[Student_Driver]

It went smoothly. Got the new AK120. Works!

Only, i am an idiot. I bought it, mindlessly thinking that I could use it with my HiFi-M8 to drive my HD800s and LCD-2s. Realize now that AK has only analogue out and M8 has only digital in. My Fostex will not drove the big cans, and the AK is ok on the LCDs but I need more power. Guess I need to look for an amp which can match the M8 heft for my portable use. For now, enjoying the AK120 with my IE800s. Great match, but full volume is adequate but not M8 territory.

 

[SDBiotek]

It went smoothly. Got the new AK120. Works!

Only, i am an idiot. I bought it, mindlessly thinking that I could use it with my HiFi-M8 to drive my HD800s and LCD-2s. Realize now that AK has only analogue out and M8 has only digital in. My Fostex will not drove the big cans, and the AK is ok on the LCDs but I need more power. Guess I need to look for an amp which can match the M8 heft for my portable use. For now, enjoying the AK120 with my IE800s. Great match, but full volume is adequate but not M8 territory.

I believe the AK120 will work just fine with the M8 LX version. I use my Ak120 with my M8 via the optical out.

 

[Student_Driver]

I have the iDevice M8. Guess I need the LX as well.

 

[Student_Driver]

Basically I am happy with the M8 as an amp but got frustrated with my HiFi Man 602 and iPhone as sources. Each with their own idiosyncratic limitations. Apart from the SQ and format limits of the iPhone, there is also the hassle when a call comes in.

AK120 was intended to be a full solution for my IEM collection (which it will do well) and with an amp for my big cans.

 

[Wilderbeast]

  Hi,
 
I've had the AK120 for about a week now, listening through Shure SE846. My UM Miracles are away for reshelling and I have JH Roxannes on the way.
 
I have a few questions, and apologies if these have been answered elsewhere - please do point me in the right direction if so.
 
1. Is the reason the bass seems quiet/off because of the 3ohm output impedance?
2. Will the AK120 perform better with my Miracles / Roxannes? Both have higher impedance.
3. Is the RWA mod worth getting, based on my 3 IEMs? Why?
4. Do others use the Pro EQ setting or not? and why?
5. Is there a way to create playlists on a Mac?
6. Can songs be queued? Eg I'm listening to a song and want another song to play next.
 
Many thanks for your help.

Would really appreciate a response to a few of these questions - can anyone help? I'm not happy with the AK120 with Shure SE846 sound.

 

[Papiro2]

To me the pairing with the Shure did not work either. I did change the filters and cables of the Shure, and even got them balanced at moon audio but still. I do have the RWAK-S paired with full size cans and the sound is amazing (amp required) Regarding CIEM's I am planning to try the KAISER 10. I don't have more answers to you. I hope this helps. But my recommendation is for you to contact Vinnie directly, he does provide a great customer service.
Best

 

[burtomr]

Would really appreciate a response to a few of these questions - can anyone help? I'm not happy with the AK120 with Shure SE846 sound.

To me the pairing with the Shure did not work either. I did change the filters and cables of the Shure, and even got them balanced at moon audio but still...

 
Me too three....846 didn't get it at all.....Sold.
 
What does 'get it'...Tralucent 1plus2. WoW! incredible 3-D soundstage, detailed bass,...much better...

 

 

[Wilderbeast]

To me the pairing with the Shure did not work either. I did change the filters and cables of the Shure, and even got them balanced at moon audio but still. I do have the RWAK-S paired with full size cans and the sound is amazing (amp required) Regarding CIEM's I am planning to try the KAISER 10. I don't have more answers to you. I hope this helps. But my recommendation is for you to contact Vinnie directly, he does provide a great customer service.
Best

Thanks for that. I'll wait to see what the AK120 sounds like with my Miracles & Roxannes. I'm hoping it's just the Shures it does't match well with. Failing that I may go down the RWA route.
 
It's a bit frustrating as the 846s sound great from my iPhone 5S!

 

[jlbrach]

strange my 846 sound wonderful with my 120 Titan

 

[Papiro2]

  strange my 846 sound wonderful with my 120 Titan

 
mmmm... my RWAK Titan is B, not S as I mentioned before. I paired it with the Duet (amp) and the bundle RWAK Titan+ Duet+ 846 did not work for me. At least in comparison with the TH900. I sold the 846 and now I am looking for a CIEM but I have not yet decided... 
 
Maybe it was the mod, that did not benefit the combo... I don't know. I will see what is Wilderbeast comment on their bundle.

 

[oriise]

ChrisSC,
 
I am wondering about your impressions of the AK 120 RWA B mod. I am thinking of springing for it as well but would love to hear if you felt the sonic upgrade was worth it and what the main improvements were over the stock AK 120 using the headphone out to connect to your portable amp. Also, what amp are you using? Did you compare the balanced out versus single-ended out to see if balanced makes a meaningful difference in a portable/IEM situation. Would appreciate any comment on the above.

 

[Wilderbeast]

  strange my 846 sound wonderful with my 120 Titan

Hmm, strange indeed. Is your Titan modded? Do you use eq?
 
I've been using Shure 846 straight out of an un-modded 120. 
 
Interestingly, I find the Shures sound fine out of the AK10 (the mini AK connected to an iphone). I'm wondering whether the 3ohm output impedance of the AK120 makes its bass sound off to me.

 

[henwell]

 
Would really appreciate a response to a few of these questions - can anyone help? I'm not happy with the AK120 with Shure SE846 sound.

Maybe one reason could be a impedance mismatch, the output impedance of the AK120 and Titan is three ohms and the impedance of the shures is 9 ohms usually you like  8 times impedance difference so with a 3 ohm output impedance you would want a headphone with an impedance of over 24. The impedance mismatch can affect frequency response and maybe in this case adversely affecting the base response

 

[b0ssMax]

Do BA's follow the 1:8 rule? I thought that was mostly for dynamic drivers

 

[henwell]

Do BA's follow the 1:8 rule? I thought that was mostly for dynamic drivers

THE FREQUENCY RESPONSE PROBLEM: If the output impedance is more more than 1/8th the headphone impedance there will be variations in the frequency response. With some headphones, especially balanced armature or multi driver designs, these variations can be rather extreme. Here’s what 43 ohms of output impedance does to the Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5’s frequency response—a total, and very audible, variation of 12 dB: