[olor1n]

Hi guys. i'm new to all this and am after some advise on the best upgrade path with value as my main consideration. My gear is entry level and the M-Stage seems the logical next step. I'm not in pursuit of reference level audio. My library on my macbook is composed of mainly v0 or 320kb mp3s and is played through a Fiio E7 dac using Alessandro MS-1i headphones. I also have a cmoy/RA-1 clone with bass boost desktop amp that I employ by taking the dac out of the chain and just running the clone out of the macbook headphone out.
 
I'm not entirely happy with this current setup and wish I'd read this thread before purchasing these amps. I don't regret the E7. It's versatile and can be utilised with my iPod touch using the lod. I also enjoy the Alessandros and hopefully won't be looking to upgrade the cans any time soon, although I would like acquire the 702s down the track. My main regret is that I am certain the Alessandros, even with my compressed audio files can sound better.
 
I initially purchased a different RA-1 clone that impressed greatly from day 1 and in hindsight may have stumbled unto the well documented synergy of the RA-1 and Grado phones. Even from just the macbook headphone out the clarity and precision it provided was an eye opener. It opened up the sound stage, presented shimmering highs without harshness and bass that was precise and had impact without being muddy and overbearing. I loved this amp. It wasn't about the gear at this point, but about how much I was enjoying the music (some may agree that this is the core of this hobby).
 
Unfortunately that amp presented a fault and now to my great regret I sought a replacement from the seller who obliged with my naive request for what I thought would be a similar sounding amp (considering identical components) but with a bass boost dial. I've come to accept that the synergy is lost. What I have now is a sound that is somewhat artificial in comparison, I think you guys may refer to this as the equipment colouring the sound. The soundstage, separation and clarity is also gone and more  importantly I've lost that sense of enjoyment and am constantly lamenting what I've lost. I feel the same about the E7 which I recently acquired but that can be forgiven for its versatility.
 
Sorry about that long rant but would you guys recommend the M-Stage as my next purchase? I can only justify one item at this stage and I'm hoping that the mythical Fiio E7 lod cable will eventually surface so I can utilise the dac (which is a Wolfson WM8740) with this amp. I'm also hoping the M-Stage pairs well with entry level Alessandros and there's a noticeable improvement even if I can't use a dac. The alternative is just purchasing a Matrix mini-i but I find the scalability of the M-Stage more appealing.
 
Thanks guys... I wish I'd never come across this forum.

 

[ninjikiran]

The Class-A biasing mod(don't completely understand the reasoning) looks extremely simple to do on your own as well.  Obviously having it done for you is easier but just by modding a Dip8 machine point socket you can make a bias'ed socket and use any opamp you want .  There is no risk in doing this and you can get a gold plated socket for $1 ea, or a non-gold plated for half that.
 
A Soldering Iron from Radioshack should fit the bill, as well as their solder(don't need anything special)

 

[purrin]

 
 
 

Sorry about that long rant but would you guys recommend the M-Stage as my next purchase? 

 
You came from an RA-1 clone, which if it used the JRC4556 op-amp, will sound very different from the M-Stage.  The RA-1 or actually JRC4556 synergizes very well with Grados.  It's warm, got a little bit of a dirty and grungy sound, tempers the mid-high bump of Grados, and provides just enough current (for an op-amp) to provide decent bass. Although IMO the stock M-stage is slightly warm; but compared to the RA-1, it may sound a little bit on the bright side.  I hesitate to say that the M-Stage won't work, as the treble is smooth enough, and a lot also depends on your source. To put things into perspective, there are other solid-state amps that don't gel well at all with Grados such as the higher end Headroom amps (LOL, maybe that's why the the Headroom site rates Grados 4 stars instead of 5. Their amps do play well with Denons and Senns however).
 
What the M-Stage will do (compared to RA-1) is provide you with a magnitude of greater clarity, low level detail retrieval, bass control, transient control and "speed", and extension. Personally I had no problems with the stock M-Stage and Grados, but to reiterate, the M-Stage is not one of those amps tailored for Grados if you know what I mean. I'll say it again and again - careful component matching is more critical than slapping expensive stuff together. You obviously know this.
 
The nice thing about the M-Stage is that you have many possibilities to tweak the sound. I said in a earlier post that I didn't think it was possible to make the amp warmer, but now I realize I was wrong. Pushing the LM4562 into class A (you make can the aforementioned adapter socket w/o risk of destroying anything - see my photos of the class A adapter I made a few posts back) warms up the amp. The more you push, the warmer the sound. I've confirmed this with extended back and forth listening. My initial class A LM4562 was biased with a 4.7k resistor for 3.2 mA, which seemed just a slight hair bright with my setup. I then tested with a 2.7k resistor for 5.6mA which sounded way too warm. I've finally settled on 3.3k - just a hair warm. Just an FYI - this behavior only applies to the LM4562. Other op-amps can behave way differently.
 
My M-Stage has the input caps removed, which makes it even brighter. The stock op-amp OPA2132 has a little bit of a U-shaped FR curve. I think a straight LM4562 swap (no class A) will sound darker (and also more detailed, more impactful, and less bass-tubby) compared to stock OPA2132. This may give you the sound balance that you are looking for. Still it won't sound like the RA-1 which almost has a romantic fuzzy quality to it. LOL, I still have my homemade OPA2107/JRC4556 A47 CMOY variant for that reason!

 

[Kuze]

Never bothered taking notice coolfungadget now selling headphone stands, and they look pretty decent too.
https://coolfungadget.com/store/index.php?route=product/category&path=40

 

[buz]

So I just swapped an AD797BR into the M-Stage. The main difference that I notice is that gain seems to be lower now (subjectively need to turn up further to get the same volume out of it) - is that possible or is there something wrong?

 

[lescanard]

Quote:

Word! I must have never bothered taking notice coolfungadget now selling headphone stands, and they look pretty decent too.
https://coolfungadget.com/store/index.php?route=product/category&path=40
 
 

Those look very nice - gonna pick a couple up I think.

 

[project86]

 
Quote:

Word! I must have never bothered taking notice coolfungadget now selling headphone stands, and they look pretty decent too.
https://coolfungadget.com/store/index.php?route=product/category&path=40
 

I picked up one almost like this along with the Matrix Cube DAC, and they both arrived to me the other day. I'll post more when I can but I have to say these headphone stands are top quality. They look and feel very high end, and I don't feel out of place putting a very expensive headphone on them.
 
One thing that is not obvious from the picture is that the wood piece slides out if you don't want to use it. So you can choose an all metal look, or the wood/metal look, depending on what matches your headphones. Very clever.

 

[AlfBaxter]

Does anyone know the recommended input voltage range for the M-Stage? I have it connected to an Auzen Prelude soundcard, and would like to keep all Windows volumes at 100%. (I've tested for clipping and the card is fine at 100%.) The Prelude line out is rated at 5V RMS - is that going to be too much for the amp without some attenuation in Windows?

 

[ninjikiran]

Put your prelude into bit-matched and that should give you +-0db volume out of the analog outs.  I really dunno from there never used my preludes dac with an amp but I know its a bit more complicated than an external dac due to its functionality and software options.
 
 
Anyway regardless of that, you should be fine even at max volume to the amp. 
 
Quote:

Does anyone know the recommended input voltage range for the M-Stage? I have it connected to an Auzen Prelude soundcard, and would like to keep all Windows volumes at 100%. (I've tested for clipping and the card is fine at 100%.) The Prelude line out is rated at 5V RMS - is that going to be too much for the amp without some attenuation in Windows?

 

[Sganzerla]

 Dear guys, after reading so much about this amp and its sinergy with K701 I had to buy one too, here is mine, arrived yesterday:
 

 

 
 My first impression is that it makes my K701 control everything better, some of the harshness transforms in soundstage, a huge one, detail is monstrous, but there are things bothering me a little.
 
 One of the problems I hear right now is some harshness trough a region of the highs, I can't say which specific frequency is, but this is apparent with some music, something my Compass and MSSH don't do.
 
 Second is the bass, I tought would be better than what I had before but it is not the case here, at this moment, it is tighter, more extended, but I think the quantity from MSSH is higher.
 
 Hopefully burn in will improve these aspects soon, or at least a change in power cord (stock yet). My unit has 24 hours of use, more or less.
 
 My unit was bought from AudiophileChina and my economy was around US$ 50.00 buying from them instead of eBay (because the shipping to my continent). Stock opamp is said to be OPA2134, but I don't have the tools here to open and confirm.
 
 My Beyerdynamic DT880/600 had brief time trough my head, and if I remember well, it sounded a little more open with my MSSH (!?!). I'll try it more in a few days to see what happens.
 
 I have some more questions to more experienced users, and hope you can help me as my knowledge in eletronics is very small and my English is not the best.
 
 - Is it possible to mount Earth HDAM in place of the original opamp? Is there any risk of damage trying my LME49860NA with this unit?
 
 - Could someone please link where on eBay can I have buy the adapter and resistors I need to turn my opamps into class A? My LM4562 is reaching home...
 

 

[ninjikiran]

 
Quote:

Quote:Originally Posted by Sganzerla 

 Dear guys, after reading so much about this amp and its sinergy with K701 I had to buy one too, here is mine, arrived yesterday:
 
 
 
 My first impression is that it makes my K701 control everything better, some of the harshness transforms in soundstage, a huge one, detail is monstrous, but there are things bothering me a little.
 
 One of the problems I hear right now is some harshness trough a region of the highs, I can't say which specific frequency is, but this is apparent with some music, something my Compass and MSSH don't do.
 
 Second is the bass, I tought would be better than what I had before but it is not the case here, at this moment, it is tighter, more extended, but I think the quantity from MSSH is higher.
 
 Hopefully burn in will improve these aspects soon, or at least a change in power cord (stock yet). My unit has 24 hours of use, more or less.
 
 My unit was bought from AudiophileChina and my economy was around US$ 50.00 buying from them instead of eBay (because the shipping to my continent). Stock opamp is said to be OPA2134, but I don't have the tools here to open and confirm.
 
 My Beyerdynamic DT880/600 had brief time trough my head, and if I remember well, it sounded a little more open with my MSSH (!?!). I'll try it more in a few days to see what happens.
 
 I have some more questions to more experienced users, and hope you can help me as my knowledge in eletronics is very small and my English is not the best.
 
 - Is it possible to mount Earth HDAM in place of the original opamp? Is there any risk of damage trying my LME49860NA with this unit?
 
 - Could someone please link where on eBay can I have buy the adapter and resistors I need to turn my opamps into class A? My LM4562 is reaching home...

Question 1: Looks like a standard Dip8 connection.  You can easily mount any Audio-GD hdam into it.  If the LME4986NA is like any other opamp you should not damage anything.
 
Question 2: Couldn't tell you where to buy the resistors in your country but you would probably have to buy them and then solder them into a dip8 socket.  I suggest the top of the dip8 socket be flat and the pins be Machine Point and not leaf to easily fit into the socket already on the board.  Just read the guide I guess or someone can tell you the amount of each resistor. 
 
My question is if you can get the dual AD797's in without any kind of self soldering job.  (2xSOICtoDIP8 ----> Single Package Dip 8)

 

[francisdemarte]

Quote:

 
My question is if you can get the dual AD797's in without any kind of self soldering job.  (2xSOICtoDIP8 ----> Single Package Dip 8)

AD797's also come in DIP8, you can use a Brown Dog Single-to-Dual adapter with the DIP sockets installed and you won't have to do any soldering.
 
http://cimarrontechnology.com/single-to-dualop-ampadapter-dipversionpn021001.aspx
 
Soldering is actually quite easy and inexpensive, I don't know why so many people are afraid of it. Soldering an op amp takes 15 minutes tops, 10 minutes of which is waiting for the iron to heat up.
 
 
 
 
 

 

[jtam]

 
This is how I install Audio-gd OPA-MOON in my m-stage.
 

 
This is how I make my class a biasing adapter.

 

[dlaloum]

Hi JTam
 
what resistor value is that - and is it available with various resistor values?
ie are the options that purrin tried in the posting above - 4.7k, 3.3k, 2.7k available?
 
As an additional question - is there any (reasonably easy) way to mod the PSU for additional voltage? - eg: to raise voltage to +/- 18V rather than the standard +/- 15V
 
thanks
 
David
         

 

[jtam]

If you follows Michael's posts on headfonia, you'd know that 2k7 generates too much heat for the opamp. 4k7 used by purrin may be too safe.
 
I tried 3k and measured 4.7mA current. But the opamp is still too hot (50'C measured by an infrared meter). Then I went 3k9 as a compromise. The sound is super smooth and warm. While the opamp is only 35'C with the hood open in a 28'C room.
 
Why do you want to go +/- 18V?
 
Quote:

Hi JTam
 
what resistor value is that - and is it available with various resistor values?
ie are the options that purrin tried in the posting above - 4.7k, 3.3k, 2.7k available?
 
As an additional question - is there any (reasonably easy) way to mod the PSU for additional voltage? - eg: to raise voltage to +/- 18V rather than the standard +/- 15V
 
thanks
 
David