[ratdog]

Back to the OP's question...I think you will be happy with the Boa. great price for a DAC+Amp. Anyone...Does the Zune have a dock that has a true line out? Is there a way to run a cable to the line out like with the ipod? If the Boa is running directly from the Headphone jack I would think that the sonic advantages of running the amp would be degraded...correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[hockeyb213]

ratdog your right about what you said just not sure about the zune end since I don't own one

 

[vorlon1]

I have been Extremely pleased with a Travagans Colors (dogbone) amp with the Zune. It is so good that I believe the SQ I get from the Zune rivals what I get from my Imod and Sr-71, and this is from the amped headphone output of the Zune. In some ways I think it sounds better (heresy that that statement might be in some quarters). Anyway the amp can be bought for $59.00

 

[aegid]

From what I've read somewhere else:

Quote:

I did buy one and discovered that you have to have all of these items, Zune docking station, Zune Power supply, The Zune Remote control unit and the made for Zune mini to RCA cable (if you try and use a after market mini to RCA cable you will find that the socket for the mini plug is recessed on the Zune dock!). All of these items must be present and accounted for or the line out signal will not be unlocked from the device. In other words Microsoft wants the user to purchase all of these items in order for you to use the level line out signal. I cant tell you how disappointed I was when I discovered that the line out signal was some how internally locked. Bummer.

Quote:

Belkin Zune TuneBase FM transmitter: This is the standard TuneBase FM transmitter, but refined for the Zune. It will transmit on FM channels 88.1MHz - 107.9MHz and also include a line-out for cars that include auxiliary ports. That Belkin Zune device plugs into the cigarette lighter, so it's providing power to the Zune, I am guessing all the other prerequisites are also built into the device. So that therefore enables the use of the line-out on the device.

In other words, Microsoft is shafting you. I'm still using the old firmware with my 30 so I can have proper ID3 tags with Asian characters.

 

[PixelSquish]

yeah i heard it does not have a line-out - however i read of zune head-fi'ers getting good results out of the headphone out to an amp, including the boa, to their IEM's

so its the best option i got right now.

 

[aegid]

Yeah, I've been using the headphone out on my 30 with my Minibox-E+. Part of the price of going for the $100 Zunes back in November, although I suppose I won't know the difference until I listen from one with a line out enabled.

 

[Drag0n]

I am using my Portaphile amp on my Zune 30 right now with Sony IEMs, and it sounds fine.
Usually if i run IEMs though, i switch to my C&C Box+ with my UE SF3 Studio's, and i run the amp in low power setting and sometimes bass boost or stereo expander mode depending on my mood.

C&C Box + is $109 @ Headb.com: Audiophile Products, Accessories & more

 

[hockeyb213]

c&c box is so nice looking how is it's performance compared to something like a ibasso?

 

[Drag0n]

Never directly compared an ibasso to it in a quiet setting.
Some people think the C&C is just some cheapo amp, and some like it better than some much pricier amps, so really you just have to try one. I think synergy is key with most of them really.
I have one and im on Longisland. I say we need a mini-meet somewhere.

 

[JG33]

how is the fiio? in terms of quality wise, because i'm a student, and not looking forward to spending alot on an amp, since i need to buy another pair of headphones :s

i'm thinking of getting sennheiser HD555, but i have to find it for $100 in canada.

 

[sbulack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lil' Knight /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yeah, I won on 6/21. Seller is marchrisdealer. Winning bid, GBP 0.01. 7,517 feedbacks. I just PM-ed him 5 or 6 times on eBay and twice via email, no response at all.

I also won a FiiO E3 from marchrisdealer for 0.01 GBP, paid on 6/19, received the FiiO on 7/5 - it had been shipped from Hong Kong on 6/23. Never in the course of this purchase or fulfillment had there been any contact from the seller - just the amp received in fine cosmetic condition and good working order.

 

[sbulack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GN85 /img/forum/go_quote.gif So they're pretty much making their money off the shipping? Isn't that forbidden on ebay? I got mine mailed from Hong Kong for 5 bucks. Think of it, really it's just a scam. If the product is defective, they reimburse you the 1 penny and keep the left overs from what you payed them for the shipping. Would never buy from such a dealer. Oh and 4 bucks insurance for something bought for a penny?

I look at it in terms of what I pay for what I get in return. I paid about $16 total in return for a FiiO amp in fine cosmetic condition and good working order (including a very decent-sounding mini-to-mini cable). The SQ with this amp in my work rig with the buds, IEMs and sources that I prefer to use at work is preferred by me to the SQ using amps costing 5 - 20 times the price of the FiiO. That makes it well worth the $16 to me.

I bought my first FiiO amp to satisfy a few points of curiosity:
This "Buy It Now" dealer charged: $15 for the FiiO, $6 for shipping, no insurance offered. I paid $21 for a FiiO.
1) Just how good COULD it sound for about $12 - $20?
2) MIGHT it be (I was hoping) a mass-produced clone of the Xin Super-Micro, which appears to be currently unavailable from Xin - even at $170.

The first point of curiosity has been answered - better in its intended rig than amps costing 5 - 20X the price.

The second point of curiosity has also been answered:
a) it is NOT a clone of the Xin Super-Micro, since it uses an opamp not used in the Super-Micro.
b) From listening to it, and reading descriptions from the most persistent and articulate admirers of the Super-Micro, what I'm hearing from the FiiO is really well-described by what they've written about the Xin Super-Micro. So, without being a clone, the FiiO folks have managed to produce an amp with sound qualities which are well-described by what has been written about the Super-Micro. I've never heard a Super-Micro, so I cannot directly compare the two.

Having heard the FiiO, I bought a second one - as a backup. The two together cost me about half of what a CMOY is usually sold for these days. The second FiiO I won in an auction: 0.01 GBP for the FiiO, $12 for shipping, $4 for insurance. So, I paid $16 for the second FiiO.

For the $16 I paid for the second FiiO, I think that what I've received is WAY more than what I've paid for (relative to anything else in the headphone amp area that I've heard or read about in the past six years, including DIY projects). Other, bad-to-worst case, scenarios could have played themselves out, leaving me out $16 with nothing to show for it but a defective unit. But, those scenarios did not actually happen. Given the number of ratings and the Feedback score of the seller, it was pretty predictable that a good ending would come of this purchase, which it did.

Each of us has different criteria for who gets our money in exchange for what they are offering. And I think that each of us should stick to our own criteria for what we exchange our money for and with whom. In the interest of folks making a more informed decision about such an exchange for a FiiO, I'm sharing what I got in exchange for how much money from two different Hong Kong-based eBay dealers.