Andrew Buck
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jun 3, 2002
- Posts
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After a good deal too much research and too little listening, I decided to tempt the fates and order an amp custom built by Warren Young to drive my Etymotic ER4-s earphones. I am using a Panasonic SL-CT780 as my primary source component. As I had never used a stand-alone headphone amplifier, this process would prove to be informative and revelatory.
My first step was to visit Mr. Young's very informative website ( http://tangentsoft.net/audio/ ) and spend some time configuring what I thought to be a well-reasoned amplifier, with the prime focus being on high resolution to take advantage of the Etys' fine resolving power.
Warren contacted me a day or so later, and we began what would turn out to be a lengthy discussion about my specific demands and probable compromises. It turns out that the opamps i'd originally selected, the Burr-Brown OPA627AP in a "Hansen" configuration, would require too much current to allow the portability I'd originally desired. Ok, maybe I could have had the portability, but battery life would have been nil.
Back to the drawing board. Warren kindly offered to try out a couple of new chips he'd been considering. I feel compelled to mention at this point that, as most of you are probably aware, Warren does not do this for a living. This is his hobby. I've been consistently and continuously amazed at his level of customer support.
So, a week or so later (we've both been rather busy these days) he let me know of a new design he'd been toying with, the META42. This new design would be more flexible, according to Warren, and would allow one level of crossfeed and the potential for Class A operation. The design utilizes the AD845 opamp. Portability was solved by 3 9V batteries in a mint tin as an external battery pack. Nifty. Why hadn't I seen it on the website? Because it was totally new and untested by anyone but Warren. So I'm to be a guinea pig? Sign me up!!!
So I dove in with both feet and ordered up. The price was $170, 3-day shipping included (Warren upgraded the shipping to overnight when the amp took longer than expected to complete. Wow.)
I received the amp last Friday and fired it up for my commute home. As most of you with ETYs know, the 4S can sound dry and uninvolving when driven by the weak amplifiers on most portable devices. No different with my Panny. While I could reach somewhat reasonable volumes directly from my player, I could do so only by cranking the volume all the way up.
Insert the META42, and everything comes alive! the bottom end tightens right up. Transients are as palpable as I've ever heard from earphones. The top end gains a sense of immediacy that allows cymbol hits to shine with teriffic realism. The soundstage opens up and invites the listener into the recording. It may sound cliche, but I heard details on familiar recordings that simply weren't there before. And none of this was at the expense of musicality. The crossfeed switch introduces a mild level of crossfeed that increases the sense of spaciousness of the presentation, but not artificially so.
These are my impressions after just a few days with the amp. I am sure that there will be subtle and not so subtle changes as the amp burns in with use. I am sure that flaws will also manifest themselves over time, as there is no such thing as a perfect audio component. None of this is to detract from what in my limited experience is a phenomenal component.
Also, please note that this is my first use of a standalone headphone amp, so you may properly take my comments with a grain of salt, as I've not had anything to serve as a comparison.
In any event, a great little amp and a great buying experience.
Pictures:
http://tangentsoft.net/audio/amp-quo...k-meta42-1.jpg
http://tangentsoft.net/audio/amp-quo...k-meta42-2.jpg
http://tangentsoft.net/audio/amp-quo...k-meta42-3.jpg
My first step was to visit Mr. Young's very informative website ( http://tangentsoft.net/audio/ ) and spend some time configuring what I thought to be a well-reasoned amplifier, with the prime focus being on high resolution to take advantage of the Etys' fine resolving power.
Warren contacted me a day or so later, and we began what would turn out to be a lengthy discussion about my specific demands and probable compromises. It turns out that the opamps i'd originally selected, the Burr-Brown OPA627AP in a "Hansen" configuration, would require too much current to allow the portability I'd originally desired. Ok, maybe I could have had the portability, but battery life would have been nil.
Back to the drawing board. Warren kindly offered to try out a couple of new chips he'd been considering. I feel compelled to mention at this point that, as most of you are probably aware, Warren does not do this for a living. This is his hobby. I've been consistently and continuously amazed at his level of customer support.
So, a week or so later (we've both been rather busy these days) he let me know of a new design he'd been toying with, the META42. This new design would be more flexible, according to Warren, and would allow one level of crossfeed and the potential for Class A operation. The design utilizes the AD845 opamp. Portability was solved by 3 9V batteries in a mint tin as an external battery pack. Nifty. Why hadn't I seen it on the website? Because it was totally new and untested by anyone but Warren. So I'm to be a guinea pig? Sign me up!!!
So I dove in with both feet and ordered up. The price was $170, 3-day shipping included (Warren upgraded the shipping to overnight when the amp took longer than expected to complete. Wow.)
I received the amp last Friday and fired it up for my commute home. As most of you with ETYs know, the 4S can sound dry and uninvolving when driven by the weak amplifiers on most portable devices. No different with my Panny. While I could reach somewhat reasonable volumes directly from my player, I could do so only by cranking the volume all the way up.
Insert the META42, and everything comes alive! the bottom end tightens right up. Transients are as palpable as I've ever heard from earphones. The top end gains a sense of immediacy that allows cymbol hits to shine with teriffic realism. The soundstage opens up and invites the listener into the recording. It may sound cliche, but I heard details on familiar recordings that simply weren't there before. And none of this was at the expense of musicality. The crossfeed switch introduces a mild level of crossfeed that increases the sense of spaciousness of the presentation, but not artificially so.
These are my impressions after just a few days with the amp. I am sure that there will be subtle and not so subtle changes as the amp burns in with use. I am sure that flaws will also manifest themselves over time, as there is no such thing as a perfect audio component. None of this is to detract from what in my limited experience is a phenomenal component.
Also, please note that this is my first use of a standalone headphone amp, so you may properly take my comments with a grain of salt, as I've not had anything to serve as a comparison.
In any event, a great little amp and a great buying experience.
Pictures:
http://tangentsoft.net/audio/amp-quo...k-meta42-1.jpg
http://tangentsoft.net/audio/amp-quo...k-meta42-2.jpg
http://tangentsoft.net/audio/amp-quo...k-meta42-3.jpg
