Pocket Reference vs. XP-7

[ampgalore]

There were a couple of threads while ago when the Pocket Reference first came out that compared the two amps, it seemed like the Pocket Reference was the greatest transportable amp ever, totally beating the XP-7.

And now we are hearing there are hiss, gain problems with the Pocket Reference. I never heard these problems with my XP-7. What's going on?

And to think I sold my XP-7 hoping to buy a Pocket Reference as a replacement. Now I am not so sure anymore.

 

[Dane]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ampgalore There were a couple of threads while ago when the Pocket Reference first came out that compared the two amps, it seemed like the Pocket Reference was the greatest transportable amp ever, totally beating the XP-7. And now we are hearing there are hiss, gain problems with the Pocket Reference. I never heard these problems with my XP-7. What's going on? And to think I sold my XP-7 hoping to buy a Pocket Reference as a replacement. Now I am not so sure anymore.

The gain is easily fixed and has nothing to do with the design itself. The problem was rather that when people were telling what kind of phones they used it appears to have been ignored. Also crappy pots were used which again was a flaw in implementation rather than design. I like everything about the PR including size, weight, features and all, except that hiss. I'm still undecided whether that's a implementation issue or a flaw in the design, but let's give them a chance to fix that when the PRs are sent back for service. When the first of you guys get your fixed PRs back you can report whether the hiss is gone, or at least greatly reduced. If that is the case then the PR could indeed be a very strong contender in the transportable segment. I'll probably get my XP-7 before I get my PR back from service so it'll be interesting to see which one I'm going to sell off after that.

 

[ampgalore]

Do you hear hiss with high or low impedance heapdhones?

When I had my XP-7, and used it with CD3000, I never heard any hiss.

And the pot on the XP-7 is velvety smooth, just like the one on the HR-2.

 

[TrevorNetwork]

I really like the look of the PR, and PPL really knows audio electronics. I have a feeling the PR is a killer amp.