[mariowar]

Caution:
 
You only want to compare your stuff with others when your are not pleased with the performance, otherwise, you will be prone to chronic upgraditis..... soon followed by marriage debacle.....
 
To my ears, X1 (no upsampling) which is the default setting, is my favorite.  X1, X2 and X4 are not phase filters as far as I know.
 
I have not been able to turn the internal clock off, since I only use USB and SD Card playback.
 
Which I find hard to believe is that I would have never be able to afford this combo when it was first introduced to the market , years ago 

 

[AppleheadMay]

I wonder how the A8 would compare to the new Marantz HD-Dac1. 
I've always been pretty fond of Marantz gear and my speaker setup has a NA11-S1 and PM11-S3.
The TH-900 already sounds good straight out of the NA11 Dac so I guess the Marantz Dac/amp combo might sound pretty sweet as well.
I think when the A8 gets sold I'll use the money for a HD-Dac1.

 

[Robert777]

  I wonder how the A8 would compare to the new Marantz HD-Dac1. 
I've always been pretty fond of Marantz gear and my speaker setup has a NA11-S1 and PM11-S3.
The TH-900 already sounds good straight out of the NA11 Dac so I guess the Marantz Dac/amp combo might sound pretty sweet as well.
I think when the A8 gets sold I'll use the money for a HD-Dac1.

I think the HD-DAC1 and the TH900's would make an amazing combination.
I very nearly purchased the Marantz amp as it is slightly more powerful than the A8 and I think it would be a superb all rounder.
My interpretation of reviews I have read is that the Dac1 would be harder hitting than the A8 and the A8 would be smoother.
In the end I went with the A8 not because it was Fostex but because I found it much cheaper than the Dac1.
One thing that did worry me was on the Dac1 thread there has been a lot of talk about product inconsistency, but I don't think that would be a real problem.

 

[Robert777]

  Caution:
 
You only want to compare your stuff with others when your are not pleased with the performance, otherwise, you will be prone to chronic upgraditis..... soon followed by marriage debacle.....
 
To my ears, X1 (no upsampling) which is the default setting, is my favorite.  X1, X2 and X4 are not phase filters as far as I know.
 
I have not been able to turn the internal clock off, since I only use USB and SD Card playback.
 
Which I find hard to believe is that I would have never be able to afford this combo when it was first introduced to the market , years ago 

These are wise words. I will have some serious explaining to do to my wife if I buy any audio gear in the next six months.
I read a review of the JVC DX700 where the head-fier confessed to being completely broke after buying so many pairs of headphones and urged everyone to take a moment to enjoy what they have rather than constantly upgrading.
It is fun though.
 
I think that is crazy as well. The TH900 and HP-A8 were £3000 when they were first available in the UK. I just purchased the two for considerably less.

 

[Whazzzup]

Canada it was 3000 $. Whazzzup with the uk?

 

[Robert777]

Canada it was 3000 $. Whazzzup with the uk?

Wow.... Everything is really expensive in the UK but it seems like Canada is only slightly cheaper.
I though it was just us Brits getting ripped off for everything.
The TH900's started at £1500 and can now be had for £1100.
That's about 2890 CAD down to 2100 CAD.
Worth every penny though.

 

[Whazzzup]

Actually full retail is 1599 can $ I picked mine up on sale for 1350 can$, granted the can dollar like the Aussie, has been pounded down in the last six months. I noticed for example my hugo that I bought for 2400 can doll is now 2850$ so the yin and yang of currencies. But the uk I mean that's expensive it's not like you don't have twice our population. Maybe it's duties taxes...

 

[Robert777]

Actually full retail is 1599 can $ I picked mine up on sale for 1350 can$, granted the can dollar like the Aussie, has been pounded down in the last six months. I noticed for example my hugo that I bought for 2400 can doll is now 2850$ so the yin and yang of currencies. But the uk I mean that's expensive it's not like you don't have twice our population. Maybe it's duties taxes...

I think it is the sales tax which pushes the UK's prices up. I mean, it is all relative to an extent. Everything is very expensive, electronics, food, rent, clothes, etc, but wages are generally higher as well to balance things out. The Chord Hugo is currently £1400 which is a lot more reasonable. That equates to $2700CAD, just below the current price. Since following Head-Fi I have noticed that some brands tend to keep their prices consistent across the different territories, whereas others go crazy with import fees or mark up. I tend to shy away from Audeze as a brand for that very reason.

 

[mariowar]

The TH900s and the HPA8 debuted in USA at US$2000 and US$1400 respectively.
 
I recently paid around US$1200 for the TH900s and US$940 for the HPA8, 

 
Here are some jazz releases that SOAR with this combo in no particular order (Let me know your impressions):
 
 
Paolo Fresu "30"
 
Louise Rogers "Black Coffee"
 
Chuck Deardorf "Transparence"
 
Lisa Simone "All Is Well"
 
Lauren Kinham "Circle in a Square"
 
Winston Marsalis " From the Plantation to the Penitentiary"
 
Gregory Porter "Liquid Spirit"  and "Be Good"
 
Cecile Verny Quartet " Fear & Faith"
 
Carol Kidd  "Dreamsville"
 
Alessandro Galati Trio "Seals"
 
Torun Eriksen "Passage"
 
Jacques Loussier  "Handel: Water Music & Royal Fireworks"
 
Benjamin Clementine "At Least for Now"
 
Harry Connick Jr. "She"
 
Meliisa Stylianou "No Regrets"

 

[adiebear]

My HP-A8 arrived on Monday.
No wonder it arrived so quickly from Japan. It fell most of the way

It looked as if it cartwheeled down the runway
 

 

 


Just some of the damage. So now back to Japan from South Africa and the long wait for a claim to be settled.
Bleak.

 

[Robert777]

Noooooo!
 
I would be absolutely crest fallen if that happened to me. I am sorry about your A8. I hope they sort it all out for you.

 

[RAFA]

My HP-A8 arrived on Monday.

No wonder it arrived so quickly from Japan. It fell most of the way :mad:

It looked as if it cartwheeled down the runway












Just some of the damage. So now back to Japan from South Africa and the long wait for a claim to be settled.

Bleak.

Wow, how can one reach such level of abuse? It comes in a huge box.

I feel sorry for you.

 

[plakat]

My HP-A8 arrived on Monday.

No wonder it arrived so quickly from Japan. It fell most of the way :mad:

Just some of the damage. So now back to Japan from South Africa and the long wait for a claim to be settled.

Bleak.

Very sorry to hear that... Knowing that Fostex is a Japanese company (read: *loves* double packaging) I can't believe this is a new unit... How did the packaging look like?

 

[Robert777]

Looking at these photographs something looked different and I could not figure exactly what it was.
I just realised that my A8 is all jet black rather than featuring silver side panels.
I definitely prefer all black, but of course I would be biased.
Of course it will have no effect on sound.

 

[Whazzzup]

Looking at these photographs something looked different and I could not figure exactly what it was.
I just realised that my A8 is all jet black rather than featuring silver side panels.
I definitely prefer all black, but of course I would be biased.
Of course it will have no effect on sound.

Mine is all black are they not all this color. Interesting I didn't notice except for the dent.