[ClieOS]

Quote:

hmm, never noticed that. since the information of original stepdance is wiped out from the website, i only assume they are the same as 2stepdance except 2stepdance having a thinner case
 
in that case, i guess stepdance and 2stepdance might sound different. somebody should make a comparison between the two *i hope

 

Actually, the opamp and the gain are different too.
 

 

[ianmedium]

Spud, congrats on the new amp, it looks way better in the flesh so to speak. to chime in on the battery thing. I found little improvement with the triple.fi 10's other than on full gain using the 15v supply but using harder to drive phones or IEM's like my ER4S or LCD2 the difference is not subtle at all!

If one is just going to use very sensitive headphones then I would say stick with the internal battery and enjoy the sublime sound. If you want to use less efficient phones then the normal power source will certainly make you smile and feet tap but plugging in the extra volts widens the smile and makes your feet tape like you have St Vitus dance

 

[SpudHarris]

Haha, nice one Ian. I can tell you this, I LOVE THIS AMP!!
 
My HE-500's came this morning and the 2Stepdance make these things sing even in low gain so I'm a happy chappy for sure. The HE-4's are a nightmare to drive (Stupid HE-4's!) but they have got something I just like so I'll use the Fi-Q for those.
 
Again, last night I used the 2Stepdance with full sized phones and the results were very good, especially the K702's which surprised me a little as they have a rep for being a tad (massively) light on base. HD600's were also great but the PSU really doen't make a huge difference to my ears and I'm considered 'Bat Ears' around these parts, not coz I got good hearing it's coz they is furry.... Seriously though I do have very good ears, must be all the Opamp Rollin haha...
 
Anyway, where are all the other 2Stepdancers??

 

[SpudHarris]

Don't know if anyone is still interested but here is the info from my instruction sheet, 20-40 hours dependant on current setting....
 

 

[b0wl1ng]

Hi Spud
Your 2Stepdance will still need a few more days burn in yet, but how does it stack up against the ibasso p4, another highly rated portable amp.
The 2Stepdance and HE-500 will be a fantastic combination I,m sure, I have been looking at the HE-500 myself, though my modded orthos (Fostex T50RP) are ridiculously good for what they cost.  

 

[SpudHarris]

Well the P4 hasn't seen much air since the 2Stepdance got here and as I may have said, the P4 is reliant on a decent chipset. Any of which may not be optimised for the circuit. The P4 has more grunt for sure and is more flexible because of it, I will have to do a comparrison but to my ears the 2Stepdance will take some beating.
 
The HE-500's are just beautiful in everyway, I left them playing all day yesterday and listened last night. If it wasn't for the fact I have a job I would still be listening now. They are easily my favourite phones and I think I'll probably be selling the T1's soon to make room in my listening area for the new king £588 delivered to my door is an awesome deal with the $ against the £ as it is. I paid nearly a grand for the T1's

 

[b0wl1ng]

Yes, I guessed the HE-500s would be the new kings of your collection, I guess they will be mine too shortly, how are they comfort wise ?, to be truthful I almost ordered the LCD-2.
But as enjoy extended listening sessions comfort was a major issue for me, plus I did not like the look of them and then they developed driver issues.
the HE-500s look more like  proper headphones to me, seems Hi-Fiman have nailed it this time.    

 

[SpudHarris]

They are the most comfortable phones in my collection, I kid you not. They are also the heaviest by far but real nice in every way. I can honestly say I wasn't or am not dissapointed about any part of them. The T1's were an 8 week wait when I bought them, when they arrived I was dissapointed with the cheap nasty adjusters and the rubber around the strain relief on the Neutrik jack was split which just tainted the experience slightly. I ordered the HE-500's they were with me less than a week later and they are beautiful. 
 
Anyway, yes Hi-Fiman have definately hit the spot this time and they pair very well with the 2Stepdance which is what I was hoping for.

 

[koto-in]

Quote:

Don't know if anyone is still interested but here is the info from my instruction sheet, 20-40 hours dependant on current setting....
 

2Stepdance 20/35mA = 40/25 Hours
Stepdance 25/50mA = 30/15 Hours
Move 7/18mA =115/45 Hours
Porta Corda Mk III 10mA=80 Hours
 

 

[cooperpwc]

With great batteries on a great day (i.e. the industry standard for quoting battery life).

 

[knowhatimean]

Man... you guys are killing me! I have a 2Stepdance on the way & all this talk about the HE-500 is making me reach for my pocket ! Ialso have the HE-4s & to be honest I don't seem to be having much trouble driving them to a satisfactory level without distortion with either my McCormack micro drive(desktop) or my Decware ZenHead(portable). I suppose the HE-4s are a bit 'tighter & reserved' sounding through the ZenHead/HM-602 set-up then I'd like but not by much. One thing I have noticed, any bit of 'steady state' room noise will mask some low level detail through the 4s(Duh, he says to himself, these are 'open air' phones afterall)so I may have been blaming the phones for inefficiency caused by surrounding listening enviorments, My listening habit is classical music about 95% of the time & I don't listen to anything other than lossless, It always cracks me up a bit when I read about someone who spends the time putting a nice 'rig' together to find out they're listening to 'lossy' encoded music. That's like putting cheap table wine into expensive crystal wine glasses. Looks nice though!

 

[pekingduck]

Mine arrived today!
 
The amp is powered by the 9-12V output of my XP8000. Phones are the SE535 and Vsonic GR07.
 
Initial impressions are quite positive. Compared to the Pico Slim, the mids are a tad fuller and slightly warmer; bass has more slam. The sound signature reminds me of the Meier Concerto I owned (except the soundstage of the 2SD is smaller).
 
The background is pitch black and I hear absolutely no hiss with my SE535! Every other amp I've tried ( TTVJ Slim, Pico Slim and DACmini) hisses to some degree.
 
I gotta try it with my LCD-2 later. It's a bit too hot to wear that in the middle of summer, so the phones've been back in the storage case for a while

 

 

[cooperpwc]

Quote:

It always cracks me up a bit when I read about someone who spends the time putting a nice 'rig' together to find out they're listening to 'lossy' encoded music. That's like putting cheap table wine into expensive crystal wine glasses. Looks nice though!

Where do these clowns come from?

 

[cooperpwc]

- nvm

 

[knowhatimean]

Quote:

Where do these clowns come from?

Taste is subjective ! (As are opinions, which are of course useless, but an entitlement we all have)