New Headphone amp on the scene, Best I have Heard to date SE84
Feb 22, 2014 at 4:21 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 6

joespride

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First off I want to start with a summary of my experience dealing with Justin
of ampsandsound.com, Through hundreds of audio deals on several sites I can honestly say I
have never had a better experience.  Justin is far and away one of the most thoughtful
and genuine people i have met in this hobby or anywhere else for that matter.  
He not only cares more about music and how his products perform than he seems 
to care about money, He also shows great compassion for the people he meets, which is a rare
commodity these days.  It has been my experience of late that most people simply want to get
there hands in your pocket as quickly as possible,  I did not feel that with Justin in any 
way.  I say kudos to Justin and ampsandsound for there customer service.  I guarantee you will not 
be sorry for choosing ampsandsound as your next supplier of audio nirvana
 
Gear used to Audition this amp,  source sony vaio, playing loss less WAV files via WMP, Shiit Bifrost With Uber upgrade DAC
Cables are standard cheapo 3.00 versions, DAC connected via USB 2.0, Amp is of course the SE84 from ampandsound.com
 
Now for the amp. First off can you say "QUIET AS THE GRAVE" Because that is exactly what this amp is.
Sennheiser HD-650 Headphones Connected, volume at max, not a peep, dead quiet. The highly regarded Almarro A205
Cannot accomplish this feat. (Read the reviews on Head-Fi), My first album is Eric, Clapton Unplugged an album I
have used for years to compare equipment First thing I notice is the highs are crystal in quality, supremely
clear and absolutely shimmer through decay, I have to say the Highs on this amp are better defined and just
seem to float the best I have heard (and that includes my previous favorites the Thor Tpa 30, $11,000.00 amps) The
tambourine on Nobody Knows you when your down and out is hauntingly realistic

The midrange is so very musical, and life like I am getting SHIVERS up my spine (rarely happens any more) If you don't
know what I am talking about you are in for a treat when it happens for you. If you do know what I am talking about
then you know there is no higher praise.  The separation and imagery are sublime Now I'm on to 
Alison Krauss & Union station Live, I have never been good at Audiophile terminology but i can tell you I have never heard
Alison sound better her voice just carries more breadth (I Have Shivers again) Decay on this amp is superb, Dobro
Hangs in the air forever.  It is literally hard for me to imagine any other amp doing better at any price, This amp does
not just play music, it brings out emotion (Down to the river to pray, will bring tears to your eye)

For bass I chose S.M.V. Thunder, (as in Stanley Clark, Marcus Williams, and Victor Wooten) Needless to say with 3 of the 
all time best musicians on the planet, There are some complicated bass tracks here.  The SE84 handled it like a champ
Bass was tight and superbly defined (other amps tend to muddy this album up) not so with the SE84 the 3 players are 
well defined, Bass is as deep and impactful as I have heard Through Headphones

I doubt you could buy a better amp at any where near the $910.00 price tag of this small wonder, I for one have owned amps costing
10X this amount, I would not trade this for any of those. It is a definite keeper

Dean don't send it back, Put on your headphones and fall in love again.  I agree 100% with your assessment
This amp is just Musical, It excels way beyond its price point

If you own headphones, or sensitive speakers you owe it to yourself to try this amp. I'm not kidding, It's that good 
 
ampsandsound.com
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Feb 24, 2014 at 3:43 PM Post #2 of 6
Considering purchase of lcd-2, would this amp drive those being rated at 3 WPC ?
 
Hard to imagine the lcd-2 sounding better than the HD-650's do with this amp though
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Feb 26, 2014 at 11:08 AM Post #3 of 6
Guess its time to change my system shown here
 
MY current and likely permanent system:  Loss Less files fed thru my Schiit Uber Bifrost Dac, which feeds My new ampsandsound.com SE 84 amp, which feeds my Sennhieser HD-650 
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I am loving music all over again
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Mar 3, 2014 at 11:32 AM Post #6 of 6
   
you can click on your sign in name on the top right and edit your signature.....I hope that helps
 
The amp looks interesting and reasonably priced....What sort of output transformers are being used?

Thanks for the advice,  The iron is edcor sourced from manufacturer in new mexico It is over sized at 10 watts
 
Joe
 

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