[NascentAP]

Sa-1 and senn 660S is another great pairing. Very neutral sound in a good way.

That’s cool. I have the hd6xx and can’t say the same. I hear the sennheiser veil that ppl talk about. However, with even a cheap OTL amp like the littledot2, it lifts the veil completely and the 6xx sounds like a different headphone (sound stage and imaging is still lacking). It was explained to me that this may be due to planars being dependent on high current whereas a 300 ohm cans like the 6xx require more voltage. But hey, if you like the sound coming out of your chain, who cares about all this technical stuff.

 

[Plieb]

That’s cool. I have the hd6xx and can’t say the same. I hear the sennheiser veil that ppl talk about. However, with even a cheap OTL amp like the littledot2, it lifts the veil completely and the 6xx sounds like a different headphone (sound stage and imaging is still lacking). It was explained to me that this may be due to planars being dependent on high current whereas a 300 ohm cans like the 6xx require more voltage. But hey, if you like the sound coming out of your chain, who cares about all this technical stuff.

Yeah. The 660S at 150 ohms is more efficient than 650 and more crisp sounding with noticeably more detail. No Veil. The sa-1 being softer in the high end than my other amps seems to be the perfect fit.

 

[amiga505]

Something tells me you're not Russian

I think I get your drift)))

 

[amiga505]

ok, this is probably an upgrade neurosis setting in (what with being a bit less impressed with SA-1 than expected), but what are some alternatives which are a step up, but not at Master 19 level just yet? something similar to Flux Labs FA-12 say? I was going to jump directly to FA-12 from the LCX, but since the beginning of the war Flux Labs closed shop, so I ended grabbing a good deal on SA-1 here on the forum.

 

[Alex May]

ok, this is probably an upgrade neurosis setting in (what with being a bit less impressed with SA-1 than expected), but what are some alternatives which are a step up, but not at Master 19 level just yet? something similar to Flux Labs FA-12 say? I was going to jump directly to FA-12 from the LCX, but since the beginning of the war Flux Labs closed shop, so I ended grabbing a good deal on SA-1 here on the forum.

Flux Labs FA-12 is $749
Master 19 is $880

Not a huge difference in terms of price I'd say. I would suggest waiting until you can afford Master 19. Everything by Audio-GD is considered premium quality. Otherwise there might not be any real upgrade until at least the level of Burson Soloist. The sidegrade, however, is Jotunheim 2.

 

[amiga505]

Flux Labs FA-12 is $749
Master 19 is $880

Not a huge difference in terms of price I'd say. I would suggest waiting until you can afford Master 19. Everything by Audio-GD is considered premium quality. Otherwise there might not be any real upgrade until at least the level of Burson Soloist. The sidegrade, however, is Jotunheim 2.

Master 19 is over 1K EUR on both Audiophonics and MagnaHiFi now here in Europe, I guess the prices are really climbing up due to economic and logistical impact of covid and the war combined. I am almost positive it was something like EUR 970 on MagnaHiFI a month ago, which was still a lot.

 

[etroze86]

I would recommend saving up for the Burson. Mine sits next to my SA1 and really I'm probably going to sell the SA1 since the Burson just turns everything that the SA1 does up to 11.

 

[amiga505]

looks like the guy on HiFiGuides came up with a way to overcome the SA1 SE out limitations, his solution - bi-amping!

 

[TheMiddleSky]

Damn, I wonder why anyone never thought about that handy solution

 

[FinHifi]

Had to put the jumper mod back in.
Without it, amp was a bit veiled and dull.
EQ the treble down a bit to counteract the increased treble from the jumper mod.
All good now.

I agree and disagree with you. Yes with mod this amp seems to get slightly brighter, but it also makes it slightly more fatigueing to my ears. ADX5000 is too bright with the mod, also some songs on my Elite also become too bright for my taste. However Michael Jackson sounds better with the mod on my elites, like you say, a veil is lifted. I would describe the un-modded SA-1 to be slightly more like tube-amp and with the mod more like a solid state amp. I did compare just now back and forth and desided not to use mod because I prefer slightly warmer and smooth sound overall, even tough some songs do in fact sound better with the mod.
I am going to switch my amp in the future, when i have enough cash saved, and i think ill get Violectric v550 pro when the time comes. Now is it going to sound "better" ? maybe hope so.

 

[Lolito2]

Just want to also chime in that I still have my SA-1 as my daily driver paired with the ares ii driving mainly HE6SEV2 and Arya and they still sound fantastic to me.

Every time this thread pops up, it’s always due to one of these explanations. One is that SA-1 was designed for balanced connection throughout for optimal performance. Secondly, a dac that can output >4v is ideal for best performance. Gain seeming insufficient is mainly due to using a lower voltage dac or misunderstanding of a logarithmic volume pot. Lastly, imho SA-1 appears to have synergy with planars esp hifimans and may not play nicely with high ohm cans ie hd650/xx, hence properly matching gear in your signal chain is very important (can personally vouch).

Same here, Ares2+SA1 for about... 18 months now... Very happy overall, so happy that don't want to upgrade. I would like of course a remote control, more rca inputs... I use it balanced with the dac, with the speakers, and with headphones. no mod done, did it once but had to revert it. Very solid construction. I left it in high gain, so it always works on class A, using just half the volume pot. Since the pot is not linear but exponential, in low gain you always enter class B. Not anymore in high gain though, nice.

Complaints? well, it gets too hot. I rather have white or green led rather than blue. The pot knob has a recession, so you can not install larger knobs. No complaints really, very solid device. neutral leaning to the class A lush and warmish, still detailed if put a detailed dac with it.

 

[deafenears]

I left it in high gain, so it always works on class A, using just half the volume pot.

Complaints? well, it gets too hot.

Class A means lower efficiency so that energy turns to heat.

I rather have white or green led rather than blue. The pot knob has a recession, so you can not install larger knobs.

Agreed on the light. Don't know what's the go with manufacturers using blue LEDs for devices where you're likely to have them on with the lights turned off.

As for the volume knob, you can still install a larger one. I have one on mine (Schiit knob works/fits, also one found on Aliexpress).

 

[Lolito2]

The knob you can get a deeper one, or taller one, depends on how you consider it. But if you get a larger one in diameter, it will not go into the recess area, so it will not be able to get enough purchase from the axle of the potentiometer, so it can not be attached, when the diameter of the knob is larger. I did it myself already. Gonna have to look for one with same diameter as stock, or smaller, just taller or deeper.

I know the class A heat, but properly insulated with decently sized heatsinks, the temperature to the touch is different. My unit also is not very ventilated on the top part, so i can understand it. Still, it really gets hot, quite hot, rather than just warm.

 

[Alex May]

The knob you can get a deeper one, or taller one, depends on how you consider it. But if you get a larger one in diameter, it will not go into the recess area, so it will not be able to get enough purchase from the axle of the potentiometer, so it can not be attached, when the diameter of the knob is larger. I did it myself already. Gonna have to look for one with same diameter as stock, or smaller, just taller or deeper.

I already told you, mate, this 34mm one works! https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32813579033.html
Although 34mm outer diameter, it has 32mm at the back, so it snugly fits into the recess if you don't push it all the way. I have it, I've installed it and it works perfectly fine:

 

[aroldan]

Same here, Ares2+SA1 for about... 18 months now... Very happy overall, so happy that don't want to upgrade. I would like of course a remote control, more rca inputs... I use it balanced with the dac, with the speakers, and with headphones. no mod done, did it once but had to revert it. Very solid construction. I left it in high gain, so it always works on class A, using just half the volume pot. Since the pot is not linear but exponential, in low gain you always enter class B. Not anymore in high gain though, nice.

Complaints? well, it gets too hot. I rather have white or green led rather than blue. The pot knob has a recession, so you can not install larger knobs. No complaints really, very solid device. neutral leaning to the class A lush and warmish, still detailed if put a detailed dac with it.

Here also an Ares2+SA1+Arya V2 owner for about 1 year and I don't feel the need of upgrading. It's been a year of enjoying music with this combo.