[bhd812]

so I was talking to my friend and found out his sister has a sonic t amp. I asked if I could borrow it and try it out and she said yelp.

gear used
meridian g08 cdp
mit term3 interconnects
radio shack rca to mini adapter.
monster xp speaker wire
norh 6.6 speakers


basic impressions..
wow! and I mean wow!
finally I have a decent sounding speaker setup..lol
thought it was fun to use a $4k cdp on a $20 amp..hehe

more impressions..
well my norhs could never really sound good out of my old technics receiver, I was looking for a supper cheap amp just to get by until I move in a new place. the sonic t powered them very nicely, so nicely in fact that I had her only turn up 70% for the loud listening areas.

the sonic t did a smooth job in amping the meridian sound, didnt add to much in and didnt take out much.
I was pissed cause I had to give it back, I wanted to sit there for atleast a few more hours and relax to the music, btw I had been listening to the setup for atleast 4hours strait...and for me listening to a speaker setup that long says alot.

the sound was honestly so nice that I ordered a sonic t from ecost but they are back ordered now...anyone have a idea when they might restock?

 

[NeilPeart]

There's a guy who'll mod the T-amp with a shielded case, quality speaker bindings and quality RCA plug for $200 - just send him your amp: http://mywebpages.comcast.net/ampbox/page2.html Also, don't forget to power the amp with a quality power supply - I use a 3Amp PS with 12AWG cabling for the power connector. The K1000+T-amp is the most detailed headphone experience I've had other than the Qualia 010, and the soundstage is even better than the HE90 - the only thing it lacks compared to the RKV is a midrange sweetness, but it almost has this and is much clearer than the RKV (from memory only, and the DAC1 I'm using contributes to the clarity, I'm sure). This amp does indeed have synergy with the K1000 like many claim and it is a godsend because that headphone is so amazing, but a synergous power amp or RKV keeps the K1000 away from too many enthusiasts:

The stock K1000 and the T-amp without mods is easily under $500 (used), and this system will destroy any other headphones save for the R10, SR-007, HE90 and Qualia 010; it is beyond even my HD650/balanced Zu Mobius in many regards (though certainly not in the bass department, and the HD650’s mids are special). I prefer the K1000 to the HP-1000, PS-1 Pro, SR-007 Omega II, L3000, DT880 and even my HD650, for the most part. Only the Qualia, R10 and HE90 are more impressive, but those ‘phones are way outta my league, financially. Plus, this K1000 system has an upgrade path:

$250 for Headphile re-cabling all the way to the driver (bypassing the PCBs too!)
$250 for upgrading the T-amp with shielded chassis, upgraded pot/RCAs/speaker posts.

Another $500 does bring the total cost of the K1000 to ~ $1000, but it’s still more price-competitive than many ‘phones in (or above) its league. Imagine what performance all those upgrades will achieve! The T-amp really is special and opens up a new world for audio nuts like us.

 

[tyrion]

I use the T-Amp in my office with a couple of Denon satellites from a ht setup. I use my ipod line out as the source and it sounds pretty nice for an office rig. I have the same speakers in my bedroom with a Pioneer HT receiver (low model) using a panasonic dvd recorder as the source and I the T-Amp in my office with the ipod sounds better. I will have to bring home the T-Amp this weekend and use it with my Rega Mira 3 and System Audio speakers using the AX and MF Trivisata Tube Dac I am auditioning.

 

[Fixz8]

http://www.thinkgeek.com/electronics/audio/6cd8/

just bought it from there, ordered monday night and got it today.
works well!
(just in case you were looking for other places to get it from)

should be about the same price when you factor in eCost's little "extra handling fee" that they add to everything.

 

[bhd812]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fixz8 http://www.thinkgeek.com/electronics/audio/6cd8/ just bought it from there, ordered monday night and got it today. works well! (just in case you were looking for other places to get it from) should be about the same price when you factor in eCost's little "extra handling fee" that they add to everything.

thanx I canceled the ecost and went here...thank you very much

 

[ooheadsoo]

Yeah, but thinkgeek charges $8.01 on UPS? They're making about $5 off of that.

 

[Fixz8]

well for me shipping at ecost would be 7.95 (excluding their 3.95 handling fees)
so the shipping is the same, and when you factor everything in

ecost = $31.35
thinkgeek = $29.96 (i had to pay $1.15 in sales tax because it's same state)
^^ the 1.15 is included in that total

 

[meithkiller]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ooheadsoo Yeah, but thinkgeek charges $8.01 on UPS? They're making about $5 off of that.

LMAO. How do you figure? $3.01 to ship a package, any package potentially across the country with UPS? What have you been smoking? In addition to working for UPS, I've shipped (and received) a lot of stuff via UPS. A small package shipped UPS ground to a residence would cost me typically $7-9. It sure looks to me like ThinkGeek is charging their shipping cost. I've ordered fromThinkGeek multiple times as well, and their shipping charges were always in line with what actual shipping charges would be.

Anyhow, I ordered two (got free shipping) of the T-Amps from ECost a month or two ago, and they were back ordered, but they finally came in today. I am still truly amazed at the size of this thing. It looks like I may have to retire the Denon receiver powering the speakers in my computer system and bring out a Creek or Parasound pre-amp I have in storage and give this little wonder a go at powering my NHT Super-Zereos.

-Keith

 

[ooheadsoo]

Uh-huh. I don't know about you, but when I rang up small packages on my meter, it usually came out to about $3-4. If the company you work for has to pay $8-9 for a small 1lb. package, they probably have the poorest contract with UPS possible. You can probably do that retail over the counter. I'm talking about the INSIDER corporate rates that all companies with decent volume get. Also depends on the negotiating skills of your company's contact with UPS. The prices may be somewhat inline with what the average joe pays over the counter to ship something, but it sure ain't what they themselves are paying.

 

[meithkiller]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ooheadsoo Uh-huh. I don't know about you, but when I rang up small packages on my meter, it usually came out to about $3-4. If the company you work for has to pay $8-9 for a small 1lb. package, they probably have the poorest contract with UPS possible. You can probably do that retail over the counter. I'm talking about the INSIDER corporate rates that all companies with decent volume get. Also depends on the negotiating skills of your company's contact with UPS. The prices may be somewhat inline with what the average joe pays over the counter to ship something, but it sure ain't what they themselves are paying.

As I said before, I work for UPS. The costs I quoted were my costs to ship packages to another person. Shipping to an individual is more expensive than shipping to a business. Was the packaging (box and packing material) free? No, and I won't venture as to what contract ThinkGeek has with UPS. Maybe you could call them up and ask them.

-Keith

 

[kaxixi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by meithkiller Anyhow, I ordered two (got free shipping) of the T-Amps from ECost a month or two ago, and they were back ordered, but they finally came in today. I am still truly amazed at the size of this thing. It looks like I may have to retire the Denon receiver powering the speakers in my computer system and bring out a Creek or Parasound pre-amp I have in storage and give this little wonder a go at powering my NHT Super-Zereos. -Keith

Keith, How do the T-amps sound with the superzeros? And how did you hook two of them up? I have the superzeros and was thinking of doing the same,

erez