[rptlead]

  I got the attenuators from Vincent and added an addendum to my review of the Nano amp to describe my experience with them: http://www.head-fi.org/products/ifi-ican-nano-portable-headphone-amp/reviews/10801
 
Scroll down in the review to skip ahead to the addendum at the bottom.
 
In brief, they work great to reduce hiss on both the Nano and the Micro iCAN amps.

oh wow! i hope ill be getting some test units from Avatar Acoustics soon! Thanks for the update! my low impedance cans cant wait anymore

 

[Nirmalanow]

Vincent at iFi has confirmed that the 3D setting on the smaller Nano amp is a more subtle effect than on the larger iCAN and is sort of halfway between the one dot and three dot settings on the larger amp. With more listening, I find I like this new setting on the Nano even better than the settings on the larger iCAN. It sounds more natural to my ears, and yet still brings the sound alive and definitely makes it more spacious. It is more subtle, and yet seems to work very well with a wider range of songs. It does not veer into being overly bright or having too much reverb like the 3d on the bigger amp can do on some songs that are already bright or that have a lot of reverb in the mix already.

 

[rptlead]

ifi keeps on amazing me more and more.  i just got the pk1 - which is driven modestly well by the x3 - loving the buds - but after i tried it from the ifi stack - it's like listening to a different set of earbuds! 

 

[Nirmalanow]

Yes, I have a pair of new JVC HA-FX850's which are amazing little phones that sound great straight out of the Tera. But if I include the iCAN, the sound goes to another level. The JVC's sound so good that for now they are my main go to headphones for both portable and desktop use. Fortunately, my "desktop" setup is semi portable as I have a battery for the iCAN amp, so I can pick it up and go out side or to another room without needing to unplug and find another plug.
 
If you enjoy the 3D effect on the iCAN, you might want to try one of these also: http://www.amazon.com/Acoustic-Research-TDS202-Enhancement-1-Speaker/dp/B00005QZ16/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
They seem to be out of stock, and I know they are no longer being made, but you might be able to find a used one if it comes up on Amazon or Ebay. TheTDS202 really brings out the details in the music.

 

[rptlead]

  Yes, I have a pair of new JVC HA-FX850's which are amazing little phones that sound great straight out of the Tera. But if I include the iCAN, the sound goes to another level. The JVC's sound so good that for now they are my main go to headphones for both portable and desktop use. Fortunately, my "desktop" setup is semi portable as I have a battery for the iCAN amp, so I can pick it up and go out side or to another room without needing to unplug and find another plug.
 
If you enjoy the 3D effect on the iCAN, you might want to try one of these also: http://www.amazon.com/Acoustic-Research-TDS202-Enhancement-1-Speaker/dp/B00005QZ16/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
They seem to be out of stock, and I know they are no longer being made, but you might be able to find a used one if it comes up on Amazon or Ebay. TheTDS202 really brings out the details in the music.

thanks ill watch out for those. currently didnt see any from ebay or amazon.

btw, are you using the iCan micro?  been contemplating on getting the iCan nano for portability being that i already have the iDsd and an incoming dx90.  

 

[Nirmalanow]

Right now I have both the Nano and the Micro. I keep going back and forth between the two with my new DX90. They both are an improvement over the amp in the DX90. The Micro is more of an improvement, but is much less portable even though I can pick it up and walk around with it since I use an external battery with the Micro. But once I also include the TDS202, then I like the Micro setup much more, and it still is transportable as I put the TDS in a small basket like box that the amp and battery sit on top of. The TDS is passive and does not need any AC power.
 
The improvement with the Nano is less dramatic, but I still find the 3D to be irresistible. If I needed a more portable setup, I would keep both amps and use the Nano when out and about. But I am not sure that I need something more portable, so I may still send back the Nano which I have on loan for the review. It is a nice problem to have to have to choose between two amps I like.

 

[rptlead]

  Right now I have both the Nano and the Micro. I keep going back and forth between the two with my new DX90. They both are an improvement over the amp in the DX90. The Micro is more of an improvement, but is much less portable even though I can pick it up and walk around with it since I use an external battery with the Micro. But once I also include the TDS202, then I like the Micro setup much more, and it still is transportable as I put the TDS in a small basket like box that the amp and battery sit on top of. The TDS is passive and does not need any AC power.
 
The improvement with the Nano is less dramatic, but I still find the 3D to be irresistible. If I needed a more portable setup, I would keep both amps and use the Nano when out and about. But I am not sure that I need something more portable, so I may still send back the Nano which I have on loan for the review. It is a nice problem to have to have to choose between two amps I like.

thanks! if for these ears, the dx90 benefit a lot form the ican, i may pull the trigger on the nano too.  if not, then ill probably wait for the iDsd micro and then get that and the iCan nano so i have a portable setup and a pseudo-portable desktop one.   what external battery do you use btw? sorry for the barrage of questions

 

[Nirmalanow]

A link to the battery is here, and there are pictures in the next post: http://www.head-fi.org/t/654405/ican-amp-review-a-new-amp-that-gives-you-more-more-bass-more-soundstage-and-more-detail/195#post_9628605

Be sure to ask for an extra 5.5mm x 2.1 mm connector which you need to hook up the iCAN. BixPower gave it to me for free when I bought the battery from them.

 

[iFi audio]

http://www.head-fi.org/t/695086/ifi-nano-ican-name-that-attenuator-competition-nano-ican-or-1-head-fi-rated-micro-ican-up-for-grabsLatest Update: 29th April

We have developed some exclusive attenuators for iFi customers who use very high-sensitivity IEMs with the nano iCAN, nano iDSD and micro iCAN. There are two versions: -12dB and -24dB.


 


We are running a competition for the next 10 days (close: Saturday 10th May GMT: 21.00) ENTER HERE:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/695086/ifi-nano-ican-name-that-attenuator-competition-nano-ican-or-1-head-fi-rated-micro-ican-up-for-grabs

 
Should you accept this mission, your objective is simple.

 
i. Think of a name/names instead of "attenuator"

 
ii. Post your suggestion/s in this thread

 
iii. The top 3 most-liked names - chosen by the iFi senior team of Thorsten et al will win:

#1 micro iCAN (rrp Euro259) (Ranked Number 1 headphone amp on Head-Fi!)
#2 nano iCAN (rrp Euro169)
#3 nano iCAN (rrp Euro169)

Best of luck to all of you!


 
Any questions, just ask away.

 

[Nirmalanow]

Great idea to have a contest. The attenuators worked great as described in my review of the Nano: http://www.head-fi.org/products/ifi-ican-nano-portable-headphone-amp/reviews/10801

 

[Nirmalanow]

Here are some photos of my newest setup: Tera>Zu audio mini to RCA> Nano amp>12db attenuator>FBI silver cable>JVC HA-FX850
 
The sound is incredibly natural and satisfying.....
 

 

 
And lots more portable than my larger iCAN with its battery:


 
I have pretty much decided that I like the 3D effect on the Nano better than on the Micro, and it is so much more portable that I am probably going to put my bigger iCAN up for sale.

 

[Nirmalanow]

My larger iCAN micro and it's battery are up for sale. It is a great combo and can power bigger phones easily:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/675534/ifi-ican-amp-with-external-battery-pack

 

[DigitalFreak]

 

[chengsta]

I don't know why they didn't design the amp with an on/off switch.  But I found a good solution without having to modify the power cable or can itself. http://www.amazon.com/Woods-32555-Outdoor-Control-Converter/dp/B001Q9EFUK/ref=sr_sp-atf_title_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1405273741&sr=8-2&keywords=outlet+with+remote

 

[maricius]

Has anyone here heard both the Micro iCAN and the Cypher Labs Duet? If so, please post a slight comparison or which does what better or if there's an overall better amp. Price may be far but desktop vs portable may indeed lead to some effect.