[Slim1970]

For the asking price, the internal view of the XI audio amp is a joke.

Another joke from Ultrasone, the Volcano amp:

Asking price is 20 000$

Wow, I don't feel so bad now, $20K? For what it's worth, the Formula S does have new PCB boards. The one @Era in Ear is showing is an older design. It's still not as well built as the Volot, which parts of it looks to be done by hand.

 

[cfranchi]

Wow, I don't feel so bad now, $20K? For what it's worth, the Formula S does have new PCB boards. The one @Era in Ear is showing is an older design. It's still not as well built as the Volot, which parts of it looks to be done by hand.

Yep, at least with Flux amps, sound quality apart, you have the feeling to pay for something

 

[OHBH]

Over 70 hours...

The sound of my Susvara is all intact and natural.

that's all

 

[vkenz]

Hey everyone just wanted to provide a bit of an update. I decided to get a refund instead of a replacement so I no longer will be receiving a new Volot. After initially requesting the replacement I was getting a little concerned about using something that had failed on me and I decided to purchase another amplifier that meets certain certifications so that I don't have to worry about a failure like this again or at least I can be reassured that the testing was rigorous. Flux was very helpful throughout this return then refund process and let me change my mind a week after asking for the replacement.

The amp I decided on is the XI Audio Formula S and Powerman as it's intended for the 1266 and it has a similar design to the Volot being dual mono and class A. After my brief experience hearing the Volot I would say that it's a great value for money as I do think it competes with the Formula S. From my memory of the Volot both it and the Formula S do a good job with bass reproduction and texture as well as adding more body to the instruments. I'd be interested in someone who owns both amps to do a comparison at some point as I think they are closer than the price would imply and the Volot having more power is a more flexible amplifier.

I've seen some mention of this death pop and for the few hours that I used mine I did not hear anything like that. Although I removed my headphones before turning off the amp so I probably wouldn't hear it if it happened anyways.

Hope those who ordered one enjoy it. Despite my problem with the one I ordered I thought it sounded great for the short time I heard it and bet it sounds even better over time.

It seems like a wrong move… all electronics breaks down. Sooner or later. Some just sooner. That is why we have warranty. Unless it is the sound…

 

[drc73rp]

It seems like a wrong move… all electronics breaks down. Sooner or later. Some just sooner. That is why we have warranty. Unless it is the sound…

I would disagree, failure of this type is more an exception than the norm for products like these especially for a new product from a relatively new company. For me this is an indication that it may have been let out of the gates too soon or compromised by the abnormal situation given the pandemic. It's certainly the first time I've heard of a transformer burning up in a headphone amplifier, and if that's not a good reason to jump ship I don't know what is.

 

[m-i-c-k-e-y]

Ot it may be the transformer itself has QC issues...

 

[GU1DO]

For the asking price, the internal view of the XI audio amp is a joke.

Another joke from Ultrasone, the Volcano amp:

Asking price is 20 000$

Just seeing that alps pot in the middle tells a lot ,,, what a rip offf

 

[GU1DO]

As I understand, you meant multiple secondary windings. Since the primary winding is connected to the mains and always the only one for one transformer (it can have several taps to work with different mains voltages). But the secondary winding is also one here (with a midpoint for bipolar voltage). Thus, the power supply is common for the both channels. I tried to show it in the picture below:

I owned the formula S ,, its nice amp but lack a lot for the price ,,, and that Alps pot agian ,,, what a jock

 

[GU1DO]

Had a problem with the Volot today unfortunately. I left it on from 10 am to 4 pm and then I smelled smoke. Turns out one of the transformers started smoking and melted a bit. I reached out to FLA and they are working on a solution. Not sure what caused it as there was nothing apparently wrong like shorting of wires or anything when I removed the lid. I hope this problem is only with my unit as I know FLA does extensive testing with each unit. I hope they will be able to find a fix or at least replace my unit. If not I may have to look elsewhere for an amp. Despite this problem the little that I did listen to the amp it sounded quite good. I hope I can listen to it again. Here's a pic of the melted part.

Shiiiit i didnt expect that ,, was looking back in the pages ,, what a bummer , this amp was under my radar .... hopefully its a single indecent ,, and sending the transformers to you to fix by yourself was a noob step beside blaming you for the damege ,, wt f ?????

 

[Majors]

I would disagree, failure of this type is more an exception than the norm for products like these especially for a new product from a relatively new company. For me this is an indication that it may have been let out of the gates too soon or compromised by the abnormal situation given the pandemic. It's certainly the first time I've heard of a transformer burning up in a headphone amplifier, and if that's not a good reason to jump ship I don't know what is.

The only indication I get is a whole lot of assuming going on.

 

[Terriero]

Shiiiit i didnt expect that ,, was looking back in the pages ,, what a bummer , this amp was under my radar .... hopefully its a single indecent ,, and sending the transformers to you to fix by yourself was a noob step beside blaming you for the damege ,, wt f ?????

At first, Flux lab told him that, but (maybe after reading this thread) they reconsidered that and told him to send it back. At the end, he decided to get a refund and bought another AMP.

 

[drc73rp]

The only indication I get is a whole lot of assuming going on.

You're right and Flux certainly needs to confirm what happened otherwise it will be left to different interpretations.

 

[vkenz]

Just seeing that alps pot in the middle tells a lot ,,, what a rip offf

It lacks the refinement of a true workhorse like the V281.

 

[VerloK]

I don't like the silence here
Vatiliy told me my VOLOT will be shipped last week... It's so sad.

 

[jonathan c]

~ While I am not a Flux Lab amp owner and am only an observer of the Volot ‘saga’, I feel that FLA has a number of challenges / problems before it.
~ Beyond control: parts shortages and supply chain bottlenecks. Within control: quality assurance and management of customer expectations.
~ For a h/p/a with the price of and the demand for the Volot, there is no room for expedited production (with its risks of quality shortfalls) to meet / slate customer demand. Any instances of product malfunction, already reported, are dismaying at best and reputationally damaging to FLA at worst.
~ Silence, intransigence, indifference cannot be the hallmarks of relations with customers. Tell the (would be) buyers that you will deliver the right product when that is consistently possible. Keep the (would be) buyers in the know. Be proactive. Do not wait for inquiries from annoyed (would be) buyers. A sale lost here is unlikely to be recovered. There are plenty of excellent headphone amplifiers out there…