[purk]

I

Any reason to get this if you already own the 1Z Walkman and the Z1R headphones? Would there be any benefits from the amp if you already run the high gain output from the Walkman?

I will have to report back once the PHA-2A has more hours, but I did notice that the PHA-2A is an upgraded over the ZX300 on a brief comparison. The 1Z and PHA-2A should be a tight race.

 

[larzy]

The PHA-2A definitely brightens up the sound the makes it less muddy - I've tried it with both the ZX300 and the 1Z walkman and if I had to chose what sounds best, it's better with the amp connected. Not that it sounds bad without it, but when going from one to another it's almost like theres a layer on top of the music without it that recessed the vocals. I've tried it with the Z1R headphones - and the Sennheiser HD660S - the later it made the music too bright, but with the Sony's it was pure bliss

 

[Hinomotocho]

The PHA-2A definitely brightens up the sound the makes it less muddy - I've tried it with both the ZX300 and the 1Z walkman and if I had to chose what sounds best, it's better with the amp connected. Not that it sounds bad without it, but when going from one to another it's almost like theres a layer on top of the music without it that recessed the vocals. I've tried it with the Z1R headphones - and the Sennheiser HD660S - the later it made the music too bright, but with the Sony's it was pure bliss

When connecting to the ZX300 can you use just the PHA-2A amp section or can it only be used as a digital out to the PHA-2A dac?

 

[purk]

The ZX300 becomes a digital transport when connecting to the PHA-2A. The 2A replaces the ZX300's amp section basically.

 

[Hinomotocho]

I'm hoping not to get shot down for mentioning hi-res.
I have a lot of 24/96, 24/192 and DSD64 files, I was wondering what would happen in the future if file rates exceeded the specs of the PHA-2A - do they just not play or would I be able to configure Foobar to downscale?

 

[Wiz33]

I'm hoping not to get shot down for mentioning hi-res.
I have a lot of 24/96, 24/192 and DSD64 files, I was wondering what would happen in the future if file rates exceeded the specs of the PHA-2A - do they just not play or would I be able to configure Foobar to downscale?

Unless you're really young and have great hearing. Anything beyond 24/96 or DSD 64 is meaningless. Why bother even if new format becomes available.

 

[Hinomotocho]

Unless you're really young and have great hearing. Anything beyond 24/96 or DSD 64 is meaningless. Why bother even if new format becomes available.

I was hoping...

 

[purk]

Unless you're really young and have great hearing. Anything beyond 24/96 or DSD 64 is meaningless. Why bother even if new format becomes available.

I think those hi-rez files are just better due to the mastering process so they do sound better than the regular 16 bit 44.1khz files. I'm nearly 40 and I can still differentiate between different file formats. For instance, I notice an immediate loss in fidelity going from the same DSD file down to 24/176.4 file for instance. I wouldn't rule out hi-rez files just based on frequency response alone.

 

[Hinomotocho]

I'm still considering the PHA-2A, I just noticed it has the same dac chip as my Oppo HA-2 I'm intending to replace - does this mean it will sound very similar? What are the other factors that affect how a dac will sound?

 

[purk]

I'm still considering the PHA-2A, I just noticed it has the same dac chip as my Oppo HA-2 I'm intending to replace - does this mean it will sound very similar? What are the other factors that affect how a dac will sound?

Output stage of the DAC as well as the amplifier stage of the PHA-2A. Having the same DAC really not saying a lot.

 

[Hinomotocho]

Output stage of the DAC as well as the amplifier stage of the PHA-2A. Having the same DAC really not saying a lot.

Thanks purk, I don't know much about these things

 

[Raketen]

I'm hoping not to get shot down for mentioning hi-res.
I have a lot of 24/96, 24/192 and DSD64 files, I was wondering what would happen in the future if file rates exceeded the specs of the PHA-2A - do they just not play or would I be able to configure Foobar to downscale?

I don't have PHA2A or any high res files that exceed my usb dac specs, but on all my output options for foobar it says output format is automatically selected, so maybe it will just automatically downscale?

If that doesn't work, "worst case" scenario you should be able to set up your DAC as default windows device and tell foobar to output to Primary Sound Driver and in Windows Device properties you can manually select an output bitrate so it outputs the same bitrate to the DAC (as long as foobar has the proper plugins to read whatever weird DSD type format these 300 gigabyte song files would come in)

 

[Hinomotocho]

I don't have PHA2A or any high res files that exceed my usb dac specs, but on all my output options for foobar it says output format is automatically selected, so maybe it will just automatically downscale?

If that doesn't work, "worst case" scenario you should be able to set up your DAC as default windows device and tell foobar to output to Primary Sound Driver and in Windows Device properties you can manually select an output bitrate so it outputs the same bitrate to the DAC.

Thank you - I assumed this may be the case.

 

[Gww1]

I'm thinking of picking up 2a for desktop use as I'm so impressed with the ZX300 and Andromeda pairing. The only issue with the ZX300 for desktop use is the massive delay it introduces (around a second) making it unusable for movies and games.

I'm hoping the 2a doesn't have this delay present?
And any feedback on performance with Andromedas would be appreciated if anyone has any.

 

[Nostoi]

Hello all, does anyone run their PHA-2A with Foobar? If so, have you had any luck playing anything above DSD 64?

I know the PHA-2A supports up to DSD512 on Windows, and it runs perfectly on the Sony Music Center software with DSD 256/512, but not on Foobar. Not a major issue, but I far prefer the custom layout of Foobar.

BTW: when I run it on Foobar using Sony ASIO driver it seems to register DSD128/256, but there's no output. It may well be that DSD is proprietary to the Sony software.