[joe]

@geesechops - Head over to the Meets forum and post an interest thread. You might be able to get some people together. 

 

[bmichels]

  We've made a lot of changes to WA8 since v.2  Internal circuit and DAC are completely new and much improved.  We could have put v.2 out to production, but we weren't 100% happy so we made the difficult decision to go back to the drawing board and push back launch date to Oct. or Nov.  The new DAC chip is an audiophile favorite.  We just need to fit everything from the prototype DAC inside the WA8.  
 

 
Well since the WA8 is TRANSportable (and not portable) anyway, it will not be a big problem if you have to increase the WA8's case size to fit inside the best possible DAC & AMP circuits.
 
Few more inches and grams is worth to get the best Sound quality (at least for me)
 
NO COMPROMISES on SOUND PLEASE !!

 

[AnakChan]

* Both are transportable DAC/tube amps, but the CDM is more portable
* Both are $1500
* The CDM has fully balanced topography in & out, with the option for SE on either side as well

* The CDM supports DSD and hi-res PCM, and has selectable gain output​

* The CDM has DAC-only mode, amp-only mode, and DAC/amp modes while the WA8 does not​

* The CDM has 40 pages more of interest on HeadFi
* It's unknown yet if the WA8 will have it, but the CDM has tube rolling capability with at at least 10 tubes available and a

   thread for it
* It's unset which DAC chip the WA8 will use, but the CDM has a superbly implemented Wolfson 

WM8741 chip, which

   seems to add just the right of much needed tube 'warmth / color' for on the go, and at home too​

* I'm not sure if the WA8 is good for IEMs, but the CDM has the ability to drive IEMs remarkably, as well as driving full

   size can's all the way up to 600 ohm with authority, even the HE 1000 with well received results​

The WA8 is still under development and the CDM is out now​

I'm told the CDM is a hybrid vs the WA8. I was also to the there will be tube rolling capabilities. The tubes sit on a daughterboard which I believe can be made available to WA8 tube rollers.

 

[geesechops]

  @geesechops - Head over to the Meets forum and post an interest thread. You might be able to get some people together. 

 
Cool. Didn't know that existed. Thanks!

 

[AxelCloris]

I'm told the CDM is a hybrid vs the WA8. I was also to the there will be tube rolling capabilities. The tubes sit on a daughterboard which I believe can be made available to WA8 tube rollers.

 
The CDM is a hybrid design, yes. Both the CDM and WA8 allow tube rolling.

 

[Barra]

Sitting here wasting time in the San Jose airport waiting to go home to Seattle thinking I should be checking out some audio gear while I am here. I'm going to be back next week, is there a key manufacturer or a portable audio store in the sanfran area that I should be checking out? Seattle has no audio shops where we can audition good Headfi gear.

 

[warrenpchi]

AudioVisionSF

 

[Barra]

AudioVisionSF

Perfect, thanks.

 

[maeveth]

Perfect, thanks.

I also like House of Music for HiFi in general http://houseofmusicsf.com/

 

[sfoclt]

  I also like House of Music for HiFi in general http://houseofmusicsf.com/

I've bought a half dozen or so pieces of McIntosh gear from House of Music through the years.  It's expensive but the service is great.  They've always driven the pieces over to my house (when I was in SF) and set them up.  They want you to be happy and it shows.

 

[HiFiGuy528]

AVSF has a ton of gear to play with.  I can spend a full day there.  

 

[Barra]

So far, AVSF looks like the place to see. Seattle has a place much like House of Music for high end speaker setups called Definitive Audio where I buy my gear. But we have nothing for portable setups or headphones. Does AVSF or anyone else in SF or San Jose carry any of these on my DAP short list to hear?

1. AK380 (At AVSF)​
2. Calyx M
3. P1
4. ZX2

 

[gepardcv]

There's also Audio High in Mountain View. As far as headphones go, it's a Sennheiser and Audeze dealer. Not sure about DAPs.

 

[Audiowood]

Audio high also carry chord . Spend a long time testing LCD x and LCD xc

 

[zvook]

Longtime Head-Fi lurker and first time attendee of the 2015 SF meet here. I'm a bit late posting to this thread (been on vacation) but just wanted to say thank you to the organizers and the Head-Fi community for putting on such a great meet! For a relative noob like me, it was a fantastic experience to be able to learn from such a passionate and generous community. The opportunity to listen to so many amazing headphone rigs, most of which I have never heard before, was just such an enlightening experience and something I have never seen before! I only had a couple of hours at the meet but could easily have spent the whole day there. Highlights/wishlist for me included Mr. Speakers (loved the Ether and was impressed with the Alpha Prime for a closed headphone), Oppo PM2 and PM3 (probably my next purchase for a portable headphone), and the Apogee Groove portable dac/amp, which was very impressively driving a set of HD650s with plenty of bass using just the power from the USB bus of a MacBook.