[audioking]

I found about Auzentech launching the i.Fuzen HP-1 headphone amp and battery case for iPhone 4.
Here is their press release and their site info: www.ifuzen.com.
 
Has anyone tried or reviewed their product?
 

 
San Jose, CA USA March 3, 2011: Auzentech, Inc. (www.auzentech.com) announced today the imminent release of the i.Fuzen HP-1, a World First product from Auzentech that brings improved audio, mobility, and protection to the iPhone 4 (compatible with both AT&T and Verizon versions).
The Auzen i.Fuzen HP-1 is a three-in-one enhancement to the iPhone 4.

• The i.Fuzen HP-1 features a powerful, proprietary dual-headphone amp, allowing iPhone users to share their audio with friends, and even power audiophile-quality headphones.
• The i.Fuzen HP-1 provides powerful battery backup available for the iPhone 4.
• The i.Fuzen HP-1 wraps the iPhone 4 in a hard shell for maximum protection and enhanced look and feel.

Below is a summary of Auzen i.Fuzen HP-1 specifications and features.

1. "Made for iPhone" logo certified.
2. Proprietary Auzentech headphone amplifier technology
3. Dual headphone output port for shared listening experience; supports both high and low impedance headphones
4. 32 to 600 Ohm load impedance
5. 113dB (A-weighted) signal-to-noise ratio
6. ZX-Driver provides ultra-low distortion and max 180mW output power
7. J-FET OPAMP provides vacuum tube-like listening experience
8. Proprietary Auzentech headphone Sound Mode Selector provides optimized sound for your headphone
9. Touch Panel volume control
10. Impressive 1650mAh Li-Polymer battery with Smart Protection Circuit
11. Four-step LED battery life meter and battery life check button
12. Charging via USB port (from desktop PC or laptop) with supplied USB cable
13. Pass-through sync with iTunes

"The Auzentech sound technologies in the i.Fuzen HP-1 mark a new era for iPhone owners who use their devices for audio playback," said Stephane Bae, President of Auzentech, Inc. "We look forward to developing additional Apple-related products in the future."
The Auzen i.Fuzen HP-1 will be available in black and is expected to ship the first week of April 2011. The Auzen i.Fuzen HP-1 is priced at $129.99 and pre-order starting today. Early reviewer samples will be available upon request.
For more information on its availability worldwide, please visit www.auzentech.com or www.ifuzen.com.  

 

[baaderonixx]

this makes perfect sense - hope it delivers. this could be exactly what I've been looking for

 

[dweaver]

OK I will not discusss sound other than to say it's good at this point. But I do want to warn people away from this unit at the moment. I and another friend both have one of these and we are both only getting 2-4 hours of use before the amp cuts out because the battery is too low. I am testing this more today with both iphone and amp fully charged to see if this is going to continue to happen. If this can not give me at least 1 full days use as an amp to match the full days use I get from the iPhone all by itself I will be sending it back, as I did not buy it to be a battery but an amp.

 

[squintypanda]

I just bought this unit a couple days ago and while I'm satisfied with it's overall construction and sound quality, I do have one HUGE gripe about the unit.  
 
I'm currently using it with my iPhone 4S and Shure SE535 IEM.  When I'm on the go listening to music and want to make/receive calls or use siri, the sound will come from the iPhone unit itself and not through the headphones, thus I'd have to take off my earphones and hold the phone up to my ear to be able to hear anything.  I'm sure anyone could imagine how inconvenient this would be.  Not sure if Auzentech can come up with a firmware update to fix this problem so that ALL sounds would come through the amp as it should be.  If they can fix this problem I'd say the product is worth a look, if not then I'd return the product if I could... =(

 

[briank996]

Quote:

 
 
Originally Posted by squintypanda /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
I just bought this unit a couple days ago and while I'm satisfied with it's overall construction and sound quality, I do have one HUGE gripe about the unit.  
 
I'm currently using it with my iPhone 4S and Shure SE535 IEM.  When I'm on the go listening to music and want to make/receive calls or use siri, the sound will come from the iPhone unit itself and not through the headphones, thus I'd have to take off my earphones and hold the phone up to my ear to be able to hear anything.  I'm sure anyone could imagine how inconvenient this would be.  Not sure if Auzentech can come up with a firmware update to fix this problem so that ALL sounds would come through the amp as it should be.  If they can fix this problem I'd say the product is worth a look, if not then I'd return the product if I could... =(

I do believe that this is typical when using the line out of the iphone.  Any line out device would work the same as far as I've seen.

 

[Overkill Red]

Quote:

OK I will not discusss sound other than to say it's good at this point. But I do want to warn people away from this unit at the moment. I and another friend both have one of these and we are both only getting 2-4 hours of use before the amp cuts out because the battery is too low. I am testing this more today with both iphone and amp fully charged to see if this is going to continue to happen. If this can not give me at least 1 full days use as an amp to match the full days use I get from the iPhone all by itself I will be sending it back, as I did not buy it to be a battery but an amp.

dweaver, do you have the old or the new version?
I believe the new one runs in a different way, something like not charging the phone while the amp is on...

 

[average_joe]

On the new version, you can choose to recharge the phone or just act as an amp.

 

[MoonYeol]

Quote:

On the new version, you can choose to recharge the phone or just act as an amp.

Are there multiple versions of the HP-1 except for the new HP-1# (sharp)? Because you can turn the battery charge on, turn the amp on and then turn the battery charge off to save the juice for the amp. My phone is on 41% and iFuzen just went down to 3/4 bars. Which would be impossible if it was charging?

 

[Hifihedgehog]

I am just chiming in to add my thoughts about the i.Fuzen HP-1 to remove any doubt people may have regarding this unit. Initially, I was somewhat fond of the warm, "tube-like" sound the unit offered over the plain-jane headphone output of the iPhone. A little later, however, I found it severs off a bit of the upper treble detail and vibrancy and, in doing so, sucks the life out of the music. Even so, I still use it from time to time with YouTube videos for the sake of making it listenable or to increase bass extension for music which specifically needs it.
 
Otherwise, it is really more of a sidestep in quality to the headphone output of the iPhone unless you have very bright headphones (Grado SR325i, Koss KSC75) which would, in this case, synergize better with such a dark source as the i.Fuzen HP-1. Likewise, it features two headphone outputs, one lower gain and the other higher gain, along with four sound modes, including crossfeed. However, that mode seemed to make the sound even more incredibly boring and warm for my tastes than the Meier crossfeed on my Sansa Clip+ dap or HDPHX in MusicBee on my laptop. To put it into perspective, I find it more boring than the output on my laptop, even with the approximately 10 Hz of extra bass extension the i.Fuzen gives to the headphones I use in it. For example, I used a Koss KSC75 (own and love it!), AKG K701 (in store), Shure SRH840 (own and love it!) and Audio-Technica ATH-m50s (sold, but tested with it beforehand)).

 

[BigCabDaddy]

Got mine and neither seems to be working other than charging. /sigh

 

[dwong]

Quote:

Got mine and neither seems to be working other than charging. /sigh

Have you tried charging the unit without the iPhone plugged into it?  I had trouble using it initially, but after letting it charge a few hours on its own it worked as it was supposed to.

 

[BigCabDaddy]

Yeah, that's how I did it... and I have two of them too! Both acted the same. Here's how I did things after charging: Put the iphone in, and it started charging immediately. Pressed the "power" button, but nothing happened. Pressed the amp button and the light came on but nothing else. At this point, everything is frozen. I can't change amp modes or turn it off and I can't turn off power. Light won't go turn off until the power's run out. Maybe I'll try turning on/off the power before inserting the iphone next time? I got nothing to lose I guess.

 

[Padgoi]

Got this recently and I can confirm I'm only getting a max of 2-3 hours use of the amp before it cuts out due to low battery.  The amp works well, but it decimates the battery and you can't seem to use the amp feature when you're wall charging.

 

[claytonlai]

I'm very late to the game, but I thought I should share this.

I picked up the first-gen HP-1 in Tokyo back in 2012, but never gotten around to using it until now. Like many users here, I was disappointed with how the amp lasts only 3 hours even when the HP-1 still has plenty of battery life left.

So I did a bit of research to see if I can modify the HP-1. After learning about the pinouts of Apple's Dock Connector, I removed pin 23 from the dock connector on the HP-1. Now, when I turn the amp on, the HP-1 won't stupidly try to charge the iPhone, leaving all of its juice for the amp.

Note that, by removing pin 23, the HP-1 can no longer charge and/or sync the iPhone, but that's fine by me.