My Mapletree Audio Design Ear Purist HD2 High Definition Headphone Amplifier was delivered today. It left Canada on 5th June 2007 (6th June locally) and its early arrival had caught me off-guard for I had wanted the weekend to shop for a dedicated cdp to partner the HD2. Instead, I had to rip the Roksan Caspian from my speaker rig to feed it, at least temporarily for the next few days.
This is my first full-sized headphone amp and I would like to share my first impressions with some quick & dirty photographs. This is not a review, for I am not good at writing one.
The Package
The HD2 was wrapped in bubble-wrap and double packed in 2 boxes with plenty of Styrofoam. It would be a good idea to have a clean paint brush ready when unpacking the amp, to brush away the foam crump. The package included:
1 x HD2
1 x power cord
1 x owner’s manual
1 x spare fuse
1 x JJ ECC 99 in box
1 x Sovtek 5751
1 x invoice
Besides the amp which was bubble-wrapped and the power cord that was left bare, the rest of the items were neatly packed into Ziploc bags of various matching sizes. On the whole there was plenty of care and thought that went into the packing of the content.
Build / Part Quality
Make no mistake about it; this was a hand-assembled amp. The gaps between the various sign plates and the chassis and their alignment were clear indications. However, the components used looked top quality. Everything was screwed on properly. There was no flimsy part or rattling sound. The power switch and volume control knob operated firmly. In fact, it’s a refreshing experience turning the volume control knob after all these years of servo-controlled knobs.
Here I would like to say something about the colour of the chassis, something that was important to me and I had e-mailed to Lloyd about. I had ordered for the RCA Red with black end panels. On some photos, including my own, the colour looked orangey and on others it looked red. Its actual colour was dark red like maroon, very classy with the black end panels. I wouldn’t have minded the orangey one though.
How Does It Sound?
After rolling in the 2 tubes, I left the HD2 turned on for about 20 minutes before inserting Bryan Adams’ Unplugged into Roksan Caspian. The headphone was the Grado RS-1. The very first track was Summer of ’69. It was like an eternal wait before the first beat of the snare drum and upon hearing that first beat whatever little apprehension that I had was removed. And from the second track Back To You onwards, I was playing air guitar and drums. Next album was William Tell’s You Can Hold Me Down. More air guitar. More air drums. Yes, the bass was a little light but there was no lack of punch here. This amp was not about visceral bass. It was about punch and PRaT; and about how that guitar note hanging on in the air until its own energy can longer sustain the decay. It’s also about refinement rather than that WOW factor. The amp was silent without any humming even at maximum volume. I was enjoying myself so totally until my son had to come in to remind me that I had promised him to bring him and his sister roller-blading.
In summary, I am pleased with the MAD HD2. Admittedly, I have no experience with other amps to compare it with. But I am very pleased.
