[FooFighter]

You think I should reach out to Audio46? Not too inclined to be paying for shipping unless covered under warranty as well.

I'd do that for sure if I were you.
Am not so familiar with Audio64 as I am located in Europe, I think I only ordered some IEM vacuum cleaner from them before

 

[bneiderman]

Also here is the reply I got from Ferrum. Just copied it from my email:

“Hello Bret,

Our R&D checked couple OOR units on some IEMs and turned out this sound you found was present so it seems this is normal and there is nothing to worry about. According to our engineers this won’t affect sound quality.”

Makes me worried that warranty would be turned down if they say this is normal. I have none of this noise with my Topping D90/A90 stack.

 

[801evan]

Like I said, this is normal.

 

[EMINENT]

Also here is the reply I got from Ferrum. Just copied it from my email:

“Hello Bret,

Our R&D checked couple OOR units on some IEMs and turned out this sound you found was present so it seems this is normal and there is nothing to worry about. According to our engineers this won’t affect sound quality.”

Makes me worried that warranty would be turned down if they say this is normal. I have none of this noise with my Topping D90/A90 stack.

Yeah, strange that this would be a normal thing they couldn't engineer out like others.

Sounds to me like if it's not heard in the audio, no care.

 

[bneiderman]

Like I said, this is normal.

So if this is normal how come this is not heard on all units?

 

[801evan]

So if this is normal how come this is not heard on all units?

Normal for it to occur....

 

[EMINENT]

So if this is normal how come this is not heard on all units?

Because the ones where it isn't heard are not normal?

 

[krude]

I can report that my unit has this behaviour as well. The good thing is that if you run a decent (~4v and up) source, it is only heard at defeaning volume levels that I would never go to anyway, that's why I never heard it before, but if you run a quiet source, then you might experience it more often. A bit strange and a benefit of a digitally controlled volume chip I guess ... on the flipside you've got infinite adjustability with analogue instead of steps ... but if you have a lot of steps then you're still good ... hmmm ... swings and roundaoubts

 

[krude]

Also here is the reply I got from Ferrum. Just copied it from my email:

“Hello Bret,

Our R&D checked couple OOR units on some IEMs and turned out this sound you found was present so it seems this is normal and there is nothing to worry about. According to our engineers this won’t affect sound quality.”

Makes me worried that warranty would be turned down if they say this is normal. I have none of this noise with my Topping D90/A90 stack.

Looks like vibration microphonics from the analogue volume pot that the circuitry picks up at high volumes. Don't think you'll notice that at normal listening levels with most source gear, also if you have a dac with volume control you can bypass the volume on Oor all together, just be careful with your dacs volume control so you don't blow your hps or ears.

 

[801evan]

Nope. It's simply an Alps blue velvet issue. I can reset my unit or bring the pot down to zero kind of combination and it'll be gone until it creeps up again.

 

[sparkylarky]

Sorry just checked back in. Ferrum tech and I went back and forth a few times about the scratch/static noise while changing volume with nothing playing. They told me that the engineers said they heard the same thing on their devices and that it is normal and not to worry about it.

Also tried this out on high gain with DTC and Utopia, nothing, dead quiet when turning the volume knob up to max slowly or quickly.

 

[krude]

Nope. It's simply an Alps blue velvet issue. I can reset my unit or bring the pot down to zero kind of combination and it'll be gone until it creeps up again.

Could be, thought it sounded like vibration / grind of the analogue pot being amplified at high volume levels

 

[ChJL]

No noise when music is playing. And can’t really hear it changing volume while music is playing. Only really obvious changing volume with nothing playing which I only discovered by accident and it seems the other poster did as well.

On my current amp there is some noise when I adjust the volume even when music is playing. More severe when it's not warmed up. Getting rid of it and will get an Oor... should not occur again, destracting! Good to know when the Oor comes in and shows this "normal" behaviour I will send it back within two weeks, no question asked period...

 

[miuywu]

Been a/b testing the Ferrum oor + hypsos against the Xi audio Broadway balanced. Choosing between them is going to be my first super hard decision in this hobby.

My main setup is rme adi 2 akm + external Amp and abyss diana Tc. I do want to upgrade my dac but haven't found a suitable replacement yet.

In short, the Ferrum oor + hypsos and Broadway both sound engaging and detailed and are worthy of being end game experiences (that or I've sated my spending lust atm). While same in being super great, both have some wins over the other.

The Ferrum oor + hypsos stands out in its elegance, sounding overall refined. I would guess that most audiophiles would choose it over the Broadway.

Bass - deep extension & full sounding and some physical "mmph", round shape​

Mids - not overstated but tear jerking "real" vocals. Voices are defined well and I was able to hear the "air" in the singing. First time listening to music made me imagine the unknown face of the singer, or the existence of a piano in front of me.​

Highs - detailed and controlled. Only the worst recorded tracks I had could sound sharp(literally clipping instruments). Everything else was refined and controlled.​

​

The Broadway in comparison stands out in its blast energy and vocal forwardness. The intimate mids and impact energy are making it so hard to leave this guy.

Bass - so much energy and great texture some heavy tracks gave the feeling of pressure on the ears. Extension actually wasn't naturally as big as oor but slight eq to lift the sub bass made every aspect of Broadway bass significantly superior to oor.​

Mids - intimate in-my-head vocals. The oor is like a beautiful singer on stage(not that far but still some distance). The Broadway is like a personal seranade right in front of me.​

Highs - detailed and refined.​

The oor is more natural, beautiful in its nuance and controlled sound gives a feeling of elegance.
The Broadway is somewhat surreal. Some sound effects and percussions don't sound like a recording, they sound like they're in the room with you. But that somewhat recesses the non-impact bass (which is why it doesn't seem to extend as far as oor) and also pushes back everything surrounding the vocals. If you listen to a busy track / mix, the vocals are very clearly cut out and presented in front of you.

Also been struggling to hear the difference that the 22-30 volts and respective wattage changes in the oor but haven't tried the non variable power supply yet.

Got a new dac to test these Ferrum Oor vs Xi audio broadway again.

The resonessence labs Invicta mirus dac is a Saber dac that actually sounds smoother and natural than than the rme adi 2 I was using before.

Using this warmer smoother dac with both amps
- OOR played its strengths a little but noticeably better(natural, timbre, stage size)
- Broadway actually improved the most as the etched feel was removed entirely. Superior energy bass energy and stage depth.

The OOR is more neutral for sure. OOR's ability as a smoothness machine pairs amazing with a dry detailed dac like the Rme adi 2 and similar sounding cheaper dacs like the topping d90se and smsl m400 / d1se. Their dry detail is given flavor and the effect is entrancing. The Broadway seems to emphasize the dryness of these dacs in contrast to the OOR. After listening to the OOR for this case, the Broadway became much more fatiguing.

However if the dac is already smooth like the Invicta mirus(also getting an r2r to test soon), the OOR seems to not gain much. Still an improvement in naturalness further tho where inferior amps probably could not. The Broadway with a smooth dac almost closes the gap in naturalness and neutrality. The vocals are center stage instead of in your face vs the rest of the music. Broadway wins in low end and stage depth. One place I saw Broadway wins 100‰ is drum sound. The attack, body and decay of the drums are very immersive.

Also sorry if im off topic, not sure where comparisons would go and I've always found them to be the most helpful way to decide before a new purchase.

 

[Gavin C4]

Also here is the reply I got from Ferrum. Just copied it from my email:

“Hello Bret,

Our R&D checked couple OOR units on some IEMs and turned out this sound you found was present so it seems this is normal and there is nothing to worry about. According to our engineers this won’t affect sound quality.”

Makes me worried that warranty would be turned down if they say this is normal. I have none of this noise with my Topping D90/A90 stack.

It seems to be part of the volume nob, if you do not adjust the volume on the fly frequently while playing music, I think it will be fine.