mrarroyo
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Jul 27, 2005
- Posts
- 19,073
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- 43
This is the second package I have received from Graham Slee over the last two months. The packaging, as usual, was absolutely first class with the Voyager residing in it's own box and a further (outer) box being used to ship it in.... superb packaging!
The pictures below really don't do any justice to the appearance of the Voyager; it looks so much better when viewed by the naked eye. It has a lovely tactile feel to it and feels nice in the hand, it's plastic but it's quality plastic and the fit and finish is top notch. The stick on Graham Slee Voyager label (the thing on the top with all the writing on it) appears to be a good quality acrylic job and it should stand up to a lot of knocks and scrapes (i.e.: the printing won't rub off).
This unit was received on Saturday, October 13, 2007. I have had the unit in continuous burn in since, over the past 148 hours (7 days) the amp has gone through various stages: in one it has to much bass then it transitions to: where has the bass gone? This does not surprise me anymore since I have seen this behavior in various amps from different manufacturers.
There are three ways to power the Voyager. First there is the 24 volt 0.500 amps wallwart supplied w/ the amp by Graham Slee. The wallwart is connected on the left hand side of the Voyager where there's a 2.5 x 5.5 power jack that'll take 12-24 volts DC from any supply you like. Secondly there is a USB port on the right hand side of the Voyager; no this is not for a dac. Instead it is to preserve battery life when you are working on your PC. Lastly there is a 9 Volt battery, by the way Graham ships the amp w/ a 9volt battery and a mini to mini interconnect. So the amp is ready to use from the moment you get it. Note: depending on the volume level you will get approximately 50 hours on a 9-volt alkaline battery.
The front panel sports an ultra high efficiency classy clear red LED to indicate power is on, input/output jacks and the volume pot. The amp is turned on via a three-way switch located on the left side of the amp in front of the power jack. There are three indents on the switch: 12-24VDC, USB, and Battery.
The final element is the Contour switch, located on the right hand side of the amp in front of the USB port. This particular Contour switch uses the Fletcher-Munson curve. You can read more about it in places like: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fletcher-Munson_curves or at http://www.webervst.com/fm.htm
Personally I find that the Contour switch will appeal to the bassheads and for some headphones it might add a sense of bass if the can is known for lacking bass. For example it is useful at times w/ the AKG K501. But even in the K501 it can become overpowering in high volumes or w/ certain recordings. I do not use it much but some of you may love it.
Regardless of whether you like the Contour switch or not, the Voyager is shaping up as an amp w/ a very wide soundstage. It has very good bass impact, and it is very clear/detailed on top. As stated above be advised that IMO the Voyager is one of those amps that needs 400+ hours of burn in. Next Saturday (10/20) is the Florida Meet and I plan on taking the Voyager so others can try it. But even then the amp will have about 320 hours of burn in, which IMO will not be enough.
I will update this thread in about a week with final thoughts in 2 weeks. I would hope that those users at the Florida Meet next week that listen will also post their impressions of the Voyager, even if it is not fully burnt in.
For those interested this amp sell for approximately $300 (depends on the exchange rate at the time you purchase it) plus S&H. Since it even comes w/ a battery and interconnect (which I have not tried yet) it is ready to go. The Voyager uses the AD823 op-amp and it is socketed.
Here are some pictures; the last two are w/ my iModded iPod on it to act as a reference point of view. The Voyager is about the same size as the SR71. Please remember to click on the thumbnails to view the full size picture.
Thanks.
The pictures below really don't do any justice to the appearance of the Voyager; it looks so much better when viewed by the naked eye. It has a lovely tactile feel to it and feels nice in the hand, it's plastic but it's quality plastic and the fit and finish is top notch. The stick on Graham Slee Voyager label (the thing on the top with all the writing on it) appears to be a good quality acrylic job and it should stand up to a lot of knocks and scrapes (i.e.: the printing won't rub off).
This unit was received on Saturday, October 13, 2007. I have had the unit in continuous burn in since, over the past 148 hours (7 days) the amp has gone through various stages: in one it has to much bass then it transitions to: where has the bass gone? This does not surprise me anymore since I have seen this behavior in various amps from different manufacturers.
There are three ways to power the Voyager. First there is the 24 volt 0.500 amps wallwart supplied w/ the amp by Graham Slee. The wallwart is connected on the left hand side of the Voyager where there's a 2.5 x 5.5 power jack that'll take 12-24 volts DC from any supply you like. Secondly there is a USB port on the right hand side of the Voyager; no this is not for a dac. Instead it is to preserve battery life when you are working on your PC. Lastly there is a 9 Volt battery, by the way Graham ships the amp w/ a 9volt battery and a mini to mini interconnect. So the amp is ready to use from the moment you get it. Note: depending on the volume level you will get approximately 50 hours on a 9-volt alkaline battery.
The front panel sports an ultra high efficiency classy clear red LED to indicate power is on, input/output jacks and the volume pot. The amp is turned on via a three-way switch located on the left side of the amp in front of the power jack. There are three indents on the switch: 12-24VDC, USB, and Battery.
The final element is the Contour switch, located on the right hand side of the amp in front of the USB port. This particular Contour switch uses the Fletcher-Munson curve. You can read more about it in places like: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fletcher-Munson_curves or at http://www.webervst.com/fm.htm
Personally I find that the Contour switch will appeal to the bassheads and for some headphones it might add a sense of bass if the can is known for lacking bass. For example it is useful at times w/ the AKG K501. But even in the K501 it can become overpowering in high volumes or w/ certain recordings. I do not use it much but some of you may love it.
Regardless of whether you like the Contour switch or not, the Voyager is shaping up as an amp w/ a very wide soundstage. It has very good bass impact, and it is very clear/detailed on top. As stated above be advised that IMO the Voyager is one of those amps that needs 400+ hours of burn in. Next Saturday (10/20) is the Florida Meet and I plan on taking the Voyager so others can try it. But even then the amp will have about 320 hours of burn in, which IMO will not be enough.
I will update this thread in about a week with final thoughts in 2 weeks. I would hope that those users at the Florida Meet next week that listen will also post their impressions of the Voyager, even if it is not fully burnt in.
For those interested this amp sell for approximately $300 (depends on the exchange rate at the time you purchase it) plus S&H. Since it even comes w/ a battery and interconnect (which I have not tried yet) it is ready to go. The Voyager uses the AD823 op-amp and it is socketed.
Here are some pictures; the last two are w/ my iModded iPod on it to act as a reference point of view. The Voyager is about the same size as the SR71. Please remember to click on the thumbnails to view the full size picture.
Thanks.
