[ClieOS]

http://h5.m.taobao.com/awp/core/detail.htm?spm=0.0.0.0&id=6797369015
C&C bh2

 
New old stock. Note that C&C doesn't exist anymore, as far as I know.

 

[golov17]

I bought from this seller earbuds ATH, very good seller, but I did not notice right away C & C, so I do not know whether or not in stock...

 

[ClieOS]

I bought from this seller earbuds ATH, very good seller, but I did not notice right away C & C, so I do not know whether or not in stock...

 
That seller is fairly reputable in China as it is a legit store in Shanghai, but also known for lousy after-sale service from time to time.

 

[golov17]

That seller is fairly reputable in China as it is a legit store in Shanghai, but also known for lousy after-sale service from time to time.

who is without sin, lol

 

[Eguardos]

Can someone give some info about the fiio k1 and creative e1? If it means alot, ill be using it with a smartphone to drive a low impedence pair of vmoda over ears (lp2) pretty bass heavy, so if either would better bring forward the mids id appreciate that

 

[ClieOS]

Can someone give some info about the fiio k1 and creative e1? If it means alot, ill be using it with a smartphone to drive a low impedence pair of vmoda over ears (lp2) pretty bass heavy, so if either would better bring forward the mids id appreciate that

 
K1 is a pure USB DAC/amp but not a standalone amp, so it must be used with a smartphone that supports USB DAC (or with a PC). E1 is a bit more versatile and can be used as either USB DAC or a standalone amp . As far as features go, E1 also has more. As far as overall SQ goes, they are really in the same ballpark - more in the entry level and nothing that will blow your mind away. LP2 isn't hard to drive so both should do the job just fine.
 
As far as bring the mid forward, better just do it with EQ.

 

[Blazer39]

   
Grado stuff is generally very easy to drive and doesn't need extra amping. However, as a general rule of thumb, Grado tends to sound best with tube amp, which mellows out its aggressiveness. That being said, I think C&C BH2 is probably the best amp to pair with a Grado, but it is also getting hard to come by unless you buy one from Taobao. JDS cmoy is okay, but not as good as BH2 as far as synergy is concerned.

what makes BH2 have good synergy with grados?!!
 
im still looking for an amp, but i always remembered this post about their synergy..can you please explain in more details?!
 
isn't BH2 a kinda bright sounding amp which could be bad synergy with already bit bright Grados?

 

[ClieOS]

 
what makes BH2 have good synergy with grados?!!
 
im still looking for an amp, but i always remembered this post about their synergy..can you please explain in more details?!
 
isn't BH2 a kinda bright sounding amp which could be bad synergy with already bit bright Grados?

 
Because BH2 has a mellow and musical tone, which is usually the kind of sound signature that goes well with Grado...and no, I don't find BH2 bright at all.

 

[golov17]

http://m.shenzhenaudio.com/c-c-bh2-portable-headphone-amplifier-battery-amplifier.html

Really good small amp

 

[thingol]

I hope its not a repost, but what do you guys think about Lars & Ivan (and mostly about HA-1?)?
 
I am planning to buy an entry-level mobile amp (~50$), at the moment I like the Soundmagic A10 and Lars & Ivan HA-1 the most: but I am very new to the amps and not sure about my decision.
 
Thank you guys for help!

 

[ClieOS]

  I hope its not a repost, but what do you guys think about Lars & Ivan (and mostly about HA-1?)?
 
I am planning to buy an entry-level mobile amp (~50$), at the moment I like the Soundmagic A10 and Lars & Ivan HA-1 the most: but I am very new to the amps and not sure about my decision.
 
Thank you guys for help!

 
I wonder if they did actually design the amp themselves or they just got it from some Chinese OEM. Saw it being branded as Trekstor in China almost a year ago and sold for $30.

 

[tripside]

@ClieOS Do your recommendations still stand OR are there new entrants that have caught your eye? I've seen quite a few users touting Xduoo xduoo xq-10, SMSL SAP 7 and Topping NX1/2.
How do these stack against the amp mentioned by you in your post? Lastly, I also see quite few versions of cmoy amp floating around. The offerings from JDS Labs, Lucid Labs and MayFlower Electronics seems to be the most popular. Do you these there will be a noticeable difference in the ouput of these amps?
 
 
 
 

 

[ClieOS]

  @ClieOS Do your recommendations still stand OR are there new entrants that have caught your eye? I've seen quite a few users touting Xduoo xduoo xq-10, SMSL SAP 7 and Topping NX1/2.
How do these stack against the amp mentioned by you in your post? Lastly, I also see quite few versions of cmoy amp floating around. The offerings from JDS Labs, Lucid Labs and MayFlower Electronics seems to be the most popular. Do you these there will be a noticeable difference in the ouput of these amps?
 

 

   
You can finf my full SMSL review here: http://www.head-fi.org/t/717908/impression-s-m-s-l-sap-4s-and-sap-7
 
Basically, I'll rank sAp-4s as the same as E5 and sAp-7 the same as E6. They will be added into the list, in time. NX1 is just sAp-4s with gain switch, so there really isn't a lot more I can add to it beside copying from the sAp-4s review.

 
Can't comment on XDuoo since I have not heard it.
 
As for cmoy, I know I can recommend JDS because they have solid engineering and excellent customer service. Don't really know about the other two.

 

[Fabi]

Hi @ClieOS
 
I can see you have the VE RunAbout.
I am interested to know your thoughts on it compared with the other sub 100$ portable amps you have.
Starting myself to have interest in portable amps with 9V batteries, I have a RunAbout Plus on the way 

I have to admit the Corda Quickstep is very appealing (size, sq) but almost 4 times more expensive 

 maybe for later...
 
Btw, thank you for all your contribution so far !

 

[ClieOS]

  Hi @ClieOS
 
I can see you have the VE RunAbout.
I am interested to know your thoughts on it compared with the other sub 100$ portable amps you have.
Starting myself to have interest in portable amps with 9V batteries, I have a RunAbout Plus on the way 

I have to admit the Corda Quickstep is very appealing (size, sq) but almost 4 times more expensive 

 maybe for later...
 
Btw, thank you for all your contribution so far !

 
RunAbout is a very solid portable amp that has no problem beating most, if not all sub-$100 amp, though probably not going to top the $200 category. QuickStep will indeed be an even better amp to have and should easily be one of the best of any price range.