I want to finally share some impressions on the Sparkos Labs Aries, having had it now for a week. This is not a review with technical details and specs, but a set of brief and somewhat fragmented subjective impressions. I am running my Aries with a Hugo 2 via
Kimber Kable Topgun All Clear RCA cables and powered by an
Audiofilia mains cable. A word of context: I’ve been looking for several months now for a TOTL desktop amp that would pair nicely with my Hugo 2. On its own, the Hugo 2 is an exceptional device, both technically and musically. But on some headphones, especially the ZMF Verité Closed, I feel the Hugo 2 could benefit from a more wide-reaching amp. I had considered options from SPL, PassLabs, Violectric as well considering the Feliks Euforia on the tube side. I also demo'd the Hugo TT2 and MScaler, along with various other very high end amps (4k plus). In the end, I went for the Sparkos based primarily on the accounts of the amp as highly resolving, transparent, and quick (especially
@project86 review
here). It is also worth noting that the Aries is the SS amp of choice for
@zach915m (see
here), which for me is recommendation enough.
Some impressions:
1. The build is flawless. The amp has a substantial clout to it, though is not as overwhelming (it fits on my desk without issue). It reminds me a bit of old school VCR player in terms of dimensions. The touchscreen panel is self-explanatory and unfussy. Would I like to see a VU meter, RME style? Yes, of course, though I understand it'll introduce an unwanted element of noise, so is best left as it is.
2. As has been mentioned in nearly every review, the 64-step volume control is a pleasure to use, both in terms of its precision but also in terms of its tactility. I have not felt the need to move beyond the lowest gain yet (including the 300-ohm Verité Closed). The amp is also pitch black silent and I’m able to run sensitive IEMs from it without any issue.
3. To the meat: this is by far the cleanest, most resolving, transparent, revealing, and ultimately rewarding amps I've ever heard. Getting to know the amp this week has been a pure pleasure. Let me begin with my Audio-Technicas before discussing the Verité Closed. On my Audio-Technica ATH-AWKT, I hear a superb sense of speed, with pinpoint imaging, and peerless detail retrieval. This is technically an amazing amplifier, but what surprised me is how musical it also is. In comparison to the Hugo 2 alone, the addition of the Aries adds a more robust sense of body in the AWKT, which can sound a little thin (though by no means lacking in quality in the bass). I wanted to see how the Aries would handle some music with contemporary production - i.e., basically lacking a wide dynamic range, with an abundance of bass, and essentially not very "audiophile" friendly. It's too easy to feed it Fleetwood Mac or Miles Davis. As a good example, I cranked up Mick Gordon's soundtrack to "Doom" to try it out. The Aries does not mess around; it is an unforgiving amp in that it won't smooth over any blemishes, yet the fact that it's hyper-clean means that it doesn't crumble under extremely aggressive, frantic, and badly produced music. The "Doom" OST sounds momentous on my AWKT - sub-bass slam is visceral, soundstage is broad, and separation of instruments is coherent and clear. But above all: the speed is breath-taking. And addictive. I never have the sense that the Aries struggles with the reproduction of complex music. It is able to convey multiple lines and passages of dense chaotic music in an effortless, almost nonchalant way. On the Hugo 2 alone without the Aries, it's not as though one is suddenly returned to a muffled picture, far from it; but the level of clarity, resolve, and detail retrieval - to say nothing of the sheer sense of "body" - is by no means as compelling as with the addition of the Aries.
4. Similar results were found with the Audio-Technica ATH-AWAS, WP900, and even the humble (but brilliant) MSR7B. The AWKT is already an extremely resolving headphone - best in class - so there is a risk of them being overly revealing on the Hugo 2/Aries set-up. But the AWAS are slightly more laid back, and they reveal themselves in a different way with the Aries. With the Aries, the AWAS is rendered a more technically and nuanced pair of headphones. Jaco Pastorius' live album "Truth, Liberty, and Soul" on the AWAS sounds phenomenal - the bass is resonant and articulate, the saxophone is fluid and present without being honky, drums - especially bass drum - are thumping without being bloated. The WP900 also benefits from this treatment. The WP900 are an unashamedly v-shaped pair of headphones tuned for fun, fun, and more fun. I love them, but they're not known for their mids, especially in comparison to the excellent mids on the AWAS and AWKT. On the Aries, the presentation of the WP900 is tighter with far superior separation and imaging than on the Hugo 2 alone; switching back and forth, I feel as though the there is an element of graininess in the Hugo 2 that the Aries dispenses with. Vocal delivery on Bowie's "Blackstar" with the WP900 is powerful; the level of clarity generated against the black ground of the Aries seems to allow both marco and micro details come to the foreground in such a way that the amp "betters" a mid-tier headphone.
5. The timbre of the Aries is worth remarking on. When I say this amp is both revealing and musical, I mean it has a very engaging natural timbre that conveys the nuance and detail of each and every instrument. I'm hearing snare strikes, tom-tom drums, and bass drums in a way I've not heard before. I must emphasize: drums sound
phenomenal on this amp (try any of the early Rush albums for a good example; the snare on Metallica's black album also sounds nutty good). I'm also hearing textures in guitars - especially rock and metal - that is detailed and lifelike (AC/DC - amazing). This is by no means a dry amp, though. While I am basically a detail junkie and tend to veer away from "lush" musical presentations, I loathe un-engaging sound signatures. Ultimately, I want to be
affected by music. All of the THX amps did nothing for me, the same for SPL. The Aries is not a coloured amp, but it is "tuned" in such a way so as to combine a very rich musical presentation with technical excellence in a way I've not heard with other amps. For the matter, the Aries is also not an aggressive or overly harsh amp. The AWKT is a bright pair of headphones and you would think that running them through the Aries would make them brighter if not bordering on sibilant, but in fact it generates a balanced frequency response which gives depth to the low end, adds texture to the mid-range, and gives a smoothness to the top end without rolling it off.
6. To the main reason for buying this amp, the Verité Closed. As mentioned, I very much enjoy the Verité Closed on the Hugo 2, but I don't find this pairing does the headphones justice. I have always felt there is something slightly lacking in this pairing that I couldn't quite pinpoint: could be a sense of scale, could be a sense of conviction more generally. When I run my Verité Closed through the Aries via my Hugo 2 one word comes to mind:
epic. I just ran an A/B between the Hugo 2 and the Hugo 2+Aries listening to a SACD recording of the "Blade Runner" OST. At 1.05, there is a well-known sub-bass rumble that appears; the textures and sub-textures, the natural decay of sub-bass that are reproduced with the Aries, together with the sense of sheer scale, is outstanding. Again, it is by no means lacking on the Hugo 2 on its own; but there is no competition with the Aries. Here's what the Aries does to the Verité Closed: gives them an amazing sense of
life. It injects a sense of speed, clarity, and dynamism that reveals what the Verité Closed are capable of. This is manifest across genres: Opeth is pounding but precise; Stevie Ray Vaughan is tight but not constricted; complex symphonic music (Mahler, Sibelius, Bruckner) has never sounded so good (the sense of soundstage with the Verité Closed and Aries is something to behold). I've been listening to this set-up for a week now and my only complaint is that I wish I had more time with it. The Aries is at ease with intimate solo material (Springsteen's "Nebraska) as it is the pomp and circumstance of prog rock (Pink Floyd, etc). Give it "classical" audiophile material - Alan Parsons, Supertramp, Steely Dan, etc - and I think you'd be hard pressed to find a better set-up for the Verité Closed without spending considerably more money. I ran this set-up on my "reference" playlist, randomly going through Stevie Nicks, The Cars, Tears For Fears, Kate Bush, Santana, and so forth, and what I heard was an immense pleasure to listen to, genuinely addictive: exquisite detail, a soundstage not limited by the Verité being closed headphones, a sense of dynamism and punch, engaging timbre, and an awesome - and impressive - technical performance without being analytical.
7. I have not tried multiple sources with the Aries, but am keen to do so. I did connect my Lotoo Paw 6000 via the front 3.5mm input and was pleasantly surprised to see what this DAP is capable of (though I will say it also sounds truly excellent when paired with a BX2 Plus). The same is true of the Mojo, which also paired very nicely with the Aries. The addition of the front connection on the Aries is welcome in this respect for A/B'ing between sources.
In sum, the SparkoS Labs Aries is an amazing amp. I very much feel it deserves much wider recognition, not only for ZMF owners but also for those seeking a transparent and resolving but also musical and deeply engaging solid-state headphone amp. I'm gratified it's in my collection and definitely can't see myself parting with it at any point. Cheers.
I'll definitely compare them to the Burson. I've got some Sparko Pro opamps coming to to try in the Burson. 
