[MikeyFresh]

.

 

[myemaildw]

this review https://youtu.be/rh_s2DT6hOc

 

[ClieOS]

this review https://youtu.be/rh_s2DT6hOc

 
I watched the review for about 10 seconds and stopped when I saw his reply to a comment that 'HA-2 is hardly better than E17'. Hmm...

 

[ClieOS]

  Has anyone been able to get the HA-2 to playback DSD64 .DSF files without loads of static using JRMC20 software?
 
I can get the HA-2 to playback DSD64 without glitches using an iPad2 + CCK, and the Onkyo HF Player app.
 
But with JRMC20 I get loads of static well above the music in level, which you can faintly hear in the background.
 
As far as I can see, the only JRMC20 setting for this is "Bitstreaming: Yes (DSD)", and that does work for me with other DSD compatible DACs such as the LH Labs Pulse and GO100 IEM.
 
That setting won't work with the HA-2.
 
The only other difference is the USB cable, I don't have any high grade USB B Micro cables so I am using what came supplied by OPPO. 
 
Any JRMC20 DSD experts out there?

 
No problem playing back DSD64 and DSD128 .dsf files on JRMC21, using HA-2's ASIO driver and DoP.

 

[MikeyFresh]

   
No problem playing back DSD64 and DSD128 .dsf files on JRMC21, using HA-2's ASIO driver and DoP.

Ok, I'll have to try it on my Windows machine, the problem I am having is occurring on a Macbook Air running El Capitan OS X.

 

[shuto77]

I watched the review for about 10 seconds and stopped when I saw his reply to a comment that 'HA-2 is hardly better than E17'. Hmm...

That review was pretty sketchy. The HA-2 is a $300 portable DAC/AMP combo. Interestingly, he mentioned the Oppo is better than the V-Moda Verza, despite being half the price.

You can surely find a better portable amp for that price, but not a DAC/AMP combo.

Now, regarding bass. If you want boomy, muddy, "wubb-wubb" bass, by all means go buy a basshead can, a cheap amp, and crank the bass boost.

The bass not "slamming" on the Oppo isn't necessarily a flaw per se, as the Oppo endeavors to be accurate rather than warm or bassy. Sidenote: The bass slams just fine with my DUNU DN-1000, which is a very bassy IEM.

Remember that there is an ocean of difference between well extended, resolving, quality bass, and "wubb-wubb" bass. Remember that bass encompasses a range of notes in an octave. If you can't pick out individual notes, the bass is s***.

This comes from someone who prefers warm cans with a little extra thump.

 

[shuto77]

Lol at me replying to @ClieOS with my rant, like I can tell him anything about audio he already doesn't know.

I meant to quote the dude who posted the only not-glowing review of the OPPO I've seen.

 

[myemaildw]

i want to find defects of product before i buy it not after.

 

[shuto77]

i want to find defects of product before i buy it not after.

Let's start over. We all have different tastes, so it's better to get more information from you so we can better advise you. Consider the questions below.

1. What sort of device are you looking for? Ie: dap, dac, dac/amp, amp.
2. Does it need to be portable?
3. What headphones are you going to use?
4. What sound signature do prefer? It sounds like you like bass, but are sensitive to sibilance.
5. What kind of music do you listen to?
6. What file format/resolution do you use?
7. Do you use streaming services? If so, which one?
8. What's your price range?

 

[MikeyFresh]

   
No problem playing back DSD64 and DSD128 .dsf files on JRMC21, using HA-2's ASIO driver and DoP.

Ok, I got that to work on a Windows machine with JRMC19 and the ASIO driver with DoP. Thank you.
 
So back to JRMC20 for Mac, and it turns out the Internal System Volume needs to be enabled for static-free DSD playback on the HA-2.
 
I'm not sure why that would be as I don't have that same setting enabled on the Windows machine running JRMC19, it's unnecessary there. 

 

[myemaildw]

this is my music playlist http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLs5Q8enbHKeHcxX5p8qPxCsSuFNwqp4h0

i want good bass, no ressesed mids, and high should not be too extended and should not be sibilant, and overall sound should be thick and not thin sounding.

 

[ClieOS]

i want to find defects of product before i buy it not after.

 
As a wise man once said, a man's defect is another man's perfect.
 

this is my music playlist http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLs5Q8enbHKeHcxX5p8qPxCsSuFNwqp4h0

i want good bass, no ressesed mids, and high should not be too extended and should not be sibilant, and overall sound should be thick and not thin sounding.

 
If you are looking for a warm sound amp, you might be looking at the wrong amp. Like any really good amp, HA-2 is neutral and resolving, certainly not in the way you want it to be.

 

[money4me247]

  As a wise man once said, a man's defect is another man's perfect.
 
If you are looking for a warm sound amp, you might be looking at the wrong amp. Like any really good amp, HA-2 is neutral and resolving, certainly not in the way you want it to be.

the ha-2 does have a relatively clean bass boost, so it may fit what you are looking for. just kinda depends. there are definitely cleaner options out there with warmer sound signatures or larger bass boosts, so may want to investigate that as well.

 

[SteveNZ]

Thanks for the information!

This, unfortunately, makes sense, but is extremely annoying. I just read the issue is endemic to Android devices. I'm using an HTC One M8 (2 gigs of ram), so speed isn't the issue. I only noticed this on occasion before using my Soundblaster X7. I never noticed this when playing music directly into the headphones out.

I want to use an Android device with expandable storage as my source.

Is there a workaround for this? Or do I need to buy an iOS device (yuck!) to use the Oppo as I intended?

 
I had the same issue with mine, it turned out to be a faulty HA-2, got it replaced and it's now fine including with the One M8.
 
If you use USB Audio Player Pro or Onkyo HF Player then it may help as they bypass the native Android playback and access the USB hardware directly.
 
Incidentally, I did replace my HTC One M8 with the LG G4, it's not a great device to pair with the HA-2 as there's quite a big size difference and the volume and power buttons on the back can't be accessed when it's strapped to the HA-2. As a result of this I've ended up strapping it to my "spare" iPod Touch which has its own problems
 
Sounds great though!

 

[Focker]

I absolutely LOVE this thing...I am getting such incredible synergy with both my planar headphones - the LCD-X and HE-400i. I was planning to also pick up the new Peachtree unit, but I haven't even bothered...this does everything I need it to do and it sounds fantastic. I didn't feel Oppo hit my expectations with the PM-1, but the HA-2 has exceeded them...I am thrilled with what I'm hearing.