[munkyballz]

Just wanted to write this before it slips my mind or something, but the UHA-4 is heaven with the SM3's.  Almost the same epiphany I had with the DBA-02's and my ZO; however, this time with the Leckerton and the UHA-4.  Absolutely incredible, liquid, and smoothed mids.  Maybe the most luscious I've heard to date.  Best yet, for those that were not a fan of the SM3's "veil" or still a fan but secretly felt that the sound was still a little on the chunky side...  The UHA-4, to my ears completely abolishes that wall. 
 
With my initial impressions, I always felt that the UHA-4's did something unique or special with the mids.  I'm not sure if I would call it mid emphasized; however, with the SM3's it seems to lift that veil, yet still keeping that SM3 "flavor" intact, only with much more extension, clarity and smoothness.  I also get the sense that this newly found "transparency" is a universal quality, outputed across the board, extending through the bass and treble as well; as I believe that the sound is delivered with more cleanliness and smoothness, yet somehow more "fresh" or clean sounding through out. 
 
It's just that with the SM3... it's power is in its mid representation.  To me personally and honestly, I adored the SM3's unique signature, but always secret thought that it was indeed a little too thick and at times, borderline muddy.  Brain burn in or not.  With the UHA-4, it's like the SM3 not only went on a diet, but started working out and toning its body, as well.  The end result after seeing it getting out of the shower, or in this case, deep in your ears, is liquid, smooth...velvety perfection.
 
Like I said earlier, I always suspected that there was something unique amongst the sound of the UHA-4.  I kept playing around with my different toys too much to truly put a finger on what that was, but even with my other headphones, I knew there was something...but just couldn't put my finger on it.  Perhaps now, I can't still put a finger or absolute description on it... yet.  However, one thing I know is that it makes an already great earphone like the SM3, sing like it never has before to my ears...basically cutting all the excess or undesirable fat and thickness from the SM3's signature...making it smooth, clean, a liquid clear sonic nirvana. 
 
Earsonics "thickness" department should be calling Jenny Craig and demand a refund, because the little Leckerton amp just put you to shame.

 

[lee730]

Has anyone tried AKG 701/2's with this amp?  Does it have sufficient power to drive them?  I lack the technological knowledge to determine that from the specs.  
 
I see a lot of people complaining about the price bump in this thread, but are there really any competitors in a similarly tiny form factor that can compete in terms of sound quality and features?  The TTVJ Slim, ALO Rx, and the Pico Slim are all a good deal more expensive.  The Arrow 12he is a bit more expensive, but people seem less satisfied with the sound and it lacks a DAC.  What other options am I missing?  

I agree with everything you said except for the arrow being a tad more expensive. $100.00 more is significantly more expensive still. As mentioned earlier, no one enjoys price hikes but that is a fact of life in the business world. The more demand will raise the price plus a sagging economy won't help matters. The prices of the Pico slim, Alo Rx, & Headstage arrow have all increased significantly since their original releases. I think the price increases range from $50-$100+. Those increases are substantially more than the UHA4 price increases; not to mention even before these increases, these amps were still significantly more expensive than the UHA4.

 

[lee730]

Has anyone tried AKG 701/2's with this amp?  Does it have sufficient power to drive them?  I lack the technological knowledge to determine that from the specs.  
 
I see a lot of people complaining about the price bump in this thread, but are there really any competitors in a similarly tiny form factor that can compete in terms of sound quality and features?  The TTVJ Slim, ALO Rx, and the Pico Slim are all a good deal more expensive.  The Arrow 12he is a bit more expensive, but people seem less satisfied with the sound and it lacks a DAC.  What other options am I missing?  

I agree with everything you said except for the arrow being a tad more expensive. $100.00 more is significantly more expensive still. As mentioned earlier, no one enjoys price hikes but that is a fact of life in the business world. The higher demand will raise the price plus a sagging economy won't help matters. The prices of the Pico slim, Alo Rx, & Headstage arrow have all increased significantly since their original releases. I think the price increases range from $50-$100+. Those increases are substantially more than the UHA4 price increases; not to mention even before these increases, these amps were still significantly more expensive than the UHA4. One good example of high demand and definite overpricing would be apple products. They have nice products but are way overpriced IMO, but since demand is high they can get away with charging whatever they want.

 

[Scudbot]

Oh, yes.  +1.
 

 

[munkyballz]

Little more on the UHA-4 from more listening.  I had wrote about the great synergy between the SM3 and the Leckerton, and while still true, I would like to take a bit of the luster off those remarks.  It still does sound great; however, it is my personal opinion that the D10 with stock opamps, does sound slightly "better" to my ears, at least when paired with the SM3's.  "Better" being a very subjective word. 
 
I agree with what Blasto_B. said in his extensive review that the UHA-4 does sound quite neutral and very clear, with a slight hint of, je ne sai pas, cold, cleanliness tint to it...and dare I say slight metallic texture to the sound?  Perhaps transparent with just a slight elevation of bump/amplification of clarity, is another way to word it, as well. 
 
I initially thought something was happening in the mids, especially around 200-500 regions, and there still might be, but overall, I will have to say it's pretty balanced through all three regions...very even, nothing is projected forward or recessed.  This is the clean or metallic characteristic I've noticed, but haven't quite been able to properly identify or put words to it... still figuring it out with each session.  If anything though, the slight improvement of clarity gives me the illusion that the mids are being brought out or so, but perhaps it's just an effect of the overall balanced and neutral amplification.  The sound stage with the SM3's, do not get too much more enveloping or wider; however, I do believe that there is a slight increase in the height and "verticality" of the stage, giving it a slightly airier presence.
 
Now where I say the D10 is better, is that I feel the D10 (stock opamps) is naturally a bit brighter, which in the case of the SM3, meshes a half step better with its signature.  In addition, the D10's mids are slightly more forward in my opinion, in addition to the treble being a bit more clear, sharper, and sparkly.  These in combination make the SM3 sound crisper, faster, and slightly more clean and punchier to my ears.  Is this because the D10 is a technically better amp?  Perhaps, perhaps not.  It could just be that the D10, with it's signature, just has more synergy with the characteristics of the SM3.
 
More A/B'ing with different 'phones later to see if this is just a synergy thing, or consistently relevant throughout...

 

[Nachkebia]

Whoa, it takes alot of time. I made payment 11 days ago and tracking still shows me that USPS has just accepted this.

 

[PopandLocke]

Quote:

Whoa, it takes alot of time. I made payment 11 days ago and tracking still shows me that USPS has just accepted this.

I've noticed that USPS often takes a few days to update their status after the initial shipment.  I've received items before USPS' tracking site listed them as having left the original location.  I just ordered one yesterday, so I'm hoping it ships fairly soon.  

 

[lee730]

Quote:

Whoa, it takes alot of time. I made payment 11 days ago and tracking still shows me that USPS has just accepted this.

Strange. Mine was shipped out 3 days after payment (I paid on Friday) and received mine by Wednesday).

 

[PopandLocke]

Quote:

Strange. Mine was shipped out 3 days after payment (I paid on Friday) and received mine by Wednesday).

 
What color did you get?  I read something (on Head-Fi, I think) about him running out of black cases.

 

[estreeter]

Quote:

Originally Posted by munkyballz /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Now where I say the D10 is better, is that I feel the D10 (stock opamps) is naturally a bit brighter, which in the case of the SM3, meshes a half step better with its signature.  In addition, the D10's mids are slightly more forward in my opinion, in addition to the treble being a bit more clear, sharper, and sparkly.  These in combination make the SM3 sound crisper, faster, and slightly more clean and punchier to my ears.  Is this because the D10 is a technically better amp?  Perhaps, perhaps not.  It could just be that the D10, with it's signature, just has more synergy with the characteristics of the SM3.
 
More A/B'ing with different 'phones later to see if this is just a synergy thing, or consistently relevant throughout...
 

 
Does 'ruler-flat neutral' actually exist in the portable amp sphere ? I'm guessing that it doesnt, and I certainly wouldnt want to be the amp builder trying to live off the profits of such a product. Its possible that the Stepdance might be very close to that ideal, especially given Headfonia's complaint (it came off that way, however it was intended) that Jan has gone away from the warm sound signature of earlier amps to a 'cold, neutral, analytical' sound signature with both the Concerto and the Stepdance. Something like the RE0 into the Stepdance (possibly iQube ?) might come very close to giving us a natural 'window' on the music (the stated audiophile ideal), assuming our source isnt coloring the end result, but I dont know too many people who would be excited by such a combination on a daily basis - happy to hear otherwise.
 
In your case, you like the D10 into the SM3 better than the Leckerton into the SM3 - great, but it doesnt really tell me a great deal about the Leckerton.
 
 
 

 

[lee730]

Quote:

 
What color did you get?  I read something (on Head-Fi, I think) about him running out of black cases.

I got the black one I also ordered mine before the prices began going up. I think the black is very sexy on this device. Very happy with my purchase so far.

 

[lee730]

If you are so curious about this amp why not just take the plunge and get one. Try it out; if you don't like it you have 30 days to ship it back for a full refund minus the shipping. That minor expense will allow you to at least experience it for yourself. You'll never know until you actually try it for yourself .
Quote:

 
Does 'ruler-flat neutral' actually exist in the portable amp sphere ? I'm guessing that it doesnt, and I certainly wouldnt want to be the amp builder trying to live off the profits of such a product. Its possible that the Stepdance might be very close to that ideal, especially given Headfonia's complaint (it came off that way, however it was intended) that Jan has gone away from the warm sound signature of earlier amps to a 'cold, neutral, analytical' sound signature with both the Concerto and the Stepdance. Something like the RE0 into the Stepdance (possibly iQube ?) might come very close to giving us a natural 'window' on the music (the stated audiophile ideal), assuming our source isnt coloring the end result, but I dont know too many people who would be excited by such a combination on a daily basis - happy to hear otherwise.
 
In your case, you like the D10 into the SM3 better than the Leckerton into the SM3 - great, but it doesnt really tell me a great deal about the Leckerton.
 
 
 

 

 

[estreeter]

Quote:

If you are so curious about this amp why not just take the plunge and get one. Try it out; if you don't like it you have 30 days to ship it back for a full refund minus the shipping. That minor expense will allow you to at least experience it for yourself. You'll never know until you actually try it for yourself .


 

Thanks, but I have my heart set on the TTVJ Slim. I'm 'curious' about a lot of kit, but my earlier comment was more about whether any 'synergy' between the SM3 and the uHA-4 helps those of us who dont own the SM3. I have since read that the Earsonics are considered to be a neutral earphone, and I accept that I may have been a little hasty - if that is the case, I apologise to munkyballz. And its not everyday that you will hear someone say that. 

 

 

[lee730]

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[lee730]

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