[nmatheis]

Hello fellow headfiers,


I was excited when I recently read @Hisoundfi's REVIEW of the Calyx PaT.  At the time, I was test driving the Cayin C5DAC and Shanling H3 portable DAC/Amps recently, so I was curious how the Calyx PaT would stack up against them and as a challenger to my DAPs.  The small size, battery-free operation, and built-in controls looked like great features not found in DAC/Amps I've tried.  

Out of curiosity, I reached out to Calyx to ask about touring some PaT DAC/Amps around the Head-Fi community.  They generously agreed to provide two PaT DAC/Amps for parallel U.S. & Canada tours.  Thanks, Calyx!

If anyone's interested in picking one up, here's where you can find them: LINK.

 
I'll be coordinating the U.S. leg of the tour, while [@=http://www.head-fi.org/u/411422/hakushondaimao]@hakushondaimao[/@] coordinates the Canadian end of things. Thanks for helping me out haku!


There's a dedicated PaT thread HERE.


CALYX'S PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

"[COLOR=333333]The Calyx Audio PaT headphone amp may be small but it packs a big sonic punch. Use it to upgrade the sound quality of your Android and iOS devices when playing iTunes, Spotify, Pandora or any other music app. The specially designed headphone amplifier provides superior sound and build quality over the cheap amplifiers in the device. Milled from a billet of aluminum the little PaT amp contains an asynchronous 16 bit, 48kHz USB digital to analog converter for superb sound quality. Buttons for play/Pause, volume +-, track skip forward and back (iOS only). Two cables are included, a Micro USB OTG and a micro USB to USB. Apple Devices without a USB port will need Apple's Lightning to USB Camera Adapter which is NOT included and sold separately.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]About Calyx Audio: Digital & Analog (D&A), the parent company of Calyx Audio, designs and manufactures class D output devices for industry brands such as Samsung. Passionate music lover, CEO, and designer Seungmok Yi, started Calyx Audio in 2008 with the goal of bringing music's essence to people through technology."[/COLOR]

Here's what the PaT looks like:








SPECIFICATIONS
[COLOR=232323]Power Source: [/COLOR][COLOR=232323]USB[/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323]Rated Impedance: 32 [Ω][/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323]THD+N Ratio: 0.009 [%] @ 1kHz[/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323]Output Impedance: 1.8 [Ω][/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323]SNR: -98 [dB] @ 1kHz[/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323]Channel Separation: -70 [dB] @ 1kHz[/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323]Frequency Response: 20 [Hz] ~ 20 [kHz][/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323]Dynamic Range: 98 [dB] @ 1kHz[/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323]Volume Control: 0 ~ -64 [dB][/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323]Color: Gold / Wine / Cyan[/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323]Dimension: 60 X 30 X 7.5 [mm][/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323]Weight: 20 [g][/COLOR]
[COLOR=232323][COLOR=232323]Price: [/COLOR][COLOR=000000]$99.99 on Amazon.com[/COLOR][/COLOR]

TOUR GUIDELINES
We're looking for headfiers in U.S. & Canada who meet the following qualifications...

• Active Head-Fi member since 2014
• 100+ posts
• Positive trader feedback preferred

Tour members agree to...

• Keep the PaT for 7 days, shipping on the 8th day
• Treat the PaT kindly, leaving it in "as new" condition for your fellow tour mates
• PM [@=http://www.head-fi.org/u/386104/nmatheis]@nmatheis[/@] (U.S. Tour) or [@=http://www.head-fi.org/u/411422/hakushondaimao]@hakushondaimao[/@] (Canadian Tour) if you encounter issues with the PaT
• PM the next tour member and request a shipping address soon after receiving the PaT
• Pack the PaT well to prevent damage during transit and cover shipping costs to the next participant
• PM tracking number to the next tour member and [@=http://www.head-fi.org/u/386104/nmatheis]@nmatheis[/@] (U.S. Tour) or [@=http://www.head-fi.org/u/411422/hakushondaimao]@hakushondaimao[/@] (Canadian Tour)
• Post impressions or a review on Head-Fi within a reasonable amount of time

TOUR APPLICATION PROCESS

• Please make sure you meet the qualifications
• Reply in this thread, indicating agreement with tour rules
• Specify which tour you're interested in (U.S. or Canada)
• Let us know which City and State / Province you're located in

Cheers,
Nikolaus

 

[nmatheis]

Reserved for tour logistics...

 

[nmatheis]

Reserved for links to reviews...

 

[AUDIOBREEDER]

Is this a remote control for the their flagship model?

 

[nmatheis]

Is this a remote control for the their flagship model?

It sure looks like a remote control, and it kind of is in a way - a remote control that improves the sound quality on your smartphone :wink_face:

Serioudly though, he PaT is a portable DAC/Amp you hook up to your smartphone to improve sound quality. You can also hook it up to your computer, although I think it's really geared for portable use.

Out of the portable DAC/Amps I've seen, it's most similar to the Cozoy Astrapi and HRT dSP and Microstreamer, but the PaT has buttons that can skip / scan through songs and control volume, which seems pretty handy.

I've tried larger portable DAC/Amps with built-in batteries (Cayin C5DAC and Shanling H3$ before, but this will be the first of this smaller type that relies on the USB connect for power that I'll have tried.

Check out Hisoundfi's review and the dedicated PaT thread I linked to above to see what a few of your fellow Head-Fiers think. Maybe you'll want to sign up

 

[Hisoundfi]

Hey hakushondaimao and nmatheis make sure you guys get the apple camera connection kits and include them in with the tour packages. If you don't reviewers will have no way to test them with their iPad or iPhone.

Might I suggest getting a kit for lightning connection and for the old iPhone (4 and lower)?

 

[Hisoundfi]

That was one of the big drawbacks with this. The controls work with iPad and iPhone, but they don't include all the necessary cables to hook this up.

 

[Cotnijoe]

Ive wanted to try a calyx product. Count me in!

 

[nmatheis]

Welcome aboard @Cotnijoe!
 
Good suggestion @Hisoundfi.  I recently fell into that trap with the Cayin C5 DAC/Amp and Shanling H3 DAC/Amp.  It seems like the required iDevice cables don't come with any of these portable DAC/Amps.  I ran out to Best Buy and picked up Apple's Lightning CCK.  I know there are cheaper alternatives, but I've read about unauthorized 3rd-party CCK adapters not working after iOS updates...
 
Let's see some more people sign up now 

 

[nmatheis]

Just got the PaT in. Snapped some quick pics with my iPhone. Here it is...

Simple packaging


Instruction sheet


Top & bottom of PaT (nice non-slip / cushioning material on the bottom)


Connections


Accessories


With my iPhone 5s (PaT is tiny!)


The ever-present challenge with DAC/Amps + iDevices - cable management (Please Apple, stop making us use that @$!*%# Camera Connection Kit!!!)


Eager to give it a spin later tonight

 

[nmatheis]

Joining us money4me247?

 

[hakushondaimao]

Just got the PaT in. Snapped some quick pics with my iPhone. Here it is...

Spoiler: PaT Porn... NSFW ;-)

Simple packaging


Instruction sheet


Top & bottom of PaT (nice non-slip / cushioning material on the bottom)


Connections


Accessories


With my iPhone 5s (PaT is tiny!)


The ever-present challenge with DAC/Amps + iDevices - cable management (Please Apple, stop making us use that @$!*%# Camera Connection Kit!!!)

Eager to give it a spin later tonight

 
Sweet! Wonder what colour the Canadian contingent will be playing with... (and when it'll get here).
 
Guess it's a Best Buy trip for me tomorrow in preparation!

 

[nmatheis]

Jamming on some Björk and Iron Maiden tonight with iPhone 5s -> PaT -> SoundMagic E80. Not bad, not bad at all

Tried it earlier with Trinity Hyperion. Sounded good, as well.

Tried it with HiFiMan HE400 planars. Not... enough... powah...

 

[Armaegis]

Hmm, I might potentially be interested in this, though I'd probably test it more purely from a laptop.

 

[hakushondaimao]

  Hmm, I might potentially be interested in this, though I'd probably test it more purely from a laptop.

 
Might potentially? Let's see some enthusiasm!  

 
Nothing wrong with testing a DAC from a laptop, since a lot of Head-Fi'ers will be interested in that specific usage. I'll probably be doing the same.