[claud W]

Looked through this thread and noticed that Ray Samuels amps have not really been mentioned in several years. I even wondered if they were still in business when I began emailing Ray for my Shadow. Its one TINY amp and connected to an iPod or cell phone really sounds great just playing Apple Lossless tunes.

 

[ClieOS]

A couple of things:
 
1) While RSA's amp is quite decent sounding, they are not complicated in design, This makes it very easy to copy and thus you can find all sort of RSA clone on Taobao for much cheaper price that sounds almost the same as the real thing (i.e. Black Bird is a particular favorite for cloner). With the fact the the competition has also gotten much more sophisticated, RSA's amp just simply looks dated.
 
2) Portable amp market as a whole is shrinking. These days you can find a really good audiophiles level DAP with plenty of output, thus there is lesser need of an amp. Also, the rise of really good DAC/amp that supports iOS and Android also means lesser market for pure amp and DAC/amp that don't support USB OTG that well.

 

[claud W]

I guess I am an RSA and Apple kinda guy. I bought a few HiRez titles, then realized my iPod would not play them and they only sounded marginally better than my Apple Lossless in iTunes. I decided to skip Hi Rez and just enjoy the easy functionality of iPod and iPhone and iTunes that I can play in my two BMWs and my Toyota truck. The Shadow is one of the best ways to enjoy an iPod along with my Campfire Vegas.

 

[luckybaer]

RSA stuff is good, but expensive, and the times they are a changin'! But, since I still have a P-51 Mustang and Hornet M, I decided to dust them off and feed them from my Schiit Modi Multibit. They sound as awesome as ever, and I'm going to try and see how well they sound with a Dragonfly Red.

 

[Spareribs]

I used to own a Ray Samuels Hornet amp way back in 2010. I had it in a bag in my car along with some very expensive camera gear.

I parked my car in Brooklyn, New York near Coney Island. Someone smashed the window and stole my bag with the very expensive camera gear and the Ray Samuels Hornet amp. So my Hornet amp got stolen since it was in the bag.

 

[xandermaus]

My hi-fi dealer is a friend of Ray Samuels, and he sold me an Intruder, HD600 (Ray's favorite headphones), and balanced WyWires. I can't stand the HD600's... oh so very boring. But, the Intruder is great, except for the oddball connectors. Currently, it's a bit overkill since I seem to have settled on a preference for IEMs, but the CA Solaris is all hiss on my Dragonfly Red, and a Fiio M11 can't even drive them. I love that the Intruder will likely be able to drive anything I buy in the future.