fjf Soundstage collapses and low frequencies seem to almost disappear. The thing I don't understand is: why?. It may take a while, but one can get used to the two-channel separation, and then your brain makes a three-dimensional image with the sound and you hear everything on place. And the sound is, somehow, richer, fuller.

To go along with this, I believe the human brain to be the most effective "DSP" that we could ever have. Headphone listening takes a while to get used to, but I have noticed that the brain can "trick" you into believing your hearing a 3d image the more you listen and get used to headphone listening. Crossfeed for sure helps that transition on various recordings, but overall I felt the Meier implementation was executed very well. Bass impact is reduced somewhat but its still clear and tight. The left to right headstage collapses a bit but you gain a better illusion of soundstage depth where images are more projected in front of you. Some tradeoffs, but sounds quite nice to me and Im sure plenty others as well.

 

[blessingx]

I've used five crossfeeds: Corda Cross 1, built in Corda Aria, Xins SuperMacro built in, Pink's X-Feed MKII and a Mac only very customizable (25 settings) software app Canz3D. I don't use any of them anymore, but the Cordas degraded the signal far more than the others. I could never get use to them unfortunately. The soundstage changes were a +/- depending on preferences, but other changes including detail were -.

 

[Thaddy]

Sovkiller, it's a personal preference. Give it up. If they don't like crossfeed, then no amount of bickering and persuasion on your part will change that.

(I don't like crossfeed either

)

 

[Elephas]

Activating the crossfeed function of a Corda Aria, Corda HA-2 MkII SE and Prehead MkII SE all resulted in degraded sound quality. To me, the crossfeed effect shrinks the soundstage and reduces air and separation. It also decreases the level of detail.

 

[Sovkiller]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thaddy Sovkiller, it's a personal preference. Give it up. If they don't like crossfeed, then no amount of bickering and persuasion on your part will change that. (I don't like crossfeed either )

If they do not like it, that is a different story, that is a personal preference, and I do not have anything against that, but to say that it messes the signal, and remove the bass that is a completely different thing, and is not personal, you may like it or not depending on your taste, but I have measurement to back it up, that it doesn't mess the signal more than other things we use daily and they do not not remove the bass completely as they sustain, that issimply not true, do you really belive that anybody will create such device???