[zeitfliesst]

Yeah sorry, I mean the disk shaped dial thingies...Yeah 3/10 isn't too bad at all.
 
And regarding the ZO2, the hiss on mine was pretty bad, although I can understand how some people might choose to live with it. It's like that slightly annoying background noise when you listen to the radio at odd channels. Or maybe I simply have a bad unit. In any case I'll be holding back another purchase from digizoid until the next version (most likely the rumored full implementation of their Smartvektor tech)
Quote:

Well it's not stepped nor like Arrow or Leckerton UHA-4 (I don't remember what their implementation is called now) so it's hard for me to describe in writing but maybe just two notches or 3/10 or 4/10 if that helps at all? But I doubt you'll have any issues with it. 
 
One thing, I have used Zo2 extensively and never heard any hiss with my Quads but I can say that the Zo2 was much louder than the C421. 

 

[Guizan]

Has anyone tried the C421 with the Sony EX1000 or JVC FX700? I'm just wondering which op-amp would suite these particular iem's best. Just from what I'm gathering, the 8620 doesn't sound like a good fit for the FX700's at all.

 

[Yuceka]

Yeah sorry, I mean the disk shaped dial thingies...Yeah 3/10 isn't too bad at all.

And regarding the ZO2, the hiss on mine was pretty bad, although I can understand how some people might choose to live with it. It's like that slightly annoying background noise when you listen to the radio at odd channels. Or maybe I simply have a bad unit. In any case I'll be holding back another purchase from digizoid until the next version (most likely the rumored full implementation of their Smartvektor tech)

Hmm I never used the zo2 with radio channels. It makes sense now. I'm listening to my c421 now with my iPhone and i can confirm that it goes dead silent befor you turn the dial all the way down. So that should tell you that it won't get ridiculously loud before you know it. I like the instrument separation and the soundstage improvement

 

[Mustvid]

Is the C421 a significant step up from the Cmoy?

 

[mosshorn]

Quote:

Is the C421 a significant step up from the Cmoy?

Yes. At least it was to me.

 

[Mustvid]

Quote:

Yes. At least it was to me.

Interesting. Can you please elaborate a little more? What's your source and what headphones?

 

[mosshorn]

Coming from a 5G Ipod running rockbox to V-Moda M80's, the JVC FX40's, and my modded pair of Fostex T50RP's, I notice an improvement across the board. The soundstage is improved, but the main thing I noticed was detail. Everything just seemed more articulate. It also has quite a bit more power, being able to run my T50RP's better than the CMOY or even my Audioengine D1. The bass boost is also significantly better, and I'm sure most on this thread would agree. IMHO, the C421 probably has one of the cleanest sounding bass boosts I've heard.

 

[zeitfliesst]

That's just the thing I wanted to hear

. The two things I want most out of this amp is a portable solution for a clean bass boost that doesn't bleed into mids and highs, and also an improvement in soundstage, since the ES5 feels a bit narrow relative to say the UE11, which I also owned for 4 years almost.
 
Quote:

Coming from a 5G Ipod running rockbox to V-Moda M80's, the JVC FX40's, and my modded pair of Fostex T50RP's, I notice an improvement across the board. The soundstage is improved, but the main thing I noticed was detail. Everything just seemed more articulate. It also has quite a bit more power, being able to run my T50RP's better than the CMOY or even my Audioengine D1. The bass boost is also significantly better, and I'm sure most on this thread would agree. IMHO, the C421 probably has one of the cleanest sounding bass boosts I've heard.

 

[zeitfliesst]

Oh sorry to confuse you. I was just using an example to illustrate how bad the hiss was for me. I don't listen to the radio (they don't play anything worth listening here...).
 
Quote:

Hmm I never used the zo2 with radio channels. It makes sense now. I'm listening to my c421 now with my iPhone and i can confirm that it goes dead silent befor you turn the dial all the way down. So that should tell you that it won't get ridiculously loud before you know it. I like the instrument separation and the soundstage improvement

 

[Mutnat]

Quote:

Is the C421 a significant step up from the Cmoy?

 
The Headfonia guys definitely think so:  http://www.headfonia.com/flyin-high-jdslabs-c421/I
 
I've never had a Cmoy amp but I am in love with my C421-2227.  (No, not literally, but I like it a whole lot.)

 

[zeitfliesst]

Heh, good thing you made it clear you didn't mean it literally. I'm sure some people on head-fi don't say that as a joke 

.
 
On a more serious note, what do you think about the 2227 opamp vs. the 8620 (if you haven't heard it, based on what everybody's saying)? Would it pair well with the ES5, which is generally a warm IEM with slightly forward mids and gentle highs?
Quote:

 
The Headfonia guys definitely think so:  http://www.headfonia.com/flyin-high-jdslabs-c421/I
 
I've never had a Cmoy amp but I am in love with my C421-2227.  (No, not literally, but I like it a whole lot.)

 

[Mutnat]

Quote:

On a more serious note, what do you think about the 2227 opamp vs. the 8620 (if you haven't heard it, based on what everybody's saying)? Would it pair well with the ES5, which is generally a warm IEM with slightly forward mids and gentle highs?

 
Wow, I wish I knew what to suggest there but I don't really.  If your IEM's have gentle highs and forward mids then yeah the 8620 *might* be a better choice.  Maybe someone else can weigh in? 

 

[guhmo]

Quote:

Heh, good thing you made it clear you didn't mean it literally. I'm sure some people on head-fi don't say that as a joke 

.
 
On a more serious note, what do you think about the 2227 opamp vs. the 8620 (if you haven't heard it, based on what everybody's saying)? Would it pair well with the ES5, which is generally a warm IEM with slightly forward mids and gentle highs?

I think it depends on what sound signature you want. Do you want to retain/increase the ES5's warm sound signature, or would you like to brighten up the highs? For me, I decided to go with the more neutral, slightly v-shaped 8620 over the warmer 2227 for the UM3X to make it more lively in the treble department.

 

[zeitfliesst]

I guess I want the best of both worlds, but that looks like asking for too much. I guess brightening up the ES5 would be a welcome change, but I just don't know how I would like it. On the other hand, I would also like to enhance the bass, make it more punchier for bass heavy metal genres like djent. Is the 2227 really that noticeably warm?
 
 
Or maybe a good compromise would be to get the 8620 and use the bass boost feature for djent. But then, the headfonia review seems to be stopping me from doing that since he does mention better soundstage with the 2227 (not sure if everyone agrees with this or not). This is becoming a tough decision...

 

[guhmo]

Better soundstage with the 2227? From what I've read it seems that the 8620's soundstage is better, probably because of the treble. From personal use the 8620 widens up the UM3X's deliberately small soundstage slightly, and it improves the instrument separation to godlike levels. 
 
I think the opamp differences are extremely subtle. Even the most minuscule differences are amplified (no pun intended) by us audiophiles... On the UM3X there is a slight treble increase due to the opamp, but nothing like EQing from my iPod.