65535
500+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Apr 23, 2007
- Posts
- 925
- Likes
- 57
About 3 years ago this amp was a viable option for anyone that wanted a portable amp with a lot of power and a small size. I've had mine for a few years and it performs great with anything I throw at it. Nearly no noise even on sensitive UM2 IEMs. It also has an onboard DAC for easy computer listening while charging.
However one major downside for me was the plastic end caps. I was unfortunate enough to have my endcaps heat up in the car and warp quite badly, leaving a large opening on both ends for dust to get into (don't worry the internals pop out and clean up easily) however the warping with the cracking made me a bit sad and I developed some disdain for the amp.
As most can imagine, to a picky guy like me the amp lost its "sex" appeal. I let this go for over a year, it was my own fault and it didn't seem like there was anything I could do, certainly seemed silly to replace it with another amp since I'd never recoup the cost of it even after a short life.
I finally decided I had enough and was going to do something about it. Step one was to draw up a computer draft of the endplates on my computer, someone was going to have to make it and even if I did it myself I would need an accurate template to go off of.
I decided that 14g stainless steel would be the most reasonable choice, in the small sizes I needed the material is cheap, and it doesn't require any secondary finishing to be durable. So with my draft and my material choice I sent it out for quotes to waterjet. Picked one I liked and had the parts made. They came back great, some quick sanding where the sprue was, reaming out the hole for the jacks, and they fit up great. The cuts are clean enough and soft enough to not require extra finishing work, and I kind of like the industrial look.
Here's how they look.
However one major downside for me was the plastic end caps. I was unfortunate enough to have my endcaps heat up in the car and warp quite badly, leaving a large opening on both ends for dust to get into (don't worry the internals pop out and clean up easily) however the warping with the cracking made me a bit sad and I developed some disdain for the amp.
As most can imagine, to a picky guy like me the amp lost its "sex" appeal. I let this go for over a year, it was my own fault and it didn't seem like there was anything I could do, certainly seemed silly to replace it with another amp since I'd never recoup the cost of it even after a short life.
I finally decided I had enough and was going to do something about it. Step one was to draw up a computer draft of the endplates on my computer, someone was going to have to make it and even if I did it myself I would need an accurate template to go off of.
I decided that 14g stainless steel would be the most reasonable choice, in the small sizes I needed the material is cheap, and it doesn't require any secondary finishing to be durable. So with my draft and my material choice I sent it out for quotes to waterjet. Picked one I liked and had the parts made. They came back great, some quick sanding where the sprue was, reaming out the hole for the jacks, and they fit up great. The cuts are clean enough and soft enough to not require extra finishing work, and I kind of like the industrial look.
Here's how they look.
