[Steve Eddy]

'No negative feedback' is Ayre's marketing position however the reality is a little different when the types of DACs are taken into acoount. All S-D type converters (the ones that Ayre use exclusively) rely on negative feedback internally. So I would guess that Charles Hansen only thinks feedback is bad in analog circuits, not digital ones. Or that he ignores feedback in digital circuits to maintain a certain marketing image.

Charles also ignores the 100% negative feedback of a follower circuit. Instead, he calls that "emitter degeneration," (assuming the use of bipolar devices) instead of negative feedback. And of course it's that 100% negative feedback in the follower of the Pono's output stage that gives it it's 5 ohm output impedance.

se

 

[Achmedisdead]

http://www.cnet.com/news/neil-youngs-reality-distortion-field/  written by https://twitter.com/intent/user?screen_name=AudiophiliacMan

 

[rotten]

Dumb question but if I already have a standalone amplifier (Graham Slee Voyager) would it be a bad idea to connect it to Pono?

 

[PalJoey]

  Dumb question but if I already have a standalone amplifier (Graham Slee Voyager) would it be a bad idea to connect it to Pono?

One of the sockets on the Pono player is for headphones, while the other (I believe) is a line-level connection, to plug into your amplifier, given the right cable.

 

[rotten]

  One of the sockets on the Pono player is for headphones, while the other (I believe) is a line-level connection, to plug into your amplifier, given the right cable.

Correct. What I was thinking was that because Pono already has a built in amp, then how this "cascading" of amps will work. Will it turn of the built in one or both will work at the same time?

 

[Strangelove424]

  http://www.cnet.com/news/neil-youngs-reality-distortion-field/  written by https://twitter.com/intent/user?screen_name=AudiophiliacMan

 
"One thing I can say for sure: the X5 is smaller and flatter than the triangular-bodied Pono player, which won't fit in your pocket without creating an unsightly bulge."  LOL. "Is that a Pono in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" 

 

[fiascogarcia]

 
Correct. What I was thinking was that because Pono already has a built in amp, then how this "cascading" of amps will work. Will it turn of the built in one or both will work at the same time?

Line out sockets should bypass the internal amp circuitry.  That's what other DAP's do.

 

[PalJoey]

 
Correct. What I was thinking was that because Pono already has a built in amp, then how this "cascading" of amps will work. Will it turn of the built in one or both will work at the same time?

The 'line out' socket should be a fixed level output, so you can plug it into your hi-fi like a CD player or pretty much any other source component. It will/should bypass the volume control section of the Pono player. The sound will still be subject to some of the Ayre software/hardware inside the Pono player, but you should be able to use a headphone plug>2 x RCA phono plug cable without anything to worry about.
 
If you used the headphone socket, then you could control the volume from the Pono player, but would introduce more variables into the performance.

 

[ames]

I think a lot if people have mistaken the player as the center-piece of what Pono is doing. It's not--the store is.
Whether or not their player is the best high-fi DAP doesn't matter so much. Creating a mainstream commercial player just anchors the ecosystem that will bring high-fidelity into the mainstream. (It seems totally based on the iTunes/iPod relationship)

The most important part is how Neil Young has gotten the major labels to dig out their best sources for new hi-fi digital files. This means that great hi-fi digital remasters previously only available to audiophiles on SACD will be sold mainstream as portable digital files. Same for the wealth of DVD-Audio recording that never gained mainstream momentum. So there will be a ton of high-quality material out right away, and we should expect Sony Music and others to continue that work of going back to master tapes and producing new high-res masters that don't have to answer to limitations of CD or vinyl masters. The Pono people have said over and over that they're trying to bring us the sound from the control room, not the vinyl records!!!

That's the real thrust here, more accessibility to great music at sound quality most people have never heard before, even vinyl enthusiasts. Audiophile becomes mainstream. And it seems we'll be free to play it on any hi-fi system we choose.

I hope they're smart enough to put a sampler on or include a free album from the store with each player, because a lot of people are likely to misunderstand, load it right away with their iTunes mp3s, and then complain online about how much worse everything sounds. (Like putting VHS on your HDTV) The WOW moments that will sell the idea won't happen without the right source material.

 

[hughscot]

Those are excellent points.  I would never have heard of it if I hadn't seen Neil Young on CNBC talking about it.  For years I have hated the fact so many young people had never heard real music just MP3.  I was not aware that people could download hi-res music.  It may not be the first but it is definitely the first one to be promoted.   

 

[Saraguie]

I think a lot if people have mistaken the player as the center-piece of what Pono is doing. It's not--the store is.
Whether or not their player is the best high-fi DAP doesn't matter so much. Creating a mainstream commercial player just anchors the ecosystem that will bring high-fidelity into the mainstream. (It seems totally based on the iTunes/iPod relationship)

The most important part is how Neil Young has gotten the major labels to dig out their best sources for new hi-fi digital files. This means that great hi-fi digital remasters previously only available to audiophiles on SACD will be sold mainstream as portable digital files. Same for the wealth of DVD-Audio recording that never gained mainstream momentum. So there will be a ton of high-quality material out right away, and we should expect Sony Music and others to continue that work of going back to master tapes and producing new high-res masters that don't have to answer to limitations of CD or vinyl masters. The Pono people have said over and over that they're trying to bring us the sound from the control room, not the vinyl records!!!

That's the real thrust here, more accessibility to great music at sound quality most people have never heard before, even vinyl enthusiasts. Audiophile becomes mainstream. And it seems we'll be free to play it on any hi-fi system we choose.

I hope they're smart enough to put a sampler on or include a free album from the store with each player, because a lot of people are likely to misunderstand, load it right away with their iTunes mp3s, and then complain online about how much worse everything sounds. (Like putting VHS on your HDTV) The WOW moments that will sell the idea won't happen without the right source material.

We here at H.F. foo foo CNET's Steven Guttenberg (CNET's go to audio consultant) a lot of the time.  However here is a good article about Pono Music .com he just wrote.  http://www.cnet.com/news/neil-youngs-reality-distortion-field/  He makes a lot of sense.
 
For the record: I bought a SE Neil Young within an hour of K.S. opening the listing.
 
AND I owe Steven G. a big thank you for turning me on to FT!334.......when I read his article I became really interested in them. As I am listening to them right this second, I am still fascinated with them. IF, I could get another 10% isolation out of them, they would be my only top tier IEM. Anyway, thanks Steve!  from Steve  

 

[daphen]

Am I misunderstanding or will I be able to buy tracks from the store and use in any player that supports the format? Or do I actually need a Pono to play the masters? 

 

[Saraguie]

  Am I misunderstanding or will I be able to buy tracks from the store and use in any player that supports the format? Or do I actually need a Pono to play the masters? 

Any player and any supported format you already have will play on Pono.

 

[doublea71]

  We here at H.F. foo foo CNET's Steven Guttenberg (CNET's go to audio consultant) a lot of the time.  However here is a good article about Pono Music .com he just wrote.  http://www.cnet.com/news/neil-youngs-reality-distortion-field/  He makes a lot of sense.
 
For the record: I bought a SE Neil Young within an hour of K.S. opening the listing.
 
AND I owe Steven G. a big thank you for turning me on to FT!334.......when I read his article I became really interested in them. As I am listening to them right this second, I am still fascinated with them. IF, I could get another 10% isolation out of them, they would be my only top tier IEM. Anyway, thanks Steve!  from Steve  

His article is fairly sobering and should make people's expectations a bit more realistic. 

 

[Saraguie]

  We here at H.F. foo foo CNET's Steven Guttenberg (CNET's go to audio consultant) a lot of the time.  However here is a good article about Pono Music .com he just wrote.  http://www.cnet.com/news/neil-youngs-reality-distortion-field/  He makes a lot of sense.
 
For the record: I bought a SE Neil Young within an hour of K.S. opening the listing.
 
AND I owe Steven G. a big thank you for turning me on to FT!334.......when I read his article I became really interested in them. As I am listening to them right this second, I am still fascinated with them. IF, I could get another 10% isolation out of them, they would be my only top tier IEM. Anyway, thanks Steve!  from Steve  

 
BTW, thank you Achmed, a few posts up, for being the one to discover the articles.
 

  His article is fairly sobering and should make people's expectations a bit more realistic. 

Agreed. The player should be a contender but will master's actually be recopied and what is the availability of better sounding masters?  
 
Definitely Neil's banging the drum all day, (oops thats another icon's song, about better sounding availability and loudness wars is a BIG plus. And after knocking on Apple's door for years there is a 50/50 chance they may jump into the Hires market.........all this is good for our hobby.