3X0
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Sep 2, 2006
- Posts
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- 129
Way to defeat the purpose of this very venerable (dare I say classic) thread.
All you need for portable playback is any relatively decent player and an amazing set of IEMs. High-end headphones that operate well with low output will get you much farther than any high-end player will, so it's very necessary to throw most of your budget at the headphones. Only if you've maxed the headphones out should you pursue should you spend big money on the player.
And with this philosophy in mind, even the HiFiMan is a player I could appreciate. It's big and the battery life sucks, but it's standalone and self-contained.
As soon as you throw in the portable amplifier you've suffered from an egregious loss of both the sensibility of portable audio and the concept of value. It is at this point a similar investment in a desktop setup will fare you MUCH better. Consider this: the iBasso D4 USB amp/DAC sounds better via USB than it does amping (most) portables. If you'd invested the money spent on the player on a solid desktop amplifier instead, you'd get a sound far more worthy of admiration. Desktop amplifiers provide substantially more sound per dollar than any portable amplifiers do. Ray Samuel's desktop amplifiers, even at their substantial prices, make the value of his portable line seem like a joke.
To this end portable DAC/amps redeem themselves in their use as actual USB DACs, and not as amplifiers. But portable amplifiers don't represent any semblance of good value whatsoever.
If you're lugging around such a complex setup for actual on-the-go usage I'd have to question your sanity and obsession with this hobby. I can barely understand this kind of setup for a relaxing sojourn in the backyard hammock, but to try to appreciate the finer details and nuance in any truly portable application (i.e. out and about) is actually something I'd contend betrays the ideals of this hobby rather than espouses them.
The question of superior portable HiFi setups is silly when the same investment in desktop components will get you something that just sounds better.
All you need for portable playback is any relatively decent player and an amazing set of IEMs. High-end headphones that operate well with low output will get you much farther than any high-end player will, so it's very necessary to throw most of your budget at the headphones. Only if you've maxed the headphones out should you pursue should you spend big money on the player.
And with this philosophy in mind, even the HiFiMan is a player I could appreciate. It's big and the battery life sucks, but it's standalone and self-contained.
As soon as you throw in the portable amplifier you've suffered from an egregious loss of both the sensibility of portable audio and the concept of value. It is at this point a similar investment in a desktop setup will fare you MUCH better. Consider this: the iBasso D4 USB amp/DAC sounds better via USB than it does amping (most) portables. If you'd invested the money spent on the player on a solid desktop amplifier instead, you'd get a sound far more worthy of admiration. Desktop amplifiers provide substantially more sound per dollar than any portable amplifiers do. Ray Samuel's desktop amplifiers, even at their substantial prices, make the value of his portable line seem like a joke.
To this end portable DAC/amps redeem themselves in their use as actual USB DACs, and not as amplifiers. But portable amplifiers don't represent any semblance of good value whatsoever.
If you're lugging around such a complex setup for actual on-the-go usage I'd have to question your sanity and obsession with this hobby. I can barely understand this kind of setup for a relaxing sojourn in the backyard hammock, but to try to appreciate the finer details and nuance in any truly portable application (i.e. out and about) is actually something I'd contend betrays the ideals of this hobby rather than espouses them.
The question of superior portable HiFi setups is silly when the same investment in desktop components will get you something that just sounds better.