[HeatFan12]

Received my I+ a couple of hours ago....

Quick pics and quick first impression...

Three main reasons for my purchase-

1) Enough juice to drive Grados properly
2) Small tube amp for a bedside rig with Ipod
3) Enough juice to drive Grados properly (you think this is important to me?)

Has it accomplished any of this yet?

1) Yes
2) YEs
3) YES

I ordered mine with the EF92 tube. Stock tubes are Ediswan EF92s...Very nice gloss finish with the gold tube protectors. Small, which was important to me. A very chic, beautiful amp....Does it sound as good as it looks?

This is just right out of the box with the stock tubes, 2 hours on it...

This little guy can rock. It tames the highs of the Grados perfectly without losing any of the Grado quality. It is still "in your face" Grado, however, with a bit of warmth to it. To me Grados have always been a "fun", "rocking" phone" and this little amp brings them to life. If I had to sum it up- they just sound "right", how they are supposed to sound. They need the juice that this little amp offers and this is right out of the box. I can imagine after burn in and some M8161's in it...Good Heavens...

I have some WE408s on the way, to go along with all my 6AK5W/6096/EF95 I have already. I see some fun times up ahead...

SO FAR- Beautiful little amp, with serious juice, great sound, small footprint, three tube families, great price, great service....Did I miss anything?

Size compared to his cousins.


Quote:

Originally Posted by nsx_23 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm getting more and more tempted to pull the trigger on this as my first tube amp. However, would I really hear a difference using Grado SR60s? Thats the question I keep asking myself....

Absolutely....

 

[malldian]

So these and Sennheiser 600's is probably a no go?

 

[REB]

I briefly gave it a try with a pair of HD600s and they sounded good. Not (yet) excellent, but the LD I+ seems to have quite some juice. As it isn't even burned in yet, this might still change. I was pleasantly surprised with how it handled the HD600 straight out the box. I'll give them another try later this week, after the LD I+ has had a chance to burn in some more.

 

[HeatFan12]

Quote:

Originally Posted by malldian /img/forum/go_quote.gif So these and Sennheiser 600's is probably a no go?

Matt, I have not changed the gain on it, but I can try one of my Senns in a bit and let you know...

 

[malldian]

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeatFan12 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Matt, I have not changed the gain on it, but I can try one of my Senns in a bit and let you know...

Awesome I am thinking about putting a system together for my roommate and if this is a good combo I think he would consider it.

 

[ciphercomplete]

Does anyone have a pair of AKG k701s to try in this thing?

 

[Ghoul]

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeatFan12 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Received my I+ a couple of hours ago.... Quick pics and quick first impression... Three main reasons for my purchase- 1) Enough juice to drive Grados properly 2) Small tube amp for a bedside rig with Ipod 3) Enough juice to drive Grados properly (you think this is important to me?) Has it accomplished any of this yet? 1) Yes 2) YEs 3) YES I ordered mine with the EF92 tube. Stock tubes are Ediswan EF92s...Very nice gloss finish with the gold tube protectors. Small, which was important to me. A very chic, beautiful amp....Does it sound as good as it looks? This is just right out of the box with the stock tubes, 2 hours on it... This little guy can rock. It tames the highs of the Grados perfectly without losing any of the Grado quality. It is still "in your face" Grado, however, with a bit of warmth to it. To me Grados have always been a "fun", "rocking" phone" and this little amp brings them to life. If I had to sum it up- they just sound "right", how they are supposed to sound. They need the juice that this little amp offers and this is right out of the box. I can imagine after burn in and some M8161's in it...Good Heavens... I have some WE408s on the way, to go along with all my 6AK5W/6096/EF95 I have already. I see some fun times up ahead... SO FAR- Beautiful little amp, with serious juice, great sound, small footprint, three tube families, great price, great service....Did I miss anything? Size compared to his cousins. Absolutely....

When you say drive them properly. What are the differences you're hearing so far compared to your MK IV? I'm very interested as I'm looking into the I+ to drive my grado RS-1's. I'm currently running them with a MK III.

 

[viscosity]

Does anyone know if this amp has enough juice to power the AKG K701s??

 

[HeatFan12]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ghoul /img/forum/go_quote.gif When you say drive them properly. What are the differences you're hearing so far compared to your MK IV? I'm very interested as I'm looking into the I+ to drive my grado RS-1's. I'm currently running them with a MK III.

I'm tempted to compare the two, however, the price difference is about $280.00, so head to head would be unfair.

When it comes to Grados, if you pair them with an amp that will not drive them properly, they will sound very bright and fatiguing. The sound is there and it's in your face, but sometimes it is just too much to listen to for a long period of time. Tubes will have that "warm" feeling and I have tamed the highs before for Grados on my Darkvoice with different 6SN7 tubes and it sounded good. But it did not sound "complete" as if there was something missing. Bass and mids were there, but the highs just overpowered everything. I had been listening to my Grados recently on my X-CanV3 and it sounded damn good. Hybrids give you the best of both worlds adding a balance to the sound.

The I+ just takes them to that last level that was missing before.

Remember, I can only comment on what Grados I have- SR60 & SR225. I can't advise on RS-1s or RS-2s (I believe Seba has both). I really love both of them and I knew with the right amp they would sound great.

A brief summary to put it in perspective on the amps I have. This is not head to head, just bringing out the best qualities in each.

High impedance phones only- MKIVSE, DV336SE
Low impedance phones only- LDI+ (1st) X-CanV3 (2nd)


When it comes to high z phones, the DV and MKIVSE take it hands down. HD650s and DT880s as an example- excellent

When it comes to low z phones only, right now the I+ is the winner. I have never been able to listen to Grados for an extended period of time. I'm going on about four hours and I don't feel like I ran a marathon.


Does the DV and SE sound good with Grados? Yes they do, but IMO the I+ gives them that last uuummmmffff they need.

Don't forget, I'm still running stock EF92s and it sounds good. Once I start rolling the families, it will only improve...

 

[HeatFan12]

Quote:

Originally Posted by malldian /img/forum/go_quote.gif Awesome I am thinking about putting a system together for my roommate and if this is a good combo I think he would consider it.

Matt, with the gain set to high, the Senns sound pretty good. The detail is struggling a little bit (not much), but It should open up some more. This amp was definitely tailored for low z phones.

I'm thinking the AD2000 can sound great with this amp....


Quote:

Does anyone know if this amp has enough juice to power the AKG K701s??

That is a whole different animal...

 

[TheMarchingMule]

Listening to Al Green with this setup right now:

[iPod (headphone out; max volume)] - [1/8-to-RCA] - [LD I+] - [Grado SR225]

The bass definitely has more weight to it, and it was rather sloppy at first, but already as I switch to Massive Attack's Angel, the bass is starting to shape up, but not by much, obviously. Like HeatFan12 said, this amp really helps shape the Grado sound; a hint of warmness, but still allows it to be a rockin' can. I can't describe it in words, you guys must buy one to hear for yourselves.

I can't wait for stevenkelby's LOD-to-RCA to come by the end of this week...but for now, this is a noticeable help from straight from my iPod.

Listening to John Lennon's Imagine (MFSL) right now...it's very melodic and sweet, and actually has real weight to the sound, as opposed to just hearing the song. Get what I'm saying?

EDIT: Well this is interesting. Listening to Pink Floyd's Time (MFSL) right now, and the bass seems to be on its own track. Like, you hear the music...then you notice that the bass is on its own plane. Very peculiar to notice that.

 

[wae5]

I just ordered a LD 1+ with the cheap tubes. I have the LD MKIV SE and the MKV so I’m very interested in comparing them. I bought it primarily to pair with my SR325i because it has more current than my other LD amps and I’d like to hear if this makes a difference. I usually pick the most expensive option but this time I decided to go with the cheap one because I already have the expensive tubes in my MKIV SE. Please don’t expect a highly critical review because I tend to like everything when I first get it.

 

[darkswordsman17]

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeatFan12 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm tempted to compare the two, however, the price difference is about $280.00, so head to head would be unfair.

Why the trepidation? Saying one Little Dot is better than another for certain headphones isn't going to hurt Little Dot. Even if you don't share your thoughts with the forum, I would think it would be in your own personal best interest to compare them and see which you prefer the sound of more.

 

[REB]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheMarchingMule /img/forum/go_quote.gif EDIT: Well this is interesting. Listening to Pink Floyd's Time (MFSL) right now, and the bass seems to be on its own track. Like, you hear the music...then you notice that the bass is on its own plane. Very peculiar to notice that.

I noticed the same with Radiohead's Karma Police straight out of my iPod (--> LD I+ --> K501). I am listening now to the same setup and same song, but I brought my old Philips CD player to the office to replace the iPod as source (my LOD hasn't arrived also). It's completely gone now, so I assume it's got something to do with the double amping that occurs if you connect the LD I+ straight to the iPod's headphone jack.

Other than that, pretty mesmerizing sound...

 

[Kane-DK]

Has anybody tried this with d2000/d5000?

I'm thinking, if it is good with Grado, it most be good with Denon also.