New Class A Headphone amp
Jun 17, 2004 at 5:13 AM Post #2 of 14
I haven't but it sure looks interesting on first glance. onder if they have demo units?
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Jun 17, 2004 at 5:35 AM Post #4 of 14
I just sent my demo unit back to Aural Audio.

The folks there are very nice, and answered all of my questions during the 14 day trial period.

It operates in class A down to 100ohms. Since I was using mine with Sony R-10s, I asked if that could be changed. They said yes, with a simple resistor change. But be forwarned, the folks at Aural didn't think it would make a difference.

As noted above, they are willing to work with you as far as mods are concerned. They will make one to order for you. However, that may not be necessary since they will be coming out with a Signature edition, with Black Gate caps, Siltech wire, and two headphone outputs. I asked if they could put in a switch selector, so that you could use both a CD player, and a turntable. They indicated that they could do this.

As far as sound is concerned. I thought it did very well, and would say that its nearest competitor is the Headroom Max. The top end is detailed, and cymbal sound decay very naturally. The bass is also rock solid. My only quibble is that it could, to my ears, get a little harsh on the top end, when the recording was improperly or closely miked.

My decision to send it back was esentially due to my having better options available to me, such as the Blockhead, and the Weebl/Blue Hawaii. If your collection is not already at that insane/expensive level, you might want to check this out.

Just my two cents.
 
Jun 18, 2004 at 7:11 PM Post #5 of 14
Hmmm, to me, they seemed a little pricey for what they offered. Thanks for the info on the demo.

But the killer for me? In their Stereophile ad, they show this very nice looking high end unit, and there's a lovely woman using what looks like MUCHO CHEAP 'phones with them!

Not a very convincing sales pitch IMO. Maybe they chose style over substance, but to someone really interested in a headphone amp, I can't imagine they'd like this.

Dang...this sounds liek a rant. Sorry.
 
Jun 18, 2004 at 9:10 PM Post #7 of 14
Quote:

Originally Posted by ampgalore
2k
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Headroom max was on sale for 1.5k, and the max looks a whole lot beefier
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I don't know if the Max sounds better or not. But at 8 X 4 X 12 3/4 inches and weighing 17 lbs. This amp is defenitly beefier than the Max.
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Jun 18, 2004 at 9:39 PM Post #9 of 14
Quote:

Originally Posted by tom hankins
I don't know if the Max sounds better or not. But at 8 X 4 X 12 3/4 inches and weighing 17 lbs. This amp is defenitly beefier than the Max.
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My penguin cmoy ways 20lbs.
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J/K with ya tom.
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I thought the future was supposed to bring us better equipment that are smaller and lighter? Yet we're still stuck in this mindset that bigger (and heavier) is better. (I'm a victim of this as well.) I was auditioning a cdp, I can't recall the name at the moment (but is a major brand) and it sounded quite good. I just couldn't get over how light weight it was and didn't get it. In retrospect, if they added 20lbs of lead weight to the unit, I probably would have kept it.
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Jun 18, 2004 at 10:01 PM Post #10 of 14
darkclouds said:
My penguin cmoy ways 20lbs.
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J/K with ya tom.
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They must have built your cmoy in a real penguin! Please tell me that the headphone jack is not at the southern end of that Penguin?
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Jun 18, 2004 at 10:41 PM Post #11 of 14
The Aural Audition is a real monster. Heavyweight, with a strong power supply. Additionally, the case is thicker than usual and is made of brushed metal, probably aluminum or stainless steel. It is easily bigger and heavier than my Blockhead. Were I looking for a headphone amp that doubled as a blunt force trauma inducing instrument the Aural would get some consideration.

Really, this is a nice amplifier sound wise. Maybe not the best, to my ears, but very very good, when listened to over the long haul.
 
Jun 18, 2004 at 10:45 PM Post #12 of 14
Quote:

Originally Posted by smokey
The Aural Audition is a real monster. Heavyweight, with a strong power supply. Additionally, the case is thicker than usual and is made of brushed metal, probably aluminum or stainless steel. It is easily bigger and heavier than my Blockhead. Were I looking for a headphone amp that doubled as a blunt force trauma inducing instrument the Aural would get some consideration.

Really, this is a nice amplifier sound wise. Maybe not the best, to my ears, but very very good, when listened to over the long haul.



Any amp that comes into your home is running with some very fast company.
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Jun 18, 2004 at 11:41 PM Post #13 of 14
I dropped them an email after seeing their ad in TAS but they never responded. I only live about 75 miles from them and was thinking of taking a run down to audition it some day. Maybe should try the phone instead.
 
Jun 19, 2004 at 3:08 AM Post #14 of 14
Mmm...FETs...I've heard good things about them...for example, they distort in the same way that tubes do (I.E. mostly even-order harmonics), but without the replicant-like life-expectancy of tubes...dang, I wish I had "lotto" money to check this out...
 

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