[jaytee61]

Hi all, I've been reading on this board for some time but just joined today. I'm a bit of a newbie into the hi-end headphone arena. My first pair was some realistics from radio shack. Then I got a pair of Koss pro4a's decades ago. I've got some musical background as far as playing and recently got into home recording. I've acquired a couple of AKG k240's and Sony v6's for tracking. And most recently bought a pair of hd650's. Now I'm in the market for some more appropriate gear to complement these cans. I'm using them now with an apogee duet recording interface. Sounds Ok but I know it'll get much better. I intend to use these mostly to re-listen to most of my favorite recordings for inspirational purposes. My musical taste runs the gamut. The gear I'm literally days away from ordering are a Bifrost uber usb dac and a crack/speedball amp. I'm sure there are many members here with a similar if not the same rig since it seems to be pretty popular. I also wondered of anyone has heard of or had any experience with this Camile cascode setup or if it would be best to stick with the factory one. http://www.ebay.com/itm/271417024177?redirect=mobile. The only difference I see is that it appears cleaner. Any info on my proposed setup is much appreciated. Thanks....John

 

[ChavaC]

That setup is money, you should really like it. The crack in particular is a great match for either of the midfi senns and the bifrost, preferably with the uber upgrade, is a very good match in terms of price and performance.

 

[jaytee61]

Thanks for the reply chavac. I pretty much figured it would be a good starting place for me. Is the usb option a must have? I'll be using an Imac for source. What I'm still curious about is that speedball circuit that's available on eBay from the link I provided. Is it the exact same circuitry as bottleheads? It's a little cheaper but I don't really care about that. I just want the best for the amp. Anyone?

 

[FraGGleR]

Thanks for the reply chavac. I pretty much figured it would be a good starting place for me. Is the usb option a must have? I'll be using an Imac for source. What I'm still curious about is that speedball circuit that's available on eBay from the link I provided. Is it the exact same circuitry as bottleheads? It's a little cheaper but I don't really care about that. I just want the best for the amp. Anyone?

Very interesting find.  I like the idea of a more compact solution.  I think only the folks at Bottlehead could really speak to whether or not it is a good replacement, but I also feel it might not be something they approved and I'd hate to see the option go away (especially the prebuilt one).

 

[jaytee61]

Yeah fraggler, I feel the same regarding it going away which is why I may just order one up soon before it does. BTW, thats why I didn't post on the BH forum. It looks more pleasing to the eye and I wonder if that's all there is to it. SQ would be a whole other story though. Hmmmm...

 

[jaytee61]

This is what they said when I asked them about their design vs the original.

"Basically they are exactly the same circuit using all the same electronic components just laid out differently on a more compact and better designed printed circuit board. This saves room in the amp for additional mods (like capacitors, stepped attenuators, upgrades potentiometer or headphones jack, etc), makes the unit less work to put together and install (especially if the C4S board it purchased pre-assembled) and allows us to offer it at a reduced cost with the money saved in the design."

Thanks for your interest,

-Custom widgets and gadgets

 

[ChavaC]

Personally I never went after the USB upgrade, I've never fell in love with a USB dac and stick to SPDIF or COAX if at all possible.