[Than]

I've been thinking about a portable amp for a long time now, and I'm finally ready to purchase. Only I'm not. Every time I think I've made up my mind, I become doubtful, and look at something else. I'm working with a budget of about $200 US, I can go up or down a little. I'm fairly aware of what falls into this price range, and I've mostly been debating between the Boa and Headsix. The Headsix being very bare bones in my eyes, so the amp would need to be a good bit ahead of the others to be my decision. I'll be using it with an ATH-ESW9 and Ultrasone HFI-780, fed from a D2 and iPod 5G, when it's up and running again. Any help that can be provided is appreciated.

 

[olblueyez]

I say get the one with a rechargeable battery. Switching batteries is a pain.

 

[gonzalo]

corda2move all the way ....

 

[Suntory_Times]

Ray Samuels Hornet headphone amp would be my pic.

 

[Than]

The hornet is one I haven't really looked at. I'll read up on it. I'd really consider the 2move, but it's larger than the others, and I really feel that it doesn't need to be. Or does the crossfeed circuit really take up that much space?

 

[KenW]

JMO but I'm not a big fan of portable amps. Just never found the improvements worth the expense and hassle of carrying one around. For me, the IEM straight from the ipod was more than enough while on the move. If I'm going to listen to full sized cans or do some critical listening, I won't be using an portable player/amp. Much prefer to put my money where it will do the most good....the home setup. Get a solid desktop amp and stay "team minimal" when on the move. Again, JMO.

Of course, if I just had to have a portable, I'd probably take a long look at the Pico since it might mate well with my Mac via USB. Still, that's a lot of scratch for a portable....even with a nice dac built in.

 

[Than]

Thanks for the advice. I've considered it, actually. But that's why I'll probably never go for a portable much higher than than this price range. But I dislike IEMs, and I already go to the trouble to carry around larger headphones, usually in a case that still has spare room for an amp. I'm not into spending big bucks on a portable, and I'll work on a home setup after this. Actually, since I'm not going to be upgrading this, I'll probably go for something with a DAC, like the Boa...

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

I think my Boa is a very nice sounding amp, and is an upgrade to the standard iPod or Macbook headphone out sound. If you need small and light and affordable, and plan to build a better desktop system once you have a portable amp, you may be happy with it.

But for audiophile grade sound I have to say my Headsix is a little more transparent and natural sounding, and the 2MOVE I borrowed from Skylab to review is a nice step up from there. I also don't like the weight and size of the 2MOVE, but I think the sound is well worth it if you need the DAC. And it offers a high current mode for harder to drive headphones like the K701.

The other option is to find a used D2 Viper which after 300 hours of burning it in was close to the Pico - or wait to see what the new D3 coming out in the next few weeks will sound like. I have some review links in my public profile page that might help you.

 

[Than]

Thanks, those are the impressions I've gathered while reading around, more or less. I may just go for the Headsix. The size is nice, and I don't need a DAC at the moment. All of my headphones are fairly easily driven, so I don't think the high current mode will be an issue. And I can get a pretty good deal on one in the FS forums. That's where I'm leaning right now. I think I'll just go with it before I start to doubt my decision again.

 

[Elladan]

For portable use, I disagree with the poster who suggested going for the amp with a rechargeable battery. IMO, it's much easier to carry a battery around in my briefcase/suitcase when on the road than a wall wart.

You'll be happy with the Headsix; however, I and others have experienced a couple of problems.

1) the line in jack seems just a tiny bit loose. A standard mini-mini line kept coming unplugged (I use mine with a Zune 80). This improved when I upgraded to a 4copper interconnect.
2) there's sometimes some crackle when adjusting volume. It's only when you're twisting the knob, so I find it does not interfere with the listening.
3) I do get a touch of hiss with the amp's volume knob above 9:00. It's not a ton, but it bothers me. Of course, I use mine with IEMs, and in low-gain mode, where I never have to turn it up that loud. I find that the Zune's volume at 10 of 20 and the Headsix at 12:00/50% is about the perfect listening volume, and it's completely noise-free.

I don't know if the Boa has any of these problems, but HeadphoneAddict was right about the Headsix's transparency. It's stunning. The form factor is nice, and in travel, I've come to appreciate the brushed-aluminum finish. It's really druable and not prone to visible scratching.

 

[Than]

Thanks for the information. I was aware of the crackle on the volume knob, but I don't think it will be a problem. I wasn't aware of the loose jack, but hopefully it won't cause much trouble. And I dcon't listen at high volumes, so I don't think that's an issue at all. I'm going to try my luck with the FS forum, and if that doesn't work out, I'll see if it's still available new.
I think I've made my final decision, my thanks to everyone who posted here.

 

[trickywombat]

The Boa and HeadSix are both good amps, and it's hard to go wrong with either.

KenW makes a good point regarding the hassle associated with carrying a portable amp. You may or may not find the inconvenience worth it. In this regard, the Boa is a slightly lower risk. If you don't use it as a portable amp, as a USB DAC it is significantly better than listening through your computer's headphone out.

I have some of the same HeadSix issues mentioned above by Elladan. The line in jack can't seem to hold on to my ALO Cryo Silver X. For me, even on low gain, the HeadSix is too loud for me with my Livewires, but you don't appear to be using it with IEMs. I do like the HeadSix with my Denon 1001.

 

[Than]

I don't think I'll find it to be a hassle to carry it around, but then again, I don't have to carry it around all of the time if I don't want to. I might have to find a solution to that loose jack, but I'll deal with it.

 

[trickywombat]

Some miniplugs have smaller diameters than others, so it's a relatively easy problem to solve. I have 2 ALO Cryo Silver X LODs, and they each seem to have different miniplug diameters, and one is too small.

 

[Than]

I see, it shouldn't be a problem then, but that's good to know. Thanks for the information.