Want some opinions on upgrading my portable

[The Crayolaman]

Hey gang, so here's the deal:
Current rig: Ipod G3->Ray Samuels SR71->Grado SR225, Ety ER4S, Senn 650, and UE Superfi 5

I like my current setup but I am not happy with the way the Senn 650's sound in this combo...with the SR71 I notice remarkable improvement in the Grado 225 and the Ety's, and the Super fi's sound almost as good unamped as they do amped...and usually at the gym or I want to go ultra portable it's the Ipod and UE5's only. But I travel all the time and I need something very portable for when I am just lounging around the hotel or something (the travel bag is very important for keeping all together....I made an amazing bag for current setup). I am dying to hear this almighty sound of the senns...but I feel disappointed here.

Here's the question:
Would I benefit in picking up the headroom Microstack in this application?
What can I still lug around somewhat easily and get the huge sound improvement I'm looking for?

thanks,
Eric

 

[2426]

First off, the Micro is portable, but its not "it fits in your pocket, portable". Second, there is no way to connect the Micro DAC to a Ipod. If you want to go get the Micro, you either only get the Micro amp, or you buy a different DAP (a la H120, H140). If your ok, with size being bigger, you can also try the Pocket Referece and the XP-7.

 

[KenW]

I wanna see this bag you put together. Come on now...if it's THAT good, there have to be pics!! Share it baby...share it!!

Oh and FWIW, I can't see travel with the XP-7. Far too large for me to carry around. I suspect the Micro line would also be too large for convenience unless it was going to serve as an office/computer rig as well. I'd hold on making an amp change as there appears to be a few new releases on the horizon. If I'm not mistaken, the AE-1 will get a face lift of sorts and a new Portaphile offering is around the corner as well.

 

[socrates63]

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Crayolaman Here's the question: Would I benefit in picking up the headroom Microstack in this application? What can I still lug around somewhat easily and get the huge sound improvement I'm looking for?

Edit: I reread the original post, and it seems you may not necessarily need a pocket-portable solution. In any case, I'll leave me comments intact. Also, as 2426 indicated, you can't use the Micro DAC with the iPod as the iPod does not have digital out. One more thing, make sure you are using high quality audio files if you're concerned about sound quality.

To me, the MicroStack is transportable gear, not portable gear. It's too big to carry around without a bag, and the battery life is too short to make it a truly portable solution.

I think you should take a look at the smaller portable amps like the Hornet and Portaphile v2^2. If you want to use the amp with both your IEM and full size headphone, the Hornet's variable gain switch is very handy. The Portaphile doesn't quite have all the bells and whistles of the Hornet, but it sounds very similar to the SR-71. I think it's a bargain at $200. For more impressions or info, take a look at the Portaphile owners thread. There are other small portable amps which may be of interest to you, but these two are the ones I have direct experience with.