[gsr108]

Its a UPS.  I was searching for reviews on Tripp Lite power isolators when I ran across this thread from 2006: http://www.head-fi.org/t/208105/opinions-on-tripp-lite-products-please/30.  I decided to try a UPS due to the fact I thought my system sounded slightly better at night - when less appliances were used.  Switching between the two (amps connected straight to a separate power strip vs connected directly to the UPS) I feel that the bass hits a little harder and is a little tighter.  Not gigantic differences but it's there.  It may be that the power to my house is unstable, which the battery powered unit helps with. 

 

[project86]

I guess it depends on the device in question and what exactly it does. Is it pure sine wave output? Power regeneration? Voltage regulation? Balanced power? There are many schools of thought on the matter.
 
The other aspect is your own home power, which may be better or worse than someone else on this forum using the exact same audio equipment. In my personal opinion, this is a big factor in explaining why some of us have great results with this or that power conditioner device, while others don't notice a difference at all. 
 
I've owned quite a few power conditioners from tweaky "audiophile" stuff to more traditional designs. Ended up settling on an APC S15 and couldn't be more pleased. I thought the PS Audio Power Plant models were quite good but they proved very unreliable over the years. 

 

[xaval]

I pretty much read this thread from page 1 and it's pretty clear how great value this amp seems to represent for HD800 owners and I see this pair of cans again in the near future. On the other hand, I don't see T1 going away... T1s for all things rock and blues + HD800 for jazz and orchestral classical.
 
I think there's only 1 post here stating that this amp turned the T1 into midfi whereas previously it was hifi and a following comment in the sense that the CMR800 was revealing T1s true nature.
 
I'd like to hear further comments about this as I'm looking for synergy with both cans and don't want tubes. Violectric seems to offer a good solution in amping for my requirements but I'd like to have a couple more options to chose from.

 

[allanallan]

Hello guys,

I have Questyle CAS192D DAC and just like other user eith CMA800 (page 2), I also had issues with both fuses.
The question is... I don't know the fuse's amperage. It's not written on the DAC, as it should be. It's only written to use 250V fuse, but not the ampere.
Could someone help me please? What's the fuse you have replaced?

Thank a lot!

 

[gsr108]

  Hello guys,

I have Questyle CAS192D DAC and just like other user eith CMA800 (page 2), I also had issues with both fuses.
The question is... I don't know the fuse's amperage. It's not written on the DAC, as it should be. It's only written to use 250V fuse, but not the ampere.
Could someone help me please? What's the fuse you have replaced?

Thank a lot!

I was told to use these by questyle - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004TN42EO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1. 
 
One caveat, my older one used 315ma version of those fuses and never had any issues with blown fuses.  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004TN4QUO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[allanallan]

Thank you very much, @gsr108! =)
I was a bit confused and I couldn't find the information.
So I will get the 300mA.
 

 

[twsmith]

I've had the CMA800R for just about 6 months, and while I still feel that it is a very good amp SQ-wise for the HD800s, I do have some concerns about its build quality.   Already one mechanical part has "failed" -- the volume control knob.   This became loose and virtually non-functional, and the small screw nut in the side of the knob was virtually useless.   Fortunately I was able to fix it using some double sided adhesive tape (not worth hassle to ship the amp back to China just for this).   The volume knob does not appear to be well-designed from the start, which makes me wonder what else might break in the future.   Hopefully the internal electrical parts will hold up well, but I've never been particularly impressed with the over all "fit and finish" of the casing and external hardware.  
 
I'm not sure how many of these amps are out there, but would be curious if others have run into this problem or other problems.   I'm very upset that this happened to a rather expensive amp that is still fairly "young" -- in my opinion this does not bode well for Questyle's quality control.   

 

[BleaK]

That is worrying indeed. Please report if something else happens. Nothing failing here so far 4 month in, and love the soundquality. So I hope I can keep this amp for much longer
 
 
One more thing, any soundstage junkies like me here? I have found my "Soundstage-nirvana" with the x-sabre -> CMA800R -> HD800. It's so wide/deep/high! I can hear sounds coming from all over the place! Some may not like this effect, but I love it

 

[project86]

Interesting, I'm sorry to hear that. I've been putting some serious hours on my Questyle gear and it's all held up rather well. The worst I can say is I put a few scuffs on the top of my CAS192D from stacking a CMA800R on top. Maybe scuff is not the proper word because it isn't an actual scratch in the cover, but more like a slight pressure discoloration or blemish. It may rub out if I try hard enough. Silver always seems to show these things more than black. 
 
This is not unique to Questyle though. 

 

[Sylafari]

  I've had the CMA800R for just about 6 months, and while I still feel that it is a very good amp SQ-wise for the HD800s, I do have some concerns about its build quality.   Already one mechanical part has "failed" -- the volume control knob.   This became loose and virtually non-functional, and the small screw nut in the side of the knob was virtually useless.   Fortunately I was able to fix it using some double sided adhesive tape (not worth hassle to ship the amp back to China just for this).   The volume knob does not appear to be well-designed from the start, which makes me wonder what else might break in the future.   Hopefully the internal electrical parts will hold up well, but I've never been particularly impressed with the over all "fit and finish" of the casing and external hardware.  
 
I'm not sure how many of these amps are out there, but would be curious if others have run into this problem or other problems.   I'm very upset that this happened to a rather expensive amp that is still fairly "young" -- in my opinion this does not bode well for Questyle's quality control.   

This happened to me too but the small screw nut needs a hextool and you just turn it a few times and its all great again. The rest of the unit to me seems like an impeccably built amplifier.

 

[jacal01]

Allen wrench is your friend.

 

[vlach]

Any comparisons to the Bryston BHA-1?

 

[project86]

  Any comparisons to the Bryston BHA-1?

 
 
I'd call the Questyle faster, more nimble, with more (and cleaner) treble energy. Bryston might be considered more neutral or maybe darker depending on your perspective. Both are great amps.

 

[BleaK]

   
 
I'd call the Questyle faster, more nimble, with more (and cleaner) treble energy. Bryston might be considered more neutral or maybe darker depending on your perspective. Both are great amps.

Any chance you are going to listen to the schiit ragnarok John? Early reports says it bests all the SS amp for the HD800. I'll wait for the hype to die down, but would be fun if you had a look at it and compared it to questyle, auralic and violectric 282.

 

[lukeap69]

Agreed. ATM there are 4 really good amps in (almost) the same price category. Hopefully, somebody would do a shootout: Schist Ragnarok, Auralic Taurus mike, Audio-gd Master 9 & Questyle CMA800. It seems John has heard most of these...