[dhp]

Ok, so this was a mini^3ified PINT with a gain of 6, using AD8397 opamps and Elna Cerafine 470uF C4. I used a D-111, Cardas HPI, and K501s with this PINT.

I am extremely impressed and blown away by this little amp. In my opinion, it has the best bang for the buck performance of any portable amp out there in the market.

What strikes you at first is how silent the amp is. There is no hiss, no nothing, just pure silence. Listening to the first track of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon, there's just pure silence until it's broken by the faint introduction of the bass drum that roars into the beginnings of one of the greatest albums ever made.

The sound itself is very detailed and smooth, and has a focused sound, and feels spacious at the same time. Compared to my MINT, the PINT blows it away as far as I can recollect about my MINTs of the past. It resolves better, with far more impact and just crisp imaging. I had the chance to hear the Hornet at the Saratoga Meet, and frankly, it was ok, but I gave the nod to the Mini^3 prototype. I think the Mini^3ified PINT also is superior to the Hornet, and at a fraction of the cost. Certainly, most of you won't have the skills needed to make this amp, which has potential to become very troublesome to troubleshoot. however, if you were to buy it from a DIYer, I am confident that a fully decked out PINT with a trickle charger would only run you at most $60, including labor, and probably less.

Luckily, I'm working on another PINT, so I'll probably put that up for sale at some other time. And that's my small review, feel free to PM me any questions.

-Daniel

 

[kramer5150]

Thanks!
I'll be on the lookout for one of your builds F/S. I for one am a fan of your handy-work.

Garrett

 

[strid3r]

Definitely agree with you. I've had my MisterX-built PINT (also mini^3ified) for about a week or two now, and it's definitely a killer little amp (killer on batteries too!). I've tried mine with HD600s, DT531s, and CX300s and it drives them all very nicely. I think it's only a matter of time before this little doozy becomes a FOTM.

 

[cmirza]

I'm really looking forward to the PINT now. All this talk of it sounding better than a Hornet is almost too good to be true.

strid3r: When did you get your MisterX PINT? I contacted him earlier this week and he said he was still working out the kinks on it.

 

[strid3r]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cmirza strid3r: When did you get your MisterX PINT? I contacted him earlier this week and he said he was still working out the kinks on it.

Just consider me as one of the steps to working out the kinks.

 

[fewtch]

Good to hear... at some point, I'm considering asking a DIYer to build me a maxed out stationary PINT (seriously) with AD8397s, very large PS cap, TREAD power supply and in a larger case. I like the transparency of minimalistic unbuffered amps, but even high impedance headphones seem to benefit from more available current... so maybe this idea will bear fruit and provide excellent sound.

 

[gaplessophile]

I'd be very interested to hear some more impressions of the PINT, I've been following the discussion about it on the DIY forum, but there haven't been very many subjective impressions of its sound.

DieInAFire, what opamp was in the MINTs you've heard? AD8620?

Can anyone comment on how a PINT sounds with Grados?

 

[Andrea]

Hm,

I've had an AD8397 Go-Vibe 4 and, strangely, that one didn't sound nearly as good as this AD8397 is said to perform.

My Shellbrook Mini Head, honestly, simply 'blew it away'. It provided much more insight, especially in the midrange, which was richer and less dry too; much better bass depth and control, more spaciousness, more controlled treble. Where was the acclaimed AD8397's goodness?

 

[dhp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gaplessophile I'd be very interested to hear some more impressions of the PINT, I've been following the discussion about it on the DIY forum, but there haven't been very many subjective impressions of its sound. DieInAFire, what opamp was in the MINTs you've heard? AD8620? Can anyone comment on how a PINT sounds with Grados?

yes, I heard the MINT with AD8620

 

[grandenigma1]

The PINT is easily one of the best portable amps I have heard. It has a very solid full sound and excellent soundstage for a portable amp. I think it is easily a step above the PRII and Hornet/SR71. The PINT seems to have a hint of home amp goodness.

 

[digitalcat]

Quote:

Originally Posted by grandenigma1 The PINT is easily one of the best portable amps I have heard. It has a very solid full sound and excellent soundstage for a portable amp. I think it is easily a step above the PRII and Hornet/SR71. The PINT seems to have a hint of home amp goodness.

Umm.... I thought PINT is a Pimeta-based design. I had a stationary pimeta amp before and its performance while solid does not really compare to the better portable amps nowadays. I'm curious what improvement the PINT has over the pimeta to make you think it's a step above PRII and Ray's portables?

 

[grandenigma1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by digitalcat Umm.... I thought PINT is a Pimeta-based design. I had a stationary pimeta amp before and its performance while solid does not really compare to the better portable amps nowadays. I'm curious what improvement the PINT has over the pimeta to make you think it's a step above PRII and Ray's portables?

Soundstage is what did it for me... the PRII and RSA amps seem very forced and a bit compressed. The PINT seems to have a bit more air to the sound.

 

[Andrea]

Funnily I found my AD8397 equipped Go-Vibe to be lacking mostly in openness/spaciousness/air, likely the consequence of a modest midrange refinement/transparency.

 

[dhp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrea Funnily I found my AD8397 equipped Go-Vibe to be lacking mostly in openness/spaciousness/air, likely the consequence of a modest midrange refinement/transparency.

well the opamp is only one part of the equation. it's possible that the Go-Vibe doesn't do so well with the 8397.

 

[n_maher]

Quote:

Originally Posted by digitalcat Umm.... I thought PINT is a Pimeta-based design.

Sort of, it's a 3 channel opamp based design but it is unbuffered. Well, technically the opamp itself is a kind of buffer since it is capable of high output currents.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrea Where was the acclaimed AD8397's goodness?

I suspect that the circuit was not properly designed for the opamp. This chip in particular seems to have a rather high degree of difficultly in terms of getting it to work well. I'm not saying Norm's amp didn't sound good, but I'd wager the PINT sounds a fair bit better based on people's opinion who've actually heard it. Put it this way, if the circuit that a chip was being put into didn't make any difference it would matter which portable you bought since they largely use the same chips.

Nate