Cypher Labs AlgoRhythm Solo - Discussion and Impressions Thread

[dj nellie]

It doesn't seem that a non-sponsored thread exists yet to discuss the Solo.  I plan to write a review comparing it to the HiFiMAN HM-801 soon, but in the meantime I'd love to hear some honest opinions and see what kind of questions people have.
 
Here are some photos I took today:
 

 

 

 

[Jian]

Nice gears mate!

 

[uelover]

Wow nellie you actually put a strap over your iphone! Wonder if that poses an operational struggle.

 

[cooperpwc]

Good new thread, dj nelie. I hope to post pics of my new Slim Solo rig as earlly as this week.

 

[Jalo]

dj, we share a lot of the same common gears, LCD2, ED8, JH13/16, Solo, SR71b etc.  I have been enjoying the LCD out of the Solo/71b combo quite a bit. I am really looking forward to your review comparing the HM801 to the solo.  If and when you do your comparison, could you use the same amp (71b) and cans (jh16) for both the 801 and the solo? I know the 801 is capable of playing higher bit rate materials, but at least can you comparing the same materials as it is in your idevices?  Thanks.

 

[GLdgShDjKsHT]

waiting those impressions on that dream rig

 

[cooperpwc]

Some pics of my sidewinder Slim Solo config. This is a temporary configuration, I think. I have a custom IC arriving any day now and then the Pico Slim will be sandwiched between the Solo and the classic in a Slim Solo Stack. Then again, this configuration here was one of my original concepts and it is working well. A basic design requirement for me was that the iPod and volume control both point forwards. That will be the same in the Slim Solo stack. (Sorry for the poor quality low light iPhone 3GS pics.)
 

 

[kiwirugby]

Interesting.  I never thought of putting my Slim on the side like that.   Got to give it a try.  My configuration is iPod+Solo+Slim held together with a Cypher Labs band.   Your configuration has a smaller footprint.   Nice!
 
Of course, I am waiting for a JH-3A/JH16 and then the poor Slim will be relegated to a 5.5 iMod!....and JH13s!

 

[thegr8brian]

Anyone know if this will work with rockbox?

 

[dj nellie]

AFAIK, you can't Rockbox any of the officially Solo-compatible iPods.  Some people reported that you can use the Solo on an (older gen) Rockboxed iPod, although it just runs in shuffle mode without access to the user interface.  I have a Rockboxed Classic 5.5g, but I haven't tried the Solo on it yet--I've been perfectly happy with the sound I'm getting from my Touch.
 
Not being able to use the Solo with a Rockbox-able iPod was a huge drawback for me, but I'm getting used to the idea of converting my FLAC albums to ALAC with dbpoweramp.  For me, the annoyance of conversion is more than outweighed by the enjoyment I'm getting from the crisp, transparent sound of the Solo.

 

[Anaxilus]

What Wolfson DAC is the Solo using btw?

 

[SoupRKnowva]

Quote:

What Wolfson DAC is the Solo using btw?

they havent said...

 

[thegr8brian]

AFAIK, you can't Rockbox any of the officially Solo-compatible iPods.  Some people reported that you can use the Solo on an (older gen) Rockboxed iPod, although it just runs in shuffle mode without access to the user interface.  I have a Rockboxed Classic 5.5g, but I haven't tried the Solo on it yet--I've been perfectly happy with the sound I'm getting from my Touch.
 
Not being able to use the Solo with a Rockbox-able iPod was a huge drawback for me, but I'm getting used to the idea of converting my FLAC albums to ALAC with dbpoweramp.  For me, the annoyance of conversion is more than outweighed by the enjoyment I'm getting from the crisp, transparent sound of the Solo.

There's a version of rockbox that for the most part is working with the latest gen Ipod Classics. It's a little buggy, but most features are working. A friend of mine is using one and says that, for the most part, it works fine.

Check out this thread about it here

 

[dj nellie]

Oh ok, thanks for letting me know that.  I know that they had been working on a Rockbox for 6th/7th gen, I just never saw a final release.  That's great news, but I think I remember reading some reports that you have to play the Rockboxed Classic on Shuffle, then turn on the Solo, and you don't get access to any of the controls.  But it would be nice if someone could confirm?
 
BTW, I tried the Solo with my 5.5g Classic, and it just goes to the USB file transfer screen.

 

[cooperpwc]

Dj, the Shuffle mode is the 5.5G, with or withour Rockbox. No one knows yet how the Solo will work with Classic using Rockbox. Ken is on record as saying that it won't work but he hates Rockbox. (In fairness, it gave him nothing but grief with the iMod... warranty complaints that were Rockbox, not hardware related).
 
I think that it just may work. 

  However, there may be further reduction of battery life. Anyway I would wait until at least the beta release on the official Rockbox site. This pre-release could brick your Classic.
 
Edit: It has now advanced to "unusable port" status on the Rockbox site. Once they solve Dual Boot OF and Install with Rbutil, it should be okay.