Saxon
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2005
- Posts
- 22
- Likes
- 16
Well at around 1600hrs UK time my Little Dot MK3 arrived from China - meaning it took around ten days from ordering to delivery, but considering that I emailed dave only about 36 hours ago to check on progress and he said mine had completed testing and would be despatched in the next shipment that means DHL managed to get it from China to deepest West Sussex in only 30 hours which I personally find extraordinary. Needless to say there was no further duty to pay.
All I can say is that the amp has the feeling of being very well made and is beautifully finished. The product has the feel of something truly high-end and the general finish is up to the standards of my Michell Gyrodec turntable. The amp is currently integrated into my Naim system comprising a NAC102 pre-amp, naim NAP250 power amp and associated HICAP and NAPSC power supplies. My main source so far has been the Naim CDi CD player and my headphones are Beyerdynamic DT880 Pro. I've spent several years reviewing audio equipment for Hi-Fi News magazine in the UK and am somewhat spoilt with having experienced a wide range of top flight equipment. Withoput doubt the best headphones I have ever heard are the Sennheiser HD800 driven via a naim Headline headphone amp via a naim CDX CD player and Naim amps but the Little Dot 3/DT880 combination at around £450 offers excellent (though inferior) performance compared to the HD800/Naim Headline/HICAP option which costs a cool £2000 or so.
I'm only a handful of hours into listening to the LD3 but have to say its ability to conjure up a soundstage is revelatory. I've listened to a variety of tracks including classical pieces by Vivaldi as well as Annie Lennox 'Broken Glass', Cake 'Short skirt long jacket', Kid Rock 'All Summer Long', Jessie J 'Price Tag', Eleanor McEvoy 'Woman's Heart' and the Corr's 'Unplugged' and all have sounded incredibly spacious, clear and detailed. The Corrs live recording in particular was very impressive. The bass is very extended and tuneful, the midrange is rich and involving and the top end is just a touch less transparent than the best I have heard. Timing is exemplary for a valve amp but clearly not in the Naim Headline Class yet. There simply isn't the same 'snap' that I get from my all Naim amplification and speakers. I do wonder how many of these perceptions will change as the amp and valves burn in.
So far though I am extremely impressed. This is a very honest product and is leagues ahead of my tape deck output and AV amp output for quality. You absolutely can hear the difference and the strident, harsh and somewhat bass shy and grainy presentation of those headphone sockets is gone.
I genuinely feel I am getting a lot more out of the Beyer's now - the two complement each other beautifully and are not too much of a let down after my £3000 Naim speakers on the end of £5000 worth of Naim amps. This means in short that the Little Dot MK3 is an audiophile bargain of significant proportions. One of the reasons I felt that I had to invest in a reasonable quality headphone set-up is that I am used to hearing a very good sound when using speakers. The headphones are intended for late night evening listening when the family are in bed and simply wouldn't be used at all if they were too inferior to the speaker set-up. In my view I haven't yet equalled my speaker set-up in most respects, but I'm 80% of the way there and in terms of perceived soundstage and spaciousness the LD3 has the edge.
This is my first valve amp and so far I am delighted. I notice one of the smaller valves is glowing considerably brighter than the other but I trust this is normal but would welcome comments. I have also used a very high quality screened Kimber audiophile IEC mains cable which is connected to a dedicated mains spur for the Hi-fi to try and give the LIttle Dot the cleanest power feed possible. So far the Little Dot is almost devoid of hiss even with the volume wound up to '11' with no music playing and there is absolutely no hum or other grounding issues at all.
Hope my initial perceptions are of interest. I will add to them as the amp breaks in if there is sufficient interest.
Best regards,
Saxon
All I can say is that the amp has the feeling of being very well made and is beautifully finished. The product has the feel of something truly high-end and the general finish is up to the standards of my Michell Gyrodec turntable. The amp is currently integrated into my Naim system comprising a NAC102 pre-amp, naim NAP250 power amp and associated HICAP and NAPSC power supplies. My main source so far has been the Naim CDi CD player and my headphones are Beyerdynamic DT880 Pro. I've spent several years reviewing audio equipment for Hi-Fi News magazine in the UK and am somewhat spoilt with having experienced a wide range of top flight equipment. Withoput doubt the best headphones I have ever heard are the Sennheiser HD800 driven via a naim Headline headphone amp via a naim CDX CD player and Naim amps but the Little Dot 3/DT880 combination at around £450 offers excellent (though inferior) performance compared to the HD800/Naim Headline/HICAP option which costs a cool £2000 or so.
I'm only a handful of hours into listening to the LD3 but have to say its ability to conjure up a soundstage is revelatory. I've listened to a variety of tracks including classical pieces by Vivaldi as well as Annie Lennox 'Broken Glass', Cake 'Short skirt long jacket', Kid Rock 'All Summer Long', Jessie J 'Price Tag', Eleanor McEvoy 'Woman's Heart' and the Corr's 'Unplugged' and all have sounded incredibly spacious, clear and detailed. The Corrs live recording in particular was very impressive. The bass is very extended and tuneful, the midrange is rich and involving and the top end is just a touch less transparent than the best I have heard. Timing is exemplary for a valve amp but clearly not in the Naim Headline Class yet. There simply isn't the same 'snap' that I get from my all Naim amplification and speakers. I do wonder how many of these perceptions will change as the amp and valves burn in.
So far though I am extremely impressed. This is a very honest product and is leagues ahead of my tape deck output and AV amp output for quality. You absolutely can hear the difference and the strident, harsh and somewhat bass shy and grainy presentation of those headphone sockets is gone.
I genuinely feel I am getting a lot more out of the Beyer's now - the two complement each other beautifully and are not too much of a let down after my £3000 Naim speakers on the end of £5000 worth of Naim amps. This means in short that the Little Dot MK3 is an audiophile bargain of significant proportions. One of the reasons I felt that I had to invest in a reasonable quality headphone set-up is that I am used to hearing a very good sound when using speakers. The headphones are intended for late night evening listening when the family are in bed and simply wouldn't be used at all if they were too inferior to the speaker set-up. In my view I haven't yet equalled my speaker set-up in most respects, but I'm 80% of the way there and in terms of perceived soundstage and spaciousness the LD3 has the edge.
This is my first valve amp and so far I am delighted. I notice one of the smaller valves is glowing considerably brighter than the other but I trust this is normal but would welcome comments. I have also used a very high quality screened Kimber audiophile IEC mains cable which is connected to a dedicated mains spur for the Hi-fi to try and give the LIttle Dot the cleanest power feed possible. So far the Little Dot is almost devoid of hiss even with the volume wound up to '11' with no music playing and there is absolutely no hum or other grounding issues at all.
Hope my initial perceptions are of interest. I will add to them as the amp breaks in if there is sufficient interest.
Best regards,
Saxon
