Singxer SA-1 / Balanced Amplifier Fully Discrete Class A - beyond THX 888 ?!
Mar 3, 2022 at 12:34 PM Post #1,861 of 2,540
After several hours of comparison listening to same tracks again and again I realisd how good Topping A90 is and with authority can handle the HE6SE V2, just look at the volume level on both Singxer and A90 I doubt if Singxer is true class A.
Detail retrieval and getting every little nuances is not a cup of tea for Singxer but it's a great enjoyable Amp where notes linger around a little longer and gives a bit euphoric sounds.
So if you have bit brighter sounding headphone with easy to drive use case then Singxer is definitely a good recommendation. Some call it a poor mens GSX mini I fully concur that.PXL_20220303_165506105.jpg


Pretty sure most people are aware that the SA1 is only class A up to a certain level. 😉
 
Mar 3, 2022 at 5:58 PM Post #1,862 of 2,540
After several hours of comparison listening to same tracks again and again I realisd how good Topping A90 is and with authority can handle the HE6SE V2, just look at the volume level on both Singxer and A90 I doubt if Singxer is true class A.
Pretty sure most people are aware that the SA1 is only class A up to a certain level. 😉

Yeah, here... except, I meant class AB and not class B:
From one of the designers here:

SA-1's Class A model:
Balanced 16 ohm load: below 500mw;
Balanced 32 ohm load: below 1000mw;
Balanced load of 68 ohms: below 3000mw;
Balance the load above 68 ohms: almost all power is Class A;


So operates in class A mode per the above. Anything over and it switches to class B.
That's class AB!
 
Mar 3, 2022 at 6:19 PM Post #1,863 of 2,540
After several hours of comparison listening to same tracks again and again I realisd how good Topping A90 is and with authority can handle the HE6SE V2, just look at the volume level on both Singxer and A90 I doubt if Singxer is true class A.
Detail retrieval and getting every little nuances is not a cup of tea for Singxer but it's a great enjoyable Amp where notes linger around a little longer and gives a bit euphoric sounds.
So if you have bit brighter sounding headphone with easy to drive use case then Singxer is definitely a good recommendation. Some call it a poor mens GSX mini I fully concur that.PXL_20220303_165506105.jpg

Does the Topping A90 runs hot? How's the heat compared to SA-1?
 
Mar 3, 2022 at 7:38 PM Post #1,865 of 2,540
NO other amp will give you more bass or change the frequency response in any way unless it's a broken unit or a heavy tube amp specifically developed to change the FR and add harmonics i.e. distortion. A good amp is always developed such that it doesn't interfere with the sound. The best amp is the one that adds nothing to the signal but amplifies it as clean as possible (maybe adding some character but those features I'll explain in the next paragraph). If you think that changing amps will improve your headphones, you've been seriously mislead. BTW Ananda does not have harsh highs. If you hear them as harsh, they will absolutely be harsh in any situation on any amp with these headphones. That's how you hear, 'cause every person hears differently. Yes, bass is not the strongest feature of these headphones, but man, use EQ for that matter - it's FREE! No amp will give you more bass, including the SA-1, unless there is a switch like the XBass on the iFi Zen Can.

All the nuances we are talking about here in regards to the sound signatures of amplifiers are really minute and can be appreciated by trained ears and music connoisseurs, like trailing ends of tones, micro- and macro dynamics, soundstage width and depth, impact, separation, and so on. But even if we talk about dynamics, simply changing your headphones will give you 99% difference compared to what can be achieved by changing an amplifier.

Of course, you can absolutely disagree with a random dude on a forum who tries to ruin your faith in amplifiers but here is a similar view from Crinacle who, I believe, is not the least person in the audio community:

The SMSL SP200 I have is defective on the Balance side thru the xlr inputs it works in RCA mode. I tried crossing the xlr inputs to see if the problem moves to another channel but it stays in the right channel. So I'm returning it and probably getting it again or another Amp and ideas. I paid $140.00 USD for the SP400.
 
Mar 4, 2022 at 5:01 AM Post #1,866 of 2,540
After several hours of comparison listening to same tracks again and again I realisd how good Topping A90 is and with authority can handle the HE6SE V2, just look at the volume level on both Singxer and A90 I doubt if Singxer is true class A.
Detail retrieval and getting every little nuances is not a cup of tea for Singxer but it's a great enjoyable Amp where notes linger around a little longer and gives a bit euphoric sounds.
So if you have bit brighter sounding headphone with easy to drive use case then Singxer is definitely a good recommendation. Some call it a poor mens GSX mini I fully concur that.PXL_20220303_165506105.jpg

Is the SA-1 in high or low gain - also why have you got the High-Z output mode on when the HE6SE is low impedance?
 
Mar 4, 2022 at 1:03 PM Post #1,869 of 2,540
I have the Singxer high gain all switches at bottom. I was trying LCD XC as well that's why it was left in hi-z

LCD-XC is even lower impedance...

High-Z raises the output impedance to 11 Ohms

Keep it in Low-Z mode unless using 150 Ohm+ headphones IMO
 
Mar 4, 2022 at 1:16 PM Post #1,870 of 2,540
I have the Singxer high gain all switches at bottom. I was trying LCD XC as well that's why it was left in hi-z
If you're using all balanced connection throughout, I would check 1) whether you can increase the output voltage from your DAC and/or 2) check whether you have stuck membranes on your HE6V2. On my setup using Ares II>SA-1 (all balanced), the low gain gets plenty loud on the HE6V2 at around 4 o'clock and loud enough to cause damage at 5. And I'm not much of a quiet listener.

I believe several seasoned veterans of this hobby have chimed in to explain why people were experiencing wildly variable volume output from SA-1. It always seemed to boil down to connection (balanced vs SE) that can impact DAC output voltage (2V for SE vs 4V for balanced).
 
Mar 4, 2022 at 1:32 PM Post #1,871 of 2,540
If you're using all balanced connection throughout, I would check 1) whether you can increase the output voltage from your DAC and/or 2) check whether you have stuck membranes on your HE6V2. On my setup using Ares II>SA-1 (all balanced), the low gain gets plenty loud on the HE6V2 at around 4 o'clock and loud enough to cause damage at 5. And I'm not much of a quiet listener.

I believe several seasoned veterans of this hobby have chimed in to explain why people were experiencing wildly variable volume output from SA-1. It always seemed to boil down to connection (balanced vs SE) that can impact DAC output voltage (2V for SE vs 4V for balanced).
Having read all the positive reviews of this amplifier, I went ahead and ordered it. I own the (controversial ) Verum One MkII headphones - also Planer.

Regardless of high or low gain, this amplifier could not drive them properly. In my opinion, low gain ran out of volume pot as described by other headfi'ers above, and high gain sounded different - soundstage was wider but did not control the low end very well.

And what a hoot it was to return it via Amazon.
 
Mar 5, 2022 at 7:44 AM Post #1,874 of 2,540
What's your source? Also single/RCA or balanced/XLR?
Musician Draco Dac.

I should have stated that I was driving the complete system single ended.

In comparison, I have a Naim clone headphone amplifier - SE only, that I can`t turn past 12 o'clock before it gets uncomfortably loud,.. with no issues controlling the bottom end..
 
Mar 5, 2022 at 9:08 AM Post #1,875 of 2,540
Musician Draco Dac.

I should have stated that I was driving the complete system single ended.

In comparison, I have a Naim clone headphone amplifier - SE only, that I can`t turn past 12 o'clock before it gets uncomfortably loud,.. with no issues controlling the bottom end..
Single ended you are only using half the amplifier. The SA-1 benefits greatly from balanced and 4v-5v output from the dac
 

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