[jageur272]

Has anybody heard about this AMP/DAC? The DAC chip is really old (I'm guessing some sort of sucessor to the TDA1543 used by the VALAB DAC's). I'd like to have more details of what's inside, but for $130, it seems like a steal. Uses a 12AU7 for you tube rollers.

SENSE G1B Tube Headphone Amplifier USB DAC - eBay (item 290408530578 end time Mar-31-10 06:49:22 PDT)

 

[jcoops16]

This is the same seller who offers the phenix G3 and G3-T7. That shipping fee is a big time rip off.

 

[jageur272]

Shipping may not be the actual shipping costs, but even for the combined price, it seems to be a pretty good deal (at least shipped to the USA).

 

[levlhed]

I just stumbled on that one too, wonder who has tried it..

 

[Professor00179]

I would like to recover this thread. Has anyone finally tested this AMP/DAC? What are your experiences if so?

 

[ardilla]

BUMP!

 

[Reading1871]

Hello
I have only around ten hours so far on my G1B and will follow up with a little more detail soon.
But so far I am enjoying this little unit, old tech Philips TDA1350T bitstream Dac chip +  Chinese 12AU7 and limited to 16 bit, but a very musical end result non the less.
I have an old Mullard ECC82 on its way to me in the next few days that i will try out, but the tube supplied with the G1B sounds pretty good, if a little tubby in the bass, but its early days yet.
 

 

[airomjosh]

there is an upgrade version of this tube DAC/amp, the 2012 edition. I want to dive but would like to know first any feedback from the first version.
 

 

[mikkojay]

 Hello all,
  I hate to dig up an older thread as my first post, but I feel it is my duty to describe the one of these ^^^ as a public service announcement
I got "ebay fever" a couple weeks ago and bought one of the "Sense G1" 2012 model amps, just like pictured above.  The sound, in a word- barf.  The clarity and power of the stock headphone jack on my Dell laptop simply blows this thing out of the water.  It is THAT bad.  I was using a set of Sony MDR-150 low budget phones to test with. Besides that, it had a slight ticking noise in the right channel at zero volume.  If you get an itchy mouse trigger finger while looking at an ad for this one, do yourself a favor and skip it.  Who knows how much it will cost to send back to the other side of the Earth-  My rating 0 out of 5 stars- Even if I have wasted a bunch of money on this experiment, maybe my bad experience will save someone else the trouble.
 
Cheers, Mike

 

[bala]

Thanks for your opinion mike, just saved me from taking the wrong meds - I will find another way to cure my ebay fever

 

 

[Xymordos]

On Taobao, the Chinese ebay, the seller of this amp (also the creator) sells it for around 300-400 Yuan, which is around $60USD. This tells me that its not a particularly good amp...

 

[ofilippov]

Thanks. I find it very helpful.

 

[spas87]

Hi I've see new updated version is that any better? I really like the optical input and would it sound better then SB ZXR which i have for my DT-990 pro 250.
 
 

 

 

 
 
Link________________
 
 
It's £79 for uk delivery what do you think about and any other suggestions tanks in advance.

 

[Joel Eckert]

This thread is long dead, but I purchased the 2015 version a few months ago and am thoroughly impressed. I'm not an audiophile, but I grew up working for my father who ran a pro sound shop and dabbled in some retail. My general preference is for a neutral sounding speaker or headphone that does not colour the source material.
 
Tested with only IEMs so far, Etymotic HF5's, and the sound stage feels much more open, music feels alive, it puts everything else I've used to shame. It changes the character of the music and turns it into an experience. There is a low-level hiss, but it's a small price to pay, and it doesn't impact enjoyability. Hoping to pick up a set of decent headphones, bidding on a few used Hifiman HE500s that are in my budget.
 
Purchased from a vendor on Aliexpress for $120 CDN, @ $90 USD.
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/SENSE-2015-new-version-G1-2P2J-tube-VMOS-hybrid-headphone-amp-amplifier-192KHz-32bit-USB-CM6631A/32632311861.html
 
I had no idea a headphone amp could make such a difference.

 

[Baycode]

  This thread is long dead, but I purchased the 2015 version a few months ago and am thoroughly impressed. I'm not an audiophile, but I grew up working for my father who ran a pro sound shop and dabbled in some retail. My general preference is for a neutral sounding speaker or headphone that does not colour the source material.
 
Tested with only IEMs so far, Etymotic HF5's, and the sound stage feels much more open, music feels alive, it puts everything else I've used to shame. It changes the character of the music and turns it into an experience. There is a low-level hiss, but it's a small price to pay, and it doesn't impact enjoyability. Hoping to pick up a set of decent headphones, bidding on a few used Hifiman HE500s that are in my budget.
 
Purchased from a vendor on Aliexpress for $120 CDN, @ $90 USD.
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/SENSE-2015-new-version-G1-2P2J-tube-VMOS-hybrid-headphone-amp-amplifier-192KHz-32bit-USB-CM6631A/32632311861.html
 
I had no idea a headphone amp could make such a difference.

 
Well I am thinking of trying the new version. But there are not enough information and review online so I have some doubs...
Can you please update the information if you try the dac/amp with a good headphone? How is the hiss level? Resolutio, distortion, soundstage, etc?
Which tubes are you using? From one of the product pages in Aliexpress I can understand there are 2 different tube brands to choose from (one is Chinese the other is a Russian brand).
Thanks!