aamefford
I have a custom title!
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I'll see what I can do. I get to drive a Ferarri tomorrow then Mother's Day.
Oppo HA-1 Impressions Thread
I'll see what I can do. I get to drive a Ferarri tomorrow then Mother's Day.
Smarty-pants
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They depress into the body of the remote... hard buttons, not cheap bubble-mash buttons.
efeist
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This should be an easy answer but I'm struggling. The top of the remote is part of a solid aluminum device. The buttons look like "bubble diaphragms" but move further and click more than expected. Hope I didn't confuse you to much.
1adam12
Previously known as "TheGimp"
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This should be an easy answer but I'm struggling. The top of the remote is part of a solid aluminum device. The buttons look like "bubble diaphragms" but move further and click more than expected. Hope I didn't confuse you to much.
Awesome. Thank you both for your reply. It was hard to tell from the pictures posted so far.
TheGovernment
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I'm hoping they will be available in Canada in the next while. Getting one from the US at this time with our dollar being crappy, shipping and taxes makes this almost $1500 once here! Hopefully a few places in Canada will get them.
HiFiAudio
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Exactly, Oppo made the USB DAC input not allowing the computer to change volume. So now volume changes are by volume knob, remote control, or by playback software being utilized.
x RELIC x
Headphoneus Supremus
That's about the right amount to Canada. As far as I know there are no other vendors that sell the HA-1 so I had to pay the "you have less population and more land" tax.
steveting99
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Looking at the spec for the HA-1 for headphone power amp.
XLR balanced output impedance: 0.5 Ohms!
6.35mm RCA output impedance: 0.7 Ohms!
That's really good and will drive the most sensitive IEM without a problem. The damping factor is through the roof for those that have 300 Ohm hard to drive headphones such as the Sennheiser HD600 or other similar models.
XLR balanced output impedance: 0.5 Ohms!
6.35mm RCA output impedance: 0.7 Ohms!
That's really good and will drive the most sensitive IEM without a problem. The damping factor is through the roof for those that have 300 Ohm hard to drive headphones such as the Sennheiser HD600 or other similar models.
docBliny
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Well, I won't get to it today in case anyone was holding their breath. I'll try again tomorrow.
Argybargy
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mr-duke
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Hehe, i think the HA-1 will easy fin in my travel bag, the bags that people use to check-in with because of the size of the bag, but the problems is it will get damage during transport as the airport staff is not so gentler with those bags, they throw them very hard
If i use the handbags (max10kg) it will fit in too, but i don't know if the airport scurity will aloow me carry it on the plane. Anyone have tried this way when buying amps abroad? Laptops is allowed .
mr-duke
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If a product that contain tons of features, does it mean it use to bee a a worse at sound production? I have seen lots of product that packa lots of good feature but non of feature is performed great.
For example a pre-amp and 2 monoblocks use to bee much better than a intergeated amp in a sonic way. Is that why many people go with separate dac, separate headphone amp?
Peachtree audio can use as all in one, dac, headphon amp, pre amp, intergrated amp, all in one solution. Should i bee worry of the HA-1 capacity and performance when there is so many feature in it? Even a sabre 9018 dacs is inside that are tempting but what happens if is not well implementated as separated sabre 9018 dacs that only doing a dac job and nothing else.
For example a pre-amp and 2 monoblocks use to bee much better than a intergeated amp in a sonic way. Is that why many people go with separate dac, separate headphone amp?
Peachtree audio can use as all in one, dac, headphon amp, pre amp, intergrated amp, all in one solution. Should i bee worry of the HA-1 capacity and performance when there is so many feature in it? Even a sabre 9018 dacs is inside that are tempting but what happens if is not well implementated as separated sabre 9018 dacs that only doing a dac job and nothing else.
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Back from the Fujya Avic's spring's headphone festival in Tokyo, the sensation of the day for me was the PM-1/HA-1 combo (driven balanced, using iPhone ALAC through front USB port).
Will write more later but, suffice to say, this is really tempting as a bedside 2nd rig (I have to sleep on this, don't be foolish
). I am a stax-addict, but this is certainly not leaving me wanting from the (albeit short) auditions I made today. Both products are pretty darn impressive for a company who's just starting with headphones!
About the HA-1, I really liked the UI (super intuitive), the fact it recognized my iphone digital stream (it's not than common on most of the gear in these shows), and charged it for free as well today! I was 85% when I came in the both, back to 98% by the time I left! And I don't this I spent more than 20-25min during that first round (had to come again before leaving the show to double check I was not imagining things. Well, it did indeed steal the show for me today...).
Arnaud.
Will write more later but, suffice to say, this is really tempting as a bedside 2nd rig (I have to sleep on this, don't be foolish
). I am a stax-addict, but this is certainly not leaving me wanting from the (albeit short) auditions I made today. Both products are pretty darn impressive for a company who's just starting with headphones!About the HA-1, I really liked the UI (super intuitive), the fact it recognized my iphone digital stream (it's not than common on most of the gear in these shows), and charged it for free as well today! I was 85% when I came in the both, back to 98% by the time I left! And I don't this I spent more than 20-25min during that first round (had to come again before leaving the show to double check I was not imagining things. Well, it did indeed steal the show for me today...).
Arnaud.
Dixter
Headphoneus Supremus
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@ OPPO
Should we start a new thread for firmware wishes ???
Curious about the front USB input for the mobile devices.... can the USB input also act as a OTG reader or a memory stick reader?
Should we start a new thread for firmware wishes ???
Curious about the front USB input for the mobile devices.... can the USB input also act as a OTG reader or a memory stick reader?
About 24 hours in with the unit. I have not made any observations about audio fidelity yet. Here are my other impressions so far:
Notable Functions
Appearance
Front is the standard issue aluminum face you are used to seeing on electronics, with the exception of the LCD screen which is pretty but seems sparse on content. No wonder someone here already mistook it for a media player, you see a screen that big these days and you are thinking smartphone capabilities. The features it does give you are handled very well, almost no learning curve at all.
A solid motorized volume knob prevents your kiddies from leaving it at full blast and surprising you when the unit is turned back on.
The unit size is bigger than I expected, being used to the concept of desktop DAC\AMP combos. It’s too big for a desktop, specifically too deep at 13 inches. Possibly good for a bookshelf, otherwise this will go in your rack. The case is brushed aluminum and attracts fingerprints like nobody’s business.
In short it appears to be a solid, reliable piece of stereo equipment with a nice VU \ spectrum meter.
Remote Control
Aluminum, very small, very sleek. Buttons are hard plastic over the circuit board, not a soft plastic sheet that will eventually crack. You get Volume, Mute, input, and Forward, Play, and Reverse. The last three control your Windows based media player. I hooked up to the DAC via USB using JRiver 19 and the controls immediately worked. Nice.
Remote App for Android
The Remote control app for Android is nice, works. You get the same controls as the physical remote with one exception, you can power the unit OFF remotely but you cannot power it on. The amp missed a power off command from the phone once, from about 2 feet away but seems to work reliably from within the same room otherwise. Once I had the app installed I exclusively used that instead of the physical remote.
There is no initial passcode needed for pairing, you just install the app and scan for the HA1, so maybe an opportunity for fun in controlling your room mates amp? Will my neighbors see my Amp as an available device? Who knows?
Bluetooth Connectivity
Bluetooth connectivity just worked, again no need for typing in codes. A nice feature. Once connected no problem streaming from with the same room. Again, possibilities for someone else connecting to my unit? I don’t know how many devices it will allow pairing with yet.
“Home Theatre Bypass”
This feature bypasses internal volume controls for the pre-amp outputs. (That’s pre-amp outs only, not the Headphone outs.) It works on an input-by-input basis, and you can assign it to both analog and digital inputs. This gets complicated but allows for flexibility. It allows you for instance to:
The inputs that are bypassed show that clearly on the front interface.
Drivers
Driver was a very easy install. (For reference, I am running Windows 8 off a PC, connecting to the DAC via USB2.) Once installed, I have options for ASIO, WASAPI and Kernel Streaming. It took every file type I threw at it up to 192/24 files with no problem.
Random Observations
The balanced and unbalanced headphone jacks cannot be used at the same time. Bummer! No listening parties here.
DSD64 files played automatically, the first time, through JRiver. I have never seen that before, and this is the third DAC I have that supports DSD. Oppo (or more likely the driver vendor) has clearly learned from earlier problems with these files.
DSD256 is supported in “native mode only”. When I see a DSD256 file I will worry about that.
No fire wire if you wanted that.
12 volt triggers is a nice touch.
The designer of this was clearly thinking “AMP”, and then put a DAC on top of it. The manual is completely focused on the amplifier (not a mention of the DAC anywhere except providing specs, and no support for software configuration anywhere online that I could find either, although to be fair I have not needed it). The “Home Theatre Bypass” is intended to let you integrate the unit into a home theatre (hey, I just got that) and use the volume control there. Configuring the HA-1 as a pure DAC device for use with external amplification does not seem to be a recommended use (see page 20 of the manual).
Unit clicks when 1) booting up (power transformer kicking in I think) 2) changing inputs 3) switching between balanced and SE phones 4) going in and out of mute. First file I play after changing inputs has a very faint click as well. Other than that the physical unit is dead silent so far.
I am getting a tiny, tiny pop over the phones when changing tracks when using it as DAC only (PC with JRiver19 > USB2 > HA1 (Volume bypass on USB) > Balanced > audio-gd master 8) but its almost unnoticeable, so I reserve the right to claim later that I was only dreaming this. This does NOT seem to be happening when the unit is used as both DAC \ AMP.
Puts out a lot of heat, big old vent in on the front top.
No noticeable play lag in any mode (DAC\AMP combo, Amp only, DAC only).
When used as DAC only (Home Theatre Bypass against USB input)media controls no longer work but Mute does against both Headphone and Pre-amp outputs.
Audio observations to follow, uhhh, eventually.
Edit: Shoved a picture in there; added additional misc. observations
Notable Functions
- DAC (with DSD256 support)
- Amp
- Pre-amp out
- IPhone Mobile Audio & charger ( IPhone only, no browser for USB sticks or media)
- Bluetooth Audio
- 12 v Trigger in and out
Appearance
Front is the standard issue aluminum face you are used to seeing on electronics, with the exception of the LCD screen which is pretty but seems sparse on content. No wonder someone here already mistook it for a media player, you see a screen that big these days and you are thinking smartphone capabilities. The features it does give you are handled very well, almost no learning curve at all.
A solid motorized volume knob prevents your kiddies from leaving it at full blast and surprising you when the unit is turned back on.
The unit size is bigger than I expected, being used to the concept of desktop DAC\AMP combos. It’s too big for a desktop, specifically too deep at 13 inches. Possibly good for a bookshelf, otherwise this will go in your rack. The case is brushed aluminum and attracts fingerprints like nobody’s business.
In short it appears to be a solid, reliable piece of stereo equipment with a nice VU \ spectrum meter.
Remote Control
Aluminum, very small, very sleek. Buttons are hard plastic over the circuit board, not a soft plastic sheet that will eventually crack. You get Volume, Mute, input, and Forward, Play, and Reverse. The last three control your Windows based media player. I hooked up to the DAC via USB using JRiver 19 and the controls immediately worked. Nice.
Remote App for Android
The Remote control app for Android is nice, works. You get the same controls as the physical remote with one exception, you can power the unit OFF remotely but you cannot power it on. The amp missed a power off command from the phone once, from about 2 feet away but seems to work reliably from within the same room otherwise. Once I had the app installed I exclusively used that instead of the physical remote.
There is no initial passcode needed for pairing, you just install the app and scan for the HA1, so maybe an opportunity for fun in controlling your room mates amp? Will my neighbors see my Amp as an available device? Who knows?
Bluetooth Connectivity
Bluetooth connectivity just worked, again no need for typing in codes. A nice feature. Once connected no problem streaming from with the same room. Again, possibilities for someone else connecting to my unit? I don’t know how many devices it will allow pairing with yet.
“Home Theatre Bypass”
This feature bypasses internal volume controls for the pre-amp outputs. (That’s pre-amp outs only, not the Headphone outs.) It works on an input-by-input basis, and you can assign it to both analog and digital inputs. This gets complicated but allows for flexibility. It allows you for instance to:
- Use HA-1 as a pre-amp for two channels of a multi-channel set up, allowing you to control the volume from a single source
- Use the HA-1 as a DAC only, feeding another amp with its own volume control (Home Theatre bypass the USB Input)
The inputs that are bypassed show that clearly on the front interface.
Drivers
Driver was a very easy install. (For reference, I am running Windows 8 off a PC, connecting to the DAC via USB2.) Once installed, I have options for ASIO, WASAPI and Kernel Streaming. It took every file type I threw at it up to 192/24 files with no problem.
Random Observations
The balanced and unbalanced headphone jacks cannot be used at the same time. Bummer! No listening parties here.
DSD64 files played automatically, the first time, through JRiver. I have never seen that before, and this is the third DAC I have that supports DSD. Oppo (or more likely the driver vendor) has clearly learned from earlier problems with these files.
DSD256 is supported in “native mode only”. When I see a DSD256 file I will worry about that.
No fire wire if you wanted that.
12 volt triggers is a nice touch.
The designer of this was clearly thinking “AMP”, and then put a DAC on top of it. The manual is completely focused on the amplifier (not a mention of the DAC anywhere except providing specs, and no support for software configuration anywhere online that I could find either, although to be fair I have not needed it). The “Home Theatre Bypass” is intended to let you integrate the unit into a home theatre (hey, I just got that) and use the volume control there. Configuring the HA-1 as a pure DAC device for use with external amplification does not seem to be a recommended use (see page 20 of the manual).
Unit clicks when 1) booting up (power transformer kicking in I think) 2) changing inputs 3) switching between balanced and SE phones 4) going in and out of mute. First file I play after changing inputs has a very faint click as well. Other than that the physical unit is dead silent so far.
I am getting a tiny, tiny pop over the phones when changing tracks when using it as DAC only (PC with JRiver19 > USB2 > HA1 (Volume bypass on USB) > Balanced > audio-gd master 8) but its almost unnoticeable, so I reserve the right to claim later that I was only dreaming this. This does NOT seem to be happening when the unit is used as both DAC \ AMP.
Puts out a lot of heat, big old vent in on the front top.
No noticeable play lag in any mode (DAC\AMP combo, Amp only, DAC only).
When used as DAC only (Home Theatre Bypass against USB input)media controls no longer work but Mute does against both Headphone and Pre-amp outputs.
Audio observations to follow, uhhh, eventually.
Edit: Shoved a picture in there; added additional misc. observations
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