[Hifianddrumming]

 Well, a very good Christmas for me. I just Got the ADL GT40, and I'm unbelievably pumped. I haven't found many threads about this, or much mention of it, but I was wondering if anyone has had experience with this? I would love to hear some

 

[Foxjam]

I'm looking at buying one.  Have you spent much time with it yet?  

 

[Hifianddrumming]

 About 3 songs worth -_- It's been really hectic, I came back to Canada for Christmas and haven't had much time to use it. On top of that, my computer is half-broken. The clarity of it really surprised me though, compared to my previous Fiio E7 and E9, it's separation, clarity, and detail is outstanding

 

[Foxjam]

Considering all that it does I'm surprised that there isn't much about it on Head-Fi.  There's a local store that carries it and it seems really solidly built and the employee there said they use it as their go to DAC.  

 

[Hifianddrumming]

 I definitely can't believe the difference after using it for a while. It's so full of energy, it just brings this vividness and speed to the music that makes it seemed like my Fiio was dulling down and boxing everything in. There's no noise I can detect, and you're right, an absolutely solid build. It's a nice weighty chassis. I know that there's better out there, obviously, but all I've had beside this is the Fiio combo, and this is just a night and day difference. I would recommend it. The Phono stage is a plus as well.

 

[devouringone3]

I bought this as my very first desktop amp. I wanted an item I would have reasons to keep for a while. The GT40 as many functions and that was my reason... I'm also thrilled to be able to listen to my moms old Sony turntable and her vinyl collection.
 
I can't compare it with any other headphone amplifier as I always used directly headphone jacks that were only 3.5 mm deep.
 
The GT40 was never reviewed seriously on head-fi but outside of it the "general consumer" websites (you can see tons of review links at the product page on furutech.com) it pretty much got 5 stars out of 5 everywhere.
 
I love having an amplified sound, I feel like it amplifies the goodness of an headphone as well as all of its flaws, and all in all more revealing of the thing you're listening to.
 
Before receiving my unit, right before Christmas actually, bought from an head-fier who had placed an ad here, I was scared that 90 dB SPL wouldn't be enough to clear all white noise during listening session. I found out it was not the case, even with sensitive IEMs. I need to almost double my usual volume to notice such noise between tracks, and in my case it's no big deal because this thing made me realize a lot of my favorite tracks already presented white noise, some of which I had never heard. So yeah it's more revealing and not noisy at all.
 
You're a lot younger than me but you might be even more experienced than me in audiophile listening and describing the sound of a particular set-up. I'll say that I feel pretty much the same way about my unit too (energetic and vivid), plus it's definitely audiophile sturdy and shielded, cubic, and with a machined metal volume knob.
 
I'm happy a recent topic appeared about the ADL GT40 (thank you !), I hope some people will be able to further the topic and give out some more opinions. The Furutech Cruise was more talked about but not so much.
 
I believe people doesn't want to associate Furutech with more than plugs and cables. 
 
 
So you live in Canada too? Did you asked for it? who in your family knew you'd like to receive such a present? I think it's great for you, or for any music lover because it's a definite improvement for computer audio.
 
Some Ontarian hi-fi stores (I seen at least two ads on Canuckaudiomart) gave away Furutech Formula 2 USB cables with it. One shop even gave a 100$ rebate along with the cable. You got that nice braided black and blue cable?
 
 
I find the GT40 to look great on the inside too! (http://www.hiendy.com/hififorum/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=4340)
(which, for me, was an important factor for deciding to purchase... that's right, the way it looks inside! not counting the resistors and stuff or anything but more the overall look of it all)

 

[Foxjam]

Glad to see both of your feedback on it.  I'd love to see some reviews from Head-Fiers will other gear in a similar price range to see how it compares.  Still not sure if it's the one for me but definitely still on my short list.  That's a big bonus to get that cable with it as well.  

 

[devouringone3]

Yes, here's the deal I found before buying mine used : http://www.canuckaudiomart.com/details/648972020-furutech_usb_dac_gt40_winter_special_with_free_formula_2_silver_plated_usb_cable/
 
I know that they ship anywhere in Canada...
 
The thing is that these guys added a 100$ rebate more than the others but the cable bonus deal offered by many is an agreement Furutech and its Canadian dealers have. I don't know for you guys in the US.
 
A little pricier you might want to consider the Xonar Essence One by Asus and the Dacmagic Plus by Cambridge Audio, they do all what the GT40 does + having balanced outs, optical ins and higher specs (and are opamp based, which the GT40 is not...). But consider too that they don't have the phono stage function and the ADC which for me was important. There are a few others options available, along with the more popular choice.
 
Thing is I think the GT40 at full price is asking for too much... you pay for the build quality, but you could get better audio and less build quality for the same price. And I might add that I agree with what most of the reviews said : the GT40 is very good at everything it can do, and built like a Swiss knife it can do a lot of cool stuff, but it's not the best compared to other more specialized audiocubes, a dedicated headphone amp or DAC for example.
 
Finally, Furutech plugs are everywhere and they are literally the best. The GT40 has those same plugs serving as ports, so as far as connection/transmission goes, there shouldn't be any noise as Furutech is a Japanese company that is expert mostly in "pure transmission". In my case I am an almost all-Furutech guy as my Grado recable is terminated by a Furutech quarter inch plugged into the GT40. I would just need a Furutech cable and power distributor which would cost even more than the GT40 but that's another story.

 

[Hifianddrumming]

 Yes, I definitely am younger don't know about experienced, just very,  very enthusiastic (hence the 655 post count, although I have slacked off recently). I live in Canada during Summer (school break). You're welcome for the thread on it, I was just so surprised I couldn't find any!
 
 I have to agree to some extent. Usually Jack-of-all-trades kind of things in general are good at all but masters of none.In this case, I find that varies. The amp is good, but could be better. The DAC is superb, but I haven't tried the ADC. The connectors feel solid. Unfortunately, I haven't had a chance to use it outside computer audio.
 
 

 

[CantScareMe]

This thing needs a lot more attention on headfi.
 
It's very small from it's product specs, not far off the fiio e9 i believe, which is even more impressive since it's a desktop dac/amp combo. Well, I mean impressive if it sounds real good, but it seems that because of the lack of reviews from headfi, there's only one way to find out how good it really is- buy it.
 
 

 

[Foxjam]

I was really hoping some more people would get it and offer their impressions as well.  Spec-wise it seems to have it all going on and it's from a reputable company.  Maybe it's just a slow starter. 

 

[devouringone3]

Quote:

This thing needs a lot more attention on headfi.
 
It's very small from it's product specs, not far off the fiio e9 i believe, which is even more impressive since it's a desktop dac/amp combo. Well, I mean impressive if it sounds real good, but it seems that because of the lack of reviews from headfi, there's only one way to find out how good it really is- buy it.
 
 

Scary isn't it? I was pretty excited when mine came in.
 
Again I don't have serious experience with headphone amps, this is my first one. But I do love it! And I'm glad I can finally say I do hear a substantial difference when I A/B it with the jack of my portable MP3 player directly (amplified and not amplified). It sounds a lot fuller and the bass is a lot more prominent (with the Grado headphone) (which is understandably because of their impedance curve that isn't flat all the time). It sounds gentlier also, and I have a lot more fun at higher levels, everything remains so real, impactful, instead of becoming harsh like the Grados usually do. Having an headphone amplifier is a real pleasure and if I would be on the go more often I would already consider buying a portable amplifier also (and I would have picked the Furutech Stride if it wasn't for this odd poor shape). But I rarely listen to music outside my room so...
 
The DAC portion of the ADL GT40 is at least as good as my Dell Inspiron 1720 laptop headphone jack, if not better. I would have liked it to have some dedicated fancy jitter controlling mechanism but the Tenor USB controller is used in much more expensive DACs and it does the full job of my integrated audio and more. It's on the bassy side. I use the ADL GT40 DAC with John Grado headphones to have a that bass and I use my laptop's headphone jack through the amplifier portion of the GT40 with my Joseph Grados because these have a more bassy nature.
 
I'm still wishing for a pro to make a review about it. If I go to the Salon, Son & Image at the end of marsh I'll bring it and ask the people there to tell me what they think about it. I'll compare it with what the exposers have to offer, for example Jack Wu of Woo Audio.
 
 
 

I was really hoping some more people would get it and offer their impressions as well.  Spec-wise it seems to have it all going on and it's from a reputable company.  Maybe it's just a slow starter. 

Yeah I think people are turned off by the fact Furutech are a cable and connector company, and not an headphone amplifier one, or a DAC maker. Maybe also turned off by the fact ADL are aiming their products to the average-joe maybe a bit audiophile-wannabe.
 
But at the same time I think the Esprit looks to be quite the caliber... I wish it was in my budget I would consider selling my GT40 for the upgrade.
 
I still feel like my GT40, Japanese designed, China made, is giving me more for my money than say a Ray Samuel audio product like the Hornet.
 
But again I paid a great price for my GT40 aftermarket.

 

[CantScareMe]

I can see why it's not popular. The gt40 boasts a ADC function, which isn't that usefull to a large chunk of headfiers. A lack of optical/spdif input is also a downer. Oh and places like what hifi (who have rated this thing very highly) are generally hated around here. 
 
But to recive next to no attention is surprising. 
 
I mean it is £500 so if one has no size constraints then i'm sure there exists much better systems about. But an all in one small box from a high end manufacturer- definitely needs to be given a testing from more headfiers. Something like how it stocks up against the nuforce hdp, or burson ha-160ds.

 

[Zombie_X]

It's £500 in Europe? It's $525USD here... Hrm odd pricing.
 
I've been eyeing one of these for a while to see how it does with ym other amps.
 
 
 

 

[devouringone3]

Yeah well personally I'm happy with the size, I use the ADC (it is impeccable), and I got it got 300$. In Canada during Christmas it was sold for 419$ and included a 1.2 m ADL (Furutech) Formula 2 USB A to B (is worth 62-85$). The deal: http://www.canuckaudiomart.com/details/648972020-furutech_usb_dac_gt40_winter_special_with_free_formula_2_silver_plated_usb_cable/ the cable was an offer from Furutech to all of their Canadian dealer. Elsewhere in the world it does seem to cost a lot more. On eBay Japanese exporter sell it for 650 USD and 500 GBP is also quite high! I also think there are better sounding alternatives for this price ... but if you want a multipurpose device that can be carried around it's good.
 
Against the Nuforce Icon HDP, this review: http://www.avguide.com/blog/first-listen-furutechalpha-design-labs-gt40-usb-dac
 
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