Vorzüge VorzAMP PURE II - review and impressions
Jul 9, 2015 at 2:14 AM Post #496 of 873
 
There is no mid-high bump. It could be that you are sensitive to shifts in stereo image as per the nature of your earphones under load. But there is no frequency shift. 

DAPs will always be the most pure signal. No amp, no matter how good, can ever surpass the signal of the source, no matter how crap the source is. 

An amp unloads the output of your device. Depending on your source, it can be worse. PURE II is one of the best-performing portable amps out there, but it can only perform up to the signal it is fed. DX90 has a very good headphone output and a very good line out. To be honest, to beat the DX90... I'm not sure what you would need. In terms of raw power, PURE II will bey far outstrip the abilities of the DX90, but in terms of driving the same earphones or headphones for resolution, I'm not sure it is possible to beat the DX90 tit for tat. 

Think of an amp as lube. It helps sticky situations, unloading the bundles toted by poor sources, but it can only perform up to the signal fed it. DX90 is one of the best sources.

A bit late to respond, but I was waiting to see if Vorzüge would give any feedback on the Pure II unit I recieved. But no feedback on the defectiveness or not of the unit, just a refund, minus some deduction for some tiny scratches that I'm pretty sure must've already been there when I got the amp. Or it is so sensitive to scratches that putting it on a wooden table, the touch of the rubber cover of the DX90, or the two transports in the velt pouch is causing scratches. I also get suspicious when the cost for the scratches more or less match the shipping costs that they were supposed to not charge me for since they sent a different unit than I ordered, but that may or may not actually have been a coincidence.
 
Either way, there was a definite mid-high bump to my ears, and with the direct refund from Vorzüge, I can only assume that it was not a specific feature of the amp I recieved. If I used it in combination with the FiiO X3, the mid-high bump somewhat countered the rather dark and V-shaped sound of the X3, so I suppose it would not seem so overtly coloured, depending on what source you pair it with. The mid-high bump also made it easier for me to hear the detail in that frequency range, which leads to an improved sense of clarity. Even if I'm not sure that there actually was a difference.
 
I can imagine that a shift in stereo image could cause headaches, but I'm not so sure that this would cause the pressure that I felt on my eardrums.
 
As for the use of using a Pure II in combination with a DX90, I mostly got it to see if I might need an amp for driving headphones such as the HE-560. I know that for my speakers (which are admittedly hard to drive), a good amplifier is definitely needed to keep the speakers under control. It appears this is not necessary for the DX90 and the HE-560 or the Vsonic GR07. At least not for my ears.
 
I have a white Pure II paired with my DX90. Looking at your picture I'm thinking I should have gone with the black on. SQ is what's important though
 

Do you hear much improvement in sound quality then? Just curious as I didn't hear much difference. What are you driving with it?
 
Jul 9, 2015 at 2:27 AM Post #497 of 873
A bit late to respond, but I was waiting to see if Vorzüge would give any feedback on the Pure II unit I recieved. But no feedback on the defectiveness or not of the unit, just a refund, minus some deduction for some tiny scratches that I'm pretty sure must've already been there when I got the amp.

That's just good customer service. Take a step back. You have already reached a conclusion it is not for you, going as far as to label it a "defect", so what will discussion achieve. Were you going to change your mind? You got most of your money back, which is a great outcome in this hobby. Reinvest the money as you wish :cool:
 
Jul 9, 2015 at 3:32 AM Post #498 of 873
That's just good customer service. Take a step back. You have already reached a conclusion it is not for you, going as far as to label it a "defect", so what will discussion achieve. Were you going to change your mind? You got most of your money back, which is a great outcome in this hobby. Reinvest the money as you wish
cool.gif

I don't know whether I would call it a good customer service to not say anything, even when I asked about it, but yes I'm cutting my losses here and calling it a day. But since they did send the wrong unit (a Pure II instead of a Pure II+), I was wondering if they'd just send me a correct unit or if they'd just flat out refund me. And given that it was the wrong type, it would not be unusual to expect a full refund, correct?
 
I wasn't sure if it was a defective unit or not, and I still am curious whether the high perceived sound pressure on my ears, even at very low volumes, and headaches are an aberation on my side or if the unit was somehow deviating from the norm.
 
But it was an insightful experience nonetheless, as I'm now fairly convinced that a portable amp will not bring anything to my current setup. Also to take any discussion about (portable) headphone amps with a somewhat bigger spoon of salt than even the discussion about headphones in general. In the end, only listening for ourselves can decide what sounds good to us.
 
Jul 9, 2015 at 8:36 AM Post #499 of 873
A bit late to respond, but I was waiting to see if Vorzüge would give any feedback on the Pure II unit I recieved. But no feedback on the defectiveness or not of the unit, just a refund, minus some deduction for some tiny scratches that I'm pretty sure must've already been there when I got the amp. Or it is so sensitive to scratches that putting it on a wooden table, the touch of the rubber cover of the DX90, or the two transports in the velt pouch is causing scratches. I also get suspicious when the cost for the scratches more or less match the shipping costs that they were supposed to not charge me for since they sent a different unit than I ordered, but that may or may not actually have been a coincidence.

Either way, there was a definite mid-high bump to my ears, and with the direct refund from Vorzüge, I can only assume that it was not a specific feature of the amp I recieved. If I used it in combination with the FiiO X3, the mid-high bump somewhat countered the rather dark and V-shaped sound of the X3, so I suppose it would not seem so overtly coloured, depending on what source you pair it with. The mid-high bump also made it easier for me to hear the detail in that frequency range, which leads to an improved sense of clarity. Even if I'm not sure that there actually was a difference.

I can imagine that a shift in stereo image could cause headaches, but I'm not so sure that this would cause the pressure that I felt on my eardrums.

As for the use of using a Pure II in combination with a DX90, I mostly got it to see if I might need an amp for driving headphones such as the HE-560. I know that for my speakers (which are admittedly hard to drive), a good amplifier is definitely needed to keep the speakers under control. It appears this is not necessary for the DX90 and the HE-560 or the Vsonic GR07. At least not for my ears.

Do you hear much improvement in sound quality then? Just curious as I didn't hear much difference. What are you driving with it?


For my headphones - the Fidelio X2, ACS Encore Studio, JVC FX 1100, Noble 6 - the Vorzüge is markedly better than DX90's headphone out. Better separation, soundstage depth, imaging, better bass texture and definition, a more prominent and realistic midrange and superior dynamics. It's not necessarily an improvement that makes you go "WOW" the second you hear it. It's a subtle but worthwhile improvement that you learn to appreciate over time. The DX90 is a fine DAP and the built in amp is powerful enough for all of my headphones and IEMs, but the extra I get from the Pure II is certainly noticed when I'm forced to do without it.

You were using it with the HE-560, right? Isn't it possible that your dislike of the Pure II has something to do with the fact that it's severely underpowered for a headphone like that? If I were in the market for a portable device to drive the HE-560 I'd be looking at something like the Centrance Hifi m8 - although I don't think any portable amp could do them justice.
 
Jul 14, 2015 at 10:07 AM Post #500 of 873
+1 to DX90 + Pure II combo
 
Jul 25, 2015 at 6:50 AM Post #501 of 873
Hi, has anyone tried pairing any version of the PURE or the DUO with Hugo? I'd be most interested to know if this combination would be suited to beef out the Hugo's sound which I find to lean toward the thin, bright side (at least with my Fostex TH-900). I'm looking for a warmer, bassy signature with an analogue feel. Comparisons to the Headstage Arrow would be very welcome as well.
 
Also, I see that there is a "revised" version of the DUO on the Vorzüge website. Would that be the new DUO that you guys have been talking about, or is there supposed to be a DUO II coming out in the near future?
 
Jul 25, 2015 at 9:48 AM Post #502 of 873
Hi, has anyone tried pairing any version of the PURE or the DUO with Hugo? I'd be most interested to know if this combination would be suited to beef out the Hugo's sound which I find to lean toward the thin, bright side (at least with my Fostex TH-900). I'm looking for a warmer, bassy signature with an analogue feel. Comparisons to the Headstage Arrow would be very welcome as well.

Also, I see that there is a "revised" version of the DUO on the Vorzüge website. Would that be the new DUO that you guys have been talking about, or is there supposed to be a DUO II coming out in the near future?


I think you'd be hard pushed to better the HUGO's performance by adding another portable amp. I've not heard of anybody doing that to be honest.
 
Jul 25, 2015 at 10:51 AM Post #503 of 873
There are some over in the Portable Hugo thread, for example. CL Trio and ALO Continental have been recommended, but I'm not sure if I wanna go tubes.
I wouldn't say that it's a question of "bettering" the Hugo's SQ, it's more a matter of altering it to my liking. Anyway, the plan is to get an amp and then compare the sound with and w/o Hugo in the chain. If I like the spund if the amp more, I'll let the Hugo go.
I'm more after a full-bodied, speaker-like presentation I'm not sure the Hugo can provide. (Okay, maybe a little bit if a basshead, too.)
 
Jul 25, 2015 at 11:40 AM Post #505 of 873
You should try the Cypher Labs solo db + Duet. It's exactly what you are describing.

 
I had the Duet great amp, but had to sell it because of its harsh treble, I recently regot the Duet/Db combo, this time I went balanced all the way around hoping that would in some way help with the treble? it didn't :frowning2:
 
it might be the ASGs that I strictly use have bad synergy with the Duet? but I will be reputting the Duet/Db combo up for sale in the sales thread again soon,
 
Aug 8, 2015 at 9:58 PM Post #508 of 873
Looking for some knowledgeable audiophiles for help here. I'm no expert and new to the hifi world. I currently own an Astell Kern 120ii player, Shure SE846 headphones and looking at purchasing the Pure II amp if I can enhance sq at all.

I was told that the AK120ii internal amp was so good that pairing with an external amp would be unnecessary and would not improve sq at all so I'm not sure what to believe. I know most people in this thread are iPod users or have players that might be lesser quality compared to the 120ii so naturally there would be a large upgrade by stacking with the Pure II.

Can anyone out there comment on how much difference I would hear by dishing out the money for this amp. Thanks
 
Aug 8, 2015 at 10:35 PM Post #509 of 873
Seahawk, an amp can improve a rig but it will depend on many factors. In your case the 846 can be ran from a phone and in my case adding an amp improved a little, very little but with other IEMS especially iems with Dynamuc Drivers (mini woofers) an amp made a huge difference. The smart thing for you is to stop thinking and wondering and enjoy that set up you have. Or you can chase the dragon with little sparks.of enjoyments.
 
Aug 8, 2015 at 10:54 PM Post #510 of 873

Seahawk I have the A&K 120II plus the Duo and Pure II so with some experience I can say each amp adds significantly to the dynamics of the player . If using the Duo I disable the EQ on the A&K and bump the bass treble or both considering what type of music I'm playing . Classic rock and blues hits hard the bass is perfect to my ears but might not be to everyone the Pure also brings the best out of the A&K . I wish you were close enough to me to actually give it a listen because to some the advantages might not be enough to justify the cost but I have no regrets . I had both these amps paired originally with an IPOD which they also work great I've had the A&K for a couple months and in my opinion it's amp doesn't have the warmth and richness of a Vorzamp      
 

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